GHT on Wheels {Seed funding for Training}

Namaste! I am Mangal Lama, a professional mountain biking guide and former racer from Kathmandu, Nepal. I fell in love with mountain bikes and nature ever since I first encountered bikes as a repair and maintenance staff at a mountain biking tour company at the age of 19. Pursuing my newfound passion with great determination, I participated in local mountain bike races while working my job, eventually competing in major national and international mountain bike races and winning 10 titles over the course of a gratifying 10 year professional racing career. I have continued to pursue my love of mountain biking and share it with others as a freelance mountain biking guide leading trips all across Nepal and in major regional destinations abroad.

 

Over the course of my life’s journey as a mountain biker, I have grown to deeply appreciate nature and my place in it. I have also learned about the imminent dangers of climate change, especially in our dear Himalayas -- home to and vital for the survival of millions of people. I have seen firsthand the struggles of various indigenous communities that live in highly eco-sensitive regions across the Himalayas. Mountain communities in Nepal continue to struggle to recover from the not-too-distant 2015 Earthquakes, seasonal floods and landslides, and more recently from the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

 

Like many around the world, as I continued to be locked-down at home due to Covid-19, I grappled with a number of these thoughts and strongly desired to be helpful to the communities and to nature that has given me all I have ever needed. Thus came the thought of #GHTonWheels, a dream project I had ever since I learned of the Great Himalaya Trail. I decided then to pursue my dream project with the motivation to give back to the trails and the people. I am thankful to all friends and well-wishers who pushed me to pursue my idea, and who have helped define some of the major scope of #GHTonWheels.