Peddling one step at a time

He was in class attending a botany lecture when he felt  tremors that were making the desks shudder. At that moment, no one realised that an earthquake was coming their way. As soon as the whole class apprehended it, they emptied the building. One kid was still stuck as he could not move as fast because of an artificial limb. Somehow, Mirza ran back to get him out safely.

Mirza Baig, who has completed numerous cycling expeditions across the country, recalls this episode because that was when he became aware of the social struggle around him. He took up cycling not just because the activity is environment friendly but also because he saw it as means to raise money for such causes.

“I trained for four years for a cycling tour of 1000kms to raise money for orphanages in Kashmir and we raised around 25 lakhs,” recalls Baig who is a lawyer by profession. After this voyage, he peddled from Mumbai to Cochin for those who cannot afford to pay fees for Law College. Baig, along with his lawyer friend managed to raise 26 lakhs through this ride. The distance was a mammoth 3,000 kilometres.

As part of his daily routine, he rides from his house in Powai to Worli Sea Face and then to his workplace that is in Bandra Kurla Complex. He covers this distance of 60 kms every day. Baig is eyeing a spot in the national cycling team after his long tryst with ultra-cycling. However he has had a taste of peddling with the national athletes in a race in Bangalore. “I finished third in the race in Bangalore. The first two were professionals but we had a good banter throughout the race,” he recollects.

During the Third Championship 50k last year

The 27-year old completed his law degree from Hyderabad. Now, he is currently training with Giant Starkenn for the national trials and Paris-Brest-Paris 2019. The latter is a 1,200 km race that is generally completed by top athletes in less than 40 hours. Baig aims for a podium finish and not just a completion certificate. “Completing such races is of course a great achievement but we should eye the top spot. I am training hard for the PBP race and hopefully, I will make the country proud,” he asserts.

 The earthquake incident is just one of setbacks he has faced in his time growing up in Kashmir. The cyclist narrates the troubles of the Valley, “Back there, things are different. The problems caused by politics are different and the environment is completely different. Both are equally dangerous.”

“When you are exposed to suchsuffering, you know how it is. I started cycling only to help the orphanages and the homeless in Kashmir. Later in college, I saw students not having enough money to pay college fees. Now, I am eyeing a few personal achievements,” he says.

The lawyer-cyclist-social worker will peddle in the city on February 25 for the Saksham Cyclothon Mumbai 2018 where he will get a taste of the national trials. The Indian cycling team will be taking part in the race.