Crank With ProCycle Issue 2 Feb 2019 by CrankMag

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Tour of Tamilnadu Gold Rush at ATCC Previewed – Argon E177 Kids on hot wheels

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Cycling Federation of India

InThisIssue IndustryNews Global Sports Show Gender Diversity in Cycling SCOTT Turns 60

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CoverStory The Tour of Tamilnadu

Feature The Argon E117

ExperTalk My Endurance Diary Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s First Skydiving DZ

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Profiled Vidya Chandran

ProCycling Coffee with Krish One More For The Record Books

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Kids Kids on Hot Wheels

CFINews MTB Kerala 2018

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Editor’sNote

The CRANK with ProCycle Team Managing Editor and Publisher Vikram K Limsay Invitee editor Onkar Singh, Secretary General CFI and ACC Edit Desk Dr. Meera Velankar Contributors Sathya Sankaran Mili Sharma Creative and Design N. Chandru Contact editdeskcrank@procycle.in

Dear Readers Happy Sankranti, Pongal, Lohri, Bihu to all of you. This happy festival season is marked characteristically by a beautiful weather when the sun is bright but the heat is not as biting and the winter chill has receded but there is still that nip in the air. A great whether for us cyclists to make the most of it before the harsh summer sun beats down in a few months. Also wishing you all a very happy Republic Day in advance. We begin our new year with so much news and so many things happening. But we dedicate this issue to women and kids riding. Read all about gender diversity in cycling, a venture that promotes women touring an article that will help you introduce your kids to cycling. We feature our partner tour the Tour of Tamilnadu. It should be a mist do on your itinerary. And there is so much more. And before I close, I must make a mention of our national track teams’ stellar performance at Jakarta. Read the results and I am sure you will be as proud

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Vikram K Limsay Managing Editor and Publisher

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IndustryNews

Global Sports Show Bringing Together Titans Of The Ecosystem

he Times of India group, a forerunner of change and a torchbearer of economic progress, concluded the third edition of the Times of India Global Sports Show (GSS) 2018 at NESCO, Mumbai. The show began with a powerful address by Neeraj Bajaj, Arjuna Awardee and Promoter Bajaj Group. he exhibition cum conference focused on harnessing potential T talent, mechanics for success to empower the ‘Khelo India’ Movement, building sports champions with the ‘Make in India’ Movement, Innovation at Inception, unlocking the potential of Indian Athletes and creating a roadmap for sporting success. Moving on to a panel discussion on the Khelo India Movement: Mechanics for success: Mr. Mohit Burman, Board of Director, Dabur said, “Barring cricket, there are hardly any sports that inspire the youth of India. Starting sports leagues will not solve the problem of infrastructure and increased participation in the sports industry. We need to go beyond leagues and provide a motivational factor to the youth of the nation.” r. Jayen Mehta, Senior General Manager, Planning & Marketing, M Amul, among other prominent speakers and advisors said, “Along with the need to recognize the sports league, the sheer focus is also on the nutritional diet. Amul being the number one

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manufacturer of milk products, we look forward to make the necessary nutrition accessible to the public.” eepak Sawant, Health Minister, Government of Maharashtra D commented on the event, saying, “With the growing sports scenario and various industries joining hands, there is a balance in the economy of the nation. I am glad to be a part of The Times of India Global Sports Shown since it is a wonderful concept to encourage and promote sports.” bhinav Bindra, former Indian Olympic Shooter; Mr. Jatin A Paranjape, National Selector – BCCI, Former Indian Cricketer, Founder – Khelo More; Italian Olympic Shooter and 3 time Olympic Gold Medallist, Mr. Niccolo Campriani; Olympic medallist Karnam Malleswari; Mr. Rohan Bopanna, Indian Tennis Player; Mr. Joshey John, Director, ITW Consulting; Mr. Kamaljit Talukdar, ACS, Deputy Secretary, Sports & Youth Welfare Department and Joint Director, Sports & Youth Welfare Assam; Mr. Deepak Lamba, President –Times Strategic Solutions were the other attendees of the GSS 2018, which is a platform that will bring together top corporates, leading stakeholders, policy makers, international sports brands, leagues, sports management companies and everybody who is a part of the sports business value chain under one roof to help India realize the dream of becoming a truly international sporting nation with world class infrastructure.

