Crank with ProCycle October 2018 by CrankMag

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Jaymin Shah

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International events Luxury in Wilderness

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Editor’sNote

The CRANK with ProCycle Team Dear Readers Managing Editor and Publisher Vikram K Limsay Invitee editor Onkar Singh, Secretary General CFI and ACC Edit Desk Dr. Meera Velankar Pedal Pal

Happy Ganesh Chaturthi and may the lord of new beginnings bring all the good things into your life. We bring you face to face with the leadership in the cycling industry who guide its fortune. This issue meet Mr.Jaymin Shah who has been steering SCOTT the global brand that has had a pioneering presence in India. We love it when we discover entire families that are into cycling. Especially endurance cycling. Meet some of them in this issue. Our partner tour, the Tour de Tuli just got over in South Africa and we take you on a breathtaking photo feature

Bike Tester

and urge you to experience wilderness on a bike in luxury some day.

Lokesh Jain

The mountains they are a calling and we bring you a report from an endurance event

Creative and Design N. Chandru Contact editdeskcrank@procycle.in

that just got over and a curtain raiser to the signature mountain biking event the Hero MTB Himalaya. Trek has entered the country with a bang. Our riders test one of the very famous hybrid line up. We vouch for the ride and you are going to love it.

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The dollar touching a record high is sure to impact the price. We hope not much as

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there is a dire need for our tribe to increase.

Till we meet again.

ProCycle and Sports India Pvt. Ltd.

Ciao

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Cycling Federation of India

Profiled

Hangout with Jaymin Shah Country Manager SCOTT Sports India Private Limited

n our attempt at bringing our readers face to face with the leadership in the bike industry, this month we bring to you Mr. Jaymin Shah. SCOTT has been a pioneer in the bike industry of the country in a sense that it was the first global brand to enter the Indian market on its own. Jaymin has been guiding the fortune of the company from the beginning and under his leadership the company has launched a range of bike and accessory brands and a little birdie tells us there is lot more to come. We feel SCOTT has a deep insight into the Indian market better than many others who operate here. Lets get straight into the discussion CRANK: Welcome to CRANK Mr. Jaymin. SCOTT was the first fully owned subsidiary of any International brand and only

CRANK with ProCycle OCTOBER 15TH, 2018

second till date to enter India. What was the thinking vis a vis the conventional distributor route? JS: WE at Scott looked at the Indian market with a very different lens as compared to the others. We firmly believed in the potential of the Indian market and took steps that were required to deliver a world class product to the Indian consumer. One of the most important aspects was to have skin in the game by setting up a subsidiary and set up a team who worked hard from the get go to get the SCOTT business up and running. For sure the distributor method was an option, but we believe a SCOTT team on the ground was essential to deliver the Brand experience to the consumers and our dealer network.

CRANK: What’s your view of the Indian market? We’ve seen some difficult times. Any silver lining that you predict?

directly with our consumers and engage with them in a meaningful manner.

JS: Our view of India is stronger than ever. We firmly believe in our country’s potential and continue to keep investing in India. We were the first to conduct Mechanic Workshops and provide opportunities to consumers to test bikes before purchasing them. No Cost EMI was another step that has helped owning a SCOTT easier. I am glad that we have created the benchmarks in this market for other to follow.

CRANK: Last year we saw some India centric product launches. What was the understanding behind this strategy and can we expect more such launches?

Yes, the last 12 months have been a tough learning phase for many businesses and we have learnt a lot ourselves well, but it only furthers our commitment to the market and SCOTT consumers. In fact, it was in the last 12-15 months that we launched the SCOTT Motorsports division and our 2nd Bike Brand BERGAMONT and will soon go live with an Omnichannel E Commerce channel to make the buying experience seamless. In essence we used these challenging months to further our commitment to the Indian consumer. CRANK: Both SCOTT & BERGAMONT are firmly established in the country. What’s been the brands philosophy to succeed in the Indian market? JS: DIY! DO IT YOURSELF has been the philosophy that we as a business operation have firmly believed in. We have made a pathway in a complex and diverse market like India and have invested extensively in our Dealer Network and After Sales Service Network. We have ensured that both SCOTT and BERGAMONT stay true to their individual brand ethos and beliefs. This approach had also helped us connect better with our consumers and help them have a strong and lasting connect with the brands. CRANK: Can you share some insights into the marketing strategy and customer centricity for the Indian customer? JS: The Indian consumer has never been one who likes excess of anything because we are country of limited means and that translates into our buying behavior as well. We like to get the maximum out of our purchases. Our product and marketing strategy has been to listen to the Indian consumer and launch products as and when the consumer is ready for the same. Digital communication is such a channel that allows for 2-way communication and that is something we did by launching a SCOTT Owners club 4 years ago which allowed us to communicate

