The Kottai Super Fast Train on 1st Nov

[Opendro]

A few of us in the Cleated Warriors team are planning to target the Kottai 200K in 50% of the cutoff at finish control, which will be an average of 30 kmph including time control stops and water refill.

Why am I announcing it here?

I wouldn't mind a longer train and would be even happier if there are riders who can share the pull in the lead. Even if you want to just hang on, that is also fine. But this train will not wait for anyone in case of mechanical failures or punctures. We will however spend 5 to 10 minutes in ATM controls and 2 minutes in selfie control. Another 5 minutes of stop to refill water.

If you want to join the train, this is what I suggest : eat full meals at 5 AM and optionally pack an easy-to-eat snacks or mini meals that you can eat during the ride without having to stop. We can slow down the train to 25 kmph for a brief 10 minutes for the purpose at around 9:30 AM. If you have stocks of GU energy gel or something equivalent - then great.

It has been my desire to achieve higher average during long distance rides. 200K is the best distance to try and gain some experience before we attempt longer distances.

What do we get by doing this?

Nothing. We will at least have one more reason to come and ride brevets. Additionally we can brag as we would be beating Vivek Radhakrishnan, Craig and Gaurav Dwivedi of the 2011 (http://www.bangalorebrevets.in/past-seasons/2011-season/old-results/) and then target Samim's time of 300K and Vishal's time of 600K and again Vishal/Dipankar's time of 1000K (http://rrbmgr.appspot.com/bb/belgaum-1000/results/ and https://brevetmgr.appspot.com/brevet/june2014-1000/results).

Do you have the hunger in your legs? Then please come on time this Saturday :)

[Ashok Kumar S]

Count me in... 5.30 at BTM?

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[suman paul]

Aaahh brilliant - somebody should video record it

thank you & regards

suman  

+91      9886300685

[Yateesh Kumar]

Fantastic idea Suman. ..
May be good if one of the engines is mounted with a go pro.

[Opendro]

It is a brevet. So, we will NOT hog the road. We will be going in a single pace line or at most two lines if the road does not have any traffic. So, recording from a rider is not going to show anything :)

[R. Venkatachalam]

That's great, I would probably finish the ride ahead of your guys and wait at the end control :P... All the best Opendro bhai

[Opendro]

You have a more expensive bike (Polygon fixie) than mine. So, you will be obviously faster ;)

[Anil Kadsur]

lol...

All the best guys.....am closely looking for the updates.

very truly,

anil s kadsur,

http://kadsur.blogspot.in/

[Silvesterrajpaul Josephjayapaul]

All the best to engine and coaches...

[Opendro]

Since we are expected to maintain at speeds over 30 most of the time, it would be better if everyone spends some time googling for "paceline etiquette", learn some basic "do's" and "dont's" so that we get the maximum benefit of the train and be safe at the same time.

Just a summary:
 - be predictable
 - ride/pedal smooth
 - accelerate or decelerate steadily. Use of brake should be at the minimum or it should be at such amount that the rider behind won't even realize. Recommended way is to pedal easy and be more upright to use wind resistance. If you are trying to bridge a gap, it should be done again at very gentle acceleration so that the riders behind will get time to respond. Again, ease the acceleration gently to avoid over-bridging and overlapping of the wheel in the front.
 - it is better if you don't stand and pedal simply because it causes your pedaling not-smooth and rider behind will experience sudden acceleration and slowing down for every stroke at 3 O clock (max power) and 6 O clock (dead spot).
 - if you get flat, don't jam brake. Be calm, warn others, pull out of the line.
 - don't stop pedaling even if you think you are rolling too much. Rather, ease the pedaling. Stopping pedaling every now and then causes irregular pace and difficult for the rider behind to be close to your wheel.
 - if you are in the lead, announce any warning or obstacles such as other vehicles, cattle, speed breakers, bad patches of roads etc.

I usually pedal even while sipping water to make the rider behind easier. But for your own safety, increase the gap by an extra feet or so if you plan to sip as you would be riding in one hand.

I'm honestly hoping that this is going to work even if it is your first time.

Looking forward to it. One and a half more days to go :-)

[Prashanth Chengi]

Wish I could have been there! I could have picked up so much from you guys.  The weather here is steadily getting colder and will soon make longer rides all but impossible.  I just might be able sneak in a big ride or two, before closing down for the year.

/Prashanth

[Opendro]

No Prashanth, you cannot learn much from us in terms of riding. We are all hobbyists, not professional cyclists, but trying to improve by sharing knowledge and at times acting as self styled teachers among ourselves ;)

[Opendro]

This is the kind of breakup I'm expecting if I'm to finish in 6:45. Sharing it just so that whoever joins the train knows what we are upto :-)

0 - 81.25 km
An average of 35 kmph or 2:20 hours. Some downhills sections could touch 80. I suggest that we maintain a close paceline only on the flat and uphills. We should maintain good distance on the downhills. 5 mins to be spent in different ATMs to save time. We are expected to have consumed a little more than a litre of water. If possible, try to refill one of the bottles quickly.

81.25 - 148.5 km
An average of 27 kmph or 2:30 hours. We will lose about a couple of mins at 136.3 km for a selfie control. We should paceline as close as possible. We should have stopped for 5 minutes at an appropriate water refill place where we could also take some bites of the snacks that we would be carrying. Another 5 minutes for the ATM control. If the line is long, a faster group will break away about 5 km before the control and get the ATM slip to reduce crowd outside ATM and save time.

148.5 - 204 km
An average of 31 kmph or 1:46 hours. Hopefully, we will wriggle out of the Saturday noon traffic to average this.

So, that puts us at 6:53 hours.

Looks extremely steep target for me considering that we will face obstacles in a few places. But it will be a very comfortable target if there are at least 5 strong riders who can pull in the front and another 5 who can contribute a couple of minutes every 20 minutes.

See you all tomorrow morning.

[Prashanth Chengi]

Trust Opendro to map it all out perfectly. All the very best, guys, and wish you luck with the Saturday noon traffic which might well pose the biggest challenge.

A downhill speed of upto 80! Wow! I've not had the chance to ride on such a section thus far.  The fastest I've managed is a tad below 70, and that was in Mallorca, Spain, earlier this year and my heart was thumping with the excitement. Strava however showed other riders who've managed up to 95 kph on the same section though, so it certainly boils down to a combination of skill and raw guts.  Have a safe and fun (oxymoron? ;)) ride, guys!

/Prashanth

[R. Venkatachalam]

We don't ride distances, we ride routes (or something like that which Chiddu/someone said long back)

Welcome to the awesome Super slow train, anyone who wants to be a part of this train, please ensure that you have the right attitude and energy to complete the 200k taking every minute of the allotted 13.5 hours... Anyone finishing before that will have their tires flattened (cycle tires, not the waist)

This is the kind of breakup I'm expecting if I'm to finish exactly at 7.30 PM. Sharing it just so that whoever joins the train knows what we are upto :-)

0 - 81.25 km
An average of 2 idlis, one wada per hour, with filter coffee and cutting chai alternate hours.

