Hyderabad Brevet - 2 lakes heaven and hell of 200 k.m biking

For those who are unaware of Brevet, let me start by giving a brief introduction. Brevet Cycling also known as "Randonneuring" where riders attempt to ride long distance on bicycle and passing through controlled checkpoints every few k.m.

After thinking over 2 weeks and being encouraged my friends who ride with me, I decided that I will go for it. Worst case I won't be able to complete it in time or I may give up before completion. It was a tough decision for me as I started cycling 3 months back and going for such a long distance and on one of the toughest route reminded me that I should skip. Finally I took a day off from office to buy the stuff as this was the self support ride, still I forgot to purchase saddle bag. To manage the spare parts of cycle on ride, I prepared a one myself :) I got my bike cleaned and serviced, checked the lights and I was all set after putting the bib (HYD-050) on my bike. I couldn't have a good sleep on friday night because of excitement of participating in brevet, thinking about waking up at 3:30 a.m. and riding in cold, fear of riding such a long distance with lot of hills.

After reaching starting point, I saw over 35 riders with few beginners serving as source of encouragement for me and finally got my "Brevet Card" stamped and ride begin. After crossing Movie towers hills which became easy to climb without sunlight, we took turn for shankarpalli where I stopped for breakfast. By now I had covered ~ 40 k.m with cold breeze making my nose running and foot numb that too after covering myself completely. I stuffed my empty stomach with 2 plates of idly and 2 plates of vada with lot of water, some biscuits, etc. And we started again to reach our first checkpoint in time which was still 32 k.m. away. On reaching first manned checkpoint and getting our brevet card stamped again, I ate lot of bananas (instance source of energy) and continued.

Now sun was shinning, I started getting exhausted, riding becoming slow, mouth dried up even after having few litre's of water. On struggling hard and covering few more k.m., the heaven part begin. It was downhill of Anathagiri hills (125 m steep climb of 2.5 k.m.). Climbs with sharp turns, great speed, no worries of pedaling, pretty soon after taking dirt trail, I touched second checkpoint, kotepally reservoir where I got to eat lunch. Thanks to the great food by deccan trails. After taking rest for few min, the thought of hell part of ride started striking my mind. We had to go to hill top via same way from which we came down. After riding hard, waling for few meters, cycling in lowest gear possible and thinking if manufacturer would have given one more lower gear, I was at the top again and then one more downhill :)

By now 125 k.m. were completed and legs were not agreeing to pedal anymore. After reaching manneguda by slowing pushing the pace of ride, eating a banana every few k.m. and getting my card stamped again, I suddenly got enough energy and courage after thinking that only 70 more k.m. left. Enroute people were testing the patience by asking questions like "Why are you doing this? From where did you came? Where are you going? And lot more Why, When and Where :P". Finally just 35 k.m. away from reaching end point and with lot of time remaining, suddenly a voice came "Booommmmmmmm" and my back tire bursted. I couldn't replace tube as tire was in bad shape and tube won't last even for few more k.m. Finally thanks to person who gave up brevet and whose bicycle I took to cover my last few k.m.'s. Finally reached the last checkpoint Movie Towers Hills top well in time after walking for few k.m. as cycle was lower in height and making it difficult to ride on hill climb. 

Covering few more k.m. and crossing microsoft hill which doesn't seem to be tough as I was seeing victory on the way just few k.m. away. I rushed up and reached my destination point completing journey of Heaven and Hell with visiting two lakes, awesome scenic view and riding with riders without their support I wouldn't have completed it. I am now eagerly waiting for my medal for 200 k.m. BRM.

Tour of HCU (Hyderabad Central University)

After rides to places in Hyderabad, now came the turn to visit college days back on bike. I went out for tour of Hyderabad Central University last weekend. What an amazing campus it is, greenry, lakes, hills, rocks and much more. Biking inside the university was refreshing experience with no traffic, pollution, smooth roads with trees sideways. 

It was bit chilly morning and you feel more cold in college areas because of open fields and less number of buildings. With help of one of our cyclist friend, we got permission to ride inside the campus. He walked us though various departments in campus, going up to Mushroom rock, visiting peacock lake, off road biking, watching students reminded of my college days where we use to search for hangout places. This was a beginners ride which covered ~ 25 k.m. of distance with meeting lot of new people this time.

Best part of each ride is food and to add more, we went to college food court. Standing in queue, cheap priced products, hostels utensils were all pointing few years back when we use to study. an awesome ride to largest university in Hyderabad.

Food, Long distance ride and Charminar !!!!

