Lovers Handle

Damn, been lazy and not doing any exercises for the past week. I am extremely sore with myself. Time waits for no man and looking back, I am paying the price of that inaction - I am putting on weight , again.

After the 16x km ride, my recovery days somehow got extended and yesterday, what was supposedly a recovery ride turn to be elek, pocik due to a feeble excuse of rain. Trying to rectify my guilt, went to RPM class (Pat and Lynn) at Curve and truth enough, by the ending of Track 7, i was nearly kaput.

Didn't even go to swimming class yesterday and this week, I made a vow not to stop Gymming and excising from today. I am so looking forward to Frasers Hill ride tomorrow....

Planning for 2 weeks of Joy Ride

Weekend is coming up, and PCC is arranging for a recovery ride from Hospital Orang Asli to Janda Baik this coming weekend (60km). This should be interesting and to top it up, on Labour day, we have a ride to Frasers from Kuala Kubu Bharu (95km).

Not sure whether to do both or select one of this since Century Ride is just round the corner (6th May). To top it up further, PCC is arranging for Holiday on Bike/King of Montain ride to Camerons on the 12th May. This shud be one interseting ride as well. Now if I were to do Camerons, that will only leave Genting as last on my checklist of hills to climb for this year. Woweeeeee...

This is going to be one fun fortnite. I better keep my Mountain Bike in the store longer....sigh.

Ladies with PRIDE

My memories of Renee Aziz has always been pleasant and joyful. I remember the time when she worked with me as a Civil Engineer in JKR, she asked me to accompany her to her practice session as a backup singer to Shiela Majid. I said to myself, "Wow, a singing Civil Engineer". That was one of the most moving moments in my life. Having heard how she battled with Cancer and how i lost a few colleague that way, i was and am very proud that she managed to overcome the cancer and would carry on the pursuit of undertaking mountain climbing as a challenge.

Ironically, the manner which this news was related to me was through another acquaintance, Stephanie Chok. This girl, if you know her like I do, is very humourous and has talent of story telling. She makes mundane stories like personnal everyday challenges exciting and kept us in awe of the things that she had to do to climb Aconcagua (not that I want to take anything away from her real physical talent). She is one hell of a triathlete and a very good friend.

Both of them are part of the expedition that concequered Aconcagua and this has been documented very well. ASTRO will be broadcasting this "Climb with PRIDE" on the days:-

Detail below:

ASTRO Ria, Channel 4 (in Malay)
Date Time
1 May 2007 (Tuesday) Episode One 1:30pm – 2:30pm
2 May 2007 (Wednesday) Episode Two 1:30pm – 2:30pm

ASTRO News, Channel 92 (in English)
Date Time
5 May 2007 (Saturday) 3 pm– 4 pm
6 May 2007 (Sunday) 3 pm – 4pm

I feel that it is a shame if we miss this documentary.

Cyclist Mathermatics - Long Sunday Ride

Now you tell me, how does 145km - 85km (at mid point) = 85km. The PCC newsletter published the ride as a 145 km ride prelude to the Ipoh Century Ride, well, it turn out that I clocked 166km when I reached Center Point Bandar Utama.

Got up early eager to tackle the ride from Center Point-Ijok-Sungai Tengi-Ijok-Center Point. The group was very punctual pushing of at 7:35. Me and a fren of mine was rather late and pushed of at 7:40 with another later peloton. Caught up with the main group near Kota Damansara and we were pushing speeds of 36-38km by the time we hit Guthrie Highway. Typical when the front group consist of Geoff Kronenberg and other prolific riders. We reached Ijok at about 9:10 am for our first pitstop before pushing off to Sungai Tengi. At that moment, my mind is still synching to the 145km distance.

The moment we reached Sungai Tengi, we had done 84 km on clock and that is when i realized that something is wrong with the Maths. We are at Sungai Tengi at 11:15 am and thinking that this was the halfway point, we were kinda wondering what time will we reached home ;-).

Ah well, we still have to go home anyway. The thot of taking a taxi did cross my mind but since I have only RM10 in my pocket, I kinda plodded back with this Gym instructor fren of mine back. On the way back, since the peloton was quite small and we kinda loss sight of the main peloton, a group of us decided to work as a team to get ourselves back to Ijok. I was pulling the team back at 25km/hr average, but at one stage got carried away trying to catch up with the Le Tua Team Train which passed us at 36-38km average (I know as I was behind them for about 1km until I was tired out).

