Participated in the Sunfeast 10K run on Sunday. What an event! It was simply a carnival! There must have been at least 25000 people in the Kanteerava stadium. The Open 10K run itself had over 7000 people participating! I managed to complete it in 1hr 10 mins (walk, jog, run method). Will need to better it under an hour next year. Contrast that to the world 10K winner who completed it under half an hour! There was inspiration to draw from everywhere - from the 75 year old gentleman who came barefoot with nothing but his timing chip in hand, to a German father and his young son running the 10K together. All in all, an exciting event to be a part of.
You can read more about the event here.
Some of my pics available here.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Monday, May 10, 2010
Moving out...moving in!
After a long stay at my aunt's place, we're all set to move back into our renovated apartment this weekend. Just thinking of the move now seems like a daunting task. While moving out, we literally managed to do so in suitcase-loads and WagonR-loads. Now we're starting to wonder how all this luggage/furniture got here in the first place!
It's funny how possessions keep building up no matter how much you discard. Planning to make a list of all the we need to carry so that we don't re-build the clutter there. Building a list will hopefully make us consciously decide if we want to take something. Should also help us organize and decide the destination location for all the items.
Moving in is going to be one thing and settling in is going to be another. Although the place is not new and we've lived here for many years, it will be a new experience and we will need time for getting adjusted. Here's to a successful move!
It's funny how possessions keep building up no matter how much you discard. Planning to make a list of all the we need to carry so that we don't re-build the clutter there. Building a list will hopefully make us consciously decide if we want to take something. Should also help us organize and decide the destination location for all the items.
Moving in is going to be one thing and settling in is going to be another. Although the place is not new and we've lived here for many years, it will be a new experience and we will need time for getting adjusted. Here's to a successful move!
Monday, May 03, 2010
Bangalore to Mysore - My bicycle journey
Finally, something to blog about...
Here's a copy of my post to my cycling groups "The Bangalore Bikers Club" and "Go Green, Go Cycling"
Please give cycling a thought as a means of commute if you have not already. The benefits are just too many to justify and we would be foolish to believe otherwise.
Here's the ride report:
___________________________________________________
I can now imagine why anyone who heard that I was planning to cycle from Bangalore to Mysore, alone, thought I had probably lost it! Its easy to think that about a man who is just 4 years away from 40, weighing over 90kgs, and who just took to cycling 3 months back after a gap of almost 13 years. Then there were those who were in awe of such an idea itself. Thinking back, I have to agree myself that it was a crazy idea. But as someone said, men are all children at heart and the child in me was certain that I still had it in me to cycle any distance if I had enough time. Plus, with more grey hair now, I was certain that I would have learnt something new if I would have failed. I also thought this was a good opportunity to explore my long-pending desire as my wife and kid were out of town (Otherwise, feel guilty leaving family alone even on weekends).
With all this in my heart, and a child's conviction, I set out on my journey to Mysore at 5 AM on May 1st (Labour Day). It was pouring till about 2 AM the same day and although I was happy that the weather would be cooler, I was worried that the roads would be slippery. My other fear was about being chased by a pack of dogs followed by a remote fear of getting held-up on the highway by a gang of robbers (the mind can't help dramatizing!). Remembering what one my colleagues remarked about my trip alone - he believes in *"Darr ke aage jeet hai (There is victory after overcoming fear)" - I set my fears aside and continued on my ride. The morning was pleasant and I had no trouble covering the first 50 kms of my ride non-stop in just under 2 hours. And I was thinking in my mind, "Oh, I just need to repeat this three times over and I'm in Mysore". Little did I know what it took to do that!
I decided to stop every 20kms going forward and not overdo the continuous riding in my excitement. The next 20kms were also a breeze and I completed them well within the one hour that I was expecting to. The 20kms after that took me a little more than an hour and I attributed it to the fact that I was deliberately trying to take it easy. By about 9 am I had covered 100km. I figured that I would be in Mysore in the next 3 hours at this rate. Then again, what did I know!
