“I’ve got cruise control. What have you got?” taunted the teenage boy on his bright yellow bicycle, zipping past his best friend.

“Autopilot!” pat came the reply from the friend, as he let go of the cycle bars and flung his hands in the air.

Calcutta may not have roads ideal for cycling but there was no mistaking its spirit on a freewheeling Sunday morning that saw 5,200 people join the Cyclothon, powered by The Telegraph.

“Every Sunday, we either sleep late or go out for breakfast. When we heard about the Cyclothon, we were so happy that there was something different to do in this city,” said Bhomika Misra, 27, one of the enthusiastic faces in the crowd of cyclists lining up for the 6.30am start at Gate No. 4 of the Salt Lake stadium.

The scene outside the stadium was a window to the hustle and bustle within. Inside the stadium, cries of “jo jeeta wohi sikandar” rent the air in a throwback to the 1992 film of the same name that had Aamir Khan reprising his real-life role as a cycling champion.

“I wasn’t able to sleep all night. I kept wondering if I would be able to complete the route (the number of loops between the stadium and Central Park depended on the category),” smiled Afsha Ahmed, a Class VII student of La Martiniere for Girls.

Some like Shinjini Banik, 15, had been partying till late on Saturday but managed to wake up on time to push the pedal at Calcutta’s first such cycling event. “I had read about the Cyclothon in t2 and I could not afford to miss out on this experience of a lifetime,” said the student of St. Francis Xavier School, who participated in the NVD Solar Green Ride (14-plus).

Near the cycle hire park stood Komal Verma, struggling with her set of wheels but not short on enthusiasm.

“I am holding a cycle after 10 years!” said the student of Jaipuria College. “I had a small accident when a shoe got stuck in a wheel. Then the chain of my cycle came out. I also realised the tyres needed air. But I made it here.”

Some like Riya Tulsiyan, a Class IX student of Ashok Hall Girls’ Higher Secondary School, came to the Cyclothon primed to compete.

“I devoted an hour to cycling every day for a week. I didn’t cycle yesterday so that my legs would be fresh,” said the Lake Town girl.

Omkar R. Jadhav came all the way from Maharashtra. “I reached Calcutta on Saturday morning just to take part in the Cyclothon,” said the 22-year-old national-level cyclist. He participated in the National Elite Men category, the only competitive race of the event.

Sarpreet Singh, a Commonwealth Games participant, won the competition. “I knew I would win if I gave my best,” Sarpreet said, a hand on his new Ridley bike with a price tag of Rs 1.5 lakh, plus Rs 60,000 for the wheels.

Sports and transport minister Madan Mitra was so impressed with the turnout that he promptly promised a “good track” at Salt Lake Stadium.

To those who want to cycle to work, he said: “I will request the chief minister’s office to examine the possibility of allowing bicycles on thoroughfares.”

Maybe making roads safer for cyclists would be a better start.

What was the best thing about the Cyclothon? Tell ttmetro@abpmail.com