A final ride with Lionel Lim, Warpigs motorcycle club founder

SINGAPORE – The 60 Harley-Davidson motorcycle riders each twisted the throttle of their machines. Setting off a roar from the exhaust pipes as a mark of respect, they rode past the casket of Mr Lionel Lim, a founding member of Warpigs Motorcycle Club (Warpigs MC), at Mandai Crematorium.

The 1km-long convoy escorting the funeral cortege on July 30 must have piqued curiosity.

At the crematorium, Buddhist chants, along with English rock band Black Sabbath’s 1970 song War Pigs, were heard as the coffin was moved from the hearse to a hall.

Mr Lim, affectionately known by his Warpigs family as “Fat A**”, was there from the start when the club was formed in 1996.

The auditor had died of a cardiac arrest in Kuala Lumpur on July 27 – five days after the death of Black Sabbath’s frontman Ozzy Osbourne – as he was about to leave a hotel in the company of “brothers”. He was 54.

Mr Lim leaves behind his wife and 18-year-old son. He also left a legacy, said former president of the club, Mr Jap Loh.

“His genuine caring nature and aura have left a lasting impression on all of us,” said Mr Loh. “He was humble and he always showed up with a smile.”

Mr Lim’s brother Leonard Lim, 51, an application manager, said: “It was wonderful. It was a grand send-off and I think it was something he would have liked.”

The younger Mr Lim admitted he did not know what his late brother did in the motorcycle club. At the wake, he had learnt that his brother had recently paid a deposit for a high-capacity maxi scooter to add to his Harley Fat Boy and Honda Gold Wing stable.

“His life always revolved around motorcycles, but I didn’t know – and he did not tell me – that he was a key person in the club,” added Mr Lim.

He realised his older brother’s level of influence only when he saw the wide array of visitors at the wake held at Fernvale Link in Sengkang. They paid their final respects to Mr Lionel Lim, who lay in a white coffin adorned with his motorcycle helmet, shades, licence plate and a can of soda printed with the words “Fat A**”.

Also in attendance was Mr Lim’s lunch buddy, who came in crutches, and a stranger-turned-friend who had met Mr Lim at a Johor Bahru petrol station and bonded with him over ice cream.

Representatives of at least six other motorcycle clubs and several staff members of Harley-Davidson Singapore also attended the wake.

Perhaps the best descriptors of Mr Lim, from the motley crew of visitors, was his gentle “friend-all” demeanour, said his primary schoolmate from a mission school, Mr Tan Chee Ping.

Mr Tan, 54, a health administrator, said: “He was a teddy bear who took the same school bus as me each morning. But Lionel became a man who let his actions speak louder than his words.”

Warpigs MC was formed by riders who shared an interest in the US Harley lifestyle and culture. The club created a space for these like-minded people who love motorcycles and riding. They have “family” – as club members are called – in Malaysia, Brunei, Japan, Indonesia, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates.

Aside from riding and partying across Malaysia, Thailand and Japan, Warpigs has also been involved in charity work.

Among the club’s initiatives were Project Rolling Outreach, which supported children at the Yishun Family Service in June 2025, and a food distribution drive in Jalan Kukoh in 2024, which Mr Lim supported by raising funds and manning a Milo stand.

A Jalan Kukoh resident, who gave his name only as Mr Mohamed, said the event brought joy to the children in the old estate. “Even if it was one day, the kids felt they were not forgotten and were special, thanks to the club,” said the 37-year-old.

Personally, without Mr Lim, I may not have delved into motorcycling as a profession and obsession.

While I was in college some 36 years ago, Mr Lim generously lent me his Honda XR200R dirt bike for more than four months, before I got my own motorcycle. His generosity kick-started my love affair with dirt biking and long-distance riding.

Ride in peace, Lionel.