The story of my new bike!

After a week‘s break it was time to get back on the saddle for another long trip. This time our target was the Nandi Hills. We were very excited; a cycling trip to Nandi Hills was in the top of our wish list for a long time. We planned to start very early. Our enthusiasm and laziness negotiated to settle down eventually for a 5.15 am start from Agara.

I was greeted by a dark and foggy morning as I took my bike out. I reached Agara and met with two of the fellow riders. There were some delay with the other two, so we decided to ride till Sony World junction to meet them up. There were no street lights for our help, and the feeble light from my bike‘s head lamp dissolved into the darkness before it could reach the ground.

I felt a sudden jerk. The bike must have hit a gutter. The next moment I was flying over the handle bar. I was grounded with my gloved wrists taking almost all the impact. I tried to keep my head up, but my chin had to meet the tarmac. As my friends helped me up, I was uttering "This is my third fall!" I could deduce the depth of the cut in my chin from the expressions on my friends' faces. We went to a hospital nearby and got the wound stitched. I rode back home and my friends resumed their Nandi ride. The only thought I had during my ride back was about my three falls.

Seven weeks before...
I was on my way back to home after a dull Friday at work. I was riding on the relatively traffic free Haralur road. An excavator in front was forcing me to follow it slowly. I turned around to see if there was any scope of overtaking it. By the time I looked back, the excavator was dangerously close. Damn! It was braking too. There were no brake lights on the ugly behemoth which could have given me any clue earlier. I pulled both my brake levers hard. My rear wheel lifted off the ground͵ and before I could understand what was happening I was on the ground. I got a hairline crack near my right elbow and it put me out of action for three weeks.

My second fall was just a week after I started cycling again. I was in a hurry as I had started a little late for my daily office ride. My speed was near twenties as I came across a unpaved patch of the road. The cycle skid and I was flying over the handlebar again. This time the injuries were just superficial.

Why only me? That too three times. I remember from my lab sessions during school days͵ we had to get three sample readings to take any result as conclusive. Now that I had fallen three times, it is sufficient enough to tell me that something is wrong. I started drawing free body diagrams in my mind to analyse the mechanics of myself on my bike. My bike was medium sized frame which fits good for people upto 5'10" height. My height is just slightly less than 6'. And my limbs are disproportionately larger for a 6' guy owing to the good old routine volley ball sessions. So I had set the seat of my cycle at the highest position possible - which is a good 2 inches more than the maximum allowed limit. To ease the bend on my back, I had moved the saddle a bit forward too. But I could not raise the handlebar, and it remained in its low position. The saddle being 2 inches higher and closer to the handlebar, when I ride the bike my arms were making just a few degrees from the vertical on the handlebar. The basics of mechanics suggests that a vertical pinned support cannot counter horizontal forces. A significant forward jerk can destabilize me and throw me off the saddle.

Now I have a theory which explains all my falls, though I learned it the hard way. The solution is expensive though. I have to get a new cycle which fits my height better! And so did I!

A ride to the city of Palaces (and back)!

Note from Author:

Read 'bike' as 'cycle' if you can’t get adjusted with the term.


Prologue:

"Dude, lets go Nandi Hills..", I told. After all Nandi hills was their most dreamed destination ever since we started biking.

"But Mysore is awesome dude.." JP always wanted to skip the in-between steps.

"Mysore it is, then!". Thats how the 'cycling freaks' decided to go to Mysore over the weekend..

Another 'freak' had posted in internet about the same trip, and was waiting for company.That made us a three pack (JP, Karun and myself) for the Bangalore-Mysore-Bangalore ride over the weekend.

Day 1:

We met up at Silk board junction by 5:50 AM on Saturday and did not waste any further time. Headed towards the Kanakapura road, since the regular Mysore road would be crowded and hence not ideal for cyclists. The pedalling picked up, and by the time sunlight showed up we were outside the city limits. Looked back and found JP missing. He had stopped for buying water bottles. Pressure was low on his newly installed hybrid tires; we filled it up with my hand pump. We decided to have breakfast at Kanakapura and resumed the journey. The early morning weather, the favourable slopes and the beauty of the nature were encouraging; there was no looking back. I had covered 55km at average speed of 22.4kmph when the board 'Kanakapura' showed up. There was no Karun or JP behind. Karun soon caught up, but JP was still missing. Found a message from him that he was taking a small break. The low pressure in the tires and the suspension had been taking a toll on him. After he caught up, we rode to a nearby restaurant. The breakfast was yummy.. Of course we were hungry.

I swapped my hybrid bike with JP’s. “Dude, your bike sucks... energy!” I told JP. But I was charged up after a nice breakfast and a refreshing 55 kms ride, so decided to continue riding his bike till Malavalli. The landscapes tempted us to get out of the saddle and capture snaps, but we decided to keep the rhythm. But we kept taking snapshots of the milestones. By the time the sun managed to get under our skin, we had reached Malavalli, maintaining an average speed of 21 kmph. Being aware of the climbs waiting for us, and unaware of the side effects of a heavy meal, I finished the meal at the same pace we were riding.

