During the last week of October, I heard about an upcoming 200 Km Hyderabad Brevet on November 22nd. I initially brushed it off as I had just a couple of weekends in between to prepare. I then came to know of practice rides scheduled for the next 2 Saturdays. I planned to test my stamina during these practice rides and decide whether I should register for the event.
The first practice ride was named Century ride as it covered about 100 Km. Add another 20 Km for me to to reach the start point from my home and then cycle back, I would get a fair idea of my ability to go beyond 100 Km. I had a minor problem with the cycle chain as I just started cycling from my home at 4:30 in the morning. It took a few minutes for me to fix it and as a result I was among the last to assemble at the start point. Route briefing had already started and I was glad that I reached before the gang of about 25 riders started. I was in the lead pack for the first hour but started to slow down after about an hour. I was still among the first few as we stopped for coffee after about 30 Km at Shankarpally. But I started to fall behind as we cycled to Chevella. My average speed came down from 22 Km/hr to about 20 Km/hr while the others appeared to maintain a better average. We had breakfast at Chevella and I struggled to maintain pace after that. My speed dropped to less than 17 Km/hr making me question my ability to complete 200 Km in less than 13.5 hours. But I decided to give it a shot during the next week as well.
The second practice ride was shorter at about 65 Km, which would make it 95 Km from my home and was through slightly different route. We passed through IIT Hyderabad campus which is located inside the Ordnance Factory. It was a beautiful 10 Km ride through the scenic campus. We stopped for breakfast at Shankarpally and I felt much better than the previous weekend. I completed the ride strongly and felt quite confident about the brevet now. I then registered for “The 2 Lakes Heaven & Hell Brevet” on 22nd November!!!
The D-Day started for me at 2:30 AM giving me an hour to get ready, have breakfast and start from my home at 3:30. I drove my car with my cycle to the start point at “The Bike Affair” to save an otherwise extra 40 Km. I picked up my friend Mani on my way and reached the start point at 4:30. After an hour of pre-brevet routines of bike checks and paperwork, we all started at 5:30. Mani and I had already planned to ride together throughout the 210 Km. We had devised a strategy to complete the distance in 12 hours. Now was the time to execute it. At 5:30, the brevet was flagged off.
It was a cold morning. I was wearing a new pair of gloves that made it difficult for me to get a feel for handle bar, particular during the first 15 minutes as I was just warming up. We were about 80 riders jostling for some space in the beginning and I was looking for my partner! In the process, I hit a bump, lost my balance and fell down. I landed on my left hand and ended up with minor bruises. My first thought was for the brevet – am I going to be able to continue riding? The handle bar was also stuck – is the cycle fine to continue? The first check was for the cycle. The handle bar was stuck as the front brakes were jammed. It was easy to fix it and within a minute, I realized the cycle was ok. But I was not so lucky. I could feel the bruises on my left thigh and right foot. The worst was my left hand – in addition to the bruises, I had sprained my wrist as I landed on it. Anyways, I started riding and after about 30 minutes, I got into my groove.
The first 3 hours were awesome. The breakfast of granola and coffee kept me strong during this time as I covered 65 Km by 8:30 at about 22 Km/hr. Mani and I were riding together and we stopped for breakfast of bread with nutella and bananas. We reached the first checkpoint at about 9:15 that marked completion of about 75 Km.
After a bit of stretching, we started the next phase that was much tougher than the first 75 Km. It was getting hotter with the sun out on a clear day and the road weaved through several gradients. We had planned to reach the lunch venue (Kotepally Lake) by 11:00 but there were no signs of the lake even after 11:15 as we hit some barren country roads. We finally made it for lunch around 11:30 that marked about 110 Km. Though it was a 200 Km brevet, the route covered almost 210 Km. I started realizing the enormity of the additional 5% distance at that time, particularly given the time constraint! I forgot about the ride for some time as I had some parathas and pulav for lunch. After the food energized my body, I checked my injured left hand. It had become numb and I could not move it at all. I lay down for 20 mins letting my body get some much needed rest. By 12:15, the other riders restarted their journey but I was not yet in a shape to move. Mani started prodding me, reminding me of the dreaded Anantagiri climb that we would hit about 40 mins after lunch. We finally managed to get back on road around 12:30.
It was tough! As I was riding in the hot sun on a barren road, I could see the Anantagiri climb of 160 meters and I was almost ready to give up. Mani was riding strong and kept prodding me. After a while, he either got tired of me or decided to push me by riding in front. I could not keep pace with him at all and gave up as we hit the climb. I could not cycle all the way up the climb and started to walk. I sipped my Gatorade every 5 minutes but it did not appear to help. I finally managed to reach the top of the hill and was happy to see Mani waiting for me. After another 10 minute break, we started riding again. With the tough part of the circuit all conquered, we decided to increase our pace. And we did it in style.
I remembered Mani telling me that the trick to ride on gradients is to maintain our turn-ratio. I always tend to ride on higher gears that does not help while climbing up gradients, particularly the steep ones. With my left hand practically non-functional now, I could not switch my front gears. So, left it on a lower one. That did the trick for me. I was able to maintain my pace much better with a consistently lower front gear. I kept changing only my rear gear as we climbed up and down gradients.
The sun had started going down and I got my energy back. The next 65 Km were the best phase of the brevet. I was practically riding on one hand but was enjoying the consistent pace. I reached the last checkpoint with more than an hour left to cover the final 14 Km. I was almost there and I wanted to finish strong. There was a minor last minute scare as we hit the Saturday evening traffic jam with less than a kilometre to go. I managed to squeeze through the traffic and completed the brevet in 13 hours and 16 minutes, with 14 minutes to spare!!!
Another milestone achieved and I am now an official Randonneur!!!