Some nice roadside hotels could increase our average to 2 vadas per hour also.

81.25 - 148.5 km
And average of 1 rice bath per hour, and sugar cane juice / tender coconut every hour. If we see some nice roadside hotel serving full meals (unlimited banana leaf saapad), we might stop for it and take a nap too.

148.5 - 204 km
An average of 2 bondas, 1 tea and 3 paruppu-vadas per hour.

So, that puts about 3 kgs at the end of the ride.

Looks extremely easy target for me considering that we will face obstacles in a few places, like vada not being fresh/hot. But it will be a very comfortable target if there are at least few good riders who can eat well and create the demand for the shop keeper to prepare fresh vada.

See you all tomorrow morning.

PS: Opendro is my good friend, so am not pulling his leg. Am actually serious for a change.

[Anil Kadsur]

lol....also click photos for blog write up and for FB....

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

This is outrageous. 6:53 ? Where are the seconds and milliseconds.

I would have expected some level of accuracy from  you.

[s.a...@gmail.com]

Actually, there is an even bigger catch. He starts the mail with a split for 6.45 finish and ends up with 6.53. A gross mistake, coming out from Opendro… 😉

[Opendro]

LOL

Ashok, I assume that you will save that extra 8 mins when you take the pull ;)

Chidu, it is rounded to minutes as it is IST. I could have rounded to hours actually.

BTW, first 82 is km is where we could save some more time as it is really fast downhill. But the control does not open before 8:23 AM. A little skeptical of the inner roads till Attibele - it was not pleasurable in my last Anchetty ride.

However the situation may be, effort will be sincerely made, right Ashok?

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

I don't plan to ride in any train, I'll use my bike. Not sure of my pace honestly just plan to ride steady 

[Opendro]

Come on Chidu. What is the fun riding 200K watching the road all the time? Make it fun by doing some impossible calculations in the head all through the route ;)

[Ashok Kumar S]

Yes, of course. I'll surely be pulling as well until Krishnagiri. Beyond which once the sun is out, not sure about how much energy will be left and how useful I would be. My plan is to drop out of the train as soon as I'm done instead of slowing down the train by hanging behind. So, as long as I'm with the train, will take an equal role as the engine as well. :)

Thanks and regards,

Ashok. 

Sent from my iPhone

[Opendro]

No no. I didn't mean that everyone in the train should share the pull. This is not a race and thus anyone is welcome to hand on in the tail unless it is against your self esteem. I definitely wouldn't mind being in the tail if someone is ready to pull all along ;)

So, take the lead only if you think you can sustain. I can count a lot of strong riders in the list - only that I'm not sure if they would be willing to join the train. If they join, I might spend at the tail most of the time.

[Arvind P]

Are you guys going to Go Pro your 6 hour ride? Please do so that it looks like this...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhI8gWurWNQ

And newcomers can take some tips from here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0HtuuKTmsQ 

Wish you all the best ..ride safe :)

[Satya Balakrishnan]

I am on the slow train, sounds a lot more fun and easy :-)
satya

[R. Venkatachalam]

90% of them will be on slow train... They wont say it here, they will experience it tomorrow. I have faith in the vadas...

[Ramanan RV]

So we have one super fast train, where the engine will not stop even if all the coaches behind derail..how cruel!!! 

And a super slow passenger which stops to eat anything and everything which looks edible and if nothing is found, they may even turn into cannibals!

 

Well forget these and get on the normal, ever popular and reliable Express train, which is neither slow nor fast and stops where it is required :-)

Join the "WTF Express Train", sceheduled to leave at 6:05 AM or so. We expect to reach the destination in 10 hours or so which would be the perfect time to finish the ride and reach home on time to spend with your family, play with your kids and do what not, but with the mind and body in a stable state! Or with those those extra 3 hours, we could also gulp down a few beers to receive the last minute gate crashers:-p

Yes, we guarantee, no mind numbing crazy illegal speeds, no aching backs and sore bums, no bloated tummy due to consuming those obscene number of "parapu" vadas (am guessing the slow train can run on gas after half way mark), no whining, no moaning, no crying but only the pure joy of riding. Well watch out for the legendary rider Siva Sai who will lead this train :-)

C ya all tomorrow morning...its going to be fun;-)

Cheers,

Venkat Rajmohan

--

[M S Sriram]

Lol epic funny macha ;)

  I so badly wish I could be a part of this but alas average pace does not qualify me ;) ;)...

--

[Ashok Kumar S]

He he he. So you have all the options. Riders just need to pick the ones that suit them. :)

Thanks and regards,

Ashok. 

Sent from my iPhone

[berkeleydb]

Was super, reading this thread. Best of luck to everyone.

-{db}.

[Sandeep]

On Fri, Oct 31, 2014 at 4:15 PM, Opendro <ope...@gmail.com> wrote:

So, that puts us at 6:53 hours.

6:54 right now, have not received a call from the end point.

[Anil Kadsur]

i too was thinking about it....

--

[Prashanth Chengi]

What's the weather like, guys? And did they start on time?

/Prashanth

[Sandeep]

The engine started on time. It was cloudy cool in the morning, cloudy with blue skies now.

[Anil Kadsur]

i think they started 6 minutes late.

quite hot....

[Sandeep]

Engine and bogie have reached.

[Anil Kadsur]

how many of them....super show

[Arvind P]

Yippiieeee .... we'll get to read another blog from Opendro :D

[Sandeep]

Two reached after not stopping for either breakfast or lunch. Atleast they met the R60 criteria.

[Prashanth Chengi]

Who were the two?

/Prashanth

On Nov 1, 2014 9:58 AM, "Sandeep" <san...@gmail.com> wrote:

Two reached after not stopping for either breakfast or lunch. Atleast they met the R60 criteria.

--

[Sandeep]

Open and Ashok. 3 more reached just now.

[Sandeep]

Venkatachalam's slow train is in Denkanikottai.

On Fri, Oct 31, 2014 at 5:16 PM, R. Venkatachalam <r.venka...@gmail.com> wrote:

We don't ride distances, we ride routes (or something like that which Chiddu/someone said long back)

Welcome to the awesome Super slow train, anyone who wants to be a part of this train, please ensure that you have the right attitude and energy to complete the 200k taking every minute of the allotted 13.5 hours... Anyone finishing before that will have their tires flattened (cycle tires, not the waist)

This is the kind of breakup I'm expecting if I'm to finish exactly at 7.30 PM. Sharing it just so that whoever joins the train knows what we are upto :-)

0 - 81.25 km
An average of 2 idlis, one wada per hour, with filter coffee and cutting chai alternate hours.

Some nice roadside hotels could increase our average to 2 vadas per hour also.

81.25 - 148.5 km
And average of 1 rice bath per hour, and sugar cane juice / tender coconut every hour. If we see some nice roadside hotel serving full meals (unlimited banana leaf saapad), we might stop for it and take a nap too.

148.5 - 204 km
An average of 2 bondas, 1 tea and 3 paruppu-vadas per hour.

So, that puts about 3 kgs at the end of the ride.

