TIRUCHY: A demand for sensible leisure activity and growing tendency towards fitness have led to the emergence of a new trend in cycling in the city, with many youth and the elderly now taking to the activity, as can be witnessed from a pre-dawn ride and the sales at showrooms.
From looking at cycling as a basic means of transportation it seems to have evolved into a part of the daily routine among Tiruchities, thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic-induced lifestyle changes like work-from-home (WFH) confining them within their homes. The increased number hitting the city roads and highways on a cycle is vouched by showrooms proprietors who mention sales of as many as 75 units each month from an earlier handful a month.
"Earlier the sales of cycles used to be seasonal. With only children mostly looking to buy it, our customers used to be kids during the holiday season. But ever since the pandemic started, the number of takers among the middle-aged category has increased drastically. From basic models to the geared ones, the demand for cycles has grown and we easily sell one to two cycles every day," said AM Tajudeen, the proprietor of Premier Bikes in Tiruchy.
Rohit B, a native of Tiruchy working at an IT firm in Bengaluru, said, "With pressure at work very high and the fear of contracting the virus, cycling has come as a huge stress relief ever since I started working from home. Initially when I started, spotting five to ten riders was a huge deal. But now, I see over 20 to 30 riders within the city alone and the count only keeps increasing."
Apart from introducing many to cycling, the pandemic has also evolved the existing cyclists into taking up challenges like endurance riding, where a distance of anywhere between 100 km and 600 km is covered in a single trip. Mohan Kumar, a business owner and long-time cyclist from Rockfort city, said, "Prior to the pandemic, my cycling experience was limited to just seeing it as a means of fitness. With the lockdown providing me a break, I explored the opportunity of endurance riding. Now I take trips every week in which I cycle over 500 km. Now, people who have taken up cycling as a hobby are also drawn towards endurance rides as they see it as an effective way to keep themselves in shape and live stress-free."
Echoing his thoughts, Tajudeen added that over the past few months, he has witnessed several repeat buyers who come back to purchase high-end cycles costing even up to Rs 1 lakh.