The second man, who needs no introduction in automotive circles, is Ravichandran -- the man who gave unsuspecting Indians the Supra and the Shogun. Also the man who helped Bajaj become a serious force in motorcycles. If someone knows how to sell motorcycles in India, it is Ravichandran.
The third bloke, ahem, has a journalistic background. Sachin Chavan used to regularly crash Royal Enfields in his effort to go faster when he used to work for Overdrive magazine (I hear). Sachin today works for Royal Enfield and organises rides to far flung parts of the Himalayas which has earned him cult status already.
He has been sowing the seeds of 22nd century Enfield worship amongst youngsters who normally spend an abnormal amount of time in front of PCs. And last year he rode a heavily modded Enfield, still an Enfield, to third place at the cruel event called Raid de Himalaya. I was there too, driving a new SX4 with a heater, and I saw how Sachin was riding on sheer will power to overcome a nasty fever and a snowstorm.
With people so committed and able in their fold, Royal Enfield should be developing, building and selling better motorcycles. Motorcycles that make me jump out of my bed on any morning and head for the garage, instead of a workstation, right? Alas, they have a lot of work to do.
Also see: Celebrity fashion gone wrong!
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