Updated: January 3, 2022 10:45:53 pm
This is the first time in the country that so many cyclists have covered such a long distance together. (Written by Ashish Chandra)
For some, the end of the year is about holidays, and for others, it’s about achieving their dreams.
2021 ended with 75 cyclists from Pune’s Indo Athletics Society (IAS) riding 1600 km together to Kanyakumari. This ride was done to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Independence. This is the first time in the country that so many cyclists have covered such a long distance together.
The riders ranged from as young as 14 years old till 63 years of age. The 10-day journey was flagged off from Bigdi Bhakti-Shakti Udyan in Pune on December 11 and covered Pune-Karad-Belgaum-Yellapur-Murudeshwar-Mangalore-Thalassery-Guruvayur-Alappuzha-Thiruvananthapuram before reaching Kanyakumari on December 20.
“For our group, it’s not just a 10-day event but a daily routine where every morning, we cover a distance of 50 km which climbs up to 100 km on weekends. Each cyclist had been trained to fix a puncture and replace a tube,” said Gajanan Khaire, an IT professional and the chairman of IAS.
On the logistical arrangements for the ride, Khaire says they had their lunch in mathas and churches along the route and for their night stay, they stayed in mathas, schools and marriage halls, which made their journey very economical. He said, “We only took Rs 7,000 for the entire journey from the cyclists, with which we provided lunch, dinner and place of stay, along with the return train ticket.”
“We also had a truck behind the riders which carried their luggage and equipment necessary for cycle breakdown along with a pilot van at the front, just in case some rider faced any issues,” he added.
IAS is a socio-environmental organisation that was established in 2016 to “tackle the commercialisation we see today and provide a platform which operates on no loss no profit basis”, Khaire said.
Ajit Patil, also an IT professional, said, “We got GPS device from Ramki Technologies from Hyderabad, which was attached to every cycle allowing us and the family members back home to track each cyclist’s exact position. We also had some of the volunteers in Pune who kept monitoring the GPS and if someone took a wrong route, they could call that person and guide him in the right direction.”
According to Patil, cyclists had divided themselves into different groups and had a target of covering 170-180 km per day. “We started our journey at 5 am and aimed to cover the distance of 100-110 km by 1 PM. It was important to start early because, after lunch, we had to rest, explore the new place and also our pace dropped. We then started again at 3 pm and rode the next 70 km by 7 pm,” he said.
Emphasising the importance of slowing down in today’s fast-paced world, Patil said, “Cycling allows us to see the different modes of nature, be it jungles, rivers, backwaters and forts, which is not possible in a car as we usually pass these places at high speed.”
Avinash Chougule, a senior software architect and one of the 75 cyclists, said, “The weather change was extreme as we had travelled from winter in Pune to the humid climate along the coastal road. The temperature change ranged from 20 degrees Celsius to 40 degrees Celsius because of which we had to take special care of our body by having coconut and lemon water all along the route and resting after lunch.”
He said, “Throughout the journey, we asked people to save the environment by avoiding plastic and use a cycle for short commutes to help reduce the carbon footprint.”
He added that he will aim to cover Kashmir to Kanyakumari in the next two years.
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