The Indian Terrain tour of Nilgiris 2016, which concluded at Pollachi on December 23, saw nine women and 101 men riders cycling through three states covering a span of 900 kilometres in eight days. While 46 cyclists were from Bengaluru, 22 were from Mumbai and nine were from Chennai. There was also participation by foreign nationals. Most of the cyclists were from the IT sector and used this tour as an annual off from work. The seven foreign nationals who toured the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karanataka along with the Indian riders were from New Zealand, Germany, UK, Sweden and the United States of America.
In its ninth edition, the Tour of Nilgiris sees a lot of returning riders. “They like coming back every year for the sheer experience. It was a delight to see the determination and discipline among the riders,” said Sridhar Pabbisetty, co-founder of the tour. The participants were selected from over 500 applications received by the organisers. Reasons why cyclists want to go for this tour are many.
Jamie Anderson faculty at Eruditus Executive Education Mumbai, a first time participant in the tour says, “Apart from world class infrastructure, the atmosphere is friendly and I get to enjoy the scenic beauty too.” He stresses upon the relaxing nature of the tour saying that there was not much trouble caused to the rides because of the good condition of the roads, even in rural areas.
While some riders believe that cycling is an antidote to everyday stress, Gaurav Bethla, an entrepreneur from Bengaluru says it gives him the time to think, relax, and meditate. “This was my first time in this tour. I got to meet new people and interact with them, something that I would not usually have got to do in my routine life. This is the first time that I have cycled for this long a distance and I think I will keep coming back to this tour,” he says.
While Anderson lost 1.5 kg weight after the tour, he says that he will carry the vivid and lively scenic beauty of the Nilgiris in his mind. “The local scenery, my interaction with the locals and the delicious food – all of this will stay with me once I am back home.” Anderson is also a Bronze Medallist at the World Masters Games, and is currently ranked as one of the top 10 Masters cyclists (45-50 Age Group) in the world.
Cycling tours like this one allow the participants to lose themselves in nature and let everything else take a backseat.
This tour helps the cyclists test their endurance and ascertain their strengths. “People from different countries come together and mingle as roommates, ride partners and co-travellers. This is another reason I take advance leave form work every year for this tour exclusively. This year participants from Singapore, China, Nepal, Germany, Netherlands, USA and UK came together and I got to meet people who are so different from me in more ways than one,” says Bethla.
The participants ride through three wildlife sanctuaries – Bandipur National Park in Karnataka, Mudumalai National Park in the Nilgiris and Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala. With a fee of Rs. 45, 000 per rider, the tour packs a punch with allowing the riders to experience wildlife from this close. To spruce things up a bit, the tour conducts a few challenges like climbing and flat courses. These are done at different stages and are aimed to test the riders’ craft and grit.
The tour also saw participation by people who were unable to fund the tour on their own. Archana Sheshagiri, an upcoming cyclist and a mechanic at an upscale cycle maintenance store from Bengaluru could not afford to pay the fee.
The organizers provided her a flexible payment schedule. She proved to be one of the strong riders on the tour and is placed fourth in the overall competition in her category. Says Badrinath Sastry, tour director, “Cycling as a fitness sport is fast catching the imagination and the tour circuit has put India on the global cycling map. Besides promoting cycling tourism, the tour owing to its format will go a long way in attracting more enthusiasts.”
