More than a hundred cyclists from various walks of life participated in the 25km cycle marathon held today across the beautiful countryside of Udaipur. The Harawal Cycle Marathon was initiated by Shikshantar and equally supported by various social and commercial organizations.

Apart from its core objective of promoting cycling for various physical and environmental reasons, the Harawal Cycle Marathon has also sparked a novel charm for bicycles among the youth of the city.

Out of the 127 cyclists who participated in this extensive race, Manish Kumawat, a Computer Engineer from Advaiya won the race while Dr. Gaurav Sharma, a Dental Surgeon stood second.

Manish, an ardent cyclist expressing his joy after winning the race said, ‘though I have not been a regular cyclist for some time now, I will try to make it routine at least twice a week.

Rahul Karanpriya of Shikshantar said, “the race has received great interest by all participants; it was certainly more than what we had expected as this is the first of its kind event held in Udaipur.” Rahul commutes on bi-cycle every day and prefers a motorbike only in urgent situations.

Participants included cadets and members of National Cadet Corp (NCC), students from CTAE, volunteers from Shikshantar, Banyan Tree, Pahal, BSA Hercules, Pranav Ayurvedic and Yoga Center and Boond, a Delhi based NGO.

Dr. Sanjay Maheshwari of Pranav Ayurvedic and Yoga Center expressed the pleasure of being a part of Haraval. He said, “This is so encouraging; I hope such events should continue so that more and more people can come forward and cycling will once again become part of our life.”

While most of the participants were teens under-18, there were 4 kids aged 8-10 who surprised everyone by pedaling the entire 25 km stretch.

There were 4 checkpoints to direct the cyclists at Radaji Circle, Ubeshwar Road, Badi and Madar gate at Fateh Sagar.

Ananda, an Australian who volunteers at Shikshantar said, “It was a beautiful ride exploring the countryside of Udaipur. I love cycling and in Australia the government supports and promotes cycling, wherein there are plenty of options to get a cycle on rent at nominal rental cost.”