An automobile and motorsport enthusiast like me is constantly searching for opportunities to get involved in activities that include motorcycles or cars. Although the inner motorhead does not mind being an audience at an automotive event, what about being a participant at a motorsport event? Is it even possible? Motorsport is expensive—expensive to organise, expensive to get into as a profession, and even expensive to take part in casually out of passion. The total costs, including equipment, vehicles, racing fees, and track fees, can become financially unviable for many people. Therefore, what do passionate people like us do to fulfill our undying love for motorsport or those trying to get into it? That is where grassroots-level events, such as the Fastest Man of North East, a motorcycle racing event, come into play by providing a safe and affordable racing platform.
WHAT IS FASTEST MAN OF NORTH EAST?
The Fastest Man of North East is a racing event organised by 88 Racing, a Guwahati, India-based motorcycle racing team. The first edition of the event, which was organised on February 28, 2025, was a great success and saw participation by several racers from across the northeastern states of India and a footfall of a large number of audience members.
Being the first of its kind motorsport event in the region, the popularity of the Fastest Man of North East grew quickly among the motorsport and automobile enthusiasts, so much so that many started to request a second edition of the event. The huge success and popularity caused the second edition of the event, the Fastest Man of North East 2.0, to happen within the same year. The second edition of the event was organised on October 26, 2025. The second edition turned out to be bigger than before. More than 70 racers from various states of the northeastern region of India turned up for participation and were witnessed by an even larger audience. The Fastest Man of North East 2.0 was sponsored by Servo Lubricants and Steelbird Helmets.
A FEW PHOTOS FROM THE FASTEST MAN OF NORTH EAST 1.0
FORMAT OF THE FASTEST MAN OF NORTH
Fastest Man of North East is a timed lap race. Each participant is allowed to ride on the track alone and given a fixed number of laps to clock the lap times. The fastest laps of each participant are then compared. The one to clock the fastest lap wins the race. The race is divided into multiple categories based on the experience of the participants, i.e., amateur or professional, and based on the motorcycles’ engine capacity. So, every participant can choose a category that suits them the best. As of now, the race is being organised at the go-kart track at the Warisa Estate in Guwahati, Assam. Additionally, for both editions of the race so far, the participation fee was INR 1,500, an amount that is much more affordable than other racing events. The participants also get an option to practice on the track as well by paying an additional fee for each practice day.
MY EXPERIENCE
The Fastest Man of North East 2.0 was my first motorcycle racing experience. Although unfortunately, I missed the opportunity to participate in the first edition of the event due to work commitments, I thoroughly enjoyed photographing and filming other participants. Therefore, this time I clicked on the registration link as soon as I saw the advertisement. Since I own a 2016 BS4 Suzuki Gixxer 155 (carbureted), and I did not have any motorcycle racing experience, I participated in the “up to 250cc amateur” category.
The race day began with signing indemnity documents, a race briefing, a track walk, and pre-race vehicle and safety gear scrutiny. Although almost everything was as per race rules, my motorcycle has a center stand, which is not allowed on the track, as during leans it may scrape on the track and damage the track surface. Luckily, I was carrying some basic tools, and in less than 10 minutes, I removed the center stand, and the motorcycle was race compliant.
Every participant was given 7 laps, which included 1 out lap, 5 hot laps to clock lap times, and 1 in lap. Since I had no prior racing experience on the track, I almost used 2 or more laps just to understand the track and gave my best in the last laps. The timings I clocked were nowhere near the fastest lap times; however, I was more than happy with the numbers I clocked.
The lap times that I clocked are as follows:
| LAP NO. | LAP TIME (in seconds) | CHANGE (in seconds) | GAP TO RACE LEADER |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 64.948 | NA | +20.456 |
| 2 | 63.585 | -1.363 | +19.093 |
| 3 | 61.603 (personal fastest lap) | -1.982 | +17.111 |
| 4 | 61.726 | +0.123 | +17.234 |
| 5 | 62.711 | +0.985 | +18.219 |
Overall, it was an amazing experience, and I am looking forward to being back faster and better next time. And I almost forgot to mention that Steelbird Helmets, for the event, had organized a content creation competition and gave away 4 helmets to the best creators, and I was among the 4 to receive a Steelbird helmet, my first ever giveaway win.
You can check out my best lap POV video below
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