Gender Diversity in Cycling By Sathya Sankaran: Bicycle Mayor Bengaluru

recent study indicated that women today make up fewer than 25% of the trips taken by bicycle in the United States. However, In Copenhagen 55% of regular cyclists are women. The problem is more severe in India. Workforce participation stood at 27% in 2015-16 and in the knowledge sector it stood at 34%. Out of the 377 people, who have signed up to #CycleTowork platform only 8.4% are women riders. What are the contributors to such a gender gap in the bicycle as a commute option? Shilpi Sahu of Qualcomm, who has clocked an average of 11kms each trip on the #cycletowork platform thinks while the number of women employees have increased in the company there is a general aversion among women to take up activities like cycling without consent from the family. Most women she has spoken to, and indeed some men, are told not to ride by family members because they view it as a risk to safety. She feels there is a lack of social acceptance for outdoor physical activities among women. Plenty of women go for Zumba classes, gym and yoga and run on a treadmill, but shy away from outdoor exercise. This could be a negative body image, fear of accidents, eve teasing and harassment. While issues like traffic and pollution are gender neutral and affect men and women equally, some women - she feels - do face extra harassment by vehicle users because of an inherent bias against women riding/driving on the roads. She herself has not been a victim of any harassment though. She feels the solution is not necessarily a physical design issue, but rather a mindset and social acceptance issue requiring awareness and social change.

cyclist, who also runs an all-women cycling club called ‘Spokes Women’. As a member of few cycling clubs, she finds that most of the frequently cited issues preventing people from commuting are safety, pollution, mechanical issues and complete disregard for cyclists in general. These are something all cyclists face, whether men or women. However, she finds that in some cases, family pressures drive decisions on women picking up a bicycle to work. She doesn’t know why that affects cycling more than long-distance running, where women outnumber men most times. With long hair, makeup and a wider repertoire of apparel, Indian women need better changing and shower facilities as an important incentive, she says. This is woefully lacking in most Indian offices. She has found that the more women ride, the more comfortable they get to handle issues on the road. This is true for men as well she opines. There is definitely a lack of support for harassment as they go unreported. The CycleToWork platform has started a #Motorage hashtag on social media for people on a bicycle to report harassment. It also has a page where people can report these incidents anonymously on the website at https://cycleto.work/ motorage. The idea is to surface incidents of harassment and bring them to the attention of the public and authorities. Nevertheless, social stigma and bias against women cycling will need a concerted effort to remove from the minds of the society and make it an acceptable option for women. But one thing is certain we need a lot more femme power on two wheels.

I spoke to Vidya Chandran on gender diversity. She is an avid

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SCOTT Turns 60

20,711.95Kms covered in 60 minutes by 1200 riders in 30 locations across India

s the sun came up on the first Sunday of 2019, i.e. on January 6th, almost 1,200 cyclists participated in a sixty-minute ride that took place simultaneously across thirty separate locations in India, covering a cumulative distance of 20,711.95 kilometers. It was one of the biggest simultaneous bicycle rides to take place in India. The ride was a celebration of sixty years of SCOTT Sports. A subsidiary of SCOTT Sports SA (the Swiss manufacturer of bicycles, winter equipment, motor sports gear, running gear and sportswear), SCOTT Sports India had organized the 60-minute pan-India ride. Riders assembled at the given point in their cities at 6am, with the ride flagging off at 7am and each rider covering on average a distance of 19 kilometers. Rain played spoilsport in New Delhi, but the riders still went on to ride for duration of 15-30 minutes

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to ensure all locations began the ride. In Pune, about 73 cyclists covered over 1,500km of the cycle ride that started from Pro Sports and Bikes, the dealers of Scott located on Prabhat Road. With this number of cyclists, Pune recorded the second highest participation in the ride across India. In Imphal, the ride was organized in association with Noren Cycles N Outdoor Sports. The ride began from Noren Cycles N Outdoor Sports Palace Gate. Delighted with the number of participation across India, Jaymin Shah, country head SCOTT Sports said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Absolutely overwhelmed with the response. Not only because 1,200 riders participated, but that we had participation in big numbers even outside the metro cities. It goes to show how rapidly cycling has grown across India. SCOTT Sports will certainly be looking to plan more such events over the year.â&#x20AC;?

CoverStory

The Tour of Tamilnadu

The Tour of Tamilnadu, a CRANK partner event is one of the evolved multi stage tour that is a becoming a favorite amongst riders because of its unique philosophy.

he tour run by the Tamilnadu Cycling Club has already covered 5,000 unique kilometers over 42 stages in past 8 years with various themes such as cuisine, Nilgiri hills, eastern Ghats, western Ghats, forest and wildlife to name few of them to promote eco-tourism jointly with Tamilnadu Tourism in the state and establish a platform to support tourism. The Tour of Tamilnadu follows the spirit of a “Tour” and does not indulge or encourage any form of competition. This has helped it in getting a huge growing participation of like-minded cyclists from all over India and abroad say the organizers. They added, “We want cyclists from all over the world to visit Tamilnadu and experience the unique offerings this state has to offer to tourists.” The organizers said, “After the 10th edition of the tour, we would be ready with cycling route maps of places of interest on a bicycle for the entire state with detailed cycling routes, places to stay, places to eat, wildlife movements, places of interest, what to look for en route etc. The plan is to build a Knowledge Platform through the active participation of user community with user ratings, ideal touring seasons with interactive route finders to facilitate the cycling tourists

