MUMBAI: Forty-year-old Rajiv Kumar ‘Johny’ from Chandigarh recently took a break from his air-conditioner rental business to fulfil his 20-year-old dream.
Kumar, an ardent cyclist, who has the record for building the country’s tallest cycle (nine feet), decided to take off on his latest creation for what is claimed to be the longest recorded cycling trip. He cycled from
Chandigarh to Mumbai
in a journey that spanned one month and 16 days. Punjab governor, V P Singh Badnore, had flagged him off on February 1.
Kumar, who engineered his first bicycle in 1995, has been pedalling away for the past 24 years. “I designed the frame of the cycle to resemble the open-handed logo of Chandigarh,” says Kumar, adding, “I want to make my city proud.”
“Cycle to work, save the environment,” is the message Kumar wants to spread. He hopes to encourage office-goers to cycle to work once a week. Kumar says this will not only have a positive effect on the environment, but also on their health. He also hopes to inspire children all over the country to be more passionate about cycling.
Kumar runs an air-conditioner renting business in Chandigarh, and cycles during the off season. He has the design for his next cycle ready. He plans to use that for a trip from Kashmir to Kanyakumari.
“I cover more than 100km a day, and will complete my next trip in 30 days,” Kumar says confidently. His personal best was 150km in 16 hours, recorded in 1996. However, his best during this trip was 142km in one day.
Kumar uses the social media handle ‘johnycreations’ to spread the word about his passion.