50-year-old businessman Sachin Shirbavikar has completed the distance of 645 kms in 32 hours 50 minutes and has been qualified for RAAM in above 50 years category. 60-year-old Pannaal Sewak completed the same distance in 36 hours 45 minutes.
Mahesh Kini has also been qualified for RAAM by covering the distance in 30 hours and 29 minutes. 20-year-old student Haersh Laungnani clocked 31 hours and 25 minutes to qualify for RAAM.It may be mentioned here that Deccan Cliffhanger is India's one of the Toughest UltraCycling Race from Pune to Goa 645 kms. The Race starts in Pune and ends at Bogmalo beach in Goa and it goes through famous Katraj ghat and Mahabaleshwar ghat and Chorla ghat in Western ghats. The race has a total climbing of 6000 meters and it is known for it's tough terrain. This year's race became even more difficult due to heavy rains in Kolhapur and Belgaum area and riders had to ride in rain for 6 to 7 hrs. The riders started the race on Saturday at 5.30 a.m. More than 200 cyclists from all over the country participated in the race. The cyclist had to deal with wind, heat and rain and later on chilling cold in Chorla ghat in between Belgaum and Goa
Four riders from Miles N Milers Sports Academy coached by Dr Amit Samarth did exceptionally well at Deccan Cliffhanger and three of them qualified for Race Across America in their age categories.
All of them took rigorous training for the last one year to complete the race successfully from Dr Amit Samarth in Race Across America Qualifying times.