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from all over the world to plan their own tours.” In line with their vision, the organizers are committed to keep the tour affordable and operate at an optimum level. The organizers, who have day jobs in corporates, use their experiences and best practices to implement measures towards achieving their end objectives. The 9th edition with “waterfall” as a theme was a right mixture of climbs, cuisine, village roads and interiors of villages. “We had about 45 participants who were from various cities of India and even from outside the country for this edition of the tour. “We normally restrict the tour size to 40-45 participants owing to accommodation and logistics constraints in small towns”. The Largest contingent was from Maharashtra - a state that is already known for its climbs and riders with experience in tackling Ghats. Many riders came with suitable preparations and good mileage in their legs for this year-end climbing affair. While the 9th edition was more of a year-end family ritual for many organizers and participants who travel here for this cycling pilgrimage from past 5 plus years, few others had fixed agenda to enjoy this tour with friends and

themselves in our non-core activities. As a policy, we do not pay our volunteers. With all these processes and optimization measures, we are proud to keep the tour cost constant at Rs. 22,000/- for the last five years beating the inflation. All of us keep aside our personal and professional status aside when we come for this tour”. Explain the organizers Theme Finalization: The initial preparation for the tour starts as early as January once the previous tour is concluded. Tamilnadu state has various things to offer including natural beauty and keeping in mind the popular destinations the theme of the tour is primarily decided that helps us promote various aspects of the state. Based on collective knowledge of the core group and Tourism Maps’ research, a high-level route plan is created. The organizers have extensive knowledge about the local characteristics of each of the region. Much care is taken to ensure that the routes avoid national highways. A small team of cyclists then visits specific unexplored routes and experiences the terrain, difficulty and safety of the route. Once the final route is planned, the day wise routes are finalized keeping in mind the distance, difficulty, safety and security of the participants, accessibility to accommodation and food for overnight halt. Once things are finalized a detailed budget is being made to ensure financial viability of conducting the tour with various contingencies. Once this is finalized the tour cost is decided before announcing the registrations. Registration Process: The registration is an open online process. The selection of participation is based on the following parameters:

frolic. The tour was extremely well planned with Montra as the “Powered by”partner.

1. Giving opportunities to new people from other states and countries to experience Tamilnadu. 2. Encourage women participation and families.

“We have well documented SOP(s) (Standard operating procedures) for each of the activity that helps us onboard new members faster. Every additional volunteer costs us money thereby creating additional burden on the tour costing w.r.t. lodging and boarding. We work with a very thin committed cyclists volunteer team. They have to be cyclists, who have participated in these tours to empathize with the participants, which is key to ensure the tour’s success. Taking this to the next step and putting our claim to practice, we have a stringent measure even to hire the transport vehicles. I’m not referring to the vehicle here but the driver. We brief him and set expectations even before even finalizing him for the tour on the various aspects of the job. They double up as a volunteer

3. Rider’s cycling history – Riders should have experience in doing long rides. Due to the high popularity and demand, registration closes within a week. Pit stops: Keeping in mind the need of the cyclists, the Tour director decides the number of pit stops that are required everyday. Supplies are sourced centrally for all the days keeping in mind the date of usage and the fruits are packed day wise and kept ready for usage. The pit stop volunteers are also optimized to avoid additional

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human resources for additional pit stops. The first pit stop moves to the third after the last rider passes the first pit stop as an example. Mechanics: The tour carries two trained mechanics with a dedicated support pickup truck to aid cyclists in fixing minor issues. The mechanics are equipped with most common spares that might go wrong in a typical cycle tour. They provide roadside assistance and enable cyclists to quickly keep moving in case of any mechanical issues. Masseur: The tour has a dedicated masseur who ensures that the tired cyclists get rejuvenated and recover well before the start of the next day. Jersey: To keep the spirit of the theme live and take it to the heart, we wanted to design a jersey with vibrant colors and in essence connect with the theme. A tour jersey is a special souvenir for the participants to cherish and re-ignite fond memories. As this would be a once in a lifetime collection, we wanted an offbeat design with a waterfall amid some natural picturesque. The jersey was designed by a fellow ToTian and 2go apparels brought it to life. Safety and Emergency: Dial 108 as our safety partner provides support for medical emergencies through out the tour. Accommodation & Baggage Service: Every morning, the cyclists wake up after setting up their alarms just in time to get ready, have their breakfast and to be at the flag off point for the morning briefing

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of the day’s ride. Likewise, after a long day’s ride the cyclists look forward to go to their room, have a nice hot water bath and relax for a while. As cyclists, the organizers of the tour understand the need to enable the participants to transition and enjoy their ride without worrying about carrying or moving their luggage to the baggage truck every morning and also taking it back to their rooms after the end of a rough day’s ride. “We were the pioneers in introducing room baggage pickup and drop solution to cyclists right from the inception of this tour and have perfected this through process optimization even with our limited volunteer strength. With this baggage service, the cyclists just have to leave their baggage in their rooms in the morning and would find the same in their rooms at the destination location in the evening. This is one of the best practices that even other tours have adopted based on the overwhelming feedback that we’ve been receiving every year from the participants.” Logistics: The participation is not compelled to complete the ride on all the days. The logistics support, apart from two tempo travelers also includes a support vehicle that follows the last rider. The tour ensures 100% backup in case of any contingencies to offer float support to the participants. This also takes away any undue pressure to complete the day’s ride and helps participants enjoy and continue to be part of the tour. CRANK recommends this tour as a “must do’ check mark on your tour itinerary.

