A Journey of a Randonneur

(For Kuntal Kuilaya, an IT professional, cycling has been a passion, which has inspired him to touch new horizon everyday. In his first blog for Discover on Wheels, Kuntal comes up with his bicycling diary that has now scribbled with brevet jottings)

It was someday in December 2013. Checked Facebook as usual and somehow my eyes got hooked to a post that some guys are going to the Sundarbans from Kolkata on bicycles and there was an open invitation for anyone who want to join. Out of curiosity, I contacted the person organising the ride and after some discussions, planned to hook up. That was the first day when Subhajyoti and my paths crossed. We got to know that we have some more like-minded fellows of this little tribe called “cyclists”. It was a sudden decision to travel that far on my BSA Photon and I did not regret for that decision from that day.

Comprising some more people from our own city, Discover on Wheels was formed after a few days from then. It was inevitable to happen someday. With days, I got to meet with its founder-members like Supratim, Nishant, Subhajyoti, Joynath’da and it was a homely atmosphere from the very beginning. Being part of Team DoW from the initial days is a nice memory to cherish. Time passed on and the tribe started growing. I had little bit of knowledge regarding bikes, their use, what are required and what not among others. I also bought an MTB as off-road-pedalling attracts me always.

In July 2014, we decided to get into something more serious, more constructive — the BRMs. At that time, Kolkata had no club organising BRMs. Some of us decided to attempt 200km BRM in Hyderabad. I talked with Abhishek for the first time to plan it better and within a short span, I got to meet another humble human being. The planning was done with Supratim, Nishant, Subhajyoti, Joynath’da, Abhishek, Ashis, Chandranath. And there came the disaster. One over-excited mason with his roadster pounded on me from behind on one fine evening just two weeks before the event. Achilles tendon of my left leg got partially torn resulting no more cycling in the next four months. The recovery took a painful seven months and then I could concentrate on pedalling properly and the BRMs again.

  

Maiden BRM: 300km on January 23, 2015

I never rode more than 100km at a stretch in the last six months due to injury then. So I was a bit sceptical whether I can do it or not. Accompanied by three fellow riders, I started the journey. And boy, what a journey that was! I did enjoy every bits and pieces of it. Accompanied by RakeshAgarwal from Rourkela, I dusted the whole route together in a nice way.

Bike used: Fomas Roadking

Time: 15.20.00

Lessons learnt: In BRMs, you need a speedometer to measure your speed. It is not about pedalling fast. It is about pedalling calculative as per the situation appears. If the speedo has a backlit display, it is good to measure at night too

Second BRM: 400km on February 21, 2015

The success of 300BRM in the previous month made me confident and I did proceed with an undersized hybrid bike this time. As an inevitable result, due to lack of proper saddle height and wrong frame size, this BRM took a toll on me. Accompanied by three other riders, we started in the right pace. But after midway, while returning from Raniganj to Kolkata, knee pains and saddle sores became literally intolerable and slowed down myself and Justin David Neal. Physical exhaustion and mental exhaustion took place heavily and our strong willpower fought with our bodies to keep up pedalling. Finally, I completed just 20 minutes before the cut-off time.

Bike used: Fuji Absolute S

Time: 26.40.00

Lessons learnt: For riding long distances, bike fit is one of the most important things. Oversized and undersized bikes can take a toll on you on long rides

Third BRM: 600km on March 21, 2015

It was an amazing brevet for me as I had to ride solo more than 90% all through the route. In the first 200km from Kolkata to Raniganj, the terrain was almost flat. Then the next 200km starting from Raniganj to Topchanchi (Jharkhand) and back tested me rigorously under the scorching sun as inhuman gradient was a part of Jharkhand’s landscape. Added to that, chilly cold at night from Topchanchi to Asansol was second round of torture on the skin. I also saved myself once as sleepiness took over me for fraction of second and got unbalanced and about to hit the temporary dividers kept on the road. Thankfully, no crash or puncture happened. Then reaching Raniganj, I took a power nap of two hours at Joynath’da’s place after completion of 400km. On a short and sudden notice, he and Joyanto arranged for so much including post-ride exercises for me in the middle of the night. Then the last 200km comeback happened on the flat road. I took almost six hours to complete the final 100km with my exhausted muscles.

I wish to extend special thanks to Justin David Neal (in picture above) for his Scottie. Amazing bike he gave me. And Joynath’da and Joyanto for their hospitality. It was a gala ride for me in terms of having food also. Along the highway, I stopped at many places and got chance to taste locally made dishes. Brevets are good for foodies too, but you should have hygienic foods only which will not give you any trouble on the way.

Bike used: Scott Speedster 50

Time: 36.00.00

Lessons learnt: One more thing I’ve learnt in this brevet that each and every petrol pump on the highways has water filters. People over there are enough kind and hospitable to let you fill yours and they love chit-chats. And never ride with empty bottles.

Fourth BRM: 200km (yet to plan)

With this BRM, I will get the Super Randonneur (SR) title for this 2014-15 season. BRMs are not only for personal achievements. It is a teamwork indeed, helping fellow people on road, motivating others when they have given up, accompanying them till the end. It’s all about joy, fun and frolic on the road. Behave well with the locals, interact nicely with the curious people of the road, do chit-chats with the bikers who show interest in this sport and you will never feel the exhaustion happening.

Chiro’da once gave us a very useful advice — eat before you are hungry and drink before you are thirsty. Those words are apt unless you fall in those situations.

