Dubai bikers Piston Kings turn grief into compassion: A special ride for Maya to help rescued dogs

Dubai: On October 31, a group of motorcycle riders will set off from Dubai towards Fujairah, carrying more than just their usual riding gear. Strapped to their bikes will be food and supplies for rescued dogs, all riding in memory of Maya, a seven-year-old pet dog who succumbed to cancer earlier this year.

The inaugural ‘Dog Ride’, organised by Piston Kings, a Dubai-based motorcycle riding community, aims to turn the grief of losing a furry family member into support for an animal shelter in Fujairah.

Earlier this year, Piston Kings founder, M. F. Khan, 43, and his wife, Urooj Shafi, lost Maya, something that is still hard for Khan to talk about.

“Maya for my wife and me … she meant the world to us. She was a big part of our family. We don’t have kids, so she was the closest thing we had to a kid,” Khan said.

“She got diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, which was very aggressive, earlier this year. We tried everything a dog parent would, but she didn’t make it,” he added.

During this difficult phase in his personal life, Khan leaned back on his riding community, which he quickly realised had many pet parents as well.

“A lot of riders have dogs, cats or birds and of course they are part of their families,” he said.

The group came together to not just support the couple but also share whatever information and experience they had as pet parents.

Very soon, this offshoot of the Piston Kings community had an identity of its own – Paw Kings, an active group of riders, who love to share their knowledge and experience, or just the day’s photo of their pet.

“It’s a very active group,” Khan said.

But along with the pet loving community within Piston Kings, Khan also began connecting with groups across the UAE working for animal welfare, interactions that ultimately led to Khan and Shafi adopting two dogs recently.

“We adopted Mojo from the Musaffah Dog Project in Abu Dhabi. They are a rescue organisation helping and caring for street animals in UAE, they are not a shelter but do amazing work. We also adopted Misty from Animals & Us in Fujairah, who are a dog shelter and animal rescue group,” he said.

His wife, he says, is the primary caregiver to the two dogs and five cats they have at home.

But as Khan began interacting more closely with animal welfare workers in the UAE, he couldn’t help but feel the need to do a little more – for the people who were spending their time and energy to care for the animals, as well as for the animal community itself.

The answer was simple – bringing together his love for motorcycle riding and animal welfare.

“We ride outside Dubai most of the time and because this shelter is in Fujairah, with 400+ dogs, I thought it would be cool to strap dog food to our bikes and go feed them. That idea was accepted by the community, because a lot of them have cats and dogs. In fact, we posted about it in the wider riding community and even they started responding, wanting to join the dog ride. So, right now, we’re in the middle of this snowball effect, trying to spread the word, and arrange for cleaning equipment, animal food and blankets that we can take to the shelter,” he said.

“Some have even asked us – ‘I don’t ride a bike, can I still be part of it?’ And we say yes to everyone, you can join in your car, anyone can join, as long as they support the idea, which is to get these supplies to the animals at the shelter, spend some time playing with them there, and who knows, may be some of them will end up adopting a furry family member,” Khan added.

For Khan, bringing people together through motorcycles is something he has been doing for years.

Born and raised in Dubai, his love for motorcycles started early, fascinated by the biker life.

While he had been riding for over two decades, it wasn’t until a few years ago that the activity took on a whole new meaning.

“Around four years ago, my wife and I sought therapy, just to understand ourselves better. And that’s when both of us discovered that we were on the autistic spectrum. Being diagnosed in your late 30s or early 40s is a slightly scary experience, because you have spent your whole life functioning as a certain person and then you start questioning things,” he said.

“In many ways, you start learning a lot of new things about yourself, too,” he added.

So, as Khan tried to make sense of the diagnosis and what it meant, riding became that solitary yet communal exercise that helped him stay centered.

“When you’re riding a motorcycle, your mind goes into a kind of tunnel vision. It clears up your head and allows you to think. It was then that riding became more than a passion for me, it became therapy,” he said.

“We usually ride early in the mornings, and quite often towards Fujairah or Khorfakkan. As the scenery changes, when you head out to the desert and then cross into the Hajar mountains, that’s when things start getting interesting. Even though its not far from home, it takes you away from the city and for me it brings a very strong sense of calm. You become one with Nature when you’re on a motorcycle – all of your senses are heightened … you’re smelling all the things, feeling the wind, it’s a very different way of experiencing your surroundings, when you’re not in a box, which is what a car can often be,” he said.

Riding also became his connection to community – one that he built soon after the COVID-19 pandemic, looking to connect with people with a shared passion.

What started as Piston Kings – a group riding community – has quickly grown into an active community, with riders from all over.

“We all shared a passion for heritage and vintage motorcycles. We have riders from all age groups and walks of life – they’re from all across South Asia, the Middle East, Europe, from across the world, really. We also have a lot of women riders joining us, we call them the Piston Queens. It’s very inclusive and it has become something bigger than how it started, but as they say – we’re along for the ride,” Khan said.

While the October 31 ride will be the first of its kind for Piston Kings, Khan hopes that just like Piston Kings, this, too, might be the beginning of something bigger.

If the event goes well, he said that the group may consider turning it into an annual initiative, supporting rescue organisations and animals in need.

If you, too, would like to be part of this community initiative, whether on a bike or by car, here are the details:

No animals will be transported on the motorcycles.

Participants can join the ride, contribute supplies or help support the shelter's work.