When we arrived at Ijok, the whole group was waiting for us. I drown myselves with Red Bull and had to massage my legs as I can feel the onset of cramps. All the ORS and 100plus still cannot deter the cramps. Going back from Ijok, I was back to my own self and doing 30-32km/hr until we reached Sungai Buloh. Due to traffic light, I was the only one left behind and had to go back alone from Paya Jeras to Kota Damansara. Met up with my buddy from Fitness First and we push of to Center Point and arrived at Center Point at 3:40pm in torrential rain.

Its quite an exhilarating ride and I suppose it goes to show that the 166 km can be done within the stipulated Century Ride time frame. It was a good outing for my RPM instructor friend of mine as it kinda proof that she is fit and can do the 160km in one go. Congrats to her.

Hmmm...6000 calories burn today, does that mean I can splurge on ice cream!!!!

Space Race - Kuala Lumpur

Wanna feel your adrenalin pumping ala AXN-Adventure Race, but on a smaller version, well I did. Spent the whole Saturday helping out friends of mine from Quick Release Adventure volunteering as the Camera man for the Space Race.

Was running around town (being a lone camera crew) trying to get snapshot of them at Cosmos Berjaya Time Square (BTS), Titiwangsa (the Eye), Bangsar Village Celebrity Fitness, Central Market- Angklung Store, Suria KLCC Baker Boys and MATIC Batik Print. The contestant had to do several task and I kinda pity some of them having to do strenuous task both physically and mentally.

I reached BTS back at 3:00 pm and some of the contestant was faster then I was. Damn, that was amazing. Took about 1 hours worth of video clips. To all the contestant, well done.

Don't Feel Like heaven - The Road to Nirvana

Century ride in Ipoh is coming along. This is a 100 mile (160km) road race going around Perak on a bike. Running up to this Ride, some of us in PCC, decided to ramp up the build up by arranging (upto now) 2 bike rides. The week before we rode a distance of 107km to Center Point-Ijok-Kapar-Puncak Alam-Center Point. Day before yesterday, we rode from Tekala-Genting Peres-Kuala Kelawang-Pantai-Lenggeng-Broga-Semenyih-Tekala (A total distance of 117km) which feels like 180km.

I should have known that I was going to have a tough time on that ride. The day before, I went into Kiara and had a tough time just completing Twin Peaks let alone the ride to Sri Hartamas. deciding to cut my ride short to reserve for the Broga ride, I went back early, after experiencing one en do, two run in with the trees, and two tumbles.

Starting the Sunday at Tekala, there must have been 40 to 50 riders at the start point. It was like a bikers fest with thousand dollar machine on parade (the BMCs, LOOK with BORA wheels, Colnago etc). Well, by the time we push of for Genting Peres, the riders were spread apart. Upon reaching Genting Peres, the smart people like Arif, May Senn decided to turn back to Tekala, while 30 odd of us loonies decided to take the plunge to Kuala Kelawang. I remember my BikePro owner/fren said "Its just three hills, we should be able to do it". Some one forgot to mention that we will be crossing the Banjaran Titiwangsa twice. This ride is about Climb, climb, climb - its the toughest ride that I have ever done. Sure, at some point going downhill at 72km/hr was exhilarating, but the climb from Tekala to Peres and Kuala Kelawang, the climb from Kuala Kelawang to Pantai and lastly the climb to Broga was insane especially in hot arid midday sun.

The feeling was like riding to Genting Sempah 2 times and plus doing the ride from Gap to Frasers 4 times and going to Janda Baik twice all in one ride. I'd hate to do it in reverse. Ironically, symbolically while going back to Tekala, we passed by Nirvana Memorial Park near Semenyih. Some of us felt we should have checked in since we were three quarters dead by that time.

I was on the bike for about 6 hours, i could have reached Ipoh already. My butt was also telling me it does not want to feel the seat no more. This is one memorable ride which I would like to forget. I had to go to my swim class to cool down that day.

