Anuradha Palnitkar becomes the first Indian-origin woman to complete an unsupported transcontinental US ride
Washington DC, United States – An Indian origin trio of Jai Rawat (57), Anuradha Palnitkar (54) and Samir Palnitkar (58) completed a 3,168 (5,100 km) Cycle across America expedition in 52 days with over 100,000 feet of climbing. This ride was completed on unpowered bicycles without any support vehicle accompanying them.
The expedition started at 6 am US Pacific time on Aug 1, 2026 at Santa Monica beach in Los Angeles, CA and finished at the Washington Monument in Washington DC on Sep 21, 2026 at 12 noon US Eastern time. The three cyclists traveled an average of 65 miles (104 km) per day across 14 US states, California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia before ending the ride in the District of Columbia. From Santa Monica, they traveled on Historic Route 66, the first transcontinental US highway built 100 years ago in 1926, as they wound their way across Grand Canyons, Flagstaff, Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Amarillo, Tulsa to St. Louis, Missouri before heading east from Route 66 towards Indianapolis, Columbus, Pittsburgh and Washington DC. On Route 66, they experienced the history about the growth of the towns of Middle America in the 20th century.
The trio had to overcome a number of adversities along the way. They rode in extreme heat warning zones for several weeks, battling temperatures up to 119 F (49 C); on the shoulders of interstates and highways with big trucks passing by at 75+ mph (120+ kmph); highways without shoulders, through thunderstorms in New Mexico; and in cold weather on the East Coast. They also had to repair their bikes, deal with ferocious dogs chasing them and bounce back from cycle accidents to complete the ride successfully.
The ride took them across tall mountain passes, deserts, valleys, forests, endless corn fields, plains, rolling hills, parks, historic towns, dedicated bicycling trails, frontage roads, highways and interstates as they made their way across the United States. They enjoyed the mountain vistas of California, Arizona and New Mexico, the plains of Texas and Oklahoma, the rolling hills of the Ozarks in Missouri, the corn fields of Illinois and Indiana, the beautiful bicycling trails of Ohio, the Appalachian plateau in West Virginia, the iconic, 150 mile Great Allegheny Passage bicycle trail near Pittsburgh and the W & OD bicycle trail in Virginia. They crossed the Continental Divide in New Mexico at 7,881 feet altitude and the Eastern Continental Divide in Pennsylvania at 2,392 feet altitude.
Anuradha Palnitkar became the first Indian-origin woman to complete an unpowered transcontinental bicycle ride across the United States without a support vehicle. Jai Rawat and Samir Palnitkar also became the first Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) graduates to complete an unsupported, unpowered bicycle ride across America.
“Riding across the country helped us experience the varied terrains, the cultural diversity and the history of America in a very unique way. It was very interesting to travel through small towns that powered the growth of America in the 19th and 20th centuries. We felt an exhilarating sense of freedom as we cycled through the endless landscapes seeing innumerable sunrises” – said Anuradha Palnitkar and Samir Palnitkar
“We experienced small-town hospitality as people chatted with us, offered free coffee as they learned about our cross-country ride. Cars drove patiently behind our slow bicycles and shop owners regaled us with stories about their historic artifact collections. We learned a lot about how the towns of Middle America made important contributions to the country’s growth.” – said Jai Rawat
ABOUT JAI RAWAT:
Jai is a successful serial entrepreneur with 33 years of business experience. He has founded multiple companies including Zinrelo (acquired by Scaleworks), Obongo (acquired by AOL) and Mojo Networks (acquired by Arista). Jai earned his BTech degree in Computer Science from IIT Kanpur in 1991 and MS in Computer Science from Iowa State University in 1993. He has been awarded 19 technology patents.
Prior to this ride, Jai has completed a few marathons, ultra-marathons and treks including Everest Base Camp (17,600 ft), Mt. Kilimanjaro (19,341 ft), Stok Kangri (20,187 ft), Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim, Mount Shasta (14,200 ft), Mount Whitney (14,500 ft), Chadar Trek and bike ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles.
ABOUT ANURADHA PALNITKAR:
Anuradha (Anu) is a dietitian by profession. She graduated with an undergraduate degree in dietetics from Delhi University in 1993 and a Masters in Nutritional Science from San Jose State University in 1996. After being a practicing dietitian for several years, Anu currently works a teacher in a school for kids with special needs.
Anu has completed 3 full marathons and a number of half marathons. She has also completed a (63 mi (100 km) walk Pune to Mahabaleshwar in 24 hours. She has completed 31 treks across the world including Everest Base Camp, Annapurna Circuit, Mt. Kilimanjaro, W-trek in Patagonia, Tour du Mont Blanc. She is also an avid traveler and has visited over 100 countries.
ABOUT SAMIR PALNITKAR:
Samir brings 34 years of business experience in 5 startups. He has founded multiple companies including Zinrelo (acquired by Scaleworks), Obongo (acquired by AOL) and Mojo Networks (acquired by Arista), Ingot Systems (acquired by Synopsys) and I2P (acquired by Lattice Semiconductor). Samir earned his BTech degree in Electrical Engineering from IIT Kanpur in 1990, an MS in Electrical Engineering in 1992 and an MBA from San Jose State University in 1996. He has been awarded 5 US technology patents and is the author of two authoritative books on semiconductor chip design.
Samir has completed 31 treks across the world including Everest Base Camp, Annapurna Circuit, Mt. Kilimanjaro, W-trek in Patagonia, Tour du Mont Blanc. Samir and Jai also completed the San Francisco to Los Angeles Cycle ride in 2018. Samir is an avid traveler and has visited over 100 countries.
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