If you were driving through the villages of Goa on the last weekend of January and the first week of the new year, it could be quite possible you passed a whole bunch of very fit, cyclists zooming past you in colourful jerseys of the Tour of Goa (TOG) 2020.
Cycling Goa, an association of Goan cyclists, organised its signature event the Tour of Goa (TOG) 2020, an excellent combination of endurance cycling and racing over three days.“The attempt is to appreciate the beauty of Goa’s hinterland on a bicycle and also do a bit of racing to get the adrenaline pumping,” says Bryan Soares, president, Cycling Goa.
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Not surprisingly, this year’s TOG saw several ace cyclists from all over the country specially from Bengaluru converge on this tiny state to experience the beauty that this state has to offer and rub shoulders with cyclists from Goa to experience three memorable days of cycling camaraderie.
Speaking to Café, Brian said “We had around 40 cyclists from all over and this included around 6 to 8 women. Two were from Germany, one was from out of state and one was a Chinese national based in Puducherry. Everything went off very well except for mishap whne the German national who was 75 years old got confused with the braking system and fell ona slope. She however joined us later in the evening. I can say this the participants loved the entire Tour of Goa and have promised to return next year. We took them into parts of Goa which is so far away from the traditional view of Goa meaning the beaches”.
The tour which started on January 31, 2019 commencing at dawn from Miramar on Friday and the riders passed along the scenic Ribandar waterfront followed by the heritage sites of Old Goa. The cyclists then rode through the picturesque village of Madkai followed by the unique experience of a ferry ride across the Zuari river to Cortalim.
The ride continued along the South Goa coastline of Velsao, Betalbatim, Colva, Benaulim, Varca to reach the foothills of the ChandreshwarBhutnath temple in Paroda. The Chandreshwar climb is considered as one of the best climbs for cyclists in Goa earmarked as the Challenge for the day.
The Days Race saw some very energetic hill racing, where Bengaluru’s Venketeswara RN better known as ‘Bikey Venky’ won the open category, while compatriots, Rajesh Nair and Su Yin Ong, also from Bengaluru won the Masters and Women categories respectively. The riders were then treated to true Goan Hospitality with some traditional Goan- Portuguese lunch with a warm welcome at one of Goa’s Heritage Home, ‘Palacio do Deao’. The day concluded with a hard ride out to the picturesque Agonda beach post lunch for their overnight beach stay.
Day two saw the cyclists negotiate the difficult rolling terrain of the Cola-Fatorpa section from where they continued towards Quepem, Curchorem to reach Mollem. The competitive section was planned at the Anmodghat with a distance of 11 kms rising to more than 500 meters. Here the riders not only had to deal with the elevation but had to circumvent the heat and humidity. Rajesh Nair and Venketeswara RN of Bengaluru came first in the masters and open categories, while Dr Belinda Mueller of Goa fought back to win the women’s race. The day concluded with an offbeat stay at the Jungle Book resort. A rustic resort displaying the beauty of the hinterland that Goa has to offer.
Sunday the finale of the tour started with a warm breakfast in the wilderness as riders prepared for an early competitive section at the beginning. The challenge was to be a flat out ride with a bit of rolling section of 15.0 Kms passing through the beautiful landscape along the western highway. Here riders pushed their limits and gave their best shot as this was the last and deciding time trial for the final classification.
Once again, the Bengaluru cyclists, Rajesh Nair ( masters), Venketeswara RN (open) and Su Yin Ong (women’s) won their respective races. The tour then continued winding along the beautiful and picturesque Mayem Lake, by Calvim bridge and through the villages of Aldona, Bastora, and Saligao. The tour concluded with a hearty lunch at the Hyatt Centric in Goa’s tourist hub of Calangute and Candolim, where the final winners were feted at a small ceremony. Now we wait for them to return in December.
OVERALL POSITIONS :
Masters :
1. Rajesh Nair (Bengaluru) : 1 hr 19 min 13 sec
2. Russell Bell ( Goa) : 1 hr 23 min 13 sec
3. Arvind Bhateja (Bengaluru) : 1 hr 23 min 43 sec
Open :
1. Venkateswara Rao Navanasi( Bengaluru) : 1 hr 21 min 38 sec
2. Abhishek Priyadarshi (Bengaluru) : 1 hr 31 min 24 sec
3. Sangram Jena (Bengaluru): 1 hr 33 min 07 sec
Women:
1. Su Yin Ong (Bengaluru) : 1 hr 41 min 48 sec
2. Belinda Viegas Mueller (Goa) 1 hr 43 min 28 sec
3. Anuradha Guglani (Goa):1 hr 59 min 58 sec