Addendum

Check out these cool profiles at Adrian's Blog. This is totally awesome and cool

Adventure/Misadventure

This weekend has been interesting to say the least with mix adventure and misadventure. Lets get the toxin portion out of the system first:-

Misadventure

Took up swimming lessons as part of my "pick a new Skill a year" kinda thing. Went to Swimming pool, got summon for wrongful parking by MPBJ. I think its just jealousy for not using their car park at 8 pm at night. Its not the amount per Se, but the feeling of being wrongfully judged that bugs me. How was I to know that at 8pm, and with those blurry lights, I am to park in the dimly lit car park. I am merely trying to place the car as close as possible to the lighted area and not obstructing traffic. Duhhhh...

The night before I was also reprimanded for trying to help a fren, who in my judgement needed help. I was ticked off quite severely for trying to help when help is not warranted. Maybe that was my fault as I have this bad habit of falling into the "Hero syndrome". I think, the feeling of hurt was offset ted by the positive euphoria of watching a good movie that we went to - 300. It is quite ironic, for someone who prefers to watch Bean or Comedic type movie, i have grown to appreciate other genre. I felt that I kinda owe it to this fren of mine.

My pocket got hurt on Friday and Saturday for making good my mother and daughters car. Took out a fair bit of RM1300 to rectify the aircond and key system of Perodua. Feeling kinda low, I laze about in my frens bike shop on Saturday evening.

Positive Adventure

Saw a good movie (300) with some frens. Though you can but felt this movie have a tinge of propaganda on Freedom and the American way, overall, the movie is exciting every minute of it. Trying to depict the battle between the Spartan and the Persian King Xerxes in 90 minutes doesn't do justice.

Went outdoor riding again on Sunday to Ijok. Coming back it was raining. Boy, I wish I had wipers on my glasses. I just could not see a thing and the guys were pushing quite a pace trying to reach the destination fast. We did the total 85 km in about 3 hours only.

Managed to swim a little, thanks to swimming coach. I had learn about breathing, buoyancy, and simple swim. Swimming is tough for an ole geek like me, since I am very top heavy. There is a lot of drag and I tend to run out of breath after about 20 feet. Ah well, nothing comes easy, i need to practice. But I so do look forward to going for swimming classes, I had set a target of at least one class per week.

Non Pretentious Dinner

It is seldom that one finds good Italian home cooked meal. I was fortunate enough to be introduced to one such good eating spot in a quiet spot called boatHouse Restaurant somewhere near TTDI near Rahim Kajai.

The environment was good, the music was very Continental. There was Spanish, french and Italian ring to the place and what better way to enjoy good food except with good company. I have tasted quite a few Italian type Food, and this by far is the best especially the Lasagna. To remind me of the menu, i took the liberty of taking a few photograph to remind me what to expect the next time round. I just love the presentation of the dishes itself.

Here is the preview of what Pasta can look like at BoatHouse. Don't you just want to preseve this.




And look at the Brownie, though its not as chocolaty as the ones in Ms READ, this dish has flavour going for it.


In summary, this Restaurant is about Flavour. Try IT.

Trailing the Time

PCC organized a Time Trial this recent weekend. You can check out the details here.

Yours truly actually went there to volunteer service and have a casual ride with a friend. Being lethargic and just recovering from a bout of Flu, i didn't expect to ride. Upon arrival and seeing all the excitement, managed to get my friend and myself registered in the last two available places.

With very little warm up, we went through the course in a leisurely time not really intending to compete. Interestingly, my friend managed a neat time , having come in 3rd in her category and me 8th in my age group finishing the 15km course in a slow 33 minutes. Hope to publish some pictures of the event though.

Addendum

Here are some photos of the event uploaded to Flickr courtesy of Adrian and the PCC Team. Thanks Adrian ;-)





Adrian at the registration Counter








Fren winning a Tour De Langkawi Cycling Jersey






Cycling and getting good time with Knobby Tires on MTB

Memories of the Past.......Present

I was walking in from my car park at Avenue K this morning and passing through the Putra LRT Station to my office, and my memories lingered to the first time I touched down at Heathrow in the UK and proceeding to take the Tube. What a quaint scene, all the workers packing the fruits, mopping the floor, cleaning glasses, picking up rubbish and manning the counters.

What jolts me of these memories, is that, these are all foreign workers. When i first landed at Heathrow, from the immigration officers, the sweepers, the cleaners and other general workers that I met, there were definitely not Caucasian, but were imports. I remember getting a lecture from one immigration officer with an Indian twang telling me that "We British......". This was almost 30 years ago. Malaysian does not seem to undertake work that are perceptibly labor intensive anymore.

