Lakecity Main BRM ka Aagaaz – Udaipur’s inaugural BRM event concluded with flying colors!!
Given the strong fitness enthusiasm and awareness among citizenry of Udaipur and presence of very active cyclist and runner groups, Udaipur Cycling Club (UCC), a local city based cycling club recently hosted its first ever Brevets De Randonneur Mondiaux (BRM) covering the distance of 200 km on Udaipur- Nimbahada- Udaipur route on Sunday, 16th Dec 2018.
BRMs are cycling rides of fixed distances (200, 300, 400, 600 and 1000 kms) that are to be completed within specified time limits, having successfully passed through pre-determined time controls. BRMs worldwide are approved and governed by Audax Club Parisien (ACP), France. Audax India Randonneurs (AIR) is the all- India organization of randonneurs, which is recognized by ACP for conducting and overseeing all Audax events in India, including BRMs. Participation in randonneuring events is part of a long tradition that goes back to the beginning of the sport of cycling in France and Italy. Randonneuring requires people to meet challenges and succeed though physical and mental endurance. Friendly camaraderie and perseverance are the hallmarks of randonneuring. While not easy at all, it allows people with various abilities to slowly expand the scope of their abilities. There are many stories of growth, health and transformation that have been enabled by the activity of Randonneuring!
The inaugural event saw registration from 24 riders, had 22 riders who actually participated and finished the BRM before the stipulated time of 13.5 hours. From these 22 riders, one of the rider was from Cycling Club of Baroda and has participated just to experience the beauty of Udaipur and surrounding region. Others participants are professionals from different walks of life including Doctors, Architects, IT personnel among others and also the members of UCC, who regularly indulge in weekdays and weekends cycling trips to the locations within and around the city.
The ride was flag off from the picturesque Fatehsagar lake at 6:00 AM by former Home Minister of the State Shri Gulab Chand Ji Kataria and Shri Chandra Singh Kothari ji, Mayor of the city, after all the necessary formalities (registration, rider tag, brevet card, light check etc.). During flag off, both were surprised to see the enthusiasm and courage of all the riders for not only covering such a long distance in such a short duration on cycle, but also by sheer will power of riders to actually start their ride in such a cold wintery morning (the temperature was around 7 degree) and had wished good luck to all the riders.
The ride was planned on Udaipur – Nimbahada – Udaipur route, which is perfect for long distance cycling due to its flat terrain, and had 7 checkpoints/ hydration points, where along with plenty of energetic refreshment (fruits, nuts, energy bar, energy drinks etc.), medicare kit was also available for riders. At Nimbahada- , riders were warmly received and welcomed at CK Resorts by Mr. Hemendra Singh Jhala, Dr. Dipendra Singh and others of Mewari Runners Group. Every rider was presented with beautifully designed medal and certificate by UCC at the end of the ride as a token of appreciation and to make the inaugural event a successful and memorable for everyone. Amit Chaudhary of UCC has completed his ride in little over 9 hours and was 1st among all the riders.
The ride was meticulously planned by the club members itself; main among them were Jitendra Patel, Secretary, UCC and Prakash Mali (Event Manager) member of Executive Committee, UCC who were also nominated as Ride Marshalls from AIR to oversee the completion of ride by all the riders in fair manner. Along with these two, Love Dev Bagdi and Digvijay Singh were also present during the entire ride, overseeing the checkpoints. All these club members are the experience riders themselves, having finished the 200 Km BRM at Kota few months earlier.
As stated earlier, friendly camaraderie and perseverance are the hallmarks of randonneuring, and this inaugural event at Udaipur has shown just that. For eg. Manu Arya, an avid writer by passion and a UCC member, not only took up the challenge of finishing 200 km, while away from cycling for more than 2 months and suffering from intolerable muscular pain during the ride, but actually did finished the ride in little over 12.5 hours with constant motivation and support from fellow riders and ride marshals; or take the case of 58 years old Dr. Sharad Iyengar, eldest member of UCC and well known in cycling community as one of the earliest crusader of cycling in Udaipur, who has finished his ride in little over 12 hours which is similar to other riders of half his age.
The smiles and the joy on riders faces at the end of the ride were the testimony that not only they finished this grueling distance with fun and enjoyed the every moment of it, but also to pass on the message that this is just the start!!
The ride was conducted not only to spread the long term benefits of cycling on individual health and wellness but also to send a strong message to city authorities and decision makers that time has come to recognize cycling as one of the important transport modes and that given the right opportunities and the suitable environment (dedicated bicycle tracks etc.), cycles can also play an important role in city’s daily commuting needs along with becoming the favourite tourist mode for exploring the city’s tourist destinations.
The success of this inaugural BRM has already triggered the confidence of UCC, and has resulted in announcement of 300 Km BRM to be held in the month of Feb 2019.