Looks extremely easy target for me considering that we will face obstacles in a few places, like vada not being fresh/hot. But it will be a very comfortable target if there are at least few good riders who can eat well and create the demand for the shop keeper to prepare fresh vada.

See you all tomorrow morning.

PS: Opendro is my good friend, so am not pulling his leg. Am actually serious for a change.

On Friday, October 31, 2014 4:15:19 PM UTC+5:30, Opendro wrote:

This is the kind of breakup I'm expecting if I'm to finish in 6:45. Sharing it just so that whoever joins the train knows what we are upto :-)

0 - 81.25 km
An average of 35 kmph or 2:20 hours. Some downhills sections could touch 80. I suggest that we maintain a close paceline only on the flat and uphills. We should maintain good distance on the downhills. 5 mins to be spent in different ATMs to save time. We are expected to have consumed a little more than a litre of water. If possible, try to refill one of the bottles quickly.

81.25 - 148.5 km
An average of 27 kmph or 2:30 hours. We will lose about a couple of mins at 136.3 km for a selfie control. We should paceline as close as possible. We should have stopped for 5 minutes at an appropriate water refill place where we could also take some bites of the snacks that we would be carrying. Another 5 minutes for the ATM control. If the line is long, a faster group will break away about 5 km before the control and get the ATM slip to reduce crowd outside ATM and save time.

148.5 - 204 km
An average of 31 kmph or 1:46 hours. Hopefully, we will wriggle out of the Saturday noon traffic to average this.

So, that puts us at 6:53 hours.

Looks extremely steep target for me considering that we will face obstacles in a few places. But it will be a very comfortable target if there are at least 5 strong riders who can pull in the front and another 5 who can contribute a couple of minutes every 20 minutes.

See you all tomorrow morning.

On Thursday, October 30, 2014 11:01:27 AM UTC+5:30, Opendro wrote:

Since we are expected to maintain at speeds over 30 most of the time, it would be better if everyone spends some time googling for "paceline etiquette", learn some basic "do's" and "dont's" so that we get the maximum benefit of the train and be safe at the same time.

Just a summary:
 - be predictable
 - ride/pedal smooth
 - accelerate or decelerate steadily. Use of brake should be at the minimum or it should be at such amount that the rider behind won't even realize. Recommended way is to pedal easy and be more upright to use wind resistance. If you are trying to bridge a gap, it should be done again at very gentle acceleration so that the riders behind will get time to respond. Again, ease the acceleration gently to avoid over-bridging and overlapping of the wheel in the front.
 - it is better if you don't stand and pedal simply because it causes your pedaling not-smooth and rider behind will experience sudden acceleration and slowing down for every stroke at 3 O clock (max power) and 6 O clock (dead spot).
 - if you get flat, don't jam brake. Be calm, warn others, pull out of the line.
 - don't stop pedaling even if you think you are rolling too much. Rather, ease the pedaling. Stopping pedaling every now and then causes irregular pace and difficult for the rider behind to be close to your wheel.
 - if you are in the lead, announce any warning or obstacles such as other vehicles, cattle, speed breakers, bad patches of roads etc.

I usually pedal even while sipping water to make the rider behind easier. But for your own safety, increase the gap by an extra feet or so if you plan to sip as you would be riding in one hand.

I'm honestly hoping that this is going to work even if it is your first time.

Looking forward to it. One and a half more days to go :-)

On Tuesday, October 28, 2014 11:39:27 AM UTC+5:30, Opendro wrote:

A few of us in the Cleated Warriors team are planning to target the Kottai 200K in 50% of the cutoff at finish control, which will be an average of 30 kmph including time control stops and water refill.

Why am I announcing it here?

I wouldn't mind a longer train and would be even happier if there are riders who can share the pull in the lead. Even if you want to just hang on, that is also fine. But this train will not wait for anyone in case of mechanical failures or punctures. We will however spend 5 to 10 minutes in ATM controls and 2 minutes in selfie control. Another 5 minutes of stop to refill water.

If you want to join the train, this is what I suggest : eat full meals at 5 AM and optionally pack an easy-to-eat snacks or mini meals that you can eat during the ride without having to stop. We can slow down the train to 25 kmph for a brief 10 minutes for the purpose at around 9:30 AM. If you have stocks of GU energy gel or something equivalent - then great.

It has been my desire to achieve higher average during long distance rides. 200K is the best distance to try and gain some experience before we attempt longer distances.

What do we get by doing this?

Nothing. We will at least have one more reason to come and ride brevets. Additionally we can brag as we would be beating Vivek Radhakrishnan, Craig and Gaurav Dwivedi of the 2011 (http://www.bangalorebrevets.in/past-seasons/2011-season/old-results/) and then target Samim's time of 300K and Vishal's time of 600K and again Vishal/Dipankar's time of 1000K (http://rrbmgr.appspot.com/bb/belgaum-1000/results/ and https://brevetmgr.appspot.com/brevet/june2014-1000/results).

Do you have the hunger in your legs? Then please come on time this Saturday :)

[raman...@gmail.com]

And the express just left after a sumptuous meals at d.kottai!

Sent from my BlackBerry 10 smartphone.

From: Sandeep Sent: Saturday, 1 November 2014 14:35 Cc: Bangalore Bikers Club Subject: Re: [BBC] The Kottai Super Slow Train on 1st Nov

[berkeleydb]

Wow... great to hear about the effort from both trains. :) And I suppose there were a whole lot of lone engines or small trains too. What is the status at this time?

Will see if I can make it to the end point around the designated end time to meet some of the riders.

-{db}.

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

Rode with sunil parag mudit from rayakottai, we rode steady with breaks including a picnic lunch of hand plucked tamarind. Noted that at least 3other villages ended in kottai

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

Reached end control little after 5,and saw goats balancing on sheer cliffs, it was fun

[R Venkatachalam]

About 55 finishers I think.

This is the route for 200k...  Killer climbs.

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[raman...@gmail.com]

The slow passengers was the lone engine having all the vada just for himself. But it was running on a single speed!! Hats of to Venkatachalam for this brave act and he was doing quite well dropping many engines on his way!! Quite an effort I should say to tackle all those climbs.

Cheers,

Venkat Rajmohan

Sent from my BlackBerry 10 smartphone.

From: R Venkatachalam Sent: Saturday, 1 November 2014 19:35 To: berkeleydb Cc: bangalor...@googlegroups.com

Subject: Re: [BBC] The Kottai Super Slow Train on 1st Nov

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[berkeleydb]

I got to the endpoint some time before 1930hrs, so could meet the riders who had finished around that time.  It was nice hearing some of their experiences.

Venkatchalam doing the ride on a single speed was really cool.  He did mention that the slow train did_not hold up.  The bogies kept going past the engine.  Looks like they can be part of the Indian Railways. :P

Congrats to all the riders and organisers.  And best of luck to the volunteers who are doing the ride tomorrow.

Suman -- it was pretty special to see you at the endpoint, despite your fractures; wishing you a full & speedy recovery.

-{db}.

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

It was not a single speed.

