Who we are

Founding

Intergalactic Riders cc — Galaksilerarası Sürücüler Bisiklet Kulübü 5 April 2017 · 09:38 in the morning

A warm spring morning, 18–20 degrees.

With the joy of coming out of a cold winter month, I jump on my bike and meet up with Öner abi for a good ride. We are both very excited and searching for a name for the new group. We throw out every name that comes to mind. In the end we decide not to go with classic names like Ankara Çankaya Cebeci, and to pick a name that embraces every cyclist.

When I say it should have a name like something out of Star Wars, so that our fame spreads across the galaxies, Öner abi answers: “Murat’cım, then let it be Galaksilerarası Sürücüler — may our alien friends ride with us too.” So we go to our dear Onur abi, whose workplace is on our route, and he finds the name IGR cc fun and sensible as well.

When we tell the group’s other members of the time — Mert, Cem, Orkun and Avni abi — about the new name, they too laugh and warm to the idea, and IGR cc, that is, GALAKSİLERARASI SÜRÜCÜLER BİSİKLET KULÜBÜ — the Intergalactic Riders Cycling Club — is born.

Ever since that day we have been riding among the galaxies with our members, and we will keep on doing so.

Written by: Murat ÖZTÜRK

A Passion Beyond the Pedal

Intergalactic Riders Cycling Club (IGR.CC) is an Ankara cycling community that embraces the sport not merely as a hobby, but as a culture of performance, solidarity and continuous progress.

Almost 10 years ago it set out with the idea of an open and free club — tied to no particular neighbourhood, brand or person — where people passionately attached to cycling could come together.

Today IGR.CC carries on as one of Ankara’s established, performance-focused cycling communities.

More Than a Club

IGR.CC is as different in its approach as it is in its name.

For us, cycling is not simply a means of transport or a weekend activity. Getting better, testing ourselves, covering long distances together and riding alongside people who share the same passion form the foundation of this culture.

That is why IGR.CC is less a “team” in the classic sense and more a club made up of cyclists who share the same passion.

Performance-Focused

Performance sits at the centre of IGR.CC’s culture.

Long-distance training, fast group rides, climbs and races such as granfondos are the ground on which cyclists improve and test themselves.

On rides that head out in different directions from Ankara, the motivation that comes from moving together matters as much as endurance, pace and group discipline.

Weekend group rides are mostly 80–100 kilometres of a few hours’ steady, fast riding. The Gölbaşı, İncek, Konya, Haymana and Eskişehir directions are among the important parts of IGR.CC’s riding culture around Ankara.

And of course the coffee stop at the end of a good ride has a place of its own.

We Race Against Ourselves

For IGR.CC, racing does not only mean finishing on the podium.

Every ride is a new goal, every climb a new test, and every long route a chance to go beyond the previous performance.

Organisations such as granfondos are a natural part of this culture. Races are an important source of motivation: they test on a real course the strength gained in training, and let us experience the competitive side of the sport.

From Ankara to the Open Road

IGR.CC’s story began in Ankara.

Starting on the city’s quiet early-morning roads, the rides sometimes stretch far beyond Ankara. Every route is different; the common point is always the same:

Set out, ride together and go further.

Ten years on, that is the part of IGR.CC that has never changed.

For anyone who looks at cycling with passion, who wants to improve and who enjoys sharing that journey with others, IGR.CC is a community that meets on the asphalt.

One bike. One road. Further together.