JS: I touched upon customer centricity at the core of our marketing strategy and that is the reason we launched the Made for India program for both SCOTT and Bergamont. This was again born out the feedback that we received from our consumers to have specific types of bikes at specific price points. We will continue to have a focused approach for the Made For India program on our range of bikes and you can expect some more exciting bikes that will be launched in India. The METRIX series is classic success story where it was launched as a Made for India series but today is a series which is available across the world. CRANK: SCOTT, Bergamont. Any new brands in the pipeline? Bikes, Accessories? JS: At this stage no new brands as we have a wide portfolio and have our hands full with the SCOTT, Bergamont and Syncros Brands. We will be launching the SCOTT range of Running Shoes and Gear in the coming 6 months. CRANK: You’ve been the longest in the market amongst the various brands. How’s the journey been these last few years. For you and for the company? What have been the high points a low? The journey has been most fulfilling and satisfying for me and for the SCOTT brand. We have learnt a lot along the way and continue to learn every day in this market. Our understanding of this market has been built due to the hard work that we as a team at SCOTT India have put in and the unwavering support of Beat Zaugg who is the CEO and CO Owner of SCOTT brand CRANK: And finally what’s your ride JS: I do currently own the Bergamont Grandurance but to be honest I rarely get on the saddle. I quite literally spend enough time on the saddle driving the SCOTT, BERGAMONT and SYNCROS business that during my free time I prefer spending it with my family or on the Golf Course improving my scores

Made for escaping Made for when you just need to get some fresh air P6L in Racing Green and Ivory P Type handlebar 6 gears Mudguards C Bag in Black Saddle Pouch in Black

Made for socialising Made for meet ups with friends and quick cafe stops H6R in Red H Type handlebar 6 gears Mudguards & Rack Tote Bag in Black

CRANK with ProCycle OCTOBER 15TH, 2018

CityTalk

Family that cycles together Stays together

e know that endurance tribe relies upon motivating each other while achieving their ambition. Often it is difficult for the immediate family to understand the emotion, the travails and the hard work. It’s therefore rare to come across an entire family that lives and breathes cycling and in the process motivates each other in accomplishing their best. CRANK caught up with two such families.

Shaily & Ingit Anand In any endurance sports, not many couples are known to inspire each other. But Ahmedabad-based Shaily Chauhan and Ingit Anand are different, rather made for each other to accomplish newer heights every day. In a tête-à-tête with Crank, the couple share their formula to enjoy the time while focusing on triathlon. CRANK: Tell us something about your triathlon experience...

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Shaily: Strength doesn’t come from what you can do or from physical capacity. It comes from overcoming the things you once thought you couldn’t do and majorly from an “indomitable will”. This has a very close reference to my tri journey. I am no Micheal Phelps when it comes to swimming and though dabbled running a

