BENGALURU: Life of a rider is unpredictable. Each journey takes you to different experiences. But irresponsible behaviour of others can lead to accidents, which can be certainly avoided,” says city-based rider Pooja Bajaj, who met with a severe accident four months back at Kunzum Pass in Himachal Pradesh. But 25 days after she sustained a shoulder fracture, this passionate motorcyclist was back on the road with her Classic 500 Royal Enfield, undeterred by the rods and screws inside her body.
Bajaj, who holds an MBA degree, was a fitness entrepreneur before she took up riding as a full-time vocation three years ago. Till now, she has covered 1 lakh km on her motorcycle. “I have travelled across India in bits and pieces. I used to cover 700 km per day before my accident. Now, things have changed a little,” says Bajaj, 34, who also won a gold medal in cycling at the university level.
Her life changed on the 10th day of a 12-day expedition near Spiti Valley. “It was a group ride. The expedition was difficult because of uneven terrain, offroads, landslides and heavy rain. We moved carefully, and everything was fine till the 10th day, when we went to Kunzum Pass,” she recalls. “A fellow rider, who was riding in front of me, did lane-cutting without any signal. I had a bad crash, and my right clavical (collar bone) broke into multiple pieces, with one of the fragments piercing my thoracic region,” she adds. Things turned from bad to worse due to the inadequate medical facilities in and around the valley, and she developed severe swelling and fever. Bajaj rushed to Chandigarh, where doctors gave her permission to travel to her home town, Bengaluru. “When I touched my shoulder, I could feel that there was no bone. The surgery happened four days after the accident. They put rods and screws, and I got a scar which I’m carrying with pride,” she says.
Though doctors said she would be unable to continue her rides for at least two years, she was determined to resume her journeys as soon as possible, and made a comeback on the 26th day. “I was very positive, and only wondered when I would get back to my bike. The fourth day after my surgery, I went to the gym and started with leg exercises and lower body workouts. I slowly started to walk and cycle, and moved to upper body workouts. I was watching my progress every day,” says Bajaj, who recently took a one-day trip to Ananthpur.
Now, she wants to promote the message that a small mistake on someone’s part on the road can cause a life-threatening situation for others. “I would request everyone to follow even the most basic traffic rules. And don’t give up your passion for any reason, let it be gender, physique, or socio-cultural circumstances.”