23.04.2010 Night Ride on road

Friday night Night Ride.

This is the second time I’m joining the guys in Pasir Gudang for their NR. The first time was their offroad, and this time on road (the usual). As the ride was confirmed by Panjang to be on road, I didn’t change the slicks on the wheelsets from the previous RTW. Advantage for me, then.

Hehehe…

 

I was a bit late going out, for I had to dig out the rear carrier rack from the storeroom, install it on the car, and hang my bike there securely. When I arrived, I had to park a bit far from the meeting point – quite a big crowd that night. Didn’t waste much time, I was on my feet and got ready. One thing I left out – my water bottle. Darn it. Bought a 600ml Revive from the nearby grocery store and got a few rubber bands to secure it on my frame bottle cage. Boleh lah…

 

We went out at about 9.45 pm. Rode to Taman Scientex roundabout, and headed towards Taman Cahaya Masai. A little bit of offroad and we went through to Kota Masai. Headed out to Tanjung Langsat via the long stretch. That’s where the fun began.

 

Panjang led us, and I followed near him at the back. Then suddenly he pulled up steadily. I drafted along. What pure bliss of speed, without as much effort. We reached 43 km/h at times, and that’s for quite some time. I didn’t feel quite as exhausted as I would, comparing that to my lone RTW sprints.

 

We went into Kota Masai (forgot which area), took a right and cut through the offroad to go up the E22 highway. Nice. My first time riding a bicycle on the new highway (or any other highway, for that matter…). Again, I rode in the front group. Kadafi, led and 5 of us packed behind him drafting merrily. Most of the time it was around 25 km/h, perhaps due to his 32T single front (with 9 on the rear).

 

At one section I went in front and took charge. Whoa! Such a big difference when you’re in front trying to pull up high speed (and maintaining it). Albeit, it’s a different kind of high. I think I didn’t lead for long, perhaps only for a few kilometers. A glance on the meter, it showed 43 km/h for quite some time.

 

We stopped at Shell station and recharged while having a rest. From Shell we took a back road and soon after we were in the darkness of Sungai Tiram en route to the dam. Not long after that we were back in Taman Scientex; and again, Panjang led the charge towards Kafe Ruza. Me, drafting while panting to keep up. My meter showed 40.78 km distance covered.

 

I enjoyed the ride enormously. Road riding at night with slicks, drafting, E22, and my odometer now passed the 4000 km mark. Simply fabulous.

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Why I RTW

RTW = Ride To Work

!caution: plenty of words below (1,175 to be exact), with no photos or fancy diagrams.

 

to justify the $

Oh yes, $ is the first factor :)

 

I spent quite a considerable sum (to my standard) for a pedal-powered two-wheeler. A 25 km ride over a weekend seems to be unjustified with the amount of dough and passion spent over it. Thus, to extract as much possible benefit, I make it a point to ride at least 2 days in a week to the office. That would easily make my odometer reading added about 50 km per week. Added with an offroad ride during the weekend (not on working Saturday weekend, though), it would make my total riding about 75km a week. Not much, but it's definitely better than having the bike idle sitting pretty in a showroom condition in the house for two weeks.

 

saves me some $

Af course, it would. Albeit, I don't really calculate it. That may come in a direct and indirect avenues. Directly, that means lesser $ spent on fuel. Yup, just fuel. No tolls in Pasir Gudang and no parking fee for my workplace parking space. Indirectly, $ saved (hopefully) would be on medical bills and gym. Okay, those don't actually qualify, as my company medical support is quite good; and I have never joined a gym. However, the maintenance of the bike and worn parts to be replaced may offset the measly amount of $ from the fuel saving (15km to and fro the workplace by car). So, no, in my opinion RTW does not really directly save me big $.

 

get the kilometers

I'm working on an alternate Saturdays basis. To be fair to the family at home, I'm restricting my offroad rides to only during non-working weekends. That means, blood donation, mud splattering (and perhaps proper bike wash after all that) are only on the first and third Sundays. So, if I'm consistent enough, that would make my total monthly riding about 250 km. Good enough, compared to 50 km of weekend-only offroad rides.

 

to satisfy the crave

Before RTW, I used to crave for bike rides (perhaps endorphin), so much so that I would go for weekday night rides. Of course, that's much to the dismay of the missus, and a quite lethargic feeling at the office the day after (unless if I RTW, to combat that - see below). There's still an urge within to go for night rides, though, as the feeling is different. However, it is not as bad as it was back then. I would be okay to stay at home if I couldn't ride with the guys (currently people in Pasir Gudang doing night rides every Friday), for I have enough kilometers from my RTWs.