few half marathons (HMs), I accepted the challenge thrown a night before the race to plunge into it with no gears, no training but only oodles of confidence. I just followed my heart. In August 2015, the sequence of events happened as if it was a joke as my training was non-existent for a month as I was resuming from calf muscle tear, and I did not visit Chennai with an intention to participate but had gone to welcome Ingit on the finish line of his first half-Ironman distance. I did not even have sport shoes. Suddenly all changed, Peter, the race director and founder of CTC, arranged one BIB for me and shouted “Shaily has an Iron will... next year we will see her in Ironman contest”, and then it was never looking back. We started our tri journey when we were seeing each other but it continues even after being happily married for the last two-and-a-half years now. The best moment of my life was witnessing my Dulhe Raja along with Baraatiyaan on bicycle and Bidaai on a tandem cycle — a great surprise by Ingit and dear friends showcasing our passion. Ingit: The tri journey started with CTC half-Ironman in 2015. I vividly remember the painful walk of 21.1km after 1.9km swim and 90km bike and resulted in overall time of around 8 h 48 mins . Back then, I thought it would be manageable to complete the half-Ironman as I was comfortable with distances when considering the individual discipline. But I was proved wrong right after the first triathlon where I took more than 3h 15m to complete the half marathon whereas my PB was 1:58 during those days. I realised that day doing all three together is different and a challenging game. I did my second triathlon in 2016 and took almost 8h 30m as training volume was low, irregular and non-structured. On my wedding, April

24, I received a surprise gift (an Ironman Malaysia registration) from Diana, a very close friend based in US. The surpise made me happy yet tensed while I was departing for honeymoon. Immediately after return, I connected with coach Deepak Raj and asked if he could train me for IM Malaysia. That decision changed my perspective about training and made me believe that structured training is very efficient and important to achieve such goals or be it any fitness goals. Three months into training, I did half-Iron in July 2016 with timings of 6h 45m and that too with a strong and comfortable finish to grab a third podium. After six months of structured training, I completed my first Ironman (Malaysia) in 13h 44m 42s. The training continued and achieved my PB in half marathon (01:42) in Feb 2017. I bought a TT bike in April 2017 after I found the triathlon journey to be exciting and interesting with some long-term goals. In September 2017, I completed my second Ironman in Italy with a timing of 11h 52m 55 sec. This Ironman registration was a surprise gift by Shaily on my birthday. During the recovery phase in October 2017, I participated in the first Olympic triathlon held in Vadodara where I secured 2nd podium. It was an event where both of us had podium finish, Shaily being 1st in the women category. One of the goals was running a sub-4 marathon that I accomplished in Nov 2017 at Adani Marathon. Since I was inclined towards learning more about this sport and hence pursued a certification programme to become an Ironman-certified coach. On December 17, 2017, after clearing two online exams, I became an Ironman-certified coach approved by IM University. On the same day, I completed my 4th half-Iron distance triathlon in Chennai with podium finish. Triathlon is a sport that I truly love and that led me to complete

CRANK with ProCycle OCTOBER 15TH, 2018

third Ironman on June 3, 2018, the most challenging one, in the Philippines. I took 12h 15min 16s. CRANK: How do you motivate each other? Shaily: Being a nutritionist by passion, I ensure to take adequate care of Ingit’s nutrition as per his athletic goals. I tried not to compromise on cooking as I always wish to serve him with the most holistic nutritious food though I have crunch of time. Initially after marriage, I took a bit slow steps in race participation but focused on Ingit’s first Ironman as “our goal” to have a strong finish. I have ensured that Ingit has all the best gears with him to train hard so taking help of few of my friends and right guidance plan a surprise to use all the special occasions like anniversary or birthday to gift him Garmin watch, power meter or Ironman Italy registration. Each of his birthdays has a theme like last year we celebrated his birthday by giving him a surprise organising a pool party at 6 am when he walked to the pool for his swim workout. We found the pool was full of our own buddies singing a birthday song for him. This year, it was celebrated with all running buddies. Before we left for his first Ironman in Langkawi, we managed to connect with his childhood buddies, graduation and post-graduation friends, swimming friends, cyclists, runners, tri-athletes, cousins, family members and managed to collate a video of a century of wishes rooting for him for a strong finish at his first Ironman. I still remember we planned our anniversary celebration in Krabi so that we can take one-day stop in Bangkok and buy a good TT bike before his second Ironman. Our routine, our celebrations, our social circle mostly now revolve around tri, a new way to live life. Also, Ingit gave me one-on-one triathlon coaching as a gift with coach Raj so that I have a disciplined approach and don’t allow my passion to die down in the midst of other responsibilities. He keeps realising me that I need to put in more effort to give justice to the goal which I have made. Ingit: By constantly reminding of our goal and always strive to push harder to better performance. Having a life partner who has same passion makes life much easier and accommodative to fitness goals of such scales.