The weather, which had been kind to me with cloudy skies till then, suddenly turned tyrant with the sun coming out in all its splendor. I kept telling myself that the sun was diagonally behind me and it should not matter much, but I was perspiring more and getting exhausted sooner. I had to stop every 10 kms and and take a breather. The distance from Mandya to Srirangapatna was most trying with long uphill gradients and shorter downhill ones. The lactic acid in my thigh muscles and knee joints had also started kicking in. Now I was thinking, "Dard ke aage jeet hai! (There is victory after overcoming pain)". So I continued on and managed to reach Srirangapatna at about 12.30pm. I was walking with my cycle across a traffic signal trying to take a break, when another pro-looking cyclist passed me asking if I needed any help. I said I was just taking a break and thanked him. He nodded and sped away.
Seeing someone else also having cycled all this distance and looking fresher than me encouraged me and I got on to my saddle and rode on. I may have only ridden for a few kms when I spotted a couple of photographers and a videographer taking pictures and a video footage of me riding. I thought to myself that they must be some documentary film makers or TV news reporters getting footage for a story on cycling. Just a little further I was accosted by a large group of policemen asking me to kindly stop at the side of the road. Just when I was thinking how I could have broken the law by cycling, one of the cops came up to me and said, "Welcome to Mysore, sir!". I was both thrilled and perplexed at such a reception. I noticed that the cyclist who had passed me by was also standing with the group, so I went up to him and asked what was going on. Ajit (as I came to know was his name) explained to me that they were part of a group called the "Jayanagar Jaguars" who were also cycling to Mysore today. The transport commissioner, who was a part of the group, was riding with them today and the felicitation committee and the media reception was in his honor. I knew I had been mistaken as one of them and asked to be excused, but Ajit insisted I stick around. Got to know a bit about their group. They're a cool bunch of adventure enthusiasts into cycling, running and swimming. As I later understood, these guys managed to complete the whole distance more than an hour earlier than I did. I was also happy to know that they also opposed two other evils of society - alcohol and smoking. (Hey Ajit, if you're reading this, thanks for everything. Please send me your email ID).
Curious to meet the rest of the group, I waited and watched. The transport commissioner, Mr. Bhaskar Rao, was the one to arrive next. Clad in perfect cycling attire, he was the complete opposite of a typical image that you would have of a policeman. Ajit introduced me to him and we shook hands. The media was then all over him asking him to explain the purpose of the visit and other details of the trip. The short interview concluded, they sped off towards Mysore with media cameras trailing them. I understand that the snippet was covered in the saturday evening Kannada news on TV9. (And I came on TV thanks to Ajit and Bhaskar Rao!!!)
After that pleasant morale boost, I realized I still had about 25 kms to get home although Mysore was just 15kms away. So I resumed cycling and reached Mysore at around 1.35pm. By the time I was at my destination it was 1.50pm and I was thirsty, hungry and ready to crash. I had covered about 167kms on my bike! Unfortunately, due to the fear of the unknown, I did not carry a camera to record a picture travelogue. But I did capture a couple of snaps of me at Mandya with my cell phone camera.
Here's what I did carry:
- a first aid kit with crocins and muscle rubs and bandages
- three bottles of gatorade (two of them frozen, set to thaw later)
and one bottle of water
- a change of t-shirt and shorts
- puncture repair kit
- also remembered to stash emergency cash in secret areas and carry
only few hundreds in my wallet
- padded shorts (money well spent!)
- helmet and good eyegear (the cracks on my specs are witness to what
could have happened to my eyes)
The trip back on sunday was with my aunt and uncle who had also gone to Mysore on Saturday. I had sent a bicycle rack along with them that I had hired from Sachin of Pedals & Wheels (Thanks, Sachin!). Just clipped the bike on the rack and sped back to Bangalore. We got back to Bangalore in just over 2.5 hours and I was just contrasting the effort that was required and all that we took for granted in a road when we go by car. Thinking about my aching muscles, I remembered Munna Bhai's remark to circuit, **"Eh circuit! tere ko pata hai shareer mein 110 type ka haddi hota hai - todne ke time apun log sochtey they kia? (Two goons talking - Do you know that there are atleast 110 types of bones - did we ever think of that while breaking them??)".
The email about the journey is getting longer than the ride itself! Anyway, that was that and both my body and I are getting back to normal. I rode to work today. I'm not sure I'm going to do Bangalore-Mysore again, surely not in the summer months. But will surely see you guys on one of your future long rides.
