Congratulations to Srinivas Gokulnath who set the record for Circumnavigation of Karnataka, India (CW) on Oct 13, 2o21
Race Around Karnataka (RAKA)
Record attempted: Circumnavigation of Karnataka
About the ride:
The years 2020 and 2021 are now synonymous with the COVID-19 pandemic. Many ultra-endurance cycling events scheduled across the world (LEL 2021, 1001 Miglia Italia) have been rescheduled as humanity grapples with coming to terms with the fallout the pandemic.
During these challenging times, it is close to unthinkable to organize, let alone ride an ultra-endurance cycling event and despite the imminent gloom, the first-ever Race Around Karnataka (RAKA) aims to reignite the spirit of adventure of ultra-endurance cyclists. Being flagged-off from Bangalore, the Race Around Karnataka, traces the borders of the India’s seventh largest state in an anti-clockwise direction.
In length, the RAKA is 2,232 kilometers with a total elevation gain of 12,444 meters. There are no designated rest periods for food and sleep. The clock runs continuously from start to finish and the final overall finish time includes rest periods.
Preparations Towards the Event:
Preparation for the ride was started about 2 months before the start of the ride. The crew was formed and we had 10 members in the crew. Sudhakar Narsegowda, Rajashekar Gadad, Abhijith Y V, Girish Kolegudu, Abhiraam S, Harish Kalammanagudi, Mohan Puttaswami, S Subhash Lagali, Dhanashekar, Pritish Abraham. The race route and the strategy were drawn up over the course of 2 months. Thanks to my coach Marcus Kinzlbaeur, the training schedule for the ride was on track. Logistics for the ride were co-ordinated with various team members taking up different responsibilities which enabled us to be at the start line on 8 October 2021.
Cycles:
| Cycle | Model | Wheels | Tires |
| Giant | Trinity | Parcour | Continental GP 4000 |
| Specialized | Allez Sprint | Neil Pryde | Continental GP 4000 |
Ride Particulars:
Start time: 8 October 2021 6:00 am
Finish time: 13 October 2021 5:13 am
Total time: 4 days 23 hours 13 minutes
Distance: 2,232 kilometers / 1,387 miles
Elevation Gain: 12,444 meters / 40,827 feet
Ride Report:
Day 1 – 8 October 2021 6:00 am to 9 October 2021 6:00 am
Route: Bengaluru – Mulbagal – Chikkaballapur – Sira – Chitradurga – Bellary – Sindhanur
Distance covered: 614 kilometers
The ride was flagged off from Vidhana Soudha, Bengaluru at 6:00 am amid a drizzle. The wet weather continued for a couple of hours. The route was on state and national highways. However, the roads from Kudligi to Bellary and Sindhanur was not in good condition which slowed the ride. Crossed over the Tungabhadra river. Overall it was a good day, with gains made during the day being eroded a little in the night
Day 2 – 9 October 2021 6:00 am to 10 October 2021 6:00 am
Distance covered : 372 kilometers Cumulative distance: 986 kilometers
I took a sleep/massage break of 3 hours at Raichur around 10:00 am and then continued the ride. The ride was on interior roads as we did not want to cross the state border. The roads were in bad shape with a lot of potholes. Passed through a lot of cement factories in this section of the ride. The road was mostly rolling terrain. I had a bout of dehydration and had to slow down in this section on account of the dehydration. The day was a battle to recover on the health front and also to get onto good roads. Intermittent rains through the day was also an added difficulty to the day’s ride. The Northern most part of the state was passed on this day with the Krishna and Bhima rivers being crossed
Day 3 – 10 October 2021 6:00 am to 11 October 2021 6:00 am
Distance covered : 392 kilometers Cumulative distance: 1,378 kilometers
We got respite from the rain on this day. However, it was a day interspersed with bad and patchy roads. The road was a combination of national/state highways and interior roads. I recovered slowly on the health front, felt better than on the previous day. A sleep/massage break was taken at Sindhagi for 3 hours. The route was flat/rolling terrain while we crossed over the Bhima river again. The route was cutting across from North Karnataka towards the western part of the state. We made it to the western ghats by the end of this day.
Day 4 – 11 October 2021 6:00 am to 12 October 2021 6:00 am
Distance covered: 394 kilometers Cumulative distance: 1,772 kilometers
Another tough day with the road conditions being rough and also a lot of elevation gain. The route was mostly rolling terrain being in the Western Ghats. I took a sleep/massage break of 2 hours 45 minutes at Ganeshgudi. Although we passed through the Anshi forest and descended to the coast line, the road was rolling. The rain was back and the entrance to the coastline was a wet entry. The intermittent rain continued through the night. A lot of rivers were crossed, the main one being the Sharavathi river.
Day 5 – 12 October 2021 6:00 am to 13 October 2021 5:13 am
Distance covered: 460 kilometers Cumulative distance: 2,232 kilometers
Having recovered on the health front the ride was enjoyable. The roads were good, however, the rain continued and it was another day with wet weather. The elevation profile was difficult having to do the 24 kilometer climb from Sampage to Madikeri. A sleep/massage break of 1 hour 30 minutes was taken at Sullia before starting the climb. Having made it past the climb, we crossed the Kaveri River and then made it past Mysuru and rode through rain from Maddur till Bengaluru to complete the ride at 5:13 am.
The Race Around Karnataka was an arduous journey and tested our limits. It was a memorable experience and will be cherished by me and the entire crew.