Charminar of Hyderabad - A place everyone must visit not for the scenic beauty or monument but for the taste of food you get nearby. I too planned for a bike ride to charminar to eat Idly, Dosa along with Irani Chai and Karachi biscuits.

Last weekend I along with my cycle gang went for ride to Charminar from Kondapur to eat at a famous stall "Govind ki Bandi" which I also came to know last weekend after living in Hyderabad for long time and then have Irani chai at Nimrah. The ride will full of traffic, congested roads, people starring and thinking "What an idiot who drove on cycle to Charminar" :P
After riding for around 25 k.m. we reached Charminar and went straight to Govind ki Bandi. The idly looked lovely while being cooked. See the immense amount of butter put on Idly and Dosa while preparing it. My mouth is watering till now and will definitely plan for another ride to this foodie's heaven. Everyone was hungry by the time we reached and see more after watching the stuff being cooked.

The idly were very soft and full with masala, the best idly I had tasted in my life. Dosa was even more tempting with Butter flowing out. The food was finger licking good with lot of calories but who cares, we burnt them on the way and will also be burning on way back.

See the pool of idly's which were finished off by the riders in couple of minutes. Finally we headed back to our home. Because of more speed, I went ahead with few other and had to take Movie towers route which I didn't expected on this ride. Climbing Movie Tower hill, the a big climb of Microsoft Hill burnt all the calories intake I did in morning and also increased the distance to my home by ~ 15 k.m. After covering 75 k.m. I finally reached my home with Butter Dosa/Idly still in my mind.

Rain, Tents, Breeze, BBQ and Biking at Pargi Hills

A weekend well spent at Pargi Hills. Thanks to TBA and each rider who joined for such a wonderful event. I started the journey at 4:30 am from my home and on reaching TBA got first flat. To fix the flat, I lifted my bicycle and hurt my leg as paddle smashed. Finally flat was fixed, and cars were fully loaded with the stuff we needed for the camping at the night. We left and were joined by few more riders on the way.

Even after the warning of cyclone and heavy rainfall, we didn't cancel our plan and just moved on. We were welcomed by drizzle followed by heavy rainfall soon after covering 40 k.m. The greenery on the way made it even more beautiful place to ride bicycle. Thanks to Krish for stopping after every few k.m. to take pictures of all of us riding on hills, climbs in the rain. We stopped for breakfast along with hot coffee in rain. After sometime, we continued on the route with high speed on bicycle. By the time we were mid-way, all our clothes, shoes were wet and helmet was dripping water but the zeal to reach to camping place made me ride faster. On reaching Vikarabad, we planned to go to a lake for short ride of around 30 km and soaking feet in the lake water was truly refreshing. We ate puffs, drank badam milk for energy and finally had to climb 2 huge hills on way back to Vikarabad.

We stopped at fields full of thorns but a must go place for good photographs and scenic beauty. After struggling for over 110 k.m. finally we reached to Pargi Hills and after having lunch, we headed towards camping area. Before reaching Pargi, I just drove my bike on under construction road and fell down. Experienced my first fall from bicycle. Rain didn't stop and everyone lost hope that we will be able to Camp/BBQ. Some of riders slept, some still figuring our how to pitch the tents, searched for place to put shed for cooking, got water from reservoir, fighting against the cold climate to light up damped charcoal, searching for stones and sticks to hold tents. We were accompanied with "B" (German Shepherd) who guarded us for the night. Finally tents were pitched and we succeeded in burning some charcoal and enjoyed the awesome BBQ of chicken :)

After eating like hell, we started drying our clothes on the flames of charcoal and finally went for sleep. The tents were really warm and water proof which made all of us happy. Had an lifetime experinece of sleeping in tents with rain drops sounds because of heavy rainfall. I woke up in morning and started packing all the stuff. The weather was too good in the morning and we packed tents, bags and everything and soon started back towards home. Few left in car, few left to reach early but I and Sumit rided slow enjoying the food on the way. Cross winds and head winds were making it difficult to ride and finally we stopped for lunch after which I was fully recharged and finally after struggling for over 95 k.m. I reached home with my bike in poor condition and unforgettable memories of the ride and riders.

In two days, I rode for 225 k.m. and now recovering from the pain in legs and shoulders (mistake of carrying a heavy bag on my back for 100 k.m.). Now I hope that I will be able to prepare myself for brevet as well. Just making my mind :D

1000 K.M. completed :D

It sounds really exciting when you hear someone saying "I completed 1000 k.m. on bicycle" and today is my turn. My 106th ride till now makes me cross my first milestone of 1000 k.m. which I use to just dream of earlier.