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CRANK: Tell us briefly about your achievements Shaily: • Ironman 70.3 distance in Chennai • Two podium finishes in Olympic Distance Triathlon organised by • The Cycling Club of Baroda and Amdavad Crankmeisters 20+ half-marathons, 2 marathons, 2 cyclothons, multiple triathlons since 2016 Ingit: •

Ironman-certified coach

• First Ironman from Ahmedabad • Three-time Ironman finisher — Subic Bay, Philippines, June 3, 2018, Emilia Romagna, Italy, September 23, 2017, Langkawi, Malaysia, November 12, 2016 Crank : Your personal goals? Shaily: Ironman, shall be finalising on the race location soon. Ingit:I have a goal to qualify for world championship — IM Kona.

Dr. Sunil Kumar Even at 64 years, Dr Sunil Kumar, an associate professor of Delhi University, has been young at heart and a very strongwilled person. Since childhood, Dr Kumar has been interested in various disciplines of sports like hockey, skating, badminton et al. With time, his interests gradually faded but a few years ago, he started fancying hiking. Along with his four other colleagues, Dr Kumar religiously hiked once every summer for four-five years but like other interests, this passion also suddenly disappeared by 2009. In 2016, his daughter (Shivani Elhance) and son-in-law (Naresh Gupta) got him into cycling and from there began his cycling journey, which has now blossomed into an integral part of his life. Dr Kumar’s first bike was an entry-level hybrid from Firefox, Road Runner Pro-V. He attempted his first century ride within a month of having started to bike. He earned his first two SR titles on his first bike — first one of which was special for him since he finished it along with his son Sharad Elhance. He bought his second bike in 2017, a mid-range hybrid from Canondale — Bad Boy, on which he completed his third SR (6-day SR — all 4

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BRMs back-to-back within six days) and a 1200km BRM. His favourite route is the 50km loop from his house to the T3 terminal of airport. For the hill trainings, he prefers gradients of Nainital, his native place. He has no formal cycling coaching but makes sure that he rides about five-six days a week. With a smile, Shivani says their family is a ‘Cyc Family’, as in the family of six, except for her mother, Sudha, everybody rides a cycle!

UltraCycling

Call of the mountains The Great Himalayan Ultra

he first edition of the world’s highest endurance RAAM Qualifier (RQ) race, The Great Himalayan Ultra, was flagged off from Leh Gate at 6 am on September 1 by Divya Tate, the first woman from India to be qualified for Paris-Brest-Paris and national representative of Audax India Randonneurs. Three of India’s top elite ultraracers, Sumit Patil, Kabir Rachure and Amit Samarth, each with their support crew in motor vehicles, set off to face 600 challenging kms in the Himalayas! The first 150 km were fairly fastpaced with all three reaching Lamayuru control at 11,520 ft not far from each other. From here, the racers continued up Fotu La at 13,479 ft, climbing almost 2,000 ft in 15 km. From Fotu La, the route descends to Kargil which Amit passed at 5.08 pm having covered 257km in 11 hours. He was followed by Kabir at 6.36 pm

CRANK with ProCycle OCTOBER 15TH, 2018

and Sumit at 7.52 pm. They faced a strong headwind while heading to Dras, the world’s second coldest inhabited place. Returning to Kargil for a 3-hour mandatory rest, Amit was looking very tired, but started promptly three hours later in the cold night at 2 am to climb back up over Namik La and Fotu La. Kabir started 2 hrs 22 mins later, and Sumit at 8.45 am. While severe cold affected

Amit, Kabir continued, maintaining a steady pace fuelled by his sister Sapana Rachure’s cooking and the encouragement of his crew.

