The wheel, supposedly invented in 3500 BC is one of the best inventions till date. We can’t fathom a daily life without its presence in some form or the other. One such pair of wheels that has given us immense joy with memorable experiences and fun along the way is the bicycle. It is simply the best way to move around in the city while experiencing it from a whole new perspective – getting fitter and keeping your environment green.
To promote cycling and to encourage people of Mumbai to ride a bicycle, the ‘Bicycle Mayor of Mumbai’ – Firoza Suresh, started the initiative ‘Cycle Chala City Bacha’ (C3B) across all the 24 Wards of Mumbai. Under Zone 5, Bicycle Councillors and Bicycle Marshals of Wards L, M East & M West (Kurla, Chembur, Govandi and few neighbouring areas) come together to take forward this initiative and conduct fun filled rides to exciting locations in and around the city.
With everything greener and more beautiful during monsoons, one such ride was planned to Powai Dam on a rainy day. Riders assembled at the usual meeting point at Diamond Garden, it was drizzling, everyone was excited to enjoy the rainy ride. We started our ride at 06:30am from Chembur and joined the rest of the riders at Amar Mahal junction and took the Eastern Express Highway to reach Powai. Our destination was 18 km ahead, but we didn’t feel the distance as there are fewer vehicles on the road early in the morning aided by perfect weather and our friends beside us. We reached the destination smoothly in no time.
On reaching the destination everyone was quick to park their bicycles and jump straight into the water. It was like a water park in a jungle. We danced and played in the rain. Miles of smiles beckoned every face. Having had loads of fun riding our bicycles and then merrymaking in water the next best thing to do was to have some ‘garma garam chai-pakore’. We stopped at the nearby food stalls to have some breakfast and then started back on our return journey. The massive downpour on our way back, to be honest, was a cherry on the cake. We took the same route to return to Chembur. Much of our discussion on the way back revolved around the fun we had with a promise to see each other soon on another such exciting ride.
Those who wish to join the cycling group could join their facebook page https://www.facebook.com/cyclechalacitybacha or connect through their insta handle cyclechalacitybacha