It was a fixie (fixed gear) , meaning you have to keep spinning even on downhills. He must have got one hell of a workout!

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

Me , Parag , Mudit and Sunil rode it pretty much like a regular weekend ride, took it easy in the afternoon heat and then again rode faster on the way back. 
I had 1/4th of an egg puff, one piece Dil Pasand and a 200ml packet of curd + 2 protein bars solid food
2 liters of Kokum juice, 1 liter of diluted electral + gatorade , about 500ml Maaza and 1/2 liter of water 
-- this was my nutrition for the day till end of ride. 
Had a good meal after i came back and was sleeping by 7:30 pm (when the ride ended)

[R. Venkatachalam]

No Chiddu... I chickened and out a freewheel cog... :)

[raman...@gmail.com]

:-) if only he was on a fixie...I would have fallen on his feet even if he could not finish it, but alas we caught him coasting :-p still a ss ride report from him would be Interesting to read!

Sent from my BlackBerry 10 smartphone.

From: Chidambaran Subramanian Sent: Sunday, 2 November 2014 09:27 To: berkeleydb Cc: Bangalore Bikers Club

[berkeleydb]

Chiddu -- Kokum juice is my favorite. :) Where is it available in Bangalore; what is Kokum called in Kannada? I have asked for Kokum is some places, they don't seem to get what I'm referring to. Would love to carry it on my rides... a super thirst quencher.

As Venkatachalam already posted -- he was riding the bike as a single speed. Fixie would have been super intense. :). No way the bogies would have gone past the engine on downhills, then.

-{db}.

[Prashanth Chengi]

Did you switch to the freewheel cog for the downhill section or did you use it all the way?

/Prashanth

On Nov 2, 2014 5:14 AM, "R. Venkatachalam" <r.venka...@gmail.com> wrote:

No Chiddu...  I chickened and out a freewheel cog...  :)

[R Venkatachalam]

It was freewheel throughout. The previous day,  I had got a cheap 100 rupees 18t cog from a Roadside cycle shop. 42-18 was the combination.

For anchetty,  this ratio would be killing... 

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

Kokum juice?

At my place. Most days of the year. 

-{db}.

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biking conversations on the world famous "Bangalore Bikers Club" :)

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[Chidambaran Subramanian]

On Sun, Nov 2, 2014 at 2:00 PM, berkeleydb <dha...@gmail.com> wrote:

Chiddu -- Kokum juice is my favorite. :)  Where is it available in Bangalore; what is Kokum called in Kannada?  I have asked for Kokum is some places, they don't seem to get what I'm referring to.  Would love to carry it on my rides... a super thirst quencher.

I buy my Kokum medication from shenoy stores, jayanagar 3rd block (next to Ganesh Darshan).

[berkeleydb]

Shenoy stores... Cool. Not too far from the BOTS store I see on the map. :)

-{db}.

[Prashanth Chengi]

Wow.. I would have never, ever thought I'd get to see BOTS and Shenoy stores being discussed in the same post! I loved Shenoy stores.  That's where I used to shop for all those extremely unhealthy but divine tasting snacks.  Nipattu, kodbale, thengolalu, benne muruku... Damn! I miss those days!

/Prashanth

On Sun, Nov 2, 2014 at 10:38 AM, berkeleydb <dha...@gmail.com> wrote:

Shenoy stores... Cool.  Not too far from the BOTS store I see on the map. :)

-{db}.

[berkeleydb]

Well... food and cycling go together, so about time. :)  So looks like one can pick up some good snacks too for cycle rides, at Shenoy stores. :)

-{db}.

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

You should be able to find Kokum squash or Kokum in any Mangalore stores

[Opendro]

If at all there was any hope of making 50% it was with a train of at least 5 people. But as it turned out, only Ashok was the strong guy. Somehow, I forgot to wait for Yuvaraj was a bit late.

Here is what happened:
 - We started 6 mins late - Anantha, me, Krishnan and Somas. Yet, we were reluctant to push as we knew that time control wouldn't open before 8:23. We still averaged 35. Ashok and Michael were already waiting for the control to open. We used the time to fill water.
 - From Krishnagiri, 6 of us were supposed to ride in a close paceline. They did for a while, until I caught them up (after 11 km of chase alone after my pee break). From there on, Krishnan and Michael fell off the line. Next was Anantha to show sign of falling off and then Somas in the up slopes, but I needed them for my selfish target.
 - I made four egg/chapati roll out of which I got to eat only a half so as to help the train :) I also bought a four litre water bottles to save time for the train.
 - We could not longer have a working train for two reasons - Somas and Anantha couldn't keep up and the roads were uneven and bumpy and patchy. Ashok had to wait for us most of the time. He could have left us whenever he wanted.
 - It got hot from then on.
 - We would have lost about 2 mins figuring out the left turn near the kiln.
 - Another 5 mins trying to figure out if we missed the yellow board selfie control and taking backup selfie in between.
 - We wasted another 10 mins asking for water from a house at 137 km mark (before right turn) and washing face (prompted by Anantha who was joined by everybody later). By this time Michael caught us up. Remarkable, but it also says how much time we wasted.
 - Ashok and I were a bit impatient by this time. We slowly created the gap from Anantha and Somas as I gave up on the 50%. But I didn't want to be overly deviated from 7 hours. But roads didn't still cooperate - they were too bumpy and tiring. Compare this - Yuvaraj and I averaged 22.4 from Krishnagiri till Hosur (excluding one tea break) in the sleepy night after riding 1100 km. Climbing on smooth road makes the task a lot easier. Bumpy roads make the hands, bums, etc. tiring while it just cannot roll at fast pace.
 - Ashok and I took another wrong turn at Denkanikottai and went about 1.5 to 2 km discussing whether we were in right direction or not. That road was also going towards Hosur, but not on the map he had on GPS. We would have lost again about 10 to 15 mins.
 - We did pretty well thereafter, both us sharing the pull equally, except on some places where roads were again rough.
 - Both of us ran out of electrolyte and started looking out for medical shop. Later, we stopped for some cold drink where we mixed table salt. We ripped the roads with this. It was becoming very hot by noon that we started sipping twice the rate.
 - Finally, traffic was fortunately manageable to reach within 8 hours. Some consolation :)

Thank you Ashok.
Thank you Somas for the initial pull - I really loved your pedal strokes - a treat to watch.
Anantha - you are a strong rider, but a lot to work on your endurance for a long ride.
Krishnan was not prepared I think.

Yuvaraj, I missed you in the train.
Rajanikanth - I thought you were in the list and I was hoping that you would turn up and we could have a ride together finally. I have heard of your 400K and 600K stories from Deepak and Gana.

Thanks Bangalore Brevet, specially Sandeep, Venkatachalam, Chidu.

Thanks Suman, Anil, Ravi sir, Anita, whoever helped the start process. I was too late to even recognize all of the work.

50% can be possible on this route if we make Krishnagiri as untimed control where we can average much better than 35.