Kabir Rachure, winner of the 1st edition of The Great

From 11 am onwards, just beyond Saspol, Amit’s struggle was obvious so his crew administered the oxygen that had been provided to each vehicle by Vicki Niaz of Ladakh Oxygen Plant. With no noticeable change, it was decided that he should be taken to the nearest medical center at Saspol where he was given medical attention. After resting for a while, he courageously insisted that he wanted to finish the race. By this time, Kabir had continued his steady pace and gone past Saspol.

is my crew chief for all the races we do. My parents and my

Escorted by Inspire India officials proudly through Leh Market, Kabir finished at 6.24pm (Day 2), winning and becoming the 1st person to finish The Great Himalayan Ultra Race in 33 hrs 23 mins (not including the 3-hour halt). Amit rode steadily also, monitored closely by crew and officials to ensure he did not display any signs of distress and finished second at 7.04 pm (34 hrs 03mins). Sumit reached Saspol around 8 pm, a little late to meet the RQ timing but rode strong to finish third in 42 hrs and 07 mins. Race director Tate said, “The extreme conditions are inherent to any activity in these mighty mountains and demand to be respected. Though the distance is only 600 km compared to other international races, but this ‘600 km’ is of continuous challenge. The race is not so much against other racers, but in fact against all the forces of nature that have created these mountains.”

Himalayan Ultra, talks about the race and how he cracked it. My family played a very important role in this race as my sister brother-in-law are pillars in my life as they always support my passion for cycling. As we know, any ultra race is costly, but my family supports me with finance. The Great Himalayan Ultra is, I guess, the most difficult race on the earth because of high altitude and lots of climbing, I train under Miten Thakkar and we had very tight training plan for this race as we were aware of its gravity. We had 15-18 hour training plan weekly for this event for the last three months. Our efforts have pulled it off successfully. If anyone wants to qualify for RAAM, he must do proper training before the event and should not take any events lightly because it’s a RAAM qualifier and RAAM is monster. All RQ races organised by Inspire India are tough. And The Great Himalayan Ultra is the toughest so one should train properly and go for a tough RQ race. Next, we are looking for The Deccan Cliffhanger to do it in record time under 24 hrs and we are targeting The Ultra Spice 1,750 km under 90 hrs too. We need good simulation rides for RAAM 2019, which is my target. Keeping this in mind, The Ultra Spice 1,750 km will be very important ride for us.

CRANK with ProCycle OCTOBER 15TH, 2018

InternationalEvents

Luxury in Wilderness Tour de Tuli Riders: A total of 231 riders, including 33 women, took part in Tour de Tuli this year. Riders came from several countries — US, Australia, Botswana, Belgium, UK, Finland, the Netherlands, France, French, Germany, Greece, Namibia, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Russian.

Route: Day 1 of the tour was about 60 km ride from Limpopo Valley Airfield to Limpopo River Camp (Botswana) while the second day riders had to ride about 80 km from Limpopo River Camp to Nyala Berry Camp (Zimbabwe). The third day of the tour took the riders through a 52 km stretch on the Nyala Berry Camp loop and the last day they returned from Nyala Berry Camp to Mapunguwbwe (South Africa) riding approx. 60 km.

Day 1: The riders set off from the Limpopo Valley Airfield, with many little koppies providing 360-degree views of the breathtaking landscapes showcasing the Tuli Block, while the spectacular sunrise colours in the winter bushveld are sure to impress. Riders had a huge diversity in the

CRANK with ProCycle OCTOBER 15TH, 2018

terrain, with changing landscapes and mopane thickets opening into plains littered with agates, shepherd’s trees, rocky sides and plenty of undulating sections hiding sneaky and sandy drainage lines that require special attention to detail and great caution. Interesting highlights include a stop at ‘Bryce’s Store’ which contains historic tales of the conflict between the British and the Boers dating back to the late 1800s in what officially came be to known as the Anglo Boer War.

Day 2: The second day of the Tour was the longest riding day and therefore it was compulsory for riders to carry hydration packs. They ride along the Limpopo River for a few kilometres before turning north towards the crossing point into Zimbabwe, using ancient paths that migrating elephants have walked for centuries. Since these elephant trails have been used for so long they are hard-packed, creating perfect, fast and flowing riding routes. At Shashe village, riders were treated to a tour around the communityowned and farmed orange orchards irrigated with massive central pivot machines. After sailing across the mopane graveyard, past ancient nyala berry trees, the riders settled in at the brand new Nyala Berry Camp for the rest of the day.

