The oppressive heat needn’t stand in the way of your fitness routine. All it requires is to begin your day quite early. If cycling is your road to fitness, take a cue from members of Hyderabad Bicycling Club (HBC) who team up in small groups and organise rides in different parts of the city.
There are two kinds of riders — casual riders for whom cycling is fun, fitness and occasionally, a tool to test their endurance. The second group is competitive, has its eye on national and international cycling events. This group takes its training a lot more seriously.
Para cyclist Aditya Mehta and his team belong to the second category. They begin as early as 3.30 or 4 am. “We ride as a team. We ride one behind the other maintaining a distance of about 1m. We take turns to lead the group and face the wind. Though all our bikes and helmets are equipped with reflectors and we raise an alarm when we spot someone on our path, it pays to be cautious. So we have a vehicle trailing us to alert anyone sauntering into our trail,” says Aditya.
Competitive riders prefer to ride when the city is asleep and there’s barely any traffic, barring a few heavy vehicles. The teams train along Outer Ring Road service road, Medchal and Shamirpet. Within the city, they do the Necklace Road and Tank Bund loops or three to four loops from Nagarjuna Circle to Jubilee Hills Checkpost. The Erra Manzil road adjacent to Taj Krishna does the trick for hill training. To step up the intensity, they explore the Whisper Valley route. “This is one of the toughest routes and we are thoroughly fatigued after three loops,” says Aditya. Their rides do not exceed 60 to 70 km.
For easier and fun rides, look out for smaller group rides from HBC. Members announce rides on their meet-up group, inviting others to join.
A cycling enthusiast in recent years, Shipra Chenji loves both group and solo rides, “In winters we set out at around 6 am, in summers we begin at 5.30 am so that we are done by 7.30 am.” She suggests the 10km loop around Hussain Sagar, 5km loop around KBR Park, riding along Gandipet stretch or the Outer Ring Road service road. For longer distances of 60 to 70km, she recommends the Suchitra-Medchal-Shamirpet route.
While most rides are in groups or at least have 2-3 cyclists, there are occasions where one comes across solo riders. In these cases, it helps to take routes where traffic is minimal and help is a shout away. “The Secunderabad Cantonment area is safe to venture out alone,” says Shipra.
The Narsapur route is a favourite among cyclists for 100km rides. They go in larger groups to ward off monkeys.
Cyclists take their rides seriously and the allowance to punctuate their routine with a break for chai or food is rare, says Arvind Chenji. “A bottle or two of water, small pieces of chikki and dates are what we carry to refuel,” he says.
Choose your route
* Members of Hyderabad Bicycling club organise rides through the week. Register on www.joinhbc.in
* Watch out for their Green Rides on Thursdays, beginning 5.45am, where they do a 20-km ride in Secunderabad from Trimulgherry Cross Roads.
* A 45kms two-lake ride from Gachibowli Bike Station, opposite Biodiversity Park on Sunday mornings. This ride covers Osman Sagar and Himayat Sagar.
* In another part of town, cyclists meet up at LB Nagar Aero Bus Stop on Sunday mornings, ride up to Manneguda Outer Ring Road area and return.
* Fun rides around Necklace Road include Watermelon Rides on Sunday evenings. The rides end with a stop at the watermelon bandi near Prasads multiplex. The ride takes cyclists along Hussain Sagar via Lumbini Park, AP Tourism Office, Tank Bund, Sanjeevaiah Park and Jalavihar.
* Rides are also conducted at Kompally near Runway 9.
* Ensure your cycle is in good condition; first aid kit and helmet are a must. Carry drinking water, spare tube and puncture repair kit which fit snug under the seat. Money for emergency expenditure and a snack like chikki or dates come in handy.
