19-05-2025
2 city kids spend summer vacation cycling from Sion to Kanyakumari
Mumbai: It's a summer vacation they'll never forget. Two school-goers from Chunabhatti cycled from
Mumbai to Kanyakumari
over 14 days. After a brief halt, the children — Sanvi Patil (11) and Arnav Bhoinkar (12) — started the return journey with the girl's father, Pravin Patil (46), on Monday — 3,300km to and fro.
The main aim of taking the children cycling such a distance was to wean them away from cellphones and other tech gadgets, says Pravin, adding that he also wanted them to enjoy their vacation in an unusual manner. "It's easy for today's children to get hooked to the screen… Sadly, today's kids hardly play on playgrounds. Even carrom, chess or snakes and ladders are played on the mobile phone," says Pravin.
When he first revealed the plan to his daughter, she was more than ready.
Sanvi is used to cycling from Chunabhatti up to Mulund and back, some 33km, twice a week with dad. Arnav too is a regular at cycling. "The boy's parents agreed when I told them of my plan," says Pravin who works for Sion hospital. Plans were finalised, the bags packed and the three set out from Chunabhatti on three geared bicycles early May 2, wending their way towards the Konkan, snaking southwards to reach Kanyakumari after a fortnight.
"We covered about 100+ km in a day," says Pravin. If it gets too tiring or too hot, they take a longer break.
Pravin has two cycling panniers strapped to his bicycle with bare essentials for all three of them. The kids have just a hydration backpack (water bags) and water bottles on their cycles. The panniers hold clothes besides nutrition fuel — dry fruits, chikki, nibbles and munchies. They choose restaurants carefully so as not to be taken ill along the way.
Largely, the meals are light but nutritious. A stash of bananas is always at hand.
Both children, who study at LK High School at Chunabhatti (east), have participated in the Kumbharli ghat race which is organised at Chiplun in Ratnagiri.
On the current tour, the the three did encounter roadblocks. Sanvi's bicycle chain broke, Arnav's gear cable snapped, for which they had to call for help from a cycle shop in Kudal. A puncture or two also made them lose time.
"But the real problem has been extreme heat," points out Pravin. He found it a challenge to fix punctures as the rubber patch would just melt due to the heat.
Curiously, traffic has not been a big issue, he says. Pravin has set a rule for the team – all three cycle in a row, remaining within shouting distance of one another.
Passers-by are amused on seeing the cycling trio, especially the two young cyclists. "The children are the show-stealers," says Pravin. Some stop them, bombarding them with a barrage of questions. Others insist on selfies. At one pit stop, a family insisted on paying for their breakfast as a "salute to their effort". An absolute stranger in Tamil Nadu even welcomed them home for a break.
The children had a brief word with TOI. Sanvi said she's waiting to get home to tell her friends about the
cycling trip
. Arnav spoke little. "Majjaa yeteh [It's fun]," is all that he had to say.