I enjoyed driving for total of 57 hours with gaining elevation of 5335 m in just 2 months over lot of slow lazy sunday morning rides, long and very long rides, night rides, cycle to work, etc. Cycling has become addiction for me and each ride encourages me to ride more km and as fast as I can, pushing my limits to remain fit :D

Got new friends while cycling which makes my weekends which otherwise I use to spend sleeping and doing nothing. Buying bike accessories each month makes you feel happy that your effort of cycling is not going waste.

All these numbers encouraged me for another 2 day long ride to Pargi Hills this weekend along with camping. (Really excited !!!!)

Country side ride to Shankarpalli

Shankarpalli is one of the developing towns in AP. A place full of green trees and nice climate. On the occasion of Diwali, I decided to ride with Hyderabad Bicycling Club this time to my second long ride to Shankarpalli which is ~ 40 k.m. away from my home. So we would be covering ~ 80 k.m. in total. Lot of riders who RSVP'ed didn't came for the ride. Finally 5 riders started early morning from Gachibowli for this ride. When I was checking the route, I thought that it will only contain inclines of Microsoft, Movie Towers which I have done lot of time now and will be able to do it but who knew the whole route contained ups and downs making the ride bit tougher but the roads were awesome. Although because of rains there were bad patches on the road but overall a nice riding experience.

On the way, the roads seems to never end which makes riding difficult as you start feeling that distance is longer. A road full of trees on both sides, less traffic, cool weather which slowly became hot on the way back. After reaching Shankarpalli, we stopped at a place to eat Hot Idly Sambar, and we started back. Riding on return was much more difficult as we have lot most of the energy, the roads had more inclines and it was a tiring journey. I took rest after ~ 20 k.m. ride while return and finished off whatever I took for ride snacks.

Finally on climbing the movie towers hills which took long time as I was returning with no energy left, this view was simply awesome and soothing to eyes. And soon after going downhill I reached ORR and felt that my home is pretty close now.

And here comes the last patch of my ride and the most difficult one (Microsoft Hill) which seemed like a monster at that time with ~ 1.7 k.m. inclined surface and almost no energy left by that time. I have to take couple of stops to reach at the top and their is no workaround for this hill to reach my home. After this big climb, I stopped at DLF to have "Banana Milk Shake" which was truly refreshing and started again to reach home. I finished my ride in 3 hours and 45 min. The ride was so tiring that I was not even able to sleep the whole day :D 

Lazy sunday morning Idly spin to Movie Towers Hill

After a week long rain in Hyderabad, finally its the time you take your bike out and enjoy the fresh air. These rides are best suited for lazy sunday morning with no work and slow pace ride to enjoy the cool weather at top of the hill. Movie Towers (on the way to Gandipet Lake) is bike riders heaven as you get to see good view of Hyderabad city from top of the hill, Lot of climbs on the way which test your riding especially Microsoft Hill and Movie Towers climb.

As it was raining for past few days, we didn't went to till Gandipet lake to avoid the dirt trail. Moreover, with lot of new riders riding along with you, you don't try to increase the distance of the ride which may lead discourage them for upcoming rides. After all I also was a beginner when I did my first ride here.

Riding on such good roads with hill climbs makes good start of your Sunday. Very few powered vehicles, no pollution, classy roads, clouds and new riders makes it a perfect ride.

I covered ~ 36 k.m. on this ride with giving my best shot on Microsoft Hill (Climb of ~ 1.6 k.m.) as first time I came here, it was my first ride and took a hell lot of time to climb it on bike. But this time, I had much more stamina as I ride every day, I knew how to maintain pace on steep slopes of Hyderabad.

Best part of these rides is I feed myself with breakfast which I usually skip on weekends. This time we went to Cafe Nandini with hot Idly and Paneer Masala Dosa marking end of the ride.

My bike - Schwinn Sporterra !!!!!

After zeroing down to Schwinn, I purchased Sporterra 2012 model. It is the best bike in affordable price. Light weight of this bike makes the ride on roads simply awesome. This bike serves fast and easy commute. This hybrid makes a perfect balance for expeditions, long rides as well.

Its cross frame provides me an upright riding position, making riding comfortable. Even though it is lightweight, it provides awesome grip on rough surfaces, country roads.

Shifting of gears is smooth and amazing providing awesome riding experience and making riders to speed up on roads.

Moreover, the larger wheel diameter and wider rim offer higher speed and increased strength.

