Lagos City Horses

The one noticeable thing for a guy from a nice obscure corner of Ibadan and almost every 'immigrant' is the quantity of motor vehicles. Lagos like most metropolises has a road network problem that turns transportation into a grind and turns commuting from Ikeja to Ajah into a dreaded experience. On a good day the amount of road users is staggering even during off-peak periods and on a not-so-good day when a big truck or semi breaks down on an important exit ramp every Lagos road user feels the grind from mainland to island.

Transport in Lagos is a logistics issue for a single guy like me and it takes some effort to calculate itinerary based on available resources and 'path of least resistance'. This post is about the Lagos city horses.

The Motorcycle, commonly called 'okada' in these parts is the fastest, most expensive and dangerous horse in the city, very effective for short distance hops, the danger factor discourages most commuters from using it for long distance trips. It is a favourite of students and job seekers rushing off to their next lecture or interview.The riders are viewed by most as reckless men(99% of the riders are men) with an inordinate amount of dare-devilry. Most states including Lagos have a law that prevents the rider from carrying more than one passengers and to use helmets in a bid to reduce the accident rate.

My first time on a bike was a breeze, the feeling of total freedom was intoxicating and the teenager in me couldn't see or feel any danger.In Lagos when dusk is coming with its attendant ills and other other forms of transport are few and far in-between it is common to see bikes carrying two passengers.The first time on a bike with another lady passenger was a totally different experience, I didnt feel the freedom at all, all I could feel is the rhymthic bouncing of her derrière against my lower member as we cruised the uneven road.

--More about the derrière later.