Endurance athlete Preeti Maske trains her sights on Guinness Book of World Record

Srinagar, Feb 11 (PTI) Indian endurance athlete Preeti Maske will set off on a 3,676-kilometre cycling expedition from Kashmir to Kanyakumari on Sunday in an attempt to set a world record for women.

Besides her ambition to get into the Guinness Book of World Record, Maske’s aim is to create awareness about organ donation in the country.

“I will be covering 3,676 kms from Kashmir to Kanyakumari and my target is to achieve this distance in 10 to 11 days. I want to spread awareness about organ donation from North to South and why organ donation is important,” Maske told PTI ahead of her long journey.

The 46-year-old mother of two claims to be the first woman to set three world records in a span of six months. This will be her fourth.

“In the men’s category, Adil Teli has set the record of cycling from Kashmir to Kanyakumari in eight days and one hour. No woman has tried it yet,” she said.

Maske had earlier set the record for cycling from Leh to Manali — covering a distance of 430 kms in 55 hours.

She also made a record by running a distance of 410 kilometres from Leh to Manali in four days and 22 hours.

Another record to her name is cycling from Koteshwar in Gujarat to Kibithoo in Arunachal Pradesh, covering a distance of 3,955 kms in 13 days and 18 hours.

Maske has been in Kashmir for the past three days to get acclimatised.

She will be cycling almost 19 to 20 hours a day, with minimal breaks and short power naps of not more than three hours in a day.

Anand Kansal, the crew head of the expedition, said Maske will on average ride 400 kms every day to complete this journey.

“We are a crew of 10 people, we are starting with a crew of five from Srinagar who will take care of her nutrition, hydration, and her stretching and keep her morale up so that she only focuses on cycling,” Kansal said.

The crew will keep changing as the journey proceeds so that members do not get tired, he said.

“If the crew get fatigued, it will affect her performance and she will not be able to complete the journey on time. We want to ensure a hassle-free journey,” he added.

Maske has set her eyes on the Dubai-Abu Dhabi expedition in the UAE after completing the present task.

“After this, we are planning the UAE trip — from Dubai to Abhu Dhabi — because we have a lot of Indians there,” he said.

Kansal feels it is time for Maske to hit the international circuit.

“If everything goes well, probably in 2024 she will be doing a race across America and she will be the first woman from India to attempt that,” he added.