[Yateesh Kumar]

On 2 Nov 2014 15:29, "berkeleydb" <dha...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Well... food and cycling go together,

Cant agree more :)

so about time. :)  So looks like one can pick up some good snacks too for cycle rides, at Shenoy stores. :)

Shenoy stores sell atleast half a dozen type of chikki, antinunde(a laddoo woth chikki ingredients & jaggery)etc...

Cocum squish is available in many supermarkets. I just got one yesterday at mk ahmed...

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

One place where our thoughts won't resonate Opendro.

You have reduced a beautiful route to a series of numbers

Chiddu

--

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

Of course that does not take anything away from what you guys pulled off.

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

I am short of time to write a detailed blog today but hope to do so soon. But if I were to, the following would find mention

1) The shepherds around Bevanatham speak a curious mixture of Kannada, Tamil and Telugu

2) There are at least three other villages on the way that end in Kottai

3) Most villages on the route have names that end with Palli, Patti  Nagar ,  Giri or Ouru.

4) On small towns, the medical shops are virtual dispensaries. Most people don't know the names of standard drugs, but they come there with all sorts of problems. The guy at the counter gives detailed instructions, like a doctor would (God knows how they track side effects)

5) The cabbages have probably been harvested, last I went there, there were a lot of cabbage fields.

6) There were still a lot of tomato fields. 

[s.a...@gmail.com]

It was super fun ride, Opendro… Thanks a lot for the inspiration, the momentum and the company…

I saw you coming late to the start and was waiting to start with you. Suddenly a lot of guys left and I couldn’t spot you in the rest in the hurry. I thought it would be a risk if you guys went ahead of me as it wouldn’t be possible to catch a 5 bogie train riding alone. So, decided to start and join you guys as you reach me if you were behind, else to do a chasing game.

Soon I was joined by Rajkumar khott & Micheal by the time I hit Bommanahalli. We rode together almost till Chandapura, mostly taking turns. At Chandapura, a stopped bus was blocking us and while we were overtaking, he too started accelerating. We accelerated and overtook the bus hitting close to 60 speeds, which was an unnecessary drama, and Rajkumar got dropped at this. From there on, until Krishnagiri it was Michael and me. We took turns in pulling, with Michael doing it for most of the times. By Shoolagiri, he was also showing some signs of fatigue at climbs.

Then I remembered Opendro’s mail about the end control not getting opened before 8.23 and told the same to Micheal and the last 15-20km was pure chit chat ride. We talked about runs. Micheal’s debut in the New York marathon, his running, my running. blah blah….

We reached the control before time. While I was waiting outside for Michael to get the slip, the train reached. From there, rest of the story is more or like what Opendro mentioned below. Except that I shared the pull equally.

I was sitting on his tail for most of the time, and occasionally took the lead, which might have helped him to recover at times. But it is his sheer perseverance and constant pedalling. I was amused at how he gulps enerzal and the engine converts it to pedalling strokes.. On and on and on…. It’s an inspiration even to sit on his wheel and watch him pedalling for such long distance, with no sign of any fatigue. Awesome!

 

It was one hell of a ride. Thanks to the IR and BB for organizing it. And all the riders and villagers en route for the support. And special thanks to all the engines. 😊

regards,

Ashok

--

[s.a...@gmail.com]

Many bakeries in HSR sell Kokum juice… But very sugary they make it..

[Prashanth Chengi]

Beauty is also highly relative. Numbers and statistics could be beautiful too, for those thus inclined, and indeed, they might have been able to take in the best of both worlds, i.e. the statistics and the natural beauty.

/Prashanth

[Venkatesh N]

Speed and enjoying the beauty of the route need not be, mutually exclusive. :-)

[Sandeep]

On Sun, Nov 2, 2014 at 9:38 AM, Chidambaran Subramanian <chi...@gmail.com> wrote:

I had 1/4th of an egg puff, one piece Dil Pasand and a 200ml packet of curd + 2 protein bars solid food
2 liters of Kokum juice, 1 liter of diluted electral + gatorade , about 500ml Maaza and 1/2 liter of water 
-- this was my nutrition for the day till end of ride. 

Chiddu, that amount of food does not qualify you to be on this therad :-)

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

Did i cross lower or upper limits?

--

[Sandeep]

You did not meet the minimum requirements.

http://goo.gl/MqR5fe : The dosa on Abhijit's plate is half the dosa, and that was just the first dish :-)

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

My (unstated) goal for the ride was to ride only on protein bars + liquid nutrition that I carried. I wanted to top up liquid if what i carried did not suffice. I (mostly) succeeded, with only the 1/4th Dilpasand + 1/4th egg puff breaking the monotony of what I ate (and these two were not for the nutrition, but for the taste -- i was getting sick of the protein bars and the gatorade + electral that I carried) 

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

Very true. But I read Op's blog multiple times. All I see is numbers, distances and speed.

[Arvind PR]

CHiddu..whats the protein bar you eat?

 

From: bangalor...@googlegroups.com [mailto:bangalor...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Chidambaran Subramanian
Sent: 02 November 2014 19:49
To: Sandeep
Cc: Bangalore Bikers Club
Subject: Re: [BBC] The Kottai Super Slow Train on 1st Nov

 

My (unstated) goal for the ride was to ride only on protein bars + liquid nutrition that I carried. I wanted to top up liquid if what i carried did not suffice. I (mostly) succeeded, with only the 1/4th Dilpasand + 1/4th egg puff breaking the monotony of what I ate (and these two were not for the nutrition, but for the taste -- i was getting sick of the protein bars and the gatorade + electral that I carried) 

You received this message because you are subscribed to a topic in the Google Groups "Bangalore Bikers Club" group.
To unsubscribe from this topic, visit https://groups.google.com/d/topic/bangalore-bikers/ZJUfXA3apa4/unsubscribe.
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[Sreepathi Pai]

@Chiddu, you're just biased ;) As far as I remember, you're not
exactly a slow rider either. Finally, as Venky said, speed and
enjoyment are not exactly exclusive. As Velocio put it:

--
Velocio was sometimes criticized for his long-distance riding. It was
said that he was hypnotized by speed and mileage and that he could not
see anything of the country at that rate. He answered:

"These people do not realize that vigorous riding implies the senses.
Perception is sharpened, impressions are heightened, blood circulates
faster, and the brain functions better. I can still vividly remember
the smallest details of tours of many years ago. Hypnotized? It is the
traveler in a train or car who is hypnotized."
--
from here: <http://cycling.ahands.org/bicycling/velocio.html>

I'm very happy to see some great finish timings on a typical Bangalore
route (yes, the highway-only routes are now in a minority).
Congratulations to Opendro and Ashok on showing that it is indeed
possible. Now, like after the four-minute-mile, hopefully we'll see
more people going faster, esp. among the experienced randonneurs.

Clearly this was a train of only great engines, and no bogie was involved.

I hope Opendro and Ashok will also share details of their cycles, if
only for the record. I'm sure (after reading Opendro's report) that a
few years down the line their cycles for going fast may look very
different.

Sreepathi Pai

[Sreepathi Pai]

Also, this being BBC, I'm glad that there are multiple friendly
factions -- the super-fast, the betweeners and the
intentionally-super-slow-dammit-this-is-not-a-race. My only concern
was that we used to have very few super-fasters. For a healthy
community, we need all three.

