The 25th 200K BRM: Anchetty BRM

Climb, Heat, Rain, Traffic, and the Lessons Hidden Behind My Medal.

“The road is a ruthless teacher. First, it sets the test. Then it teaches the lesson.”

Anchetty 200K BRM — a ride feared and respected across India’s endurance cycling community. With nearly 2,600 meters of climbing, relentless rolling terrain, unpredictable weather, and fatigue-inducing gradients. Anchetty BRM is never just another ride. It is a negotiation with limits.

This Ride, with a mild fever, tried to slow me down, but my mindset was already overshadowed by the scoreboard in my head:

• No DNFs in 200K
• Third consecutive year of Anchetty
• 25th 200K BRM out of 36 exclusive 200K rides

By all logic, this was supposed to be routine — another notch on the handlebar, another medal dangling in the hanger, another tick in a journey that has already crossed fifty-plus brevet finishes.

This ride is to be memorable. The road, however, had its own script.

Normally, preparation is my ritual: bike check, nutrition packs, gear review — all rehearsed a week in advance. My daughter even plays the role of co‑pilot, reading out the checklist while I pack. But this time, somewhere in the comfort of experience, I whispered to myself: “I’ve done this before. I can manage.”

That single thought became the most important lesson of the ride.

As management guru Peter Drucker famously said,

“Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work.”

My intentions were good, but my preparation was not!

Don’t ask me why, but for the first time in four years, I woke up at 3:30 AM on the ride day (14th June) to pack my bags and prepare my bike, thanks to the wake-up call at 3:00 AM from part Anchetty itself — I mean Sardar😊. Three calls are more than enough to start a ride under any condition.

🚦 Flag‑Off and Reality Check

The morning started well enough. The familiar gathering of riders at FKCCI, pre-ride banter, and the excitement of seeing new cyclists from across the country all chasing the same challenge.

Buddies Catch-up and wishing All the Best

Flagged off at 6:00 AM, and then the road began asking questions in an hour. The first 4 km were spent fighting the morning city traffic, and I caught my breath at CP2 (40 KM, 7:47 AM), Harohalli Police Station, after the unplanned quick breakfast.

The Road left and ahead

The climbs arrived soon after the CP 2, and my body began revealing truths I had been ignoring. Last year, I managed the terrain. This year, the terrain managed me.

Every climb felt like a performance review conducted by gravity. The verdict was clear.

• Fitness had slipped.
• Preparation had slipped.
• Discipline had slipped.

The road was presenting the evidence.

Glimps till 80KM

I reached 81.90 km by 10 AM, in time for the refreshments I’d been waiting for. Chetan resumed quickly, and I followed him, along with our friends, to maintain the climbing cadence.

⚡ 101 km: Gravity vs. Grit

All at different paces, and I was halfway through alone. Around the 101 km mark, I was flying downhill when an orange car cut across from the right — not just stealing my line, but pointing me straight toward a mud patch beyond the shoulder line.

In that split second, I felt the raw power of my brakes — not just the discs on the bike, but the muscles in my legs — clamping down against gravity.

That grip kept me from a ten‑foot plunge into a farm fence. The road didn’t just test my endurance; it reminded me that sometimes survival is the most underrated finish line.

One of the climb struggle

The scare still echoed as I rode towards the manned CP at 115.5 km — Govt. High School, Anchetty. Recovery was slower, legs heavier, mind tired. But there, waiting beyond the gate, were the sweetest refreshments — sweat and memories — ready to re‑energise both body and spirit.

🥗 Lunch control turned into a lesson.

Control Points are my favourite — stories shared, salt tabs passed around, friendships refuelled. But what should’ve been a 20‑minute pit stop stretched into a full hour 😐.

Lots of memories in this place

In cycling, just as in leadership, time lost is rarely recovered without charging interest — later, the road sent me the bill.

The afternoon sun crushed whatever freshness remained, ugh! I took multiple breaks, saltier lemon sodas, and cold water.

The climbs continued, still hills left to cross. My legs protested as the cramps recurred.

I was confused when we had to trek across the village gallis, both on and off-road.

🌧️ The irony was painful!

The weather flipped without warning; heavy rain descended around 4:45 PM as we neared Anekal.

Among the items I had forgotten while rushing that morning was my rain jacket. The one thing I needed most at this point!

Drenched and shivering under a roadside shelter, I started playing with my buddy Anbu to pass the time, and Manikandan joined in. I watched precious minutes disappear as other riders passed.

Yet endurance has a funny way of simplifying life.

When everything becomes difficult, priorities become obvious.

At that moment, there was no concern about medals, timings, or achievements.

There was only one question: Can I keep moving?

⏱️ The clock was ticking!

When the rain eased a bit, I discovered I had less than 50 kilometres remaining with 7:30 PM etched as my mental cutoff; I pumped hard toward the last selfie CP — Vishal Megha Mart at 176.5 km.

No thought of extensions, just the preset deadline. And with a signal to Anbu, I flipped into last‑mile mode — the Ride’s final chapter already humming in my legs.

What followed was perhaps the most intense section of the entire Ride.

Fought with climbs.

Fighting the rain & fatigue.

Fight with time & traffic.

Every kilometre became a deadline. The highway transformed into a battlefield, with the opponent being another road and its traffic.

It was doubt, but Aloysius and a couple of other riders kept questioning me, “How many kilometres more? How many minutes left?” That’s a snooping alarm

For nearly 40 kilometres, I pushed harder than I had all day.

Not because I felt strong, but because I refused to quit. That distinction matters. Anyone can perform when conditions are favourable. Character appears when they are not.

🚦 Bengaluru Traffic: The Final Twist

Just seven kilometres from the finish, Bengaluru traffic took over, which I was managing for the last 36 km…

• Signals,
• Congestion,
• Gridlock and whatnot…

The finish line was close enough to see but far enough to suffer.

At 7:29 PM near St. John’s Road, I was convinced I had failed.

Then Chanakya rolled alongside, and he said. “The timing has been extended till 8 PM this morning. However, I want to know if it is extended further to 8:30 PM”. I have no clue, but Relief washed over me. Not because the challenge became easier, but because I realised something profound.

Sometimes resilience means pushing with everything you have.

And sometimes resilience means accepting help when it arrives.

🏅 Medal in Hand, Milestone in Heart

At 7:45 PM, I entered the FKCCI (finish line), Smiling Faces, clapping hands and cheering voices.

Mohan pressed the medal into my palm with a smile — “Congratulations, click your picture”.

Happiness and Satisfaction

25 — A proud milestone, realised right there.

And yet, the finish line wasn’t just mine — I stayed on, cheering buddies, celebrating every rider who rolled in.

But strangely, I ran to take paracetamol. Then realised Anbu was out of energy, so we rushed to the restaurant for refuelling and returned home in a porter without a second thought.

As Benjamin Franklin wisely observed: “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”

Thanks to Buddies, Timely motivators, Support crew, and all-in-one Mohan Subramaniam.

Thankfully, I completed all the 200K BRM rides. But it came close enough to remind me that I earned the 25th on the road.

However, the real victory was earned in the lessons because endurance cycling isn’t about collecting medals. It’s about collecting wisdom — one climb, one mistake, and one finish line at a time.

📚 Lessons Beyond the Medal

1. Preparation is not optional.
2. Experience never replaces preparation.
3. Respect the weather. It doesn’t care about your plans.
4. Fitness is rented, not owned, and rent is always due.
5. Manage your time before time manages you.
6. Confidence and complacency are different. Never confuse them.
7. When everything goes wrong, keep moving. Forward progress is still progress.

Different roads. Same fire. On to the next Ride. 🚴‍♂️