If Malaysia is 30 years behind in its social structure to the UK, imagine what race relations and challenges we are going to face in the near future. Welcome globalization....

Queen and king of Mountain (Genting Sempah)

I had a late nite coming back from Tampin and Melaka. So getting up Sunday morning is never easy. However, i was so keen to see my friends attempting their ride at Genting Sempah, I hauled myself out of bed and was there by 7:15am.

The race i was going to is the King of Mountain race starting at Hospital Orang Asli and finishing at Genting Sempah. Adli (otherwise known as IceCube) and his brother is already there. Ashely, Ros and Stephanie was also there. Some familiar faces from Way2Ride (the organizers) were there and seeing them was fun

After seeing them registered, I drove up to Genting Sempah and unpacked my bike to ride down with intent to take some photos. These are some photos of Ashley, the eventual winner in the ladies division. Second was Ros and followed by Stephanie Chok. Ashley is the one in the yellow jersey.

My other fren IceCube managed third in the Seniors. U can see him in the white red jersey using the red Proton bike with those fabulous ZIPP wheels. Overall, the event went extremely well and we finished by 11am after the prize giving ceremony.

If U can believe what Tarot Cards - HUH

I was browsing through Nadio's Blog and came across this test. What a real Casualty for me to take this "Test". Duh........

You are The Lovers

Motive, power, and action, arising from Inspiration and Impulse.

The Lovers represents intuition and inspiration. Very often a choice needs to be made.

Originally, this card was called just LOVE. And that's actually more apt than "Lovers." Love follows in this sequence of growth and maturity. And, coming after the Emperor, who is about control, it is a radical change in perspective. LOVE is a force that makes you choose and decide for reasons you often can't understand; it makes you surrender control to a higher power. And that is what this card is all about. Finding something or someone who is so much a part of yourself, so perfectly attuned to you and you to them, that you cannot, dare not resist. This card indicates that the you have or will come across a person, career, challenge or thing that you will fall in love with. You will know instinctively that you must have this, even if it means diverging from your chosen path. No matter the difficulties, without it you will never be complete.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Road Track Review - Hill Climbs

Someone ask me, which particular short ride do you find the most interesting? I find that each ride has different sets of challenge, much like life. However, maybe I should document my rides tracks and explain what interest me about some of the hill climb ride. This article concentrate on the hill and mountain climbs.

Genting Sempah

We usually start from the Hospital Orang Asli in Gombak and the climb to the top is about 15.8km . What i find interesting is that this road has very little traffic especially on Sunday and the climb gives u ample warm up before it gets steeper in the last 5 km. I will normally pace myself at average 16-18km/hr average before reaching the last 5 km. The last 5 km is reasonably challenging as some of the hills is about 18 degrees gradient. The better challenge is to go down to MacDonalds at Genting Sempah and climb back that 1.2 km track up. This track is doable even for beginners and is good training. It shud be done within a time frame of 60 -65 minutes. Coming back from Genting Sempah is a nice exhilarating downhill which u can reach speeds of 60-65km/hr subject to guts.

Janda Baik

Extending the hill climb from Genting Sempah further would be to go to Janda Baik. The rolling hills there can be fascinating and challenging, especially when u have just climbed Genting Sempah. After going downhill a bit for about 5km, u will reach the junction to Janda Baik. The rolling hills there kinda reminds me of indoor rpm training. Some of the hill climb can be reasonably steep albeit only for short distances.

Frasers Hill

Parking your car at Kuala Kubu Baru, this hill climb is challenging not becoz that it is steep, but becoz of the distance. U have 30+ kilo of gentle climb, and after sitting on a bike for 2 hours climbing this hill, your mind will be wondering when is this going to end. Then u reach GAP and making matters worse, u have another 9 km of steep, granny wheel type climb. Even with my small chain ring, i have difficulties in sustaining this gradient having to heave 85kilos of FAT up this hill. Sometimes weather can work against you, it can be quite chilly when u reach GAP. I find this most challenging so far. It takes a toll on your mind though.