Feature

The Argon E117

ith the official Ironman coming to India and increasing interest in triathlons in our country it was only going to be a matter of time before specialized equipment for these came and made usage of regular road bike for this passé. The important facet about a specialized Tri Bike is that engages muscle groups in manner that assists the transition from one muscle group to another. For example, as you move from cycling to running, a Tri-Bike ensures that the running muscle groups are best conserved while riding For those, who are ready to join this rare breed of triathletes, Argon E177 is the perfect pick. Argon is a Canadian bike brand founded in 1989 and in 2017 they were the official supplier of Canadian national road and track team. While Argon is the perfect entry-level bike, it is rated in top tri bikes internationally and is a favorite of almost all the pro athletes. With its UCI approval comes in two colors Teal Blue Matte and Black Matte. It is designed for

high performance is much lighter with concealed front brake and very easy to adjust. The bike has press fit 3d system help extend position flexibility and maintained rigidity and has classic derailleur hanger for easy wheel change. Proven braking system minimizing front air impact zone and reducing drag at rear. • • • • •

Specs are: Frame set Argon 18 E-117 Tri Seat Post – ASP-7050 Carbon Fork Argon 18 E-117 Tri Heatset FSA 37E+#D 1” ¼ Brakes TRP TKB137/TKB138-3

E 117 Tri bike is aerodynamically designed to meet all the requirement of a triathlete taking performance to the next level. It has option of variable group sets shimano ultegra, dura ace, DI2, Sram eTap and its cost varies from 3 to 10 Lakhs.

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ExpertTalk

My Endurance Diary By invitation: Aashutosh Chaudhary

‘

Sports Entrepreneur, Sports & Fitness Freak & Endurance Junkie’ – that’s how I would like to describe myself in a single line – says Aashutosh Chaudhari, co-founder of the Bengalurubased sports & fitness company - Sports365.

Sports have always been a central part of my life since early childhood (my parents were sportsperson, so you get the drift). When it was time to dive into entrepreneurship after 8 years of corporate life, sports was a natural choice. That’s how my startup – Sports365 – came into existence in 2012. It has been 6 years since then and I am happy to see it grow and becoming India’s leading sports and fitness company. The endurance part is relatively new and happened over the past 36 months. Needless to say, I am happy with that as well. I have been into mid distance running since 2008 and stuck to half marathons and 10km till 2014. However, after my first Full Marathon (FM) in 2014, things change drastically for me. I got the first taste of endurance running and I liked it and wanted more. I got into ultra marathons in 2017 with a 50km run at the event ‘Bangalore Ultra’ and then endurance floodgates opened (literally). In 2018, I squeezed in three 80km+ run events – Hennur Ultra (80km), Malnad

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Ultra (80km) and 12hr Stadium Run (88km); and while at it, several training runs going above the FM distance. I was determined to do a Triathlon in 2018 and managed to find some white space in Oct and Nov’18. Luckily, it fit perfectly well with the Hyderabad Triathlon (Nov’18). With so much running mileage in 2017 and 2018, I was positive about my ability to pull off an Olympic Tri (1.5km Swim, 40km Bike, 10km Run) Distance. Running was sorted, and swimming was my cross training for runs, so I was confident on that as well. The question was only around cycling. The only cycling I had done till that point was leisure distance and that too on a very basic MTB. Thankfully, I had good cyclist friends who came to my rescue. We set-up a 4-week training plan for the Tri, which was 75% focused on cycling and the rest on swimming. Meera Velankar (a cyclist and familiar to readers of CRANK) helped me with a cycling training plan, which was a mix of cadence training on a gym bike and a few rides building up to 40km distance. Bhaskar Mittal (a running buddy) was kind enough to lend me his Bianchi hybrid cycle for training as well as for the event. Hyderabad Triathlon was an eventful experience for me, not just because it was my first Triathlon, but also because of how it panned

out. Swimming leg went as per the plan despite delayed start by the organizers. Cycling leg also started well after a slightly botched up transition. I got into a nice rhythm after the first 2km and found myself on right on the target plan, but a tragedy stuck at around 5km mark when a motorcycle hit me on a downhill. In a fraction of second, I found myself tumbling on the road with deep cuts

