Pune cyclist becomes the first woman to cover Leh-Manali route in 55 hours!

Making India proud this time is a 45-year-old cyclist from Pune, Preeti Mask. Preeti, a mother of two, is the first Indian woman to be in the Guinness Book of World Records for riding a bicycle alone Yes to Manali in just 55 hours and 13 minutes! Sounds incredible right?

The woman was able to cover a distance of 428 km with a total altitude difference of over 26000 ft. She also crossed the Tanglangla Pass, the highest pass on her route, which is 17,582 ft high. Some other passes she crossed were also higher than 16,000 feet.

After accomplishing the incredible feat, Preeti said, “Coping with the sleep deprivation of a continuous and uninterrupted ride in a high-altitude region has been a huge challenge for me. During my adventurous journey I had to take oxygen twice because of shortness of breath on high passes.” .

Brig Gaurav Karki, chief engineer of the Border Roads Organization (BRO) in Leh, said goodbye to the trip at 6 a.m. on June 22. She was received in Manali at 1:13 a.m. on June 24 by the Commander of the BRO’s 38 Border Roads Task Force, Col Shabarish Vachali, PN.

Well this is not the first record for Preeti as she has many others in endurance cycling. This has made her an inspiration for everyone, because there are not many solo cyclists who would take on such a challenge on the road at high altitude in extreme weather conditions.

Leh-Manali Highway is one of the highest roads with hundreds of hairpin bends. Climbing up the passes and then climbing back down is not an easy task. Imagine cycling at Baralacha Pass which is still covered in heavy snow!

Anand Kansal, one of her crew members, said: “Preeti had to cycle on high-altitude mountain passes in harsh and changing climatic conditions. She had to face strong winds, snowfall, sun, dust and freezing temperatures.”

1. How long is the Leh-Manali Highway?
   The Leh-Manali Highway is 428 km long.
2. Can you name the highest motorable mountain pass in the world?
   The Umling La Pass in Ladakh is the highest motorable road in the world at an altitude of 19,300 ft.
3. Which is the second highest pass in India?
   The Tanglang La high mountain pass in Ladakh is the second highest motorable pass in the world.