Genting Peres

Genting Peres is a good training ground for hill climb. This is located in Ulu Langat area near Semenyih. If u approach from the Tekala Rest Area, u have a 2.5km steep climb which more of a mental exercises then anything else. U then have about 12 km of downhill which u can reach upto speed of 70km because the road is wide. However, you can also do the climb in reverse from Pekan Batu 14 to the Tekala Rest area which can be quite interesting.

Puncak Alam

Coming from Sungai Buloh, you can take the challenge of attacking Puncak Alam 7 hill climbs. The objective is to head towards Shah Alam's Guthrie Corridor. It is important to pace yourself as you can run out of breath attacking this hill. Though they are 7 hills, only 3 are of any significant and the stretch can be dominating. This hill climb is interesting because of its dominating view and scenary. This hill climb is suitable for people who have some hours of ride behind them but is doable even for beginners.

Other Notable Hills

There are other interesting hill climbs such as the hill climb on the way to Taiping on the old Federal Route 1 at Bukit Berapit. Another memorable hill climb is in Penang near the Dam in Balik Pulau. This is part of the Penang Round Island Race which ends at Jalan Tun Saadon. My two other outstanding hill climbs is Cameron Highland and Genting which I hope to do when my legs gets stronger and I loose another 15 kg.

Buying a Mountain Bike????

A lot of people ask me, "hey how do choose a mountain bike?".

I am not an expert, but having ridden road and mountain bike for about 6 month, perhaps I can share what mistakes I had made during this six month so as not to be repeated by other readers.

Frame Size

Mountain Bikes generally comes in various sizes. Normally, the size would relate to the height and other discerning dimensions such as you crotch height and the length of you arm. As a rule of thumb, the following gives guidance to the size of bike u should choose:-

size 14.............................height 5ft 2in to 5ft 5in
size 16.............................height 5ft 5in to 5ft 8in
size 18.............................height 5ft 8in to 5ft 11in

If in doubt, choose the lower size. Normally, with corresponding size, the top tube of the bikes gets longer (The top tube is the horizontal tube connecting the fork of the bike to the seat post). The longer the top tube, the further away the handle is from you. I made a mistake of using a bike that has a long top tube and this is manifested in the handle being easily lifted during hill climbs. I could do better with a shorter top tube.

Another guide is that when u seat on the bike with seat properly adjusted, you should see that the hub is in line with the handle tube when u are to look down (ie the front hub is hidden from view by the handle bar).

Drive Train and Groupset

For beginners and upto the professional, stick to V-brakes, its much easier to service, easier to maintain and is light to use. Its gives u better feel and control. At the end of the day, it is u that determine the ride ability and speed of the bike. Skills and control is the one that gets u through. For normal Mountain biking, a minimum of 8 speed is adequate. If you can afford it, get groupsets of at least 9 speed Deore or its equivalent. The XTR and the likes could be overkill at this juncture because the weight saving and effeciency maybe wasted when one does not have the skills.

Hard Tail or Full Suspension

If budget is of constrain, stick to hard tail bikes. Sometimes, we tend to buy bikes which are overkill. Most of the time, when u ride cross country, u tend to ride off saddle anyway ie your butt is ridden off the saddle, hence u won feel the rutt and bump on your rear wheels anyway. So it is like riding a full suspension bike but at fraction of the cost.

So those are some of the tips that I can share with you on bike choice and decision making process that I went through. Will be touching on experience and tips of riding on a bike soon in next article.

Turning over a new Leaf

So much has been done in my cycling adventure. A lot of rides, some road some mountain biking and some interstate - what an exhilarating life I have gone thru during my "retirement". I have made friends with lotsa people, some young some errr old (my age). Retirement can be fun but sometimes tiring and hence having decided to move on, i have sought temporary employment at a premier Telecommunication company here in Malaysia. Maybe, this old fox can learn new trade - tackle new adventure.

Last week, it was quite challenging trying to get my butt of the bed, u know, the shifting of time from the casual 10:00 am to 6:00 am and facing the race to work. This sacrifice of battling to work not only to serve my need to keep myself busy but also to subsidise my daughters tuition fees. Though my thots did stray on getting a new Specialize Tarmac Carbon Fibre Bike and the Dopod 838, i better put that on my back burner.

This weekend, i very much look forward to my bike race in Putra Jaya and my ride to Janda Baik with the PCC. So, back to the rat race gang.......

