Americans woke up to an unusual but highly elevating sight to see that their President, all of 78 and the First Lady Dr Jill Biden went cycling to celebrate the latter's 70th birthday! Though the senior couple are avid cyclists, to see them cycling together near their vacation home their vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, to celebrate her 70th birthday on Thursday was quite a sight.
During the pandemic, many people tried their hands on hobbies like painting, colouring, reading, exercising and many more. "I chose cycling!", says Shweta Ramasamy from Germany.
'My friend who has a bike sitting in his garage for many years gave us motivation to finally explore the world of cycling. With only a few summer "biking" months in Germany for casual bikers, we did start enjoying the biking experience. A bike helped me to reduce my local travel costs( trams and buses tickets). Bike became my personal property which I take care of and has also made me very independent. Now I use it to travel to work, grocery shopping and even for a casual ride to a nearby lake", she says.
Shweta says she visited Lake Forggensee Bavaria's fifth largest lake located some 32 km away from where she stays. She also visited another place called "Rothenburg ob der tauber" where she did a complete city tour by bike.
After many years of choosing car/train/flight for transportation, cycling was and is a very pleasant experience. We explored lakes, cities and countryside simply by cycling around. We also bought a trailer for the bikes so that we could drive to places far away and then use the bike for local sightseeing.
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Bike- a good source of exercise and fun.
"Try it if you have not. Bike away to any place you want', Mumbai based Reema Sonkar, Recycling entrepreneur and crypto trainer says. According to her Cycling is destressing.. What music is to ears, cycling is to the body. " It's my escape point, my little paradise, my fun activity and my connectivity with my healthy self. I fell in love with cycling from my school days.. All we siblings used to ride to school and back home on cycle.
Back then, the traffic wasn't so rampant and pollution too, in control.. When I cycle, I time travel to school days and feel like a little girl.. The breeze in my hair tickles me and I get thrilled.. Excited to see the world getting more and more cycling enthusiasts Day.
For Manish Jain, Cycling is one of the best options for relaxing after a hectic schedule. Manish being the CEO of one of the top 50 B-schools of the country based in Bangalore, Indus Business Academy finding time for cycling is not easy. 'I try and cycle as much as I can as it keeps me fit and productive" he says.
There are a lot of reasons why people cycle. In a country where poverty and prosperity coexist so does the reason for taking to cycling by both the most prosperous and those at the bottom of the pyramid. Everybody needs to commute to reach their place of work. For some cycle itself their main investment for their business. Be it a vendor selling tea at the Connaught place or the man who cycles 10 to 15 km to their work in factories, cycles have provided the best and the cheapest means of transport. With Pandemic setting in cycling has also become the safest means of transport that also keeps one healthy and active.
For Adhiti Raman a Phd Scholar in autonomous vehicles at the Clemson University, Greenville, Cycling is an energy booster. "I am not a regular cyclist but I do go cycling to boost my energy at times" she says
I had started doing Cycling in 2015 and I am a daily rider, says Ritu Mehta from Punjab. In starting days of cycling even 20 km was a big deal but now distance does not matter. Now I cycle at least 50 Km everyday. My first big ride was with Audex India. It was a 200 KM ride from Ludhiana till Chandigarh and back. After that, I did 300 KM Ludhiana till Amritsar and back in a single day. I have worn a cycle pendent. Cycling gives me immense happiness and keeps me grounded. Recently I went to Wagah border and to Golden temple on cycle n completed 162 KM in 9 and half hrs. In 2021 I did 100 KM cycling from Gurgaon till India Gate and Back. For me cycling is my Meditation. It’s all about balancing of mind and body Whenever I travel my first thing in to do list is always Cycling. It’s so good to see internal Punjab on cycle where we can’t reach by cars. For me cycling is a big part of my life. I never got tired of getting up everyday at 4:50 in the morning. The word to me in the morning is really different and divine.
What is needed is to bring back cycling to the centre stage of businesses and cities it deserves in India. Elsewhere in the western world the trend has already started with big cities removing the parking lots in business districts and banning cars from entry reserving spaces for bi-cycles.
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