on arms and legs and was having not-so-good-feeling about my right ankle. After 15mins of breather I got my bearings back and I decided to continue (I don’t like DNFs), much to the chagrin of the race volunteers. Next 35km went by okay as I was more careful and did not want to aggravate the injuries. The second transition was perfect and then 10km run went by easily despite the ankle niggle. I lost efficiency and hence time after the crash, but crossed the finish line in 4:02 (about 40mins more than my target time). I was happy to not pick up the DNF in my first Tri. Only later I realized that I had a respectable standing at 33 out of 200 participants despite the crash. I came out of my first Triathlon with a lot of learning and more importantly, significant hope and positivity to progress further in my Tri journey. The year 2019 is going to be another endurance filled year for me. The key events I am looking forward to are: Tata Mumbai Marathon (FM, Jan’18), New Delhi Marathon (FM, Feb’18), Hennur Ultra (100km, Mar’19), Ooty Ultra (60km, Apr’19) Comrades Marathon (87km, Jun’19), Khardungla Challenge (72km, Sep’19) and Ironman 70.3 Goa (Oct’19). I will also do at least one long distance cycling event in the second half of year, surely with my own roadie and much better training. Regarding how I manage to squeeze in so many endurance events, I can only say that I am blessed with fantastic support at home (thanks to my wife Hiral Chaudhari) and company of fantastic running/cycling buddies, who are as crazy as I am!

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India’s First Skydiving DZ Here’s something exciting for an adrenalin junkie.

ndia is all set to get it’s first fully functioning Drop Zone (DZ) in the first week of March 2019 in Kurnool, near Andhra Pradesh. On 8th January, at the inauguration of the Kurnool Airport, the company Amaravathi Aero Sports made a MOU with the Kurnool Airport Authorities in the presence of Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh Shri N. Chandrababu Naidu. An official announcement is likely to be made after Sankranthi after working on some final details. The company is also in the talks with the AP Tourism for partnering and working mutually on beneficial programs. It was the first step to make the AP Government a partner in the sport, which will help the company to get all the statutory permissions. The AP Government is partnering with the company not monetarily but statutorily, to help the company get required permissions and promoting the sport in India. The DZ: It is going to be the first DZ or only fully functioning DZ in the India with all the facilities and amenities anyone finds in a standard DZ allover the world. The facilities would be hanger, classroom, check-in counter, cafeteria, restrooms, rigging loft, bunkhouse, camping ground, restaurant nearby etc. The Jumps: At the inauguration of the airport, the team of three people – CEO of the company Satish Kumar Maddineni, Director Nandagopal Rajesh Kumar and senior skydiver Gadi Mohana Rao – did 9 jumps from the Powered Parachute machines from the altitude of 4,500 to 5,000 feet. These machines are rarely used in the skydive jumps. While the CEO of the company Satish took care of all administrative matters, the Director Rajesh took care of all the technical details like rigging, jump plan etc. and Mohana did flag (600Sq Ft) jumps. The practice jumps happened a day before the inauguration of the airport and it helped the team to understand the main factors like wind, terrain, aerial picture of the airport etc. The complete event was run at the cost of the company in order to

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increase the awareness about the sport of skydiving. The idea of starting India’s own DZ came into the mind of the CEO of the company Satish in 2015 when after becoming a freshly licensed skydiver from the US he found out that the cost of skydiving jumps in India was shockingly high. (A skydiver must jump once in every 90 days in order to keep him/herself current). Then Mr. Satish started working on the DZ plan and it was when he met with the company’s Director Rajesh his dreams started to shape into a reality. Mr Rajesh, an extreme adventurist who loves and enjoys unicycling, has around 5,000 jumps under his belt. The final and best thing happened when the company added an amazing entrepreneur Pavan Kolluri to the team as a Director. he Company’s Aim: is to bring bouquet of Aero sports under one T roof with International quality and safety standards at affordable price. To establish fully functional, certified and sustainable Sky Diving Drop Zone in India, which offers the sport 365 days a year. The Company proposes to do the following activities: • Offer skydiving at rates lesser than other offering countries in Asia. • Wake up Hibernating Certified / Uncertified Sky Divers in India. • Fulfill the dreams of enthusiastic adventure sport lovers • Conduct Training, Certifications, Competitions and Records. • Promote as a Tourist Destination The company intends to offer Sky Diving in First Phase and introduce other Aero Sports in Second Phase. They can be reached at www. HYPERLINK “http://dzindia.com/ ?fbclid=IwAR3tuchjZV4NFBqxcueznBJTMvVRZqPczM7CqRV_ pK62nupXuodxtq-4Jl8” \t “_blank” dzindia.com.

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IN SEARCH OF THE MIDDLE TRAIL EXCLUSIVE: ONKAR SINGH PAHWA, AVON CYCLES TESTED: STARKENN NEO 5850 D

Cycling Federation of India

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The Impossible Race

Cycling Federation of India

Profiled

Vidya Chandran

CRANK is pleased to profile Vidya Chandran whose venture “Handlebar” is doing commendable work in popularizing cycling especially amongst women.

started my journey into fitness and health as I hit my forties a few years ago. A warm community in South Bangalore where I used to live was the inspiration through their BEB (Bhaag Elita Bhaag) initiative. After trying my hand at running, swimming and cycling and doing a few 10K’s, Half Marathons and a Triathlon, I realized that my true passion amongst the three events was really in Cycling. While I did few short rides in and around South Bangalore, my true love for cycling was really fueled after having done some long-distance rides with my mentor and friend, Anil Kadsur and friend, Archana Sheshagiri. One of the most memorable rides with them was a ride from Bangalore to Kanyakumari in the peak heat of April 2017. It was a life changing experience for me indeed! The HandleBars (www.thehandlebars.in), my venture, is an attempt to combine my passions of travel and cycling and is a result of this