780km in 4 days + 2 Days of Racing (My InterState Journey)

Backgrounder

The organising Committee of the Penang Pesta has the Annual Biking event which consist of the Round Island Road Race and the Criterium Race in Padang Kota. This year a few friends of mine had the opportunity of accompanying the LeTua Cycling Team which had participated in the Penang event as part of their training. The only condition set for us is to be able to cycle with the team to Penang and back So, a few of us packed up our bags and got our bikes ready for the journey. The expanded team consist of the PK and family, William Mok, Kimbeley Yap, Valerie and me.

Day 1 - Subang to Ipoh via Tanjung Malim (202 km)

Journey that morning started of from Kampung Subang at 6:30 am and we reached Tanjung Malim at 9:20 am and stop at the restaurant to have Pau.
The LeTua team paced the ride at a slow 30-32km per hour. Had we not accompanied them, they would have paced at a faster 38 to 40km per hour. We had our first break and pushed off for Ipoh at 10:15 am.

Not having the experience of riding more then 100km, i was not drinking enuf nor eating enough at regular frequency to sustain the next leg of the journey. At the 140km mark, I cramped out my legs and stomach and was not able to continue the journey I had to be taken by the support car to Ipoh. We reached Ipoh at 2:20 pm and rested at our hotel to recover. That evening i was really pumping in fluids and carbo so as not to be outdone by the distance again.

Day 2 - Ipoh to Penang via Taiping (170km)

We pushed of from Ipoh to Penang at 6:30 am and the journey was the normal rolling hill type with opportunity of uphill pedalling and recovery in going downhill. The only challenging hill was the 2km climb near Bukit Berapit and we reached Taiping for our normal midway pit stop at 9:00 am.

We pushed of for Penang at 9:5o am after having mee sup and drinks. The journey to Butterworth is a tiring one because of the flat road and construction near Butterworth.
Attacking flat road at a constant 32km/hr means continuous pedalling and very little recovery. The hot midday sun wasn't helping since the road has very little tree cover. We reached Butterworth at 1:00 pm and took the ferry across and reached Penang at 1:50pm. Now time to recover to tackle the Penang Island Road Race which is on Saturday. End of day note to self, when u are tired, be careful of observing which foot u unclip ur pedals and which u wanna put to the ground.

Day 3 - Round Island Bike Race


The race starts at Gurney Drive and the palaethon will then go towards Batu Ferringi and then toward Telok Bahang before attacking the hill climb near the Dam, and circling the Balik Pulau village before ascending the steep hill climb near Jalan Tun Sardon.

The men's open started at 8:30 and went at breakneck speed of 60km/hr and the total distance of 120km. The ladies and veteran started a minute later and has a shorter distance of 60km. Other then the usual state teams, there was also an aggressive team from Singapore.

Although I had registered for the race, I had to stand down and drive the support car for the woman/veteran team. Its quite exciting experience to drive the support car where u have to fight for position for ur rider and provide feeding at opportune moments. The women team were represented by Kimbeley and Valerie and the Shaharin represented the Veteran Team. The team did well, where Kimbeley got second, Valerie got sixth (excellent for first outing) and Shaharin got second.

Exciting end to the day and we set off for our hotels to prepare for the following day criterium race.

Day 4 - Criterium race (Padang Kota)
The scene - almost family day type outing. The atmosphere, exciting and fully charged with adrenalin of many cyclist. The race is broken up into Junior, Senior, veteran and girls and Open. We came in second for Seniors, champion for Veteran and were not that lucky for the girls. The tactics of swarming our riders and drafting them were not exciting to watch. Anyhow, it was good exposure to many of us who participated for first or second time.


Day 5 - Journey Back - Penang to Lumut (172 km)

Left Hotel at 5:45 to catch the 6pm Ferry to Butterworth. Arrived Butterworth side at 6:40 am and push off for Taiping at 6:45 am at the usual 32km/hr pace The journey itself was quite uneventful as we were both familiar with the terrain and pace. Stopped at Taiping for food at about 10;00 am.

Left Taiping heading for Lumut using the road that goes to Beruas. The journey and route was fairly interesting as there are a few climbs and descend. Arrived in Lumut where we decided to stop and eat prior to checking in at the Hotel/Hostels. It was extremely hot day and it is quite a strain on the body and legs. No amount of sun block can help.