Day 3: The third day began by crossing the Pazhi River into a fascinating region of sandstone koppies, rocky outcrops and old elephant

trails. After a tea stop, riders headed down a rocky ridge towards the newest one-kilometre dam wall in Zimbabwe. The reservoir has been created to store water pumped out of the Limpopo River using solar power.

Day 4: The last riding day of the Tour was a feast of sights for the riders, including plenty of elephant, and a fascinating dinosaur fossil site that is more than 140 million years old. The area is ideal for game sightings, including a den of bat-eared foxes. Once they crossed the red Kalahari sand, riders took in the magnificent surroundings of baobabs and ancient rock-figs until they emerged at the Sizi Spring, purported to grant ‘everlasting youth’. The last night’s festivities took place at Mapungubwe Camp in the ancient Kingdom of Mapungubwe, a World Heritage Site in South Africa.

Menu: Riders had a delectable choice of platter on the tour’s complete six-day itinerary. The welcome dinner had Rare Roast Fillet set on Stir Fried Vegetables served with a Pinotage Jus, Stuffed Chicken Galentine set on a Red Onion Potato Dauphine served with a Mushroom Sauce, Macaroni and Cheese Greek Salad, Garlic Bread with several desserts. The breakfasts usually had selection of Muffins, Rusks, Cornflakes / All Bran / Wheatbix / Muesli, Hot Porridge, Jungle Oats, Mini Yoghurts and fruits. On the ride, the riders had beverages from milk to coffee and biscuits, cakes,

CRANK with ProCycle OCTOBER 15TH, 2018

assorted chocolates, crisps, hard boiled eggs, dried mango, honey and sweets. On the second day, riders were greeted with energy cup of mixed pulses, corn, cucumber, chickpeas and cous cous topped with Roast Chicken and a creamy Caesar Dressing during the ride. The lunch had Sausage Bar, Boerewors, Chicken and Vegetarian Sausages with Hot Dog Rolls accompanied by Saute Onions, Tomato Sauce, Chilli Sauce and Mustards, and Potato Salad. Dinner was a bit different with Whole Peppercrusted Sirloin carved on request served with a Peppercorn Sauce, Kassler Chops served with German Mustard, Pap with Tomato Bredie, Vegetable Cottage Pie, Winter Salad Bar and Malva Pudding with Vanilla Sauce as dessert. The third day lunch witnessed Pasta Bar, Taglitelle Noodles offered with Italian Bolognaise Napolitana served with Parmesan Cheese, Italian Salad and bread selection. While breakfast and on-the-ride menu hardly changed, dinner had Lamb on the Spit, served with Mint Sauce and Rosemary Gravy, Marinated Chicken Kebabs, Pap with Tomato Bredie, Root Vegetable Potjie and Apple Crumble with Chantilly Cream and Custard for dessert. On August 5, the fourth day, breakfast and on-the-go rider menu hardly changed, lunch had Prego bar, Marinated Chicken and Beef Pregos steaks and Vegetarian Burgers with Rolls, Saute Onions and Nali Cream. The dinner that day was Braai & Potjie Dinner

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with Venison Potjie with Root Vegetables, Curried Chicken Potjie, Farmstyle Boerewors, Steamed Rice, Roasted Butternut with toasted Almonds and Cinnamon, Creamed Spinach, Potato Salad, Country Salad Coupe Display, Chakalaka with Bread Roll Selection and Chocolate Brownies for dessert. The next day lunch in camp had Schnitzel Bar, Chicken and Beef Schnitzel Rolls served with Mustard and Mayonnaise, Coleslaw and Avocado Mimosa. The farewell dinner had Rare Roast Fillet set on Thyme Mash served with a Red Onion Gravy, Cape Malay Seafood Curry with Steamed Rice, Vegetable Lasagne, Bread Basket and Croque en Bouche. On August 7, the farewell breakfast had Hot Scrambled Eggs, Grilled Bacon, Grilled Chicken Sausage, Hash Browns, Sauteed Mushrooms, Baked Beans, Croissants with Preserves and selection of juice.

