Bike race thrills, gives anxious moments to Kochiites

KOCHI: As bikes vroomed past the crowd gathered at the Fort Kochi Veli ground on Thursday, Satheesh, a police official, stopped watching the 'deadly' game.
"It's so dangerous. I can't keep watching this," Satheesh said. Not just Satheesh, but all those gathered there to watch the motor bike race as part of the city carnival subscribed to the same view.
As 80 motorcyclists from across South India engaged in a stiff fight, the adrenalin levels of the onlookers rose with each passing moment.
"It was 25 years ago that we included bike race in the carnival. Till a couple of years ago, it used to be a beach bike race. But as the beach continued to erode year after year, we shifted the venue to Fort Kochi Veli ground. Over the years, the event has become a professional one," said K J Sohan, president, Cochin Aquatic Club.
"The precision with which each contestant took the hairpin loops, testifies to their professionalism," he said. There were three laps with 550 m each in all the three categories.
The competitions were held in three categories - Indian Open, Indian Experts and Novice Class. While Madhu of Thumkur, Bangalore, emerged the winner in the Indian Open category, Anil Varghese of Kochi won the second prize. Shabaz Khan of Palakkad, Thanveer Abdul of Palakkad and Adnan Ahmed of Kochi stood third, fourth and fifth respectively.
In the Indian Experts category, Thanveer Abdul of Palakkad emerged champion while Amal Varghese of Ernakulam finished second. Shabas Khan of Bangalore, Sansar P J of Kochi and Binu of Kochi stood third, fourth and fifth in the category.
In the novice class, Tinu of Kochi won the first prize and Akshay of Bangalore finished second. Ranjith of Kochi, Dinu of Kochi and Noby of Kochi won the third, fourth and fifth positions respectively.
MLA Dominic Presentation flagged off the competition. C N Benny, general secretary, carnival committee, and A M Ayoob, general convener, also attended the flagging off ceremony.