Oh, and lessons learnt:
- Hats off to the guys like Samim and the century and double century riders who do this regularly. I have a better sense now of what it takes.
- Have to build-up my fitness more (thighs and knees)
- Finally, at the risk of sounding stereotypical, stop pondering and start acting on your instincts at the first opportunity you get. You wont know if you'll fail or succeed until you try. And no matter what, I'm sure you'll be a winner for just overcoming the fear of trying.
Keep riding and sharing! Groups like these have the capacity to inspire people to go beyond their limits!
________________________
* - dialogue from a popular TV AD for a soft-drink that inspires you to go for it
** - dialogue from a popular Hindi movie, about a gangster who joins medical college to become a doctor (talking to his sidekick here)
__________________________
Article in the Hindu:
http://beta.thehindu.com/news/states/karnataka/article419583.ece
Here's a copy of my post to my cycling groups "The Bangalore Bikers Club" and "Go Green, Go Cycling"
Please give cycling a thought as a means of commute if you have not already. The benefits are just too many to justify and we would be foolish to believe otherwise.
Here's the ride report:
___________________________________________________
I can now imagine why anyone who heard that I was planning to cycle from Bangalore to Mysore, alone, thought I had probably lost it! Its easy to think that about a man who is just 4 years away from 40, weighing over 90kgs, and who just took to cycling 3 months back after a gap of almost 13 years. Then there were those who were in awe of such an idea itself. Thinking back, I have to agree myself that it was a crazy idea. But as someone said, men are all children at heart and the child in me was certain that I still had it in me to cycle any distance if I had enough time. Plus, with more grey hair now, I was certain that I would have learnt something new if I would have failed. I also thought this was a good opportunity to explore my long-pending desire as my wife and kid were out of town (Otherwise, feel guilty leaving family alone even on weekends).
With all this in my heart, and a child's conviction, I set out on my journey to Mysore at 5 AM on May 1st (Labour Day). It was pouring till about 2 AM the same day and although I was happy that the weather would be cooler, I was worried that the roads would be slippery. My other fear was about being chased by a pack of dogs followed by a remote fear of getting held-up on the highway by a gang of robbers (the mind can't help dramatizing!). Remembering what one my colleagues remarked about my trip alone - he believes in *"Darr ke aage jeet hai (There is victory after overcoming fear)" - I set my fears aside and continued on my ride. The morning was pleasant and I had no trouble covering the first 50 kms of my ride non-stop in just under 2 hours. And I was thinking in my mind, "Oh, I just need to repeat this three times over and I'm in Mysore". Little did I know what it took to do that!
I decided to stop every 20kms going forward and not overdo the continuous riding in my excitement. The next 20kms were also a breeze and I completed them well within the one hour that I was expecting to. The 20kms after that took me a little more than an hour and I attributed it to the fact that I was deliberately trying to take it easy. By about 9 am I had covered 100km. I figured that I would be in Mysore in the next 3 hours at this rate. Then again, what did I know!
The weather, which had been kind to me with cloudy skies till then, suddenly turned tyrant with the sun coming out in all its splendor. I kept telling myself that the sun was diagonally behind me and it should not matter much, but I was perspiring more and getting exhausted sooner. I had to stop every 10 kms and and take a breather. The distance from Mandya to Srirangapatna was most trying with long uphill gradients and shorter downhill ones. The lactic acid in my thigh muscles and knee joints had also started kicking in. Now I was thinking, "Dard ke aage jeet hai! (There is victory after overcoming pain)". So I continued on and managed to reach Srirangapatna at about 12.30pm. I was walking with my cycle across a traffic signal trying to take a break, when another pro-looking cyclist passed me asking if I needed any help. I said I was just taking a break and thanked him. He nodded and sped away.