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3) Explore the World in a New Way – Everybody loves to holiday so why not make it even more adventurous by seeing your holiday location in a new way – not from a car…but from a saddle! In the last year, we did a trip to Thailand, Bali and Srilanka. In fact, for the Srilanka trip, there were three, 14-yearold teenagers who rode 200 km, one of them being my older daughter! Cycling, unlike many other sports, takes up a lot of time. In some ways, I believe that it takes a village to groom a woman cyclist, especially when it comes to endurance cycling. If I did not have the support of my husband Prashant, my daughters Namitha and Nitya and my mother, who stays with me when I go on outstation trips or long rides, I would not have been able to pursue my passion. My brother,Vivek Chandran is a certified cross fit trainer and he helps me with my strength training. Overall, I have a rock- solid support system and I am truly grateful for their support and patience. Now my daughters also enjoy cycling and come with me for many of the rides.

four year journey into fitness & sport. I formed the company earlier this year and the objectives are multifold: 1) Encourage adults, especially women to get back to cycling as a means of keeping fit. As a part of this drive, I ended up creating a sub brand, Spokes Women. We are a community of women, bound by our passion for cycling and are growing by the day. As we all know one of the hardest things to do in any activity is to keep yourself motivated. The Spokes- Person/ Spokes-Women is just a way of keeping the motivation and spirit going! 2) Make Cycling Fun – Explore our city/ make new friends & engage with the wider community of people. I work on engaging new and old members by facilitating rides in the city; setup exciting monthly challenges (with special awards for people completing certain goals) and help to engage in doing multiple things including Brevet’s. The youngest participant in the monthly challenge was all of seven years old!

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ProCycling

Coffee with Krish Techie, Rider, Traveler

e at CRANK keep meeting cyclists from time to time just to hear their story and bring out to the world to inspire others and increase the rider family. This issue meets Krish Agrawal an IT professional and a traveler when not working or riding! Krish Agrawal, a runner and endurance cyclist, got bitten by the cycling bug 6 years ago in 2013 when a colleague of his (who used to cycle to work every day covering a distance of 50kms) inspired him. Following his colleague’s suggestion, Krish got his first geared bike - Bergamont Helix 2.3 – the same year. Cycling Events: So far, he has successfully participated in the following major events: Domestic: Super Randonneur (SR) Series in 2013-14. He was one of the first five SRs of Telangana State.

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Tour of Nilgiri (TfN) in Dec 2015 and Chikmagalur to Goa multi-day tour in Dec 2016. International: “coast-to-coast” Sri Lanka Tour in Sep 2018 and “Mae Hong Son Loop” Thailand Tour in Dec 2018. In addition, he has done a couple of self-supported rides, which include: Pune - Lonavala - Pune in Oct 2014 and Mumbai to Goa in Dec 2014. We want to showcase two interesting tours Krish has attempted and which can be tried by other as they are in our neighborhood. ri Lanka Tour: While cherishing the memories of his Sri Lanka S coast to coast ride, Krish said that there was no better way to experience a country than seeing it from a bicycle. He added that Srilanka is a small country, but is quite diverse, which makes

bicycling even more fun. Before giving the detailed itinerary of the tour, Krish mentioned that they started the tour from the west coast beach with a quick dip of our rear wheels in the Indian Ocean. Then they set off through little Rome, so called due to the large number of Christian churches that dominated the first part of the ride. As they pedaled their way to Kandy, the cultural capital of the hill country, the hills come into view. Next, they rode through the Knuckles Mountains and the legendary 18 hair pin decent to Mahiyanganaya, spending the night on the border of Wasgomwa National Park, which is famous for its herds of wild elephants. Their route included a night in Sigiriya (Lion Rock), the 5th century citadel and World Heritage Site. Their final ride ended in the East coast Trincomalee, with their front tires dipped in the Bay of Bengal Sea. There they sat back and enjoyed the moment with a few beers and good seafood in the dinner. Tour details: Total distance covered: 447km; Total time spent: 5 days. Day 1: 28th September 2018 - Arrival at Srilanka, followed by cycling to the Nainamadama Beach - girualla/45km. Day 2: 29th September 2018 - Girualla-Kandy/93km. Day 3: 30th September 2018 - Kandy - Wasgomuwa National park /105km. Day 4: 1st Oct 2018 - Wasgomuwa National park - Sigiriya/ 91km. Day 5: 2nd Oct 2018 - Sigiriya - Trincomalee /113km. Thailand Tour: Dates: 16th - 24th Dec, 2018; Distance covered: 660km; Total Elevation gain: 13,000 meters; Route: Chiang Mai Mae Chaem - Mae Sariang - Khun Yuam – Mae Hong Son- Pang Mapha-Pai - Chiang Mai.