Day 6 - Lumut to Subang via Sabak Bernam and Puncak Alam (223 km)

Thinking that it is the last day of the journey, we left Lumut a bit late at 8:00 am. The journey to Sabak Bernam is fairly easy as there is very little hill and many flat road. The only challenge is to keep the cadence going so as to upkeep the speed. We arrived in Sabak Bernam at 11:00 am for brunch near the waterfront.

Left Sabak Bernam at 11:55 am headed for Kuala Lumpur/Subang. The road from Sabak Bernam to Telok Intan and further up onto Tanjung Karang is fairly flat and hence i find it dull. The challenge started to get to me as we turn in nearing Kuala Selangor towards Ijok/Rawang. The road is so rutted that my wrist aches. We then turned into Batu Arang and headed for Puncak Alam.

I was kinda conned by the other riders which told me that there were 3 hills. It seems that they were counting the major ones, Puncak Alam has 7 hill climbs. At this point the group broke out and there were three palaeton.

We arrived exhausted and tired at 4:45 in Subang but a feeling of triumph and excited. It is not the distance that we find challenging but its also the pace in trying to keep it a constant 30-32km/hr.

Conclusion

Finished my full list of checklist of things to do for the year. Began with indoor cycling (RPM), Mountain Biking with PCC/Presidential, Road Riding with PCC Groups, Criterium Race In Shah Alam and Penang and Finally MyInterstate 780 km Journey from KL, Selangor, Perak and Penang.

Look forward to an exciting new year 2007

Chasing Shadows and Checklist

Don't know how to spend the weekend. Well, how about going around the Shah Alam Lake at about 35 to 40km/hr on a hot midday sun chasing a bunch of oldies on a mountain bike and a racer. Fortunately and unfortunately, that's what i just did that today in the Shah Alam Criterium - what was i thinking of.

Having registered myself in the morning in the Junior Veteran for the Mountain Bike and Racing Bike category, the feeling of regret starts to linger as I watched riders from MSN, Selangor, L2A, Terengganu and many other notable and strong veteran riders around the Klang Valley. Resigning to the fact that I had entered this to gain the experience and also to fulfil my checklist of things I wanted to do as part of my health therapy, I went along.


It was a good outing, and competition in some of the categories were extremely strong, we had a few crash outs. Few familiar guys that i saw crashing out (not of their faults, more caused my amateurs like me) were Adli and Shahrin.

What I found interesting/gratifying is that for a competition that you can register for free without any entrance fee in the morning by any individuals, the prizes and prize money can be extremely satisfactory.

Ah well, that nearly closes my riding calender for the year, having participated in PCC Mountain Biking event and this Road Race. Need to plan for next year though.

Ole' to this Girl

Give credit where credit is due. My fren Kimberley Yap, to me has done extremely well for the country and the context of it seems under scored by the media. She not only broke her personal record by more then 10 minutes but is faster then her fastest male counterparts by 3 minutes or more for the same triathlon distance.

I was so proud to see her leading the swimming leg and though she stumbled at the transition point and lost time to the Chinese athlete, she nevertheless had to endure the tactical play by the second Chinese athlete in the bicycle leg to finally finish a commendable 7th position. Knowing that she normally does a 61 minute leg for a 40km ride, she wud have been poise and a shot at the medal had it not been for that glitch.

Till her next Triathlon....well done Kimberley.

Absent-minded and Monkey Tanned

Retirement really wreaks havoc with ones mind. I am not as sharp as I should be and my mind must have been going to sleep most of the time. If it had not been for my buddy Jo***e, i won't be able to recover.

What is it with me and basement car parks?. Firstly, i "accidentally" lost my wallet in the basement parking of Menara Axis, rushing for my bicycle ride in taman Tun, and secondly "accidentally" lost my car in the basement parking of KLCC.

In relation to my lost wallet, my buddy managed to trace it back for me. However, in the case of my car, who would have thought that u can have the same brand of car parked beside u but on different floor and me searching for it on a different floor, panicked upon seeing the car and an empty parking slot, concluding that my car was lost. Ironically this same buddy also managed to calm and bring me to my senses so that I can look for my car ;)

Ah well, that was the week before i left for my Batu Arang ride. Went out with the PCC guys and also accompanying a new fren to road riding. She took the challenge of riding her mountain bike in this 88km run and surprised many seasoned riders. Though we did come back tanned except for the eye area and looked like monkeys after that ride, nevertherless an easy comfortable ride. Nice and beautiful scenery though. What a week............