Seeing someone else also having cycled all this distance and looking fresher than me encouraged me and I got on to my saddle and rode on. I may have only ridden for a few kms when I spotted a couple of photographers and a videographer taking pictures and a video footage of me riding. I thought to myself that they must be some documentary film makers or TV news reporters getting footage for a story on cycling. Just a little further I was accosted by a large group of policemen asking me to kindly stop at the side of the road. Just when I was thinking how I could have broken the law by cycling, one of the cops came up to me and said, "Welcome to Mysore, sir!". I was both thrilled and perplexed at such a reception. I noticed that the cyclist who had passed me by was also standing with the group, so I went up to him and asked what was going on. Ajit (as I came to know was his name) explained to me that they were part of a group called the "Jayanagar Jaguars" who were also cycling to Mysore today. The transport commissioner, who was a part of the group, was riding with them today and the felicitation committee and the media reception was in his honor. I knew I had been mistaken as one of them and asked to be excused, but Ajit insisted I stick around. Got to know a bit about their group. They're a cool bunch of adventure enthusiasts into cycling, running and swimming. As I later understood, these guys managed to complete the whole distance more than an hour earlier than I did. I was also happy to know that they also opposed two other evils of society - alcohol and smoking. (Hey Ajit, if you're reading this, thanks for everything. Please send me your email ID).
Curious to meet the rest of the group, I waited and watched. The transport commissioner, Mr. Bhaskar Rao, was the one to arrive next. Clad in perfect cycling attire, he was the complete opposite of a typical image that you would have of a policeman. Ajit introduced me to him and we shook hands. The media was then all over him asking him to explain the purpose of the visit and other details of the trip. The short interview concluded, they sped off towards Mysore with media cameras trailing them. I understand that the snippet was covered in the saturday evening Kannada news on TV9. (And I came on TV thanks to Ajit and Bhaskar Rao!!!)
After that pleasant morale boost, I realized I still had about 25 kms to get home although Mysore was just 15kms away. So I resumed cycling and reached Mysore at around 1.35pm. By the time I was at my destination it was 1.50pm and I was thirsty, hungry and ready to crash. I had covered about 167kms on my bike! Unfortunately, due to the fear of the unknown, I did not carry a camera to record a picture travelogue. But I did capture a couple of snaps of me at Mandya with my cell phone camera.
Here's what I did carry:
- a first aid kit with crocins and muscle rubs and bandages
- three bottles of gatorade (two of them frozen, set to thaw later)
and one bottle of water
- a change of t-shirt and shorts
- puncture repair kit
- also remembered to stash emergency cash in secret areas and carry
only few hundreds in my wallet
- padded shorts (money well spent!)
- helmet and good eyegear (the cracks on my specs are witness to what
could have happened to my eyes)
The trip back on sunday was with my aunt and uncle who had also gone to Mysore on Saturday. I had sent a bicycle rack along with them that I had hired from Sachin of Pedals & Wheels (Thanks, Sachin!). Just clipped the bike on the rack and sped back to Bangalore. We got back to Bangalore in just over 2.5 hours and I was just contrasting the effort that was required and all that we took for granted in a road when we go by car. Thinking about my aching muscles, I remembered Munna Bhai's remark to circuit, **"Eh circuit! tere ko pata hai shareer mein 110 type ka haddi hota hai - todne ke time apun log sochtey they kia? (Two goons talking - Do you know that there are atleast 110 types of bones - did we ever think of that while breaking them??)".
The email about the journey is getting longer than the ride itself! Anyway, that was that and both my body and I are getting back to normal. I rode to work today. I'm not sure I'm going to do Bangalore-Mysore again, surely not in the summer months. But will surely see you guys on one of your future long rides.
Oh, and lessons learnt:
- Hats off to the guys like Samim and the century and double century riders who do this regularly. I have a better sense now of what it takes.
- Have to build-up my fitness more (thighs and knees)
- Finally, at the risk of sounding stereotypical, stop pondering and start acting on your instincts at the first opportunity you get. You wont know if you'll fail or succeed until you try. And no matter what, I'm sure you'll be a winner for just overcoming the fear of trying.
Keep riding and sharing! Groups like these have the capacity to inspire people to go beyond their limits!
________________________
* - dialogue from a popular TV AD for a soft-drink that inspires you to go for it
** - dialogue from a popular Hindi movie, about a gangster who joins medical college to become a doctor (talking to his sidekick here)
__________________________
Article in the Hindu:
http://beta.thehindu.com/news/states/karnataka/article419583.ece
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