We swapped the bikes back and started for the last 50 kms. The food in my tummy was having a hard time getting digested. The up slopes and the scorching sun added to the misery, forcing us to take frequent breaks. The scenery on the roadsides was lovely, but all we kept focussing on was the count down of the kilometres to Mysore. One motor biker caught up with Karun, and started pestering him with curious questions. He wanted to know why any sane guy would cycle to Mysore. 'Just for fun', 'For the sense of achievement' etc were not convincing answers. Shouldn't we be working instead of wasting time pedalling miles? The guy went away not being satisfied by the answers Karun threw at him. The road took us across the beautiful Cauvery river. The clam beauty boosted our morale. We just took one more break before reaching Mysore by 5:15 PM. We badly wanted a ‘Mysore 0km’ milestone to show off our achievement through a photograph. We could not find one, instead we headed towards the Mysore palace, and posed for some snaps. Karun said good bye and set off to his cousin’s place 8kms away, and we checked into a near by hotel.

The night we went to the Mysore Palace again. The history of the Palace was being narrated with background music. The Palace was lit up with dynamic colours changing with the music, creating a visual treat. Once the show was over, the decorative lights on the Palace were turned on. Marvellous! It was a well deserved prize for both of us for completing our longest ride. We went to a neighbouring restaurant. We stopped eating as soon as I realised that JP's attempt to empty the kitchen was inviting scornful looks. Went back to the hotel and fell into a deep sleep. It was a great day!

Day1 statistics:

146kms, 20.4kmph avg speed, 7 hours 15 minutes on the saddle.


Day 2:
It took me some time to muster enough will power to get out the bed and get ready for the second half! Karun joined us, and we went to a hotel near by for an unlimited buffet breakfast! A big batch of school kids had come for a Mysore tour, and were having breakfast in the same hotel. While being entertained by their childlike enthusiasm, we loaded our tummies to the maximum capacity.

We had a delayed start by 8:15 AM. The sun had come out. Our energy levels were down, thanks to the exhaustive ride previous day. Despite that we had non stop 25km stretch. Amazed with our performance, we planned the next break after 25 more kms in Malavalli. Things were going fine, but then I started finding it difficult to catch up with JP and Karun. After a couple of kilometres, I noticed my rear tire had lost the pressure. Texted JP and Karun to wait for me. Munching on the dry fruits, I examined the tire. Luckily, I could find the naughty glass piece. It was easy to replace the tube, only that it was time consuming. I got company of a few kids who were curious about my ride. After half an hour my bike was ready to roll again. JP and Karun were around 10 kms ahead and had reached Malavalli by then. It took half an hour more to catch up with them. We refilled our stocks of chocolates, chikkis, water, glucose and headed to a hotel for lunch. This time I was careful not to eat too much, but JP enjoyed the full meals.

More than 100 kilometers were still remaining. As we started feeling the resistance of the head wind, I started experimenting on the 'pelotonic' effect. I closely followed JP, to take advantage of his aerodynamic shield. Surprisingly, I could sense a significant difference in the ease of riding as a result of reduced aerodynamic drag. JP also was convinced, and we started riding professionally as a peloton. Even if you consider the aerodynamic advantage was negligible, the psychological advantage it gave us definitely was significant. JP was bit concerned about possible accidents when you blindly follow another, so he preferred riding in front mostly. But then he went and touched a car which was simply parked on the road side, while he was riding in the front! For a moment he must have dozed off! The car guy had bigger problems to deal with, so he forgave JP for his silliness. This was the most disciplined session of riding, where we covered almost 28 kms non-stop that too in the peak sun!

We recharged ourselves with chikkis and chocolates, as Karun entertained us with the story of him getting robbed on the roadside two days back. We got back on the saddles and started the ride again. JP was following me and he started finding it difficult to catch up. It should probably be the heavy lunch! Karun had been riding strong, well ahead of us. We had been apprehensive of including him in our plans considering that he was riding on a mountain bike (which has more rolling resistance and therefore not efficient for long rides). We thought he might slow us down. But it was us who always slowed him down! We messaged him that we are taking a break and took rest under a tree. After the break, we caught up with him; He was waiting for us alone near the base of a scenic mountain. All headed to Kanakapura, went to the same hotel where we had breakfast the previous day. We all had rava idly, the only item they had in stock. It was just the opposite of Lays.. No one could eat even one!

