Cycling in 1995 and in 2009

We are celebrating eco week at work the coming week, as a part of this activity on every day of the work week we launch an initiative that minimizes carbon emissions. Transports of all forms nearly are the usual culprits, and in Bangalore they contribute to 94% of the carbon emissions. So we start eco week with a No fuel day initiative. As a part of the No fuel initiative we would abstain from any mean of transport that involves carbon emissions. So the alternatives are either you walk to and from work or cycle to work. This is purely voluntary. I use my 2 wheeler to commute to work which is 38 km to and fro, which means on any given day I pollute my city with 1.7 Kg of carbon, given that data I volunteered to cycle to work.

No Fuel day is scheduled 18th Aug 2009, but I needed a cycle. Bala is a colleague of mine and he cycles to work every day for nearly the past year now, he was ready to lend his cycle as he had opted to walk to office as his place is quite close by. I had to borrow the cycle on Friday so that I could cycle to work on Monday.

As decided I turned up at Bala’s place on Friday evening, after some time with his family, I pushed the cycle from his place a bit nervous. I told Bala and his family not to laugh if I fell from the cycle. They took me real seriously, now it was sinking in I had to cycle after 14 years and it’s going to the maximum km that I have every cycled.

In school in 1995, I used to cycle to and from my home in Domblur, to my school in Frazer town which should be approximately 9 km.

Now the times are different I weigh 3 times as much, and in a city where I have never seen school kids on a cycle. The only guys who cycle is the guy who cannot afford public transport then there is the IT guy on his Firefox and the 1 lakh bicycle definitely not the nano of the bicycle world. I am going to juxtapose cycling in 95 and 09 as I felt the changes in the city only during this ride, the infra, malls, traffic all said and done there are some elemental things that are much closer to me that I would love to share.

Ok with Bala and his family with the worried look watched me mount the cycle, with two quick movements I had started my journey, I could hear a cheer from behind from Bala & his family, I wanted to turn and wave back, but I wasn’t confident yet, so I just waved looking straight ahead. Bala is 6ft odd and I am 5 feet 6 inc, I looked like a guy in the circus riding this huge bicycle, so my first pit stop was the cycle mechanic. Before that I had to make my first turn onto the main road, this is when I really missed the indicator, somehow I made it I didn’t heed to any of the abuses being hurled at me by fellow commuters.

In 1995 I had a school bag on my shoulder, which was a Bata bag, filled with text books and note books. In 2009 the times are no different I have a wild craft bag meant to be a bag pack for adventurers but now a stylish lap top bag for my daily adventure through Bangalore traffic. In my laptop I had more data than all my schoolmates put together from class 1 to 10. Talk about changes by leaps and bounds.
I stopped at a cycle shop or should I say a bike mechanic but I don’t mind the odd cycle guy types, I just had to reduce the height of the seat. In 1995 I knew the cycle shops to and from school like Google maps in my head. In 2009 I hardly remember seeing one. For fixing the seat height the usual transaction is “We will cover it next time” or a rupee max, now its 5 rupees. After 14 years I stood on a pavement and watched the world around me. In 95 my panoramic view on the same spot which I am familiar with would have been LIC row houses, and at the end of the road a departmental store, today it was neon lights and I just couldn’t see past them.

The seating was perfect; I needed some music to keep my ears immune to the orchestra of Bangalore traffic. So I put on the iPod and started. I agree by saying in 95 I sound like an army guy discussing spoils of the two wars that he was a part off, but I am still going to do it. In 95 music on the move for me meant one of the few BTS (Now BMTC) with a speaker system, the only time we would hear the music is when he slowed down at a bus stop.

In 95 when I cycled to school, it was few great pals, Sudhir, Harish & Shyam Krishna, sharing jokes communicating to each other effortlessly. Today I was alone, but thinking about those days when we rode through the MEG campus telling the guards we are going to meet my uncle Major …. made me laugh. I passed through MG road, lots of first time thoughts here, my first movie Herbie goes to Monte Carlo, Mecana’s Gold in Symphony.

I still had 18 Km to go, but enough thoughts from 95 to fuel my journey. I don’t know if it is being a kid that I am happy about in 95, or how Bangalore was in 95, guess it’s being a kid.