A good handle making the hand positions comfortable especially for longer rides and gives less jerks to your shoulders because of the grip provided on handle bars.

This bike comes with two bottle cages making it easy to carry enough water for long rides.

Overall this bike is awesome hybrid to ride on :D

Full moon forest spin with midnight dinner

A road that twists and turns through the forest, a road that is less taken. Turn the headlights off, and let the moon work its magic. That's what the full moon forest spin is all about.

I was invited by TBA to join for my first long ride (~80 k.m.). I was in a dilemma whether to go for it or skip since I was tired after office work and this was a night ride. I decided to join them and not to miss the fun we will have on the way.

For me the distance was much more than my early rides but I prepared my mind that I can do it. I left the office early since I had to get the headlights and taillights for my bike as it was the night ride. The twist came when the other riders told that you have to carry your dinner as there are no shop since route was passing through a forest. My parents couldn't sleep that night till I messaged them that I reached home safely.

Journey begin from TBA (The Bike Affair) @ 9:00 p.m. with 3 more riders along with me. One of the rider joined @ Miyapur junction. The route for the ride was well planned but we had to be careful with all the distances as one wrong turn may lead to adding more miles to our cycling summary :) Despite the fact that I was having my first long ride and others were experienced, I was able to maintain my speed with them for complete distance. We completed a stretch of initial 20 k.m. which was a smooth road with trucks on way as it was night time before we stopped for a first break. Pretty soon, the city was about to end and forest area was beginning. All open fields, cool breeze flowing through made me feel that I took right decision to come for my first ride at night time.

On the way, I was interacting with other riders. One of them told that he was from Delhi and our discussion increased all the way. The best part of these bike rides is that you meet awesome people, make new friends, remain fit and enjoy your life.

As we headed through the forest, moon light came into picture as it was full moon night and we turned off the lights of our bikes to drive under natural light which was an awesome experience. No more traffic on the road, only we 5 riders going all way along with lot of speed. After covering some ~ 15 more k.m. we decided to stop at a place with some rocks to have dinner. We shared the eatables everyone had, took snaps to store the kodak moments :D talked our experiences, cities we travelled in and much more. I called up at my home to tell them that I am enjoying and they don't worry about me and should sleep. By this time we were nearly half way of our ride. It was midnight by that time and all our bikes, helmets, bags, saddle were wet because of mist. The weather turned cold and even biking was not able to make our bodies warm. We started riding again from that place after cleaning up the mist. This was most interesting part of the ride where moon light was at full pitch, chilling weather and running nose as an after affect, chilly breeze gushing out.

The relief you get when you are ~60-70 km/h speed on hybrid bike with air talking to your ears and rejuvenating your soul. The ride was fun till the point we reached village after covering another 20 k.m. The problem driving on bike at night in city or village is dogs, which will try to chase you, bark at you, try to block your way and the big mistake you commit is to over speed your bike and making them sense your fear and chase you faster. This stretch was most painful, since village was not having proper roads, lot of speed breakers, pot holes making your hands and shoulders pain. For me it was even worse as my bag was full of 3L of water which I was carrying. We rode fast enough to reach ORR (outer ring road) and it ~ 1:30 a.m. in morning. We decided to take different routes in group of 2-3 since our homes were in different direction.

Still I was left with 20 odd k.m. to reach home. After covering ~ 10 k.m. on highway, chased by dogs, keeping on left because of trucks and heavy vehicles, cheered up by few people on motor bikes, I started feeling sleepy. I reduced the speed of my bike, stopped in way to have some biscuits to fill in my hunger and finally after 1 hour, I reached my home and the best experience of best ride so far was over. I ate the food at home along with the Manchow soup as I was again hungry by that time. I was so tired that even couldn't have a good sleep that night.

Truly it was a great experience which everyone who rides should have. I had companies of best riders and awesome persons who made this ride fun filled.

Bicyclist came into existence !!!

A month ago, while viewing pics of my mate for one of his bicycle ride made me to think over purchasing a bicycle. I started exploring few shops in Hyderabad, asked some of my friends out of whom 90% of people were not recommending to buy a new bike. After all discussion, feedback, exploring and taking test drive of few bikes, finally I decided to purchase Schwinn Sporterra which will open way to a complete new world - Bicycling World. Thanks to The Bike Affair who helped me in finalizing a good bike.

Lot of motivating forces helped me in taking this decision like this meeting new people, making good friends, getting out of my room over weekends instead of spoiling them by sleeping whole day, etc. I started thinking of things I can do with my bike like commute, go for short rides, long rides or make be event brevet if I am able to make it :)