Cheers!

Out of my comfort zone

(In the second part of the blog, Anirban narrates his ride experience through Hindi heartland affected by addiction to tobacco)

From Kulti, my next stop was Topchanchi, a small town in Jharkhand’s Dhanbad district. Who has not visited Topchanchi cannot make out its scenic beauty. I was spellbound by the small hillocks with lush green forests decorating both sides of the road in the Topchanchi area.

From Topchanchi town onwards, I noticed that gutka (chewing tobacco) consumption was very high instead of smoking. Here, I met Akhilesh Jadav, Topchanchi block development officer. He was very excited about my bicycle tour and the anti-tobacco campaign. After I started my ride from Kolkata, several newspapers and TV channels covered my bicycle tour and campaign. Several people in the small town seemed to have been aware of that. I delivered a small speech in a village school in Topchanchi that was arranged by Jadav.

The next day, I took a night halt at Giridih district’s Bagador, a very small town, around 45 km from Topchanchi. Here, I stayed at a house in a Muslim village. Next morning, while I was leaving the town, I stopped a while and thought how lucky I am to have born in such a beautiful country. The next night, I stayed at a roadside dhaba in the Dobhi region.

In the dhaba, I took class of truck drivers, cleaners and helpers as they all are addicted to different forms of tobacco. But the reaction from them was mixed, which I carefully noted it in my diary. My next destination was Aurangabad in Bihar where I stayed at a gurdwara with the help of a Panjabi friend in Aurangabad. Kudra is a hamlet on the border of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh but nothing exciting happened in the village except I spent the night at a small temple there.

Longest state to ride

The district magistrate in Chandauli in eastern Uttar Pradesh was more than forthcoming in supporting my anti-tobacco campaign. I was greeted by the district magistrate himself. Like the BDO in Topchanchi, he also and arranged a speech of mine among his office staff and even he promised me that he was going to print posters, hand bills to distribute within his jurisdiction. That night I put up as a guest at the district magistrate’s sprawling bungalow.

Varanasi, the holy city, is really vibrant and colorful with different sadhus, food-sellers, shops and temples making the ancient town cosmopolitan. I visited different ghats and talked to people of different caste and creed regarding the effects of consuming tobacco. Here also additional district magistrate Mangla Prasad greeted me and arranged a lecture in a co-education higher secondary school. Prasad also arranged my night stay there at his bungalow.

Gopiganj, a small town in Badoli district of Uttar Pradesh, was my next stop. Here also I met villagers and tried to highlight the harmful effects of khaini and gutka. While chewing tobacco is popular in this part of India, not many people were addicted to smoking much. I put up at the local police station for the night and got a good reception there from the police staff. In all this while, I calculated that I have already spent some 20 days after leaving Kolkata.

My next destination was Allahabad, commonly known as the Prayag where three rivers meet. On way to Allahabad, I met Anil Joshi, the Padmashree man with his bicycle team. He was very glad about my bicycle trip and its motto. Joshi, the founder of Himalayan Environmental Studies and Conservation Organisation, embarked on a mission to study jal-zameen-jungle from Jalpaiguri in West Bengal to Dehradun in Uttarakhand in November. I met him by sheer chance and he offered me to be a guest of honour at Allahabad University with his team. Along with Joshi, I stayed about two-three days and by this time we crossed Khagra where we stayed in a small village house. He also thanked and appreciated me for coming out with such a noble cause.

About 10 km before entering the city of Kanpur, I left Joshi because he was on a different mission and on different route. In Kanpur also, I maintained my routine to inform and alert the common people and so-called uneducated class of the society about the effects of tobacco in any form. In Kanpur, I was felicitated by Dev Sing, Kanpur CMO, and by his kind co-operation I stayed at a government bungalow. While entering Akbarpur, some villagers stopped me to know about my mission. But after knowing about my bicycle trip in a nutshell, they were overwhelmed and appreciated me from their heart. The panchayat mukhiya arranged my stay at the panchayat samiti’s guest room.

On my ride from Akbarpur to Auriya, I crossed Etawah --- the confluence of five rivers Yamuna, Chameli, Sond, Paur and Kuyare --- near Chambal ghati, the place known for its notoriety of dacoits.

After crossing Firojabad, famous for bangles, I reached the city of Taj Mahal --- Agra. It is also a city of mixed culture and religion. The city of love’s greatest monument also carries a distinguished historical value in the world’s modern history. We know about the epic love story of Shah Jehan and Mumtaj, and the construction of the Taj Mahal on the Yamuna bank. However, I maintained my routine of cycling along with informing and awakening the common mass about the lamentable effects of tobacco even in the city that epitomised love. In Agra, I was welcomed and amicably treated by the city’s biggest gurdwara.

From Agra, my ride towards Delhi covered two important cities. One is Mathura, one of the oldest cities of the civilization. The Mathura district magistrate also offered me a stay at his bungalow. These night rests helped me work relentlessly in the daylight hours when I could talk to people, teach youngsters about the evils tobacco can bring to the society. My last halt before New Delhi was Palwal where I got an accommodation at the police guesthouse.

Never ever I felt alone during my tour on the saddle as most of the people could understand the problem tobacco addiction can bring to a person’s health. 

(Revisit this blog on September 21 for the last and challenging part of his ride for cancer awareness from Kolkata to Kashmir. Picture of Topchanchi Lake sourced from the Net)