The sun had calmed down, and I started enjoying the ride again. The alternating slopes of the road added to the fun, a truck transporting villagers had nice time catching up with my speeds. The traffic also was picking up on the Kanakapura road, making us more vigilant. Since the roads were relatively free, motor bikes were racing at insane speeds. The count down had started already. We stopped for a tender coconut break when there was 42 kms more remaining to Bangalore. Thats when I noticed that I had lost my mobile. Either I had thrown it along with the rava idly, or I lost it during the cruise. Anyway, it was an old basic Nokia handset (that too which I borrowed from my brother in law.. ;) ) so I just ignored the loss. Our energy levels rose as the sun set. We did not think of anything else, Bangalore was approaching. It got darker, we turned on the blinkers and lights on the bikes, and instructed ourselves to keep track of the immediate following guy. It was uphill, but nobody wanted to take breaks. Few more minutes of mad pedalling and we reached the city! A bus full of school children were shouting at us, we took is as the standing ovation for our great achievement!

Told bye bye to each other, and headed home. The tiresome upslope on my regular commute route was a cake walk now. Reached home, made a few phone calls and went for a quick shower. As I stood under the shower, all covered with soap, I was counting the misfortunes of the day.. delayed start, puncture, mobile phone loss.. And then the shower stopped! As if the list was not big enough!!

Net ride statistics:

Total distance covered - 295 kms.
Riding time - 15 hours 45 minutes. (In two days, excluding breaks)
Average speed - 18.6 kmph.

Savandurga - December 31st 2011

The Schwinn was all dirty. He had had a ride through the muddy road. After getting him clean, oiled and loaded, I fell asleep to wake up into a beautiful day. Woke up to a  message from my friend that he won't be able to join me for the ride. Lack of company never demotivated me. Now I have my first solo century ride to dream about!

It was 5:55 AM, when I took the Schwinn out. It was dark, but not so cold outside. I got into the Ring Road and headed towards the Mysore Road. The pedalling had picked up the rhythm when I saw a group of bikers riding in the opposite direction. Thought a minute about joining them, but decided not to. The Schwinn was enjoying the frequent down slopes of the Ring Road, leaving me a bit concerned about the return journey. The day was getting brighter as I entered the busy Mysore Road.  Quickly had a masala dosa at a road side restaurant, and I was back on the saddle. The gradients were favoring the Schwinn here too. I eased back on the saddle looking forward for the land marks to the Big Banyan tree road. I was eager to meet the Big Banyan tree, having read much about it in blogs. I had zoomed into the Google maps to locate it and was awed by its size. Yes, It was huge indeed. Too bad, the gardener didn't let me cycle around inside it. Quite strage, they should be promoting green commute! 

Had it not been drizzling every now and then, I would be stopping every hundred meters to take photos of the beautiful landscape. So, I thought! Little did I know that the real beauty was yet to show up. And that's when I approached Manchanabele lake. The lake was very lively, and the hills around were lovely. They were competing to grab my attention. The silhouette of the Savandurga on the backdrop just added to the beauty. A narrow road wrapped around the lake, making it the ideal spot for cycling. I spent some time enjoying the ride around the lake, and capturing photos whenever I couldn't resist. What a pleasant day I chose for the day out - the clouds had kept me away from the sun, letting me savour the nature to the fullest. Few boys from the village was awe struck looking at the Schwinn. They wanted to try it out, but I denied them. A selfish cosmopolitan who cannot fathom the innocence of the village! I found a narrow trail where the road ended, and it took me to the dam. The maintenance staff there got angry; apparently it was a restricted zone. I blamed it on the naughty Schwinn and escaped from there.

Then I headed towards Savandurga. The narrow, 13 km long stretch passes through the Savandurga forest area, and was breath-takingly scenic. Many times I had to break the rhythm of the Schwinn to capture the beauty. Once I got out of the forest zone, Savandurga showed up with all its imperial beauty. The blue sky with the light colored clouds was perfect on the background. I had already pedalled around 60 kilometers. I chose not to ride all the way to the base of the hill, scared of the slopes.

Instead I headed towards Magadi, a village next to it. Refilled my water supply, had some dry fruits to boost my energy levels and headed back towards Bangalore through the Bangalore - Magadi state highway. The road was very smooth, and with Savandurga constantly on the background it was a very enjoyable ride. The Schwinn couldn't resist a steep (and safe) down slope on the road, and it zoomed all its way to its all time best speed of 55.4 kmph! The school kids on the sides were waving to the rider.

The sun started showing up every now and then, forcing me to take breaks more frequently. I took the deviation to the Big Banyan Tree, it was now crowded with couples enjoying the weekend (yearend, rather!) I had started a count down of the remaining kilometers by then. The next 30 kilometers was almost non-stop except the traffic signals, and the 10 second water stops. As expected the small climbs on the Ring Road was tiring. At one such slope, I was chased by a few 'chakkas'. I was tired alright, but how dare they think they can catch up with the Schwinn! Cruising amidst the curious city, I reached a restaurant near my place, quickly gulped a plate of lemon rice and two vadas, went back home and fell on the bed! How heavenly it feels!!

No doubts, the last day of the year was the best day too!

Ride statstics:-

Distance covered - 125 km
Average speed    - 16.1 kmph
Time taken       - 9 hrs 30 mins
Top speed        - 55.4 kmph


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