--
Sreepathi Pai

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

On Sun, Nov 2, 2014 at 11:04 PM, Sreepathi Pai <sre...@gmail.com> wrote:

@Chiddu, you're just biased ;) As far as I remember, you're not
exactly a slow rider either. Finally, as Venky said, speed and
enjoyment are not exactly exclusive. As Velocio put it:

I'm not biased. I'm just pointing out that Opendro's mail has very little mention of the route other than some trivial road details

[Chidambaran Subramanian]

And I'd probably  ride as fast as Opendro if I had the ability to do it as well. Maybe if I get that ability then I'll comment on whether I'll do it or not.

BTW , I realized I've changed in one aspect. Earlier I used to like the fact that the last 20/25km were highway, so I could rush home. But yesterday at Attibele I was thinking : "Do i really have to do this stretch? Its been so  peaceful so far"

[Sreepathi Pai]

On Sun, Nov 2, 2014 at 11:42 AM, Chidambaran Subramanian
<chi...@gmail.com> wrote:

> I'm not biased. I'm just pointing out that Opendro's mail has very little
> mention of the route other than some trivial road details

True, but that's has nothing to do with going fast. I'm pretty sure
Opendro tries to write very objective ride reports regardless of
speed.

@Opendro, I would suggest taking a few pics of the route, that should
satisfy Chiddu ;)

--
Sreepathi Pai

[Opendro]

LOL. It would be of no use sharing photos from my Nokia 114 camera. My earlier phone (Nokia 105) didn't even have a camera and the screen broke in a downhill crash during Feb this year. The age of SMS forced me to buy a new one.

But, Chidu is partly right. I'm very focused on the road when I drive or ride. But not to the extent that I would miss a beautiful place or scene. I'm just too familiar with villages (I grew up all my childhood). That is all.

In my recent 1200K, the most beautiful memory was that of the lighted towns as we were climbing up the Yelagiri. We would also see the lighted twining route of the hill as we approached it in the evening. Yuvaraj and I were chatting and exchanging thoughts of the same. Yeah, I didn't write any of it in the blog though. I will try to do next time.

[Opendro]

I agree. The amount of calories you would need for a distance of 200K is quite higher than what Chidu has listed. This is what I had:

 - Heavy breakfast (rice/chapati) and heavy lunch (tandoor roti, chicken) on Friday. Heavy 10:30pm dinner (rice + plain chicken soup) and the same for 5 AM breakfast - ate as much as I could.
 - I made four chapati with 8 eggs coating on them. Two were meant for me and another two for Anantha. Anantha ate his. I ate only a half though as I had to share with the train (not complaining guys, I needed the train as much as my food ;))
 - 1.6L of water filled from home with 3 packets of enerzal. Carried another 3 packets.
 - Filled one litre more in Krishnagiri with enerzal. I shared about 200 ml with Ashok later on the way.
 - Filled 1.5L from a house at 137 km. But ran out of electrolyte except one packet.
 - Had two 200ml bottles of a cold drink A1 (if I remember correctly) and filled another two bottles along with two spoons of table salt.
 - I ran out of the cold drink at Electronic City. But I had 700ml of water which I started sipping and finished half of it at the end.

As I finished, I was darn hungry. I would have stopped for lunch earlier if I had to continue for a longer distance. But, okay to go a bit in deficit if finish is in sight, because stopping for food would waste more time.

[Opendro]

Don't be so modest Ashok. I don't praise people unnecessarily. I never felt that you were any less, if not better, than me. I know whom to contact if I have another such crazy target :-)

[Ashok Kumar S]

I wasn't being modest. I wrote what I felt. And sure, will be pleased to join you for crazy targets... that adds extra fun to the rides...

regards,
Ashok

[R Venkatachalam]

<<Alert: Boring report, not as interesting as a slow ride should have been>>

If I have to write like BiriyaniVenky (or is it BikeyVenky?) - I should have opening lines like

Huffing and puffing, standing up on the pedal and trying to crank it at less than 10 rpm on the last climb before Rayakottai, I could see the vision of my great grandfather welcoming me to heaven with open arms... Was I dying? Will I live to tell this tale, of finishing probably the toughest* 200k ever on earth? Read on to find more.

*(Toughest among all brevets organized in Bangalore in 2014 specifically on November 1st)

No - I will not write like that. Because I don't have that ability to write a brilliant movie script nor like that Opendro

"Had 5 kms to go for the control to open, in 3 minutes, so applying the third differential transformation of integrated volumentric analysis, I have to pedal 23 times every 4.5 seconds while sipping 2 ml of water so as to be there just in time while also recalibrating my required rate of smooth pedaling from thereon. Wait, was there nice scenery on the route? No one told me to look at that"

________________________________________________________________

My story of the ride is pretty simple. Having sold all the bikes (in anticipation of a relocation) but one (am weighing lesser now - one kidney was the price of that bike), I had resigned to occasional commute-to-work-weekday-traffic-hating-warrior. The only reason that made me sign up for the ride was the fact that Bangalore brevets as a team took a stand not to organize BRMs this season due to certain reasons (which are now in the public domain). I definitely supported this stand and wanted to express it by riding the first brevet from BB this season - even if it means I had to do my homework of figuring out the direct bus services from Rayakottai to carry my bike back, after quitting the ride there... Well, quitting was a part of the plan. :)

The only practice ride for this brevet was a week before in fixie mode (42-15 ratio) on the OMR road (where I got butt slapped). My thighs cried on the downhills (or, the flyover downhills - that ones). Still, knowing that its only going to be a 100k ride, I decided to do on fixie mode. But, the fear of Krishnagiri downhill section made me chicken out one day prior to the ride, and I rushed to the nearest local roadside cycle shop and picked a freewheel cog (18T) for Rs. 100. Not a bad investment for a Rs. 99/- brevet. After installing it, took it for a spin for 300 mts and I was all set. Oh btw, thanks to the crazy pricing of Decathlon - I picked up a drop bar for Rs. 99 and converted my fixie to a single speed drop bar bike (that the brake levers were 26 times dearer than drop bar is a different story).

So my bike looked like this: http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/800x600q90/912/yynDFt.jpg

On the ride day, my friend Raghu - who was participating in his first 200k, gave me the wake up call. I could manage only 2 hours of sleep because of a client call that went on till 2 am. Long ago, in my younger and lighter days, I had done a 600k brevet where we managed less than 2 hours sleep so I was confident that 2 hours of sleep is good enough for the ride.

We reached the start point at 5.30 am. The queue was building up and Sandeep did a smart thing splitting the liability waiver form sign up queue and the bike check queue. I can't help admiring the amount of efficiencies that organizers have bought into these brevets. The form printed with all your information (no need to writing anything at all in the form - unless you are registering on the spot), cue sheet neatly packed into a ziplock cover (and thoughtfully done, with the first page of cue sheet facing up, so you don't have to remove the cue sheet from ziplock cover till you reach about 140 kms! ) and bike check done almost like in a factory setting.

