3rd Year Special Annual Double Issue Vol 4 Issue 1 & 2 Jan - Apr 2 3rd Year Special Annual Double Issue Vol 4 Issue | Page 57

It is one continuous race, where once the clock
starts, it does not stop until the finish line. It is
about 30% longer than the Tour de France, and
racers must complete the distance in roughly half
the time, with no rest days!
While team racers have a maximum of nine
days, solo racers have a maximum of 12 days to
complete the race and ride at least 250-350
miles a day.
Srinivas Gokulnath’s journey
Srinivas Gokulnath, a doctor by profession, is an
aerospace medicine specialist working with the
Army in Nashik.
The entire idea of participating in RAAM for him,
was self-exploration through pushing his limits.
“I have been an ultracyclist since 2009. The
distance is what has kept me going. When
I would complete 150 km, I thought to myself,
why not 200 km… why not 300 km? I wanted to
challenge myself to do things I had never done
before.”
From temperate regions on the Pacific Coast to
the furnace-like Mojave Desert, the racers pass
through arid Arizona, struggle through cold
mountain passes in Colorado and windy
plains in central America. The Appalachian
Mountains test the riders before they reach
the Atlantic coast on the east, marking an end
to their journey.
“It is not only the distance and time, but the
terrain, which is unforgiving. The extremes of
weather that you encounter during the race only
adds to the difficulty. Navigation poses as a great
challenge,” says Srinivas Gokulnath.
Once a racer is qualified, he/she has to undergo
gruelling training for several months, do
simulated multi-day rides with a specially
collected crew, and also arrange the finances
that run up to over Rs 20 lakh.
“This race begins when you actually sign up for
the race,” says Srinivas. “You have to prepare
for at least 15-16 months. In my case, it was
almost 2 years. It requires a great deal
of logistics, strategies and training. To attempt
a brutal race where you pedal almost upto
430-440 km a day is very demanding. I used to
train for almost 6 hours a day while managing my
day job and family simultaneously.
Whether team or solo, a racer has to be equipped
Vol 4 | Issue 1 |Jan - Feb 2019
with a support crew that follows him and handles
all logistics like food, fluids, navigation, clothing
changes, medical needs, bike repairs etc.
Working on his finances wasn’t easy for Srinivas
who is a self-funded athlete. From the time he
registered, he kept working, using his savings and
taking loans.
“The crew supported me at the cost of their
own comfort. I had to raise enough funds to fly
them to America, arrange their accommodation. I
optimised my resources. The journey has been
challenging. But only when you start accepting
your challenges, does everything fall in line.”
says Srinivas.
It took Srinivas 10 months to get his crew
together. He worked methodically with his
coach, Alberto Blanco, from the US who
finished the race as ‘the best rookie’ in
2011. Chris O’Keefe, a 52-year-old who has
attempted the race before, came on board
as the crew chief.
Second Attempt
RAAM 2017, was Srinivas’ second attempt at the
race. In 2016, he pedaled 2,450 miles in 10 days,
20 hours but couldn’t make it to the finish line.
“When I did not finish, I was a very disappointed
and shattered. But I did not allow that failure to
affect my 2017 performance. In fact, it set me on
a positive track. On 25th June 2016 (the day of
his first attempt), I promised myself, I will do it in
2017.”
In the face of difficulty there’s always a sceptic.
But even among many of those, Srinivas’
greatest pillars of support were his family,
especially his wife, Prafulla. “She had a very
strong conviction that I had to register for the
race in 2017. In India, people consider failure a
big sin. But I reiterated one thing in my mind,
‘Success is never final and failure is never
fatal.’ You have to have the will to be persistent,
to be in the game.”
Srinivas was only focussed on getting his
unfinished business done.
Learnings
Reflecting on his past attempts’ learnings, he
says,“The last time I was in the race, I lacked a
sharp purpose, strong strategy and a well–knit
team. Besides, I was struggling for funds. This
proved to be a learning curve for me this time
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