(May 17, 2026) Born with twisted legs and unable to run or play for much of his childhood, Shijoy Jacob spent his early years in surgeries, joint shoes, and heavy ankle-length hospital boots, watching other children from the sidelines. Today, the Mumbai-based HR professional at an MNC has transformed those limitations into a life of endurance travel, cycling across India and multiple countries on journeys that once seemed unimaginable.
On a morning a few months ago, somewhere between Cambodia and Vietnam, Shijoy Jacob was riding into the sunrise with his belongings strapped onto a second-hand bicycle, exchanging smiles with strangers and soaking in their kindness. The roads were quiet, the air heavy with humidity, and the destination uncertain after a sudden change in plans. Yet for Shijoy, uncertainty had long stopped being something to fear.
No one watching him cross borders on two wheels would have guessed that this was once a child who spent years unable to run, play, or move freely like other children.
“Till the age of eight, I was limited when it came to physical activities, so when I finally got the freedom to explore life more openly, I never took it for granted,” Shijoy shares with The Global Indian.
Cambodia to Vietnam, on a plan B
The Cambodia-Vietnam expedition in February 2026 was never supposed to happen this way. Shijoy and his friends, Allwyn Joseph, Bakcen George, and Ratish Bhalerao, had originally planned to cycle from Cambodia into Thailand. But conflict and border closures disrupted the route at the last minute, forcing the group to rethink the journey entirely. Instead of cancelling the trip, they adapted and decided to enter Vietnam instead.
Cambodia appealed to them partly because it felt less explored, and partly because the trip fit within the limited two weeks of leave all four had secured from work.
Travelling on bicycles brought from India, the group packed light. Each rider carried only essentials, including a few T-shirts, cycling shorts, regular shorts, sunglasses, helmets, bandanas, toiletries, and repair kits carrying puncture patches, extra tubes, and spanners.
They began riding from Cambodia on 26 February 2026 and crossed into Vietnam on 3 March 2026, spending additional days exploring both countries before and after the ride.
What the road threw at them
The journey tested them immediately. Some days brought punishing heat, while others dissolved into heavy rain. Body pain became routine. The food was unfamiliar and sometimes difficult to adjust to, but the physical demands of cycling left little room for preference.
Then there was the language barrier, which turned even basic conversations into exercises in patience and improvisation. But what held the group together was their understanding of shared travel. If one rider faced a problem, everyone stopped.
“I feel that’s one of the most important things while travelling. Your company should make the journey better, not difficult. Even if one person’s cycle chain slipped or there was any issue, all of us would wait until it was fixed,” says Shijoy.
Silence on the roads, kindness on the streets
For cyclists accustomed to Indian roads, Cambodia and Vietnam felt strikingly calm. Traffic moved without constant honking. People moved without visible aggression.
Despite the language barrier, locals welcomed the four riders warmly at almost every stop. Some offered free food and water and refused payment when the group tried to insist.
“These small gestures of strangers are something my friends and I will cherish forever. The whole experience taught us a lot about humanity, kindness, and different cultures, and it made the journey even more meaningful for all of us.”
The landscapes became part of the experience too. Many rides began before sunrise, with long stretches of quiet roads unfolding through changing skies and unfamiliar scenery. Those mornings became some of the strongest memories of the trip.
But first, there were the ankle boots
Long before the cycling routes and international journeys, there were hospitals, surgeries, and years of restricted movement.
Shijoy was born with twisted legs. In his earliest years, a doctor plastered both limbs and instructed the family not to remove the casts for a month. The next specialist who examined him was reportedly horrified, immediately removing the plaster and instructing Shijoy’s mother to massage his legs daily for a month before surgery was eventually performed on both limbs.
What followed were years of hospital visits, initially every 15 days and later monthly as his condition slowly improved.
After surgery came joint shoes designed to restrict movement and prevent further damage. Later came the heavy ankle-length hospital boots that Shijoy wore until he was nearly eight years old.
He could not run or participate in most activities. Instead, he watched other children play from a distance. “Mom says I used to feel really sad watching other kids play while I had so many limitations.”
The woman behind every step
Through every difficult stage of recovery, his mother remained the constant. A working woman skilled in shorthand writing, she was simultaneously dealing with asthma and a form of epilepsy herself. Yet when Shijoy needed treatment and care, she left her job entirely to focus on him.
She carried him through hospital visits, followed every medical instruction carefully, and became the person who refused to let his limitations define his future.
“Looking back, I feel the pain and struggles she went through were even greater than mine. If she had given up on me back then, my life could have been completely different. She is truly the one super woman in my life, and she always will be.”
Shijoy does not minimise what she gave up. In his eyes, her sacrifices during those years were greater than his own suffering.
Even today, whenever he returns from a marathon or cycling expedition, he tells her the same thing: because of you, I am able to do this.
Education, work, and building a life
Shijoy grew up in Vikhroli in Mumbai and has lived in Thane for the past two years. After completing his HSC, he started working to support his family while simultaneously pursuing his B.Com privately from the University of Mumbai.
That balance between responsibility and ambition still shapes his life today. He works professionally in HR at an MNC while using weekends and leave periods for cycling expeditions and endurance travel.
The run that changed everything
The turning point came through something unexpectedly simple: a 10-kilometre run. After years of physical limitation, Shijoy registered for the event mainly to challenge himself. Finishing it in a respectable time changed how he viewed his own capabilities.
“After that, I started trying different adventures and slowly fell in love with pushing my limits. Since then, I’ve kept trying new things and I’m still continuing that journey today.”
Cycling entered his life quietly through short rides around Thane before three friends proposed something far more ambitious, a cycling trip from Mangalore to Goa.
Shijoy was nervous about the distance, but agreed because his friends would be there alongside him. On the very first day, the group covered nearly 105 kilometres. “I was incredibly happy, and that’s when I decided that cycling would become my travel partner.”
The routes that followed
After Mangalore to Goa, the journeys only became bigger. Shijoy went on to cycle across Tamil Nadu and Kerala, complete a journey through Sri Lanka, and most recently cross from Cambodia into Vietnam, all while continuing his corporate career and travelling on second-hand bicycles brought from India.
Four countries. Multiple routes. Each one pushing him further away from the childhood limitations that once defined his world.
What travel has taught him
For Shijoy, travel has transformed far more than physical endurance. He says it has made him more patient, independent, and comfortable with uncertainty. It has also exposed him to cultures, conversations, and ways of living that once felt far removed from his childhood in Mumbai.
“Till the age of eight, I was limited when it came to physical activities, so when I finally got the freedom to explore life more openly, I never took it for granted. Instead, I started pushing myself to explore more and come out of my fears, and somewhere along the way, I fell in love with travelling.”
The freedom to move, he says, is not something he sees casually. It is something he spent years waiting for.
The road ahead
After Cambodia and Vietnam, Shijoy is already thinking about what comes next. North India and Northeast India attract him for their difficult climbs and unpredictable terrain. Beyond that, he hopes to cycle across as many countries as possible, meeting people through simple conversations and experiencing places slowly, one road at a time.
“If I get the chance, I would love to cover as many countries as possible on my cycle. I want to learn more and more from people through natural conversations, try all kinds of different foods, and experience adventure activities that I have never done before.”
The boy who once watched other children run now has four countries behind him, countless kilometres on two wheels, and a growing list of roads still waiting to be explored.
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