My Heart Has Wheels & Gears

Cyclists at the starting line of a June 2013 criterium race held at Bharatiya City, Thanisandra, Bangalore. Criterium races are usually short intense races with overall winners and special prizes for intermediate laps.

Cyclists at the June 2013 criterium road race in Bangalore. Here, eventual race winner by a mile Sachin Panwar (centre) stares down Jetharam Gat ahead of him, who finished third.

A cyclist at the June 2013 criterium race in Bangalore.

Criterium races are traditionally held in closed-off areas in the heart of a city. Here, at the viewing area by the track, team owners and coaches are the most vociferous of the spectators.

A cyclist hydrates after his ride at the June 2013 criterium road race.

The family that cycles together stays together. On NH 209 highway outside Bangalore, a father and son take a midsummer Sunday ride together.

Neera Katwal is a fitness trainer. She's also a pro marathon runner, often placing high. During a recent triathlon she won a cycle. She's got more into cycling since then, but mostly as a commuter and for cross-training. Neera now commutes to clients' homes and offices by cycle.

"I think this kind of mindfulness isn't something you can get in the city in a mall watching a movie," says T Ashok, 49. He had just finished a 1,000 km brevet through Karnataka and did not look like a man recovering, as he matched his 12-year-old son Tarun for excitement and energy. Ashok is also a daily cycle commuter, covering 20 kms on most days.

"It's like yoga on the road." GV Dasarathi, 53, is a commuter and recreational cyclist who covers 26 kms a day. His love for cycling was borne out of the kind of road frustration that is all too familiar for Bangaloreans - he put a "self imposed limit of three days in a month" to use his car.

Nilofer Suleman is an artist who cycles around her neighbourhood and uses her bike for all errands. She is among a growing group of Bangalore cyclists who are abandoning cars and autos for short commutes.

"Cycling is my choice of drug." Two years ago, Vikram Singh Jadav was riding the same 1,000 km brevet from Bangalore when he had a bad accident. He was on his own and lost his memory for almost five hours until he was found by a scouting car. Three months later, he was cycling in the challenging 1,200 km randonneur (endurance ride) called the Paris Brest. This picture is moments after Jadav repeated the 1,000 km Bangalore brevet this year.

"It's the only vehicle that I found that really makes you feel free." Sreepathi Pai, 29, is a PhD student at the Indian Institute of Science. Deeply immersed in the culture of cycling, he keeps three cycles in his hostel room. He commutes everywhere on cycles and has also done brevets like Bangalore-Chennai.

Vivek Radhakrishnan, team director of the Specialized Kynkyny Cycle Racing Team, India's first fully sponsored cycling team, hangs out with his daughters. He says, "I feel like I can turn myself inside out on a bike."

Rohan Kini, 32, gave up an eight year IT career to plunge into cycling by starting Bangalore's first pro cycle store, Bums on the Saddle (BOTS). "Cycling means freedom and fun. Everything else is secondary - the green angle, the costs," says Kini.

"Mechanical design has always been something I've been interested in. I love to work with my hands." Shamala Subramanyan, 33, was a commuter cyclist for eight years before becoming India's first female pro bike mechanic. "Cycling means getting to know my space, it means freedom. It means testing my endurance and strength."

Serious racers shave their legs to be more aerodynamic. Tradition says that shaved legs reduce drag on the cyclist, which results in these unexpectedly smooth visions.

Don't mention Sisyphus to downhillers. Once a month, a small tribe of Bangalore cyclists seek out rough hills to drag up their specialist bikes so they can come down at thrilling speeds.

A downhiller tackles the course at breakneck speed during the time trials in the Thurahalli forests in late July.

There's not much room at the top, they say. Not unless you are a downhilling fanatic. Everyone checks their gear before the July 2013 event starts.

One final inspection and a few last-minute adjustments before the downhillers embrace gravity.

Pro cycling has a lot of great machines and gear. You can't do without helmets and kneepads if you are going to hurtle down a hill, though. Some pros don what looks like a full body armour, complete with chest plates.

This tribe of downhillers will tell you that cycling is about escaping the madness of the city.

The downhill descent rages mid course on the Thurahalli track.

Downhiller enthusiasts keep time as each contestant takes off. Here, they're glued to the eventual winner of the pro category, Piyush Chavan from Pune.

Why pedal when you can fly?

Post-event high spirits at the downhiller meet, with winner Piyush Chavan signalling that the top three were all from the Pune contingent. Vinay Shekar, the 'godfather' of off-road cycling in India, came a very close second.

Cyclists may shave their legs in aid of aerodynamics but everything follicular doesn't need to be a drag.