PCC/Proton Presidential Ride - Sunday

The journey

Morning began with me picking up a fren Mantak from his abode in Subang Jaya. I later met up with Isaac at Sungai Way to convoy to Kajang Perdana where we reached at about 6:45 am. Parked our cars and assembled our bikes and gears. This photo is provided by Benny

The Flag off and Ride Format

There must have been more then 650 people (though 650 registered for the ride) at the Flagging off session. Familiar faces there were Kim, JT, Benny and Naeem (from the Kiara Geng), Ashley, Chloe, Stephanie Chok and Zeus (from the Fitness First Gym), Aidid and geng (from the FRIM ride) Valerie, Boon Foo and Lim (Bikepro) and Lim from KSH. Checkout the photo courtesy of Isaac and the one below by Benny.

The Ride consist of 4 Trails. The Trails mainly is design to satisfy rider who like the outdoor with a mix of mountain climbing, downhill ride, obstacles and cross country rides. Flag off was at 8:00 am and there was a stream of rider down the SILK highway before going to the first trail.

The Ride

Trail 1, I think is design to separate the fit riders and the unfit. Due to the masses of riders and the steep (some 50 degree climbs) hill, much of our times were spent pushing the bikes up hill becoz of congestion. This took out some wind and energy. There was also a downhill section where falls were inevitable. Ironically for someone who abhors danger, i think perhaps with the adrenalin pumping, i went thru almost all of these obstacles even down the 500m downhill section. Managed to finish Trail 1 at about 10:00 am and picked up our supplies of water and banana.

Starting Trail 2, JT, Kim, Naeem and me got off 5 minutes later but missed a flag and accidentally went to the "chicken Route" ie back to start. I had to double back to the Start of Trail 2 and lost 20 minutes in the process. Going up the Trail, managed to catch up with the pack consisting of Ashley, Chloe and Zues. We reached Checkpoint 2 at about 12:00 pm. Chloe and Zeus left for the Chicken Trail at this point as Zeus had to catchup with Class. I was quite lethargic at this point and hands were aching. I was quite lucky that I had not suffered cramps like many others do by the trails.

Left for Trail 3 with Stephanie and Ashley, and at this point I had made my biggest mistake of not taking enough water. 2 and half litre of water is not enough for hot midday sun and one of two toughest Trail and by kilometer 6 of the 16km Trail 3, I had already exhausted my water supply and just couldn't keep up with Ashley and Stephanie. The last 10km was the most enduring almost grueling of my life. Images of cartoons of me crawling in the desert and looking for water kept coming to mind. Good Samaritans I met, gave me what ever water they can spare for me to complete Trail 3. This is the most memorable trail I had ever had to endure. There was and almost vertical hill drops of about 30 feet and climbs and endless hill climbs with very technical trails through rubber trees. The fact that U do not know what challenges lies ahead plays havoc on your strength, mind and willpower. I reached checkpoint 3 after it was close and had to proceed back to the Start since the race is already finished.

Addendum and Errata: Here also is a cute video doneup by LingtheMerciless of the PCC ride. U can see some familiar faces here.

By the time we cycled back to the Start point, it was already 5 pm and everybody was about to leave. 8 to 9 hours of ride covering a distance of approximately more then 55km takes quite a toll on the body. I was shivering uncontrollably and quite lethargic by the time I reached my car. Only about 100+ riders finished the full 4 Checkpoint. I had to take 30 minutes of rest and soaking myself with 2 cans of Energy drink courtesy of Isaac and Jason before proceeding to pack my bikes and gears before heading off for home.

As if to greet my failure of non completion, the heavens open up and rain poured heavily closing what was a day of excellent weather. On hindsight, the day has been most memorable as what i set to do was to compete with myself. Nine month ago, i could not even climb a full flight of staircase without feeling breathless, now I could manage an approximate 50km of MTB. I'll be better prepared for next year and I look forward to next years challenge.

The aftermath

I am now suffering aches and pain on my wrist and knee perhaps due to long time spent on the bike and downhill. It is not as bad as I had anticipated though, nothing that Counterpain cannot cure. Now its time to clean the bike and the car, Ciao.