Chennai  :

What would be a more apt venue for a tete-a-tete with a passionate endurance and adventure sports enthusiast than a bicycle store? We are at Pro-Bikers, OMR — the city’s go-to shop for professional cyclists — to meet Major General Dr AVK Mohan. It’s hard not to notice Mohan with his walrus moustache and crisp-casual attire. At 59, the medical doctor qualified in hospital administration is fit as a fiddle. “I have always been conscious about having a healthy lifestyle. I think everyone should focus on their fitness and well-being,” he says.

Amid a plethora of cycles and spares mounted on the walls, we find a quiet spot, and one of the most admired personalities in the city’s cycling and endurance sports circuit talks to us about his zest for life. The self-confessed ‘daredevil’ goes by the principle — ‘Never wait for opportunities to come your way. You create it, and seize the moment.’

Mohan has done it all — from going on mountaineering expeditions to Mount Satopanth with Italians in 1991, being the first in an Army brigade to climb a live volcano in Mount Nyeiragango in Congo in the early 2000s, to motorbiking to Siachen Glacier to commemorate the Army Medical Corps reunion, and biking to all the eight states on the Northeast including two China borders at Nathu La in Sikkim, Bumla in Arunachal Pradesh, Myanmar border at Moreh, Manipur and Bangladesh border at Agartala, Tripura.
His second-self is diverse, and he has a hard time picking a favourite. “From mountaineering, motorbiking, to cycling and running, they are all my favourites. Each one compliments and empowers the other. For instance, I cycle as cross-training for running,” he explains.

After traversing the country, Mohan moved to Chennai in December 2014 — a shift he never imagined would change his life. “I came to Chennai with inhibitions. The culture here was entirely different in comparison with my previous placements. I have served and commanded in Military hospitals in Jammu and Kashmir, Tezpur and so on,” he says.

But, what happened next was serendipitous. In June 2015, during one of his usual morning rides to OMR, he met Ashish Thadani and Kirtanya Krishnamurthy, who encouraged Mohan to join the Chennai Joy Riderz, a popular cycling group in the city. “My love for cycling tripled, and we went on several long distance rides. I met many like-minded people after my initiation into the group. I will treasure these memories forever,” says Mohan.

The tetra super randonneur has completed several long-distance rides including the 1,000km brevet event from Chennai to Vijayawada and back, a 900km tour of Nilgiris cycling — in Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu in 2015, and the 4,500 km Tour de Rotary K2K from Kashmir to Kanyakumari as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan in 2016.

Mohan’s day starts at 3 am, where he runs or cycles for a minimum of 70 km, before heading to work. Recently, despite an ankle fracture, Mohan went on a 15-km run on the Marina circuit. “It’s healing, but I don’t think the fracture will stop me from doing what I love,” he shares.
Mohan is an unofficial mentor and inspiration for budding cycling and fitness enthusiasts not only in Chennai but across the country. “I make sure I push and motivate others to take steps towards a better living.

To be a role model is a big responsibility, but I enjoy being one,” he shares.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Chennai / by Roshne Balasubramanian / Express News Service / February 04th, 2019