We at Choose my Bicycle Interviewed Mr Vinaybabu from Mumbai who is the Vice president of Kotak Mahindra. But having an impressive banker portfolio is not what makes him interesting. Mr Vinay is a cycling enthusiast who has covered 40000 and is now doing a charity ride for Para athletes along with the Aditya Metha Foundation. Read on to find out how we picked his brain with the below questions.
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Q. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your interests and passions.
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I am a 47 year young and a banker by profession.åÊ My interests and passion spreads across travelling, cycling & wood work.
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Q. How did you get into cycling and how has your journey been so far?
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I have been a sportsman since my school days and that has put me on to some form of sport all the time.åÊ During my 5 year stint in Mumbai from 2006 to 2010 I had got attracted to running and the passion took me on so strongly that within 1 year of hardcore practice I went on to complete 3 half marathons in sub 2 hr 30 mnts.åÊ During this time I was also into trekking and have trekked a dozen destinations in Maharashtra.
During June'2010 I was transferred to Chennai and the humidity over here led me search for newer forms of interesting activities.åÊ I got hooked up to cycling and as on date I have completed over 40000 km's including a dozen brevets from 200 km to 600 km distances.åÊ This includes one Super Randdoneur during the last year.
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Q. As an avid cyclist who has covered over 40,000 kms tell us about the upcoming ride you are doing with the Adithya Metha foundation? Why did you choose cycling as a means to contribute to this cause?
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I have always posted my rides on to FB.åÊ I have done this primarily to motivate others and also to keep my self-motivation high. åÊ The updates from friends and acquaintances has been so overwhelming that I felt attracted to direct my efforts towards a noble cause.åÊ Harjot Singh, an avid cyclist and a very passionate human being informed me about this initiative.åÊ His commitment to do something for the society was enough to get me thinking and accept this responsibility.
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Q. What cycle do you currently ride? And will you be using the same for the ride as well?
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I started with a Cannondale Badboy -Hybrid and this continues to keep me moving.åÊ Over the period I have purchased a Mongoose MTB, KHS Hybrid, Reliegh Road Bike and all these are used for my rides.åÊ The latest addition to my garage is the awesome Dahon Mu P8.åÊ A foldie with a difference.åÊ Comfortable, hep and a masterpiece to ride on.åÊ I will be riding the foldie for the AMF ride.
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Q. What message would you have for the Indian cyclists and those who are looking to get into the habit of cycling?
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In the 1st year of cycling I urge new entrants to look at covering more distance on a comfortable bike i.e. MTB or a Hybrid.åÊ I have seen many new entrants going for hi-end bikes and then putting these up for sale within few months.åÊ Performance biking is about spending long hours on saddle.åÊ This requires us to test our ability and body's willingness to stay on saddle.åÊ There could be drop outs due to lack of interest or sometimes due to medical emergencies arising out of our "bad postures".åÊ Hence it is necessary that riders take baby steps towards taking cycling as a sport.åÊ After that they would be able to appreciate their passion and availability of time.åÊ This would help them understand whether they want to be part of racing community or leisure riding group or still better distance traveller.åÊ Every field has its own unique experiences which can drive one into higher ambitions.
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Q. How can people contribute to this ride to show their love and support?åÊ
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My sincere appeal to each and every one to help build the corpus. åÊ There is a need for all of us to come together and "cloud fund" this great initiative.åÊ Will give "new wings" to the athletes who have got a fresh leash of life post their accident/incapacitation.åÊ With the grace of God and hard work each of us have come a long way in our careers and personal lives.åÊ Would urge each of us to allocate some financial resource towards "charity".åÊ This amount should be set aside just like we do "Insurance" for our Vehicles and Our Lives.åÊ There are few individuals who dedicate their lives for the cause of others, this requires lots of guts, commitment and support from us all.åÊ Let us show that support and we will be able to build a better India.
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Link: You can support his efforts by contributing on this link:
åÊåÊåÊåÊåÊåÊåÊ http://adityamehtafoundation.org/donation/vinay-babu/