At bike check, God created a wonderful opportunity for me to quit the ride because my rear light was ORANGE. I tried telling them that I haven't been biking for a few months now, so the battery might have gone weak and hence the red light due to weak battery seems like orange light under the morning halogen streetlight given the hue wavelength lambda gamma radiations etc.. But Sandeep being Sandeep, he didn't buy the story. To my dismay, Sohan lent me a red rear light, and so I didn't have a choice but to ride.

Raghu meanwhile said he has packed tomato rice for me and since we were supposedly riding together, I can eat once in a while when we stopped. He had pannier bags so the tomato rice was with him (very important point to note here - because friendships and ride plans can be broken over tomato rice as you may see later in the report).

So I started the ride, freewheeling on the downhills at snail pace (a 100 rupees cog can do only that much - it was almost like my fixie - it was just not rolling despite my weight and the gravitational aid). The flyover climbs were manageable and Raghu called me at around 25k mark. He waited and I ate some portion of the tomato rice, while keeping an eye on him. The apparently fast downhill sections from thereon was also slow for me, the bike just refused to roll. But at around 71.5k mark (Saravana Bhavan), Raghu stopped for me and this time, I was determined to rather carry the Tomato rice with me (for the fear of him eating it while he was waiting for me). So I adviced him as a senior randonneur that as a newbie and debutant, he should not be stopping and wasting time, and he should rather keep moving so that he has enough time for the climbs - and I can carry the tomato rice myself. He took the advice seriously and handed over the box to me (which neatly fit into my now "small jersey" pockets). Good, one enemy down.

Reached the first control at around 9.30 am. The road from Krishnagiri to Rayakottai was brilliantly scenic! And super road with very less traffic. The climbs also started on these roads. I think about 10 kms before Rayakottai (and while you pass through multiple Kottais), the vigorous short steep climbs started. There were three climbs before Rayakottai, and the third one was a killer. I was starting at the wall (or climb), got down, and pushed up the bike. I didn't want to meet my great grandfather, yet... Walking also helped me recover well and once I reached Rayakottai, couple of riders there suggested to try the Sweet and Salt Lemon Paneer Soda. Me and Paneer Soda have a personal connection - (anyone from Chennai remembers Selvam and Roja Paneer Sodas?) - I grew up on that drink. :P

The next 37-40 kms, from Rayakottai to Denkanikottai was an interesting route. The sun was out in its full glory. A friend of mine - Sudhir Palliyal - used to describe such conditions as - "The sun was hot... And the hot was heat". Cranking up slowly powered by Paneer soda, I passed by the villages. As chiddu pointed out, people here talk a curious mix of all the 3 languages, and villagers identify themselves closer to Telugu language. 3 languages are taught in schools here, English, Tamil and Telugu while people are fluent in Kannada too.

The folks there had some good sense of humour -

One old woman to another, loudly

"Idhunga cycle panni yaarukku yenna prayajanam"

(These fellows cycling who what benefit?)

One college girl to another, seeing my fully covered face (with balaclava)

"Ivan moonji asingama irukkum pola, adhu dhaan moodirkaan" (thinking I am a foreigner who doesn't understand tamil)

(This fellow face ugly looking that, that's why closing he"

<I remove the balaclava and smile at them>

"hey paaru di, namma thala Ajith maari irukaan"

"Illadi, namma singham Surya di"

<Ok, I made that up - that last two lines... Will not translate :P>

Two elderly people, when I stopped for a 5 minutes break at a deserted bus stop shelter

"Sir, yelaarum gear vecha cycle, neenga gear ilaadha cycle... neenga dhaan sir real winner"

(Sir, all riding geared cycle, you no gear cycle... you are real winner)

<No, this is not made up, that person actually said it>

Some of the uphills were becoming really challenging and the only reason i didnt quit was because I wouldn't have got any bus from those villages. Before Denkanikotta, there was a small Amman temple in front of which a shopkeeper was selling jilebis. He offered me free jilebis and I was more than happy taking a few. Finally, arriving at Denkanikotta at around 2ish, I called Sandeep for some clarification (the ATM didnt have paper!). I was also telling him that i would like to quit when he mentioned from thereon, its only rolling as I had already reached Bangalore altitude. I took the bait and start snailing towards Bangalore, only to realize that it was all climbs (and very short downhills) from there to Attibelle. A couple of fellow riders were kind enough to 'sponsor' a dry fruit milkshake at Attibelle, and from there to the end point was not too difficult.

I was mostly alone on the ride because purely from an ability standpoint, I was not able to pace with anyone, neither the WTF team or the slower ones. I had to continuously pedal and have buffer time for the climbs knowing well that I will be slow. I couldn't eat as much as I would have wanted to... But having said that - I returned 1.5 kgs heavier. :)

Many many thanks to the volunteers and organizers who made this brevet possible. The route was wonderful, less than 10 kms bad roads, and a very very scenic route for a large part of the ride. I am now looking forward for the Anchetty 200k ride.

Regards,

[Yateesh Kumar]

Chiddu,
What you wrote below here is upper limit or lower limit?

[Ashok Kumar S]

Wow! Good one. ROFL... wondering how you appeared at the same time as Ajith as well as Surya... ;-)

[anantha viswanathan]

Hahaha!!

"Had 5 kms to go for the control to open, in 3 minutes, so applying the third differential transformation of integrated volumentric analysis, I have to pedal 23 times every 4.5 seconds while sipping 2 ml of water so as to be there just in time while also recalibrating my required rate of smooth pedaling from thereon. Wait, was there nice scenery on the route? No one told me to look at that"

On a serious note..for the number(few number) of miles you have ridden this year..

attempting and finishing this ride comfortably that too on an SS you need to be DA LAM!!

cheers

anantha

[Venkatesh N]

Hahaha.. That was anything but boring. Too bad you missed seeing your grandfather! :-P

--

[Sandeep]

Nice report Venkatachalam.

> So my bike looked like this: http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/800x600q90/912/yynDFt.jpg

I can see that you cleaned up the bottom two shelves at the Attibele bakery :-)

This was the best message I got from one of the riders quitting:

"I have missed 3rd control. Will be going home directly. B-xxxx is my number...Very much liked the route!!!"

--

[Shankar Shastry]

Hilarious. We've been missing some humour in the recent days. Congratulations more for the report than the ride man :)

[Prashanth Chengi]

Really nice report, Da Lam! (Is that like 'Da bomb'? ;) ) Was laughing hard at the 'differential transformation' bit, the tomato rice scheming and also the balaclava peekaboo.  A drop bar for 99 bucks? I ought to think of a way of smuggling bike parts to Sweden, from India! 

/Prashanth

--

[R Venkatachalam]

Well... different eyes, different perspectives :)

--

Best Regards,
R. Venkatachalam

[Opendro]

Protect your expensive bike. Insert a piece of 35c - 43c tube in the seat post where the saddle bag string clings on. It will make the bad a bit snug and protect rubbing off the paint. You can keep the tube as short as possible if it is an eye sore to you.

