Cycling: Two wheels and the city

A few years ago, I began cycling around town. This has many advantages, most of which will be obvious, but let’s go through them anyway. First, that one doesn’t need to think about how to get somewhere or worry where to park: hop on the bike and go. 

Second, that the cyclist spends almost nothing on transport (my guess is I am saving Rs 8,000 a month on fuel and cabs) and, of course, the exercise doesn’t hurt. Also, and this is important, it puts one in control of one’s time, which few urban Indians are, save those who are in cities having efficient public transport, meaning trams, buses, trains and autorickshaws and such things. 

In Kolkata, even if you could, which you cannot given the chaos, to cycle would be less attractive because several efficient public transport options exist. However, few cities have such a range of transport options and gridlock or, more accurately in India, the slow moving jam, is the norm. Traffic impedes cyclists less and so one is better able to judge how long a trip will take. Lastly, and this may surprise some people, I save on time because I get to places faster.

I read in a newspaper that cars across Bengaluru move at an average of 7 kmph. My office is 6 km from home and I make the distance in 22 minutes or less, meaning (because my own pace is quite sedentary and average) that many cyclists can move at twice the average speed of cars.

And so my move has paid off in several ways. There are disadvantages also, and I must list them. First, that the weather affects cyclists more than motorists. Second, that one arrives at meetings perspiring and with clothes patchy and damp with sweat (I have no problem with this myself given what I wear, about which more later, but I imagine others might). 

Third, that because it is strenuous to pedal, it requires motivation. My observation is that even if there is a lack of enthusiasm to take the bike, and all readers will be familiar with the feeling that overcomes one when we are about to begin exercise, the reality is that once on the road it’s not at all bad. 

Fourth, that often it can be quite bad. The problems of cycling in India's cities are many. Where to start? There is the awful character of the roads. Every bump and hole is felt directly in your behind and up your spine because cycles have no shock absorbers (at least mine don't). 

The other thing about going cycling on a city highway at dawn is to see things that otherwise might not be seen. Photo: Reuters

The Indian motorist or rickshaw driver has no respect for the cyclist, so one gets pushed constantly into spaces where one has to stop. The noise is awful because the honking is pretty much continuous. Lastly, the smells are truly ripe and urban India's filth is experienced richly by the individual on the cycle. 

And so, if one is sensitive, and I like to think I am, then it is not easy. But on balance I can say that the credit side outweighs the debit, and I have been doing it for a few years now. At first, I cycled only for the convenience. I wore no special gear except for clips to hem in the pyjamas I usually wear to work, glasses for protection against flying gravel and ear plugs to block out the honking, or at least blunt it. 

One afternoon, a year or so ago, I was walking through a basement towards my cycle and I was distracted by my phone and didn't notice a concrete beam laid out at about six feet. I cracked my skull against it (hard enough for it to produce a comic style dent and bump). After that I decided to wear a helmet and now, particularly on long rides, I have one on.

The other thing that has changed is the longer rides, which I have begun only in the past few weeks, purely for exercise. On weekends, I ride to the airport and back, which is a total of 64 km. This is on a highway, and that brings its own set of terrors, which can be imagined.

For these longer rides, I use a cycle with gears (my brother-in-law had one he doesn't use and gave it to me) and I wear a cycling outfit. The most important element is shorts that have padding on the bottom so that the bum doesn't get sore. I average 25 kmph on the highway, which I am told is quite slow and so one of my goals is to try to get it up to about 30 (I understand the trick is to maintain a high cadence, about 85 revolutions a minutes, and play around with the gears). I shall try it. Let's see.  

Some of the things that I have observed in cycling may interest the reader. The first is the reaction that people have to a middle-aged (I am 47 and have greyed considerably), middle-class man on a cycle. Many people acknowledge me with gestures of approval ("well done uncle!" and so on). This includes people of working class, drivers of vans and the cleaners next to them, who lean out to encourage me. I like that. 

The other thing about going cycling on a city highway at dawn is to see things that otherwise might not be seen. The expensive sports cars that people have and never get to use are out and about at this time. Lamborghinis and Audi R8s, whose owners are probably too terrified to expose them to traffic, prowl the dawn roads, showing off to nobody in particular. Then there are the big bike groups, Harley Davidsons and Triumphs and the Japanese sports bikes. Their owners wear riding kits, boots and all, and gather in packs of six and eight.

The last group is the cyclists, my people, if I can say that, who one finds all along the highway in smaller groups. Friendly to the environment, healthy, silent, unobtrusive and nice in every way. You should encourage cyclists the next time you see them, and, even better, make a little room for them to get through.