While telling about his experience on cycling in Thailand, Krish told that it was maximum elevation ever covered in a single tour by him. He noted that Mae Hong Son District was tucked away in the remote north west corner in a scenic mountainous region of Thailand, which is known for its spectacular views. He continued that the route of the tour takes one up and over the mountains, through quaint little villages, forests and across bridges for its entire 660km length. Before finishing telling about his Thailand Tour, Krish called it a dream cycling holiday with butter smooth tarmac, sparse traffic, stunning scenery and khao soi (talk about Thai cuisine!), but only if one has the legs for some serious climbing! e did share some funny and some scary yet memorable moment H / incidents from his cycling journey. He told that he was totally hallucinated during a 300km night BRM where he started seeing weird things in the dark. Another 400km BRM is his most enjoyable long distance ride, during which he rode pretty much 16-18hrs in the pouring rain. On one hand rain didn’t let him sleep, while on the other hand it was challenging to ride after getting drenched. He mentioned one of his 600km BRM as most grueling & scary ride where he escaped encounter with the death twice: first when he was about to crash into the roadside boulders & second when he almost got hit by lorries on the Nagpur Highway due to sleep deprivation. e summed up saying that he doesn’t have any specific future H plans and that he was just waiting to see what time has to offer him.

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ProCycling

One More For The Record Books Dr. Mahendra Mahajan Cracks the Guinness

ashik-based ultra-cyclist Dr. Mahendra Mahajan and his elder brother Dr Hitendra Mahajan have put the city on the map in distance cycling. With the theme - Khelo India and Quit Tobacco - Dr Mahendra Mahajan embarked on the solo cycle ride from Kashmir to Kanyakumari (K2K) on November 5th, 2018. The Jammu and Kashmir Mountain Biking Association and the Jammu and Kashmir Adventure Sports Club flagged off the K2K Challenge, which has already become a WUCA world record for India N-to-S (North to South). WUCA, founded in 1980, is a leading international organization dedicated to ultra cycling. Congratulating Dr Mahendra Mahajan and his Crew for setting a WUCA world record for India N-to-S, the WUCA detailed that the team had arrived Kanyakumari in 10 days, 10 hours and 1-minute covering 2,331 miles at an average speed of 9.32mph. HYPERLINK “http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/ articleshow/67117039.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_ medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst” Dr. Mahendra Mahajan, who believes that “only healthy citizens can build a strong nation”, said that the K2K was a challenge that tested his determination and all the experience he had acquired not only in endurance, but through lessons in life”. During the challenge, the team crew also distributed 3,000 handbills with a message of Quit Tobacco & Khelo India. Here is what the navigation plan looked like: Day 1: Lal Chowk (Clock tower) Srinagar to Mallikpur, Pathankot 330km; Day 2: Pathankot to Panipat – 410kms; Day 3: Panipat to Agra – 310km; Day 4: Agra to Lalitpur – 320kms; Day 5: Lalitpur to Narsinghpur, MP, - 277km; Day 6: Jetpur (Near Narsinghpur MP) to Butiburi, Nagpur – 270km; Day 7: Butibori to Kamareddy (Telangana) – 350kms; Day 8: Kamareddy to Amakathadu, Kurnool, AP – 376km; Day 9: Amakathadu to Bommasandra, Ahead of Bengaluru – 336km; Day 10: Bengaluru to Dindigul – Madurai – 402km; Day 10: Madurai to Kanyakumari – 240km. Record Category: The record type has been mentioned as cross country, record country – India, record category – solo, bike type – standard, start and end date – Nov 5 to 15, 2018, direction – N – S, start point Kashmir – Lal Chowk (clock tower main market), end point – Kanyakumari – Cape Camorin, distance – 2331 miles, time – 10:10:01, sp – 9.32.

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Team: The K2K team included: Kishor Kale - owner of Shivshakti Cycles showroom in Nashik; Advocate Dattatray Chakor – cricketer; Vijay Kale – a government servant; Advocate Kabir Rachure; Sagar Bondarde – Photographer and short film maker; and Sandeep Parab – Driver. It was not all smooth sailing though, and K2K had its set of challenges. The start from Srinagar was delayed due to rain and snowfall in Kashmir Valley. When the journey got underway it was in very cold conditions. Temperature at the start point was 1°C at 6am and 3°C at 7:44am when the expedition started from Lal Chowk Srinagar. This was followed by a landslide between Banihal and Ramban. There were stretches of terrible road all the way to Udhampur. Near Agra, Dr. Mahendra developed knee pain, which kept getting worse. By the fifth day of cycling, he was on painkillers. In Madhya Pradesh a speeding pick-up truck smashed into his support vehicle – a Toyota Fortuner SUV – that was parked well to the left side of the road. Dr. Mahendra was inside the support vehicle when the accident occurred. Luckily nobody suffered serious injury, but the vehicle was completely damaged and the K2K journey of roughly 3,700km progressed with second support vehicle. When asked about their 2019 plans, the Mahajan brothers told that they would attempt to cycle from Mumbai to Kathmandu, do the regular walk-in from Lukla to Everest Base Camp and then attempt Everest, as it has been a longstanding desire for them. Dr. Mahajan said, “I am happy to be in the prestigious books, more so as they also mentioned names of crew members. I also want youngsters to take up the K2K challenge and break my record. In the process, you get to see our diverse country.” Not forgetting to thank his team and the sponsors, Dr Mahendra Mahajan said, “I am thankful to Nashik Cyclists for their support and Giant Starkenn CEO Pravin Patil who provided Propel Advanced 2 bike.” He concluded saying, “Its a memorable experience whose memories will be cherished LIFETIME”. The record title as suggested by GWR GUINNESS WORLD RECORD is ‘Fastest journey from Kashmir to Kanyakumari by bicycle (Male)’.

