By day, they are business professionals. By night, they are adventurous riders. Joe Fitter is finance director of an international electronic company. It is on Tuesday evening that he changes into his biker gear for the roar of the engine, and heads off toward Pinnacle Plaza in Shunyi District.

They are not a gang, however. They are mem¬bers of the Mad Dog Motorcycle Club in Beijing. As bike culture is just starting in China, they emphasize that they are not just riding on the weekends, instead talking of freedom, courage and loyalty. It is a commitment to be in the brother¬hood. Each member has gone through the process of being a "hang-around" to ride with the club, then becoming a "prospect" and then tested for at least six months before getting a numbered MDMC tattoo to be recognized as part of the club.

Fitter, who goes by the nick name Papadad has been a member of the Mad Dog Motorcycle Club for 10 years, having joined in the Phillipines and later founding Beijing chapter in September 2009.

"We want to be more organized," Fitter says. "We meet every Tuesday night and we chat about work, riding, and lots of other topics…And it's not just about riding, when you get the guys who you trust together, all headed in the same direction literally and figuratively, you can actually do a lot of good, like raising money for charity and more. A lot of motorcycle clubs may have bad reputations but we have a good reputation everywhere."

Once in while, they gather themselves in the US to ride through San Francisco, Seattle and Mis¬souri and meet up in South Dakota, before heading home. They also meet up with other Mad Dog Mo¬torcycle Club chapters across Asia – Philippines, Thailand, Japan, Singapore, and Hong Kong.

Besides meeting on Tuesday, the club also meets every Sunday morning at Euro-Plaza French Bakery in Shunyi for a weekend ride.

Although most of the club members have Harley Davidson motorcycles, the club is open to bikers with cruisers 400cc and above. The rule was set to define which bikes can maintain the pace and riding style of the club.

Mad Dog Motorcycle Club was founded in 1994 in the Philippines and has grown into an interna¬tional motorcycle club over the years. The club has chapters in many Asian countries and cities such as Thailand, Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong. It is a club with a diverse and no nonsense attitude to riding; only bikers who are dedicated to free spirited riding and brotherhood are accepted.

"Our motto is that whenever we visit a place, we leave it better than we came," Fitter says. "We're trying to give something back. Everywhere we go, we leave a mark on it."