Girl on track

Amassing multiple podium finishes, Fazeela U is blazing trails within India’s bike rally circuit 
PicThomas Jose
PicThomas Jose

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The new face of racing in Kerala is a 26-year-old fitness trainer. 
Born and raised in an orthodox environment in Kozhikode, never in her wildest dreams did Fazeela U aka Fazi think that she would become a rally rider.

Fazeela U
Fazeela U

“Being a racer was never my dream.From a very young age,I was fascinated with bike stunts and all I wanted to do was ride a bike,” shares Fazeela, reminiscing about her life as a teenager, when she used to ‘beg and borrow’ rides from family/friends.

It’s her interest in stunting which eventually caused this freelance yoga instructor to meet up with Kochi’s popular biker crew CoG racing. “Jose Sebastian, CoG’s team manager , is my biggest motivator and supporter. After finishing first in a regional mud-race at North Paravur, I started training for big-league rally racing last October,” explains Fazi, who recently garnered podium finishes during MRF’s National Rally Championship 2017 at Baroda and Indore.

Yes she can 
The aspiring champion racer says she’s thankful for the support provided by her co-rider and CoG racing’s ace trainer Vishnu V V, who’s helping her sharpen her rally skills. She gratefully remembers him encouraging her to more spend time in the workshop, learning technical quirks—which eventually helped her finish the second MRF rally with flying colours even after a major mechanical malfunction.

“As far as I’m concerned, there’s no difference in being a rider or a woman rider. It’s all about being true to yourself and the sport,” states this single mother, addressing the stereotypical roles thrust upon women.
For now, Fazeela is tinkering with her Apache RTR 200 cc bike and preparing for the upcoming editions of MRF rally’s third and fourth rounds at Pune (May 28) and Nasik (June 3). Details: facebook.com/
teamcogracing
 

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