Massage: Balancing Touch sponsored recruitment and training of 20 therapists. Each therapist volunteered their time so as to help each rider a 20-min massage every day. The massage is important for recovery so they can enjoy the next days ride.

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IndustryNews

Hero MTB Himalaya Asia’s toughest

he 14th edition of Hero MTB Himalaya is all set to kickoff from Shimla Next month . The annual cross country multi-stage mountain biking race organized by Himalayan Adventure Sports & Tourism Promotion Association (HASTPA), Himachal Tourism and Hero Cycles will be organized from 27th September to 6th October 2017. The route for 14th edition of its race, The oldest and touted to be the toughest in Asia, the 8 stage mountain biking challenge will begin from Shimla on 27th September 2018 and continue until 6th October 2018 to Dharamshala. The riders will advance from Erstwhile British capital-Shimla to the land of His Holiness, Dalai Lama- Dharamshala traveling from the Shivaliks to the mighty Dhauladhars, traversing 4 districts of Himachal Pradesh and crossing two ferocious rivers of the Himalayas- Beas and Satluj. The Shivaliks formed by tertiary deposits of the outer Himalayas are the southern geologically youngest east-west mountain chain of Himalayas. The Dhauladhars feature major passes across the range like the Indradhar pass and the Rupin pass. Dharamshala is the closest tourist town from Dhauladhars also known to be the home to the Central Tibetan Administration and Dalai Lama’s residence. Shimla and Dharamshala are soon going to be Himachal Pradesh’s smart cities are the venues for the opening and closing ceremonies. The race will also be touching the boundaries of the Great Himalayan National Park which is one of the biggest national parks in India and an UNESCO world heritage site and is located in the

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Kullu region. Bir-Billing, known to be the world’s second highest point for paragliding will also feature along the race route. The Race is considered to be one of the toughest of all other cross country races around the world. This year’s race spans along 8 stages with a total of 650 kilometers and features an elevation gain of 16,000 meters, covering 60-90 kilometers every day. It is a scenic route with the Himalayan beauty at its best and the team has worked hard to add some super new and previously unseen stretches to the route this year. Major towns near the race route will be Shimla- GadagufarNarkanda- Luri- Swad- Jalhori- Shatadhar- Gadagushaini- JhanjeliMandi- Barot,Bir, Palampur and Dharamshala. The race tracks will be tarmac, broken gravel, rocks, mud, and sand. The highest point of the race is Shatadhar pass at a height of 3100 meters. The race has received a participation of 72 riders from more than 15 countries across 5 categories. This year also, HASTPA which had introduced a interesting short prologue to the race, around the mall and ridge shimla which will take place on 27th (World tourism day) evening to decide the seeding of the riders and also to showcase the event to the world from the historic ridge . The competition has been fiercely building up over the years with the race gaining popularity around the region. The race is being organized with the administrative and financial

support of the department of tourism govt of Himachal Pradesh and Hero Cycles the largest manufacturers of bicycles in India and the world . Incredible India, Ministry of tourism ,GOI has also extended its support to the race and will be promoting it across its offices and channels in India and overseas. “ The event has drawn big names from the International cycling fraternity in its earlier editions. We are happy to see an increased participation of Professional riders from across the world . Portugal, Germany, South Africa and Spain are expected to be front running countries in participation numbers. The vision with which we started this initiative 14 years back . to promote the Indian Himalayas and our state for mountain biking, the world largest and most popular eco friendly adventure sport is slowly realizing seeing the popularity of the event around the world and the advent of some very good riders from the region who are making a mark nationally “ ,said” Mohit Sood president Hastpa “ Adventure tourism has a lot of scope in our beautiful hill state ...Mountain cycling is one of the biggest tourism activities globally

and we want to promote our state for the same to develop a healthy ecotourism economy ..... MTB Himalaya is an event that has over the years attracted global cyclists and showcases the natural wealth of the sport ... we are fully supporting it for this edition ...”said, Ram Subag Singh additional chief secretary govt of HP”.

