Bhuvaneshwar Machani from Dubai takes part in RAAM

A 55-year-old Indian-born surgeon from Dubai named Bhuvaneshwar Machani has completed one of the world’s toughest endurance challenges – the Race Across America (RAAM) cycling race.

Over the nine days of the race, Dr Machani endured extreme temperatures in Arizona, thunderstorms in Colorado and ferocious winds in Kansas. Sleep was a rare luxury: just 20 hours throughout the race. ‘The first third of the race challenged my body and mind, the next third tested my physical strength, and the last stretch required tremendous mental toughness,’ he recalls.

Completing RAAM was not only a personal triumph for Dr Machani, but also an emotional journey. He dedicated his race to his cousin, who was his classmate and close friend, and passed away from a brain tumour a day before the race started.

Dr Machani’s path to RAAM was not a smooth one. When the surgeon moved to Dubai, in 2017, he was overweight and in poor physical shape. It was at that moment that he decided to make a change, ‘It occurred to me that the first half of my life was spent pursuing my career and earning money, and I didn’t want to spend all the money I earned on taking care of my health in the second half of my life.’

For eight months he trained for 12 hours four times a week, combining cycling with flexibility exercises in the gym twice a week. His diet was equally strict. To adapt to different weather conditions, he trained in the UAE, the UK and Spain. By June 2024, he was standing on the RAAM start line, on par with professional athletes.

‘Everest is much more dangerous, but RAAM is much harder,’ he said, quoting Austrian adventurer Wolfgang Fasching, who conquered Everest and completed RAAM. Interestingly, Dr Machani has completed the trek to Everest base camp in 2022.

Source: Gulf News