A Ukrainian cyclist avoided Russian war bombing by fleeing on his bike for seven hours and about 70 km from his besieged hometown of Severodonetsk to Bakhmut, stretch which he managed to cover unharmed.
Arif Bagirov saved his life by turning to his bicycle to dodge the bombs that fell in the town of the Lugansk region in eastern Ukraine, pedaling nonstop until he reached Bakhmut , a city under Ukrainian control, before traveling by bus to the capital, kyiv, according to cyclingweekly.
The 45-year-old cyclist, he managed to complete the journey unscathed, despite the strong conflict that surrounded him. With the road from Severodonetsk to Bakhmut bombed, Bagirov explained the tactic to follow to save his life.
“There were holes in the road, everything was smashed, including the cars, and there was a lot of debris everywhere. After all, it is a front line road. Thank God, there were no corpses, but you could tell there were dead people there“, he explained.
Bagirov took note of the bombings in his own city at the time of undertaking his saving march.
“I learned from my experience in Severodonetsk that shelling does not hit the same target twice. He knew that if they bombed a factory, they would not bomb it again. He watched where the shells landed and rode there; it was the safest route,” he said.
The Ukrainian also had to deal with Russian warplanes during his trip, although he managed to avoid them simply by hiding out of sight.
“I had to stop the bike and hide when the enemy planes flew towards me. I found a ditch to lie down in, and that’s where I hid until they passed by,” he said.
Initially, Bagirov decided to stay in Severodonetsk when Russian forces first invaded Ukraine and helped deliver medicine to seniors, while also ensuring that valuable museum exhibits remained secure.
He decided it was time to leave when a Russian shell hit the apartment below his. While it thankfully didn’t explode, he had to spend three days in the basement with limited electricity and water. With his ability to help others drastically reduced, Bagirov opted to leave on his bike.
“When I was riding my bike, I didn’t really feel that much fear, it was more of a sense of anger: ‘This is my land, this is my country! And I will complete this journey in any way. It was my craziest bike ride. I had traveled those distances many times before, but not under such circumstances”, he concluded.
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