“Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the future of the human race.” HG Wells
When 53-year-old Flavian Sutari of Loutolim village in South Goa
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successfully cycled the distance of 3,000 kms solo between Kolkata and Kanyakumari in March this year, he emphatically announced that bicycle touring had come to stay in Goa.
Wikipedia defines ‘bicycle touring’ as, ‘The taking of self-contained cycling trips for pleasure, adventure or autonomy rather than sport, commuting or exercise. Touring can range from single-to multi-day trips, to years…’
The good news is that this genre of cycling, which is popular across the world is slowly but steadily taking roots in amchen Goem.
The winter of 2018 saw a team of cyclists from Goa led by the Ponda based academic and ‘cycle doctor’, Ajay Dongre cycle 670 kms from Mumbai to Goa. A similar team, once again led by Prof Dongre cycled the 1200 kms between Kanyakumari and Goa in November 2019. On both occasions, the soft spoken, almost reticent, Flavian Sutari was part of this eclectic group.
It is amply clear that these two, long distance cycling expeditions had sown the seeds for future cycling expeditions.
According to Sutari, the basic objective of undertaking the Kolkata to Kanyakumari cycle journey was to experience “a feeling of happiness and a true sense of freedom.”
“The two, back-to-back long cycling expeditions on India’s west coast combined with my long internship in bicycle maintenance at Ajay Dongre’s cycle clinic in Ponda gave me the boost to go solo cycling. I was basically, living my dream and wearing my passion on my sleeve,” explained Sutari
Sutari, a quality control technician who worked on both onshore and offshore oil rigs for 21 years decided to retire prematurely five years ago and took to endurance cycling. Being a meticulous cyclist, Flavian trained for the 3,000 kilometer cycle tour diligently. “Earlier I used to ride in a group with my cycling buddies from Margao. But since I was planning to go solo cycling on the east coast of India, I started training alone for distances ranging between 60-120 kms, four-five times a week. I also practiced yoga for an hour every day, three to four times a week,” Flavian said.
Sutari’s previous cycling expeditions also helped him pack judiciously for this latest expedition. “I knew I had to carry minimum luggage on the bike, hence I packed only three small bags. In the saddle bag which was mounted behind my seat, I had one set of inner thermal wear (as Odisha and West Bengal were freezing cold), one set of non-cycling clothes, thin towel, back up spectacles, hand-held massage roller(which I used the most), some basic medicines for loose motions, headache, fever etc and toiletries. The total weight of this bag was less than five kilograms. Likewise, my handle bar pouch consisted of my cycle mini tool kit, spare tubes, repair tools, chain lube, puncture kit ,portable hand pump etc. This bag weighed two kilograms, while the top tube pouch consisted of my mobile phone, hard copy of the route and some stock of chikki,” the cyclist said.
He wisely avoided the big highways and instead cycled along the coastal village routes. “My target for cycling each day was around 100-120kms, as I did not want to burn myself out. I even cycled only 50kms some days, if there was interesting sight-seeing to be done. And while I avoided the big highways, I had to come back to them in the evening, to find lodges and hotels for overnight rest,” Flavian said.
Sutari who spent a total of INR 54,000 from his own resources on this ambitious expedition, was touched by the “enormous humility” displayed by the common people along India’s Coromandel coast. “The people in the villages and small towns along the route were forever curious to know about my journey, my cycle and were amazed by my craziness. Several eateries did not charge me for my meals. They offered me free food when they heard about my solo tour. And in some places, people treated me a like a celebrity by requesting me to pose for selfies,” Flavian recalled with gratitude.
Quite clearly, this journey is going to be embedded in his mind forever. Like the time, when he fed chikki to a peacock, India’s national bird in a small village or drinking fresh water from a very shallow well in Dhanushkodi, while the waters of the Indian ocean were just ten feet away!
He recalls feeling “ecstatic” when he cycled into Kanyakumari town. “I immediately rang my wife Ruby in Loutolim to tell her the good news. The couple have two children, a daughter, Summer who is a young dentist and son, Shaun, an engineering college student.
What next? The indefatigable cyclist plans to cycle the Northern India circuit from Srinagar to Manali via Kargil, Leh and the Khardungla Pass sometime soon!