HERO MTB HIMALAYA 2018 - RACE DETAILS Day Start

End

Date

Shimla

GadaKuffer (matiana)

28th Sep

GadaKuffer

Shwad (Aani)

29th Sep

Shwad

Gada Gushaini (mandi seraj)

30th Sep

Rest Day

1st Oct

Gada Gushaini

Bagshed(mandi)

2nd Oct

Bagshed

Kamand (Mandi)

3rd Oct

Kamand(Mandi)

Barot (Mandi)

4th Oct

Barot

Palampur (Agriuniv)

5th Oct

Dharamshala (dhauladhar)/ Closing ceremony

6th Oct

9 Palampur

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Tested&Reviewed

tested - Trek FX 4 The Trend Changer

eems like a bold claim, trend changer, but do read on and know for yourself as to why we think so. If you have been cycling for a bit now and reached a stage where you are thinking of getting a better or simply a new cycle, then you are possibly considering a road bike or a better MTB. More often moving to a road bike is considered an upgrade not only in equipment but also as a rider. While there is merit in that thought process, it is also a trend that is likely to change. More on that, as we share more about this cycle from Trek. So, let us take a step back and go to the point where you are considering a new cycle. An average cyclist would either consider a road bike because it is light and will help the rider go faster. The other option being a hybrid if he/she has been riding a cheap, entry level MTB. Or would simply go for a MTB with better specs. While the hybrid offers more speed and comfort, the MTB could compromise on the speed but open up a whole bunch of terrains that one could ride on comfortably. That’s a thought process that just is and nobody questioned it before simply because it is easy to comprehend. But that doesn’t mean it is the best way to make a decision. Looks like the folks at Trek set out to challenge that status quo. Enter Trek’s FX series.

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FX here stands for “fitness”. Make no mistake (because it can be easy to) that this might look like a “hybrid category” cycle because it is far from it. Hybrids, generally are considered somewhere in between a road bike and a MTB. But that is just too big a difference to have something in between. Hence, consider the FX series as a product line in between a road bike and a hybrid. Suddenly you will also be able to see as to why this can be a game changer. The FX series, in this case the FX 4 offers the rider the versatility and comfort of a hybrid while offering the speed and weight of a road bike. Let us look at how.

Versatility and comfort •

IsoZone flat handle bar with ergo gel grips for some awesome road vibration dampening. The flat handlebar also helps with better maneuverability while riding through traffic

•

Taller head tube compared to a road bike will help you stay upright and comfortable during long rides

•

700c x 28 tires will ensure enough air in the tubes for that extra comfort

•

Carbon fork will further reduce the finer feedback you receive from the slightly granular road surfaces

•

Speed and reduced weight

•

The Alpha gold aluminum series basically means that the frame has been engineered by varying the density of aluminum on various parts of the frame. So it is denser only where it is most required.

•

Carbon fork. Helps reduce the overall weight of the cycle to 10kgs (for the 20inch size frame)

•

2 x 10 Shimano Tiagra gearing will give enough gear ratios for a ride in the hills

So what about the ride feel, you may ask. What we immediately picked up on was how incredibly light it is. It will be the first thing you will notice on this cycle. The overall ride felt nimble, quick and comfortable. We could already imagine riders riding it to work or a

quick catch up with friends at a coffee shop and also do a 100+ miler sportive or brevet easily. By the way, the option to add fenders and racks make it a great option for some long distance brevets or light touring. The 28mm width tires provide enough comfort on most road surfaces without compromising on the speed. One could however easily change that to wider tire widths, up to 35mm easily, if preferred. All of this might seem like it is too good to be true or what could be the catch here. Well, honestly we couldn’t find any. All in all it is a great package. Oh yes, you could contemplate on its price point. At INR 73,000 one could wonder why not just buy a road bike. But like we shared earlier, the thought process here needs a bit of a change. Instead start by asking yourself what kind of riding you will be doing. If your rides will include commutes that need to be comfortable and local club races, or long rides that require some speed as well then this cycle takes care of those needs. And when you look at it that way, then this price point will be a total value for money.

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