Kids

Kids on Hot Wheels Startup tips for taking kids on a riding trip By Meera Velankar

arenting in the outdoors can be fun for both parents and kids because of the simple fact that playing outdoors promotes wellbeing and physical development. Kids are naturally drawn to playing outside, which has encouraged many leading universities to work on the subject of ‘Outdoor Parenting’. Every parent plans elaborate vacations and wants kids to explore and have unique life experiences that money and time can buy. While being outdoors parents can talk about values or show skills in many outdoor activities that allow children to develop muscle, strength and coordination. There are numerous benefits of outdoor activities and exploring the environment and gaining self-confidence are just few to name. Playing outdoors increases flexibility, builds strong bones and muscles and also improves balance, coordination and strength. Children like to play outside and just need a chance to get involved in any activity where they can use their whole body like running, jumping, riding a bike etc. Cycling can be one such outdoor activity, which can be an important life skill and an important team building activity.

• Check brakes and the braking mechanism before you begin. • Practice maintaining safe distance and balancing in controlled environment. • Wear safety gears like helmet with correct fit while cycling. • Indulge in few outdoor non-cycling activities to have good connect with the kids to understand their fitness levels, interests and direction taking abilities. • Plan a single day or multi-day ride on traffic-free roads or on trails away from the traffic or in the wildlife. • Start after sunrise and finish before the temperature rise in the afternoon. • Have talks or exchange information on other creative activities. • Visit educational institutes, zoos and historical sites on the cycle. It really encourages the kids. • Let them eat all they want. For once you don’t have to worry they will burn it all. in any case • One can enjoy the food and still keep healthy by cycling. • Ride in a single file and ask kids to

maintain safe distance, teach them to break safe and how to handle downhill specially when riding in a group. • An expert or adult cyclist can pace kids while moving front and back in ten file keeping safety in mind. • Choose different terrains for rides. Makes it interesting. • Take required breaks and make sure every kid is cycling as per his or her fitness level. • Take support vehicle and ensure it keeps required distance from the cyclists. Keep extra clothes, food and first aid in the vehicle. • Gather all the necessary contact details of parents and hospitals en route. • Keep basic first aid ready at hand. India is the world’s second densely populated country and riding a cycle on the city roads requires additional skills, but we at ‘Crank’ hope that all these tips will help you in starting off young riders towards enjoying freedom on two wheels. It’s the best bonding that you will enjoy.

Here are some basic tips to keep in mind before you take your kids for a cycle ride: • Start with a master class on discipline and importance of following instructions. • Adjust seat height correctly to avoid discomfort and long-term injury.

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CFINews

Gold Rush at ATCC

eam India wrapped up the Asian Track Cycling Championship in Jakarta leaving all the countries flabbergasted with an overall stunning performance especially in the Junior category and leading the medal tally with 4 gold 4 silver and 2 bronze. On day 1, team India put the track on fire with men’s junior team rewriting their own record in team sprint event. Even women junior bagged first ever silver medal in the same event. After dominating in sprint events, on day 2, team India reached the podium in endurance events too. For the first time in Indian Cycling history Team India won two medals one silver and one Bronze in Men junior Scratch race and team pursuit respectively. Venkappa secured silver in scratch race. The hero of the day was Esow who claimed Gold in Keirin event in men junior and Trishiya Paul winning Bronze in 500m time trial. India’s dominance in junior section continued as Ronaldo stunned

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the whole stadium with the Gold in men junior 1000m time trial. Team India bagged all the sprint Golds in men junior section till third day thus leading the medal table with three Golds one silver and two bronze. Day 4 was a red letter day in Indian Cycling. Team India created record of all sorts being the first ever team in the history of Cycling by securing Gold medals in all four sprinting events in the Track Cycling. Esow claimed his Third Gold in the sprint event beating his compatriot Ronaldo Singh to silver medal and making clean sweep in sprinting events in the Asian Track Championship. Even in 3000 meters Individual pursuit Bilal Ahmed won a silver medal on the fourth day of the championship and India leads the medal tally with 4 gold three silver and two bronze medals. Overall we can see the sincere hard work of Mr Onkar Singh and the entire team at CFI finally bearing fruit. Olympics don’t seem a distant dream anymore.

GET OUT & RIDE!