[Raghuraman Rajagopalan]

Hi All,

This was my first ride with the distance of 200 kms. 

Some Background - I got introduced to cycling by my friend Venkatachalam (as he calls himself Che Da Lam, always wonder what's that stupid name is) who is part of our cricket club. Little i knew that I could start cycling at any age. Kept thinking that I have missed the bus for the age factor for a sport like cycling thanks to him and examples like opendro quoted by him that I took the challenge. I bought his cross steel bike about 3 weeks back and the highest I had done till last week was 84kms on OMR.

Pre-Preparation - Did about 3/4 rides of average of 40-60 kms over the last 2 weeks and that's the only practise. It was more to get mentally ready for a ride like this. Little did I realise that riding on a highway as empty as OMR and state roads and climbs is a completely different thing. Made sure the bike was in great condition given I did not have experience of doing a puncture as well. I got a lot of stuff from Venkat with the bike (thanks to his relocation plans). Overall super deal and a great friend to help in whatever I needed.

Preparation before the event - I took cue from Opendro's train mail and decided what to do in terms of food to carry in ensuring I don't waste time in stopping for food. I had a double full meal of tomato rice at 4.15 AM (thanks to my mom who prepared it the before night for me to have it the next day morning). Also carried a box of tomato rice knowing my friend Venkat. I definitely knew he would not have had b/fast so thought it will help him. Apart from that I carried a good bod of dry fruits (dates, almonds and raisins, thanks to the idea from my wifey, this helped bigtime), filled electral in 2 bottles of water the previous day and kept it in the fridge, carried another 4 packets of electral to use on the way. Apart from this carried 6 bananas and 6 slices of bread with cheese in between. I cannot say how important was all this as it gave me crucial time snacks to munch/eat and most importantly saved a lot of time not stopping and looking for something.

Event morning - Me and Venkat reached well ahead of time (around 5.10 AM) as he was an organizer of the event and needed to man the on spot registration desk. Was amazed to see the turnout and the passion there, was really looking forward to the ride. I must thank another friend of mine here Tusky (kiran is his actual name). He was also an inspiration in getting me to biking and helped me with the battery for the front lights. Without that I would not have qualified for the ride. Thanks Tusky. All bike checks done and folks started the race before we knew that 20 people have already left. I pushed Venkat and finally he decided to hand over the spot registration to Meera and start. We started at least 15 mins late. I had my full back pannier rack which would be easily 3-4 kgs, everybody who saw my bike wondered whether I am doing a 1200. :-P

The Ride - The start was pretty good and smooth. I definitely felt at ease riding on the hosur road as I had done one Attibelle and back for buying diwali crackers on my bike so was looking good. I could have crossed about 20+ folks and reached attibelle toll. Then I called Venkat and he said he was 3 kms or so away, decided to wait and took a leak in that time. Once he came he had the tomato rice and the time was 7.20, quicky I also passed on a couple of banana's to him ad then we decided to take a break after 1 hour from then. From then on I pressed hard and at 8.30 AM I reached Saravana Bhavan, talked to Venkat and he said he was just again 2/3 kms away hence decided to wait. I was determined to hand over the tomato rice and some dry fruits to him from there on. I was happy that he was also on the same plan and we decided to go our ways from there. Quickly in that time I refilled my water and electral and kept on course. The ride was seeming OK till the first control came at Krishnagiri. Once I finished the ATM control there entered the actual reality of the ride for me. The road was awesome to rayakottai however was very different to what I thought the road will be like. First time on a plane like this where the roads are fairly up and down and need consistent pedalling. One tip that helped from one of my friend who cycles in seattle I remembered and stuck to it was drink before you get thirsty is what he said and I kept following that throught out the ride and it worked wonders. I never stopped because I could not pedal so that's an indicator I felt. On the way when I felt like hungry I has the bread I had got. The last 6/8 kms before rayakottai was my first wake up call. Steep climbs and at the second last climb I was determined to finish but saw a couple of folks sitting and taking their breadth and seeing them decided to stop. That was a quick 2 mins stop to get the energy back and pedalled to rayakottai. In between stopped for 2 mins to have the dry fruits that I had got. Did not stop anywhere till Denginakottai expect for the control. Was seriously determined to make sure I keep pedalling. Was slow but was absolutely clear that I am finishing it, period. Especially in the route to denginakottai I would have cursed the organizer enough and more times as to why do they do this kind of stuff, I am sure you understand. :-) The roads were pathetic and all the time was praying that I don't have a puncture. Finally at denginakottai after the control called Venkat and he said I must have some carbs hence decided to have meals at a hotel opposite to the ATM. First time in my life I would have NOT FINISHED the bowl of rice given to me, I am used to asking for extra rice all the time. Has rasam rice and curd rice with vegetables and kuttu. So this was a quick 15 minute much needed break with a bio break included. Quickly wrapped stuff and refilled water and electral for me to be ready for what is in store. The way to Mavalli (not sure of spelling) was a superb road but a deadly up. I wondered if this was going to end at all. It was really hot and the energy draining heavily but the electral and water kept me on course. Half way while going on this road a thought of quitting came to my mind but within 30 seconds but as soon as I hit a long downhill that turned into high energy and started to pedal faster. Realized that these small motivations are required to keep us on course. Once I had reached Malavalli I thought the climb is up as thought Attibelle was not very high from there but was again wrong. The climbs did not stop till attibele. Finally at Attibele had a couple of cold grape juice and  1 egg puff and bio break. From there on it was s fairly smooth ride back to silk board. The scenic views were awesome, feel bad that I did not take a photo as well. But hats off to the organizers in finding these routes and making this happen.

Take Aways - A good preparation always leads to good results. These rides are more mental than physical so mentally setting the goal is very important. Carry enough of your own stuff to eat/dring (nothing better than home cooked food), take lesser breaks and use the breaks effectively, concentrate on your course and bike everybody's is different in their own ways, build a mental motivation plan (like telling yourself that downhill will come anytime, wait for that types), most important take advice from people who have experienced seriously it goes a long way.

   

Post Race - Was so fatigued that went home and had a big bowl of curd rice and slept like a log. I had a cricket match the next day hence had to catch up on enough sleep.

Thanks - Special thanks to my friend Venkat in making me do this and the stuff he sold (at rock bottom price), I truly enjoyed it. Thanks to Tusky for helping me with the stuff required for the ride.

Looking forward to the Anchetty ride.

Cheers

Raghu

On Monday, November 3, 2014 2:16:37 PM UTC+5:30, R. Venkatachalam wrote:

[Sreepathi Pai]

@Da Lam, you should take up parody writing. Two times I have LOLed
when reading, one was this report and the other was the Super Slow
Train plan.

Great reports from all riders, including first time randonneurs! Keep
them coming!

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Sreepathi Pai

[Opendro]

Congratulation Raghuraman. Funny thing about such rides is that whenever I also hit a tough section, I would think, I'm not going to do this again... but I would be looking forward to the next one once I finish the current one... very addictive. If time permitted, I would be doing every brevet I think.

Keep riding. Thanks for sharing the experience.

[Macks Ningombam]

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