 

one less car

If you're on your motor-powered vehicles along the Pasir Gudang Highway on a weekday morning towards Pasir Gudang, you'll be greeted with a couple of hundred meters traffic jam right before the entrance to MMHE. Ditto on the evening (5-7pm), towards Johor Bahru. You'll get stuck in a jam right after MMHE. Right now, there are more than 3,000 workers in the yard at any one time on a weekday. Thousands of motorcycles in the external parking area and in the yard. Hundreds of cars too. My in-yard motorcar parking privilege has ended last year, hence I have to park my car outside in the parking area. This, plus a 10 minute walk into the yard to the office.

 

RTW eliminates not only one car on the highway, but on the congested parking lot.

 

door-to-door transport

RTW provides the most delightful, walk-free transport. I don't have to walk from the parking lot to get to the office, rather cycling straight to the office building entrance. It's door-to-door commuting, literally. Okay, not really from the door of my house, but from the gate outside.

 

consistent journey time

It's quite a straightforward thing. My RTW would almost definitely ensure a consistent 40 minutes journey maximum, if there's no emergencies or accidents.In many occasion it's much lesser than that, particularly if I decided along the way to do it aggressively.

 

At first I thought the journey time would be affected by how early I get out of the house. A few minutes before 7 am would ensure a smooth ride, with lesser vehicles on the road. Ten minutes after 7 am, and I would face a heavy traffic. However, as the route is more or less regulated by traffic lights at a certain spots, it does not make much difference, time wise. Of course, I prefer to be early - not much smog along the way.

 

health

I can't really say that my health improves, for I did not measure it. However, my general wellbeing is taken care of. I had a period of weight loss for some time, but my colleagues and friends told me that I'm too skinny. Now I'm back to my normal weight of around 70 kg, and I'm feeling good.

 

exercise and peace of mind

It is also obvious that RTW provides me the exercise that I need. With the sweat (and odor), endorphin released and I get inner satisfaction. This translates to positive attitude in the office. Stress at work (if any) got released during the evening ride home.

 

'me' time

My RTW rides are quite solitary. I take the opportunity to be alone, just me and my bike gliding through the tarmac. It is also a good time for reflection, sometimes. Most definitely, as I don't use any ear-plugging device for music or such (solely due to safety reasons), it is filled with zikr. Albeit, I would sometime slip into humming a song playing in my head. Hmm...

 

no more instant coffee

I used to chug a mug of Nescafe if I'm feeling sleepy at the office, especially due to short of sleep the night before. Now, to combat that, is a refreshing RTW. I could manage to keep awake for the day provided that I have a short nap during lunch hour. The ride may be a bit slow at first, and the body is a bit tired; when I break sweat, however, the ride is as normal. Also, my stomach seems to reject Nescafe and coffee in general nowadays; while at the same time, I prefer tea.

 

patriotic

This one is a paradigm pointed out by fellow bicycle commuter, Azizan Fixie. I'm using lesser petrol, hence lesser subsidy from the government. I save some $, and hopefully it would be channeled to appropriate causes.

 

carbon footprint

I don't really calculate what's my carbon footprint. However, 2 days in a week without using the car for a total of about 40 km journey to and fro would certainly count into something. That's my contribution to the environment, no matter if it's small.

 

 

Ultimately, I RTW because I can.

Alhamdulillah, I hope this blessed bliss would continue for many more years to come.

 

With the support from Mak and Naza, it's doable. Thank you to you both!

 

Thanks for dropping by.

Have a nice ride.

11.04.2010 Seri Alam Offroad: MMHE > 1/3

aerial view of the lake, taken aboard Kuching-Senai flight last Thursday.

15 riders, including me. 6 from MMHE altogether – that’s more than one-third of the pack, a good sign. Perhaps MMHE could send a respectable number of contingent for this year’s Petronas MTB Jamboree. Yad, however, didn’t turn up (woi der, bila nak start kayuh offroad lepas kawen ni?). He told me that approval for ride permit could not be obtained. Err… welcome to the world, man. On the other hand, Mlake the newlywed did turn up after a very long hiatus.

Panjang decided to start the ride coming in from Flora Heights; and so I met them there, atop the hill on the tarmac. Quite an effort on my side, I must say, tackling the hills en route to FH. Luckily I went out early, so I could get a few minutes of rest before joining the rest of the riders coming from Nusa Damai. Among the riders was a newbie, Hj Mat from MMHE with his T-Bolt. Quite a delight to see more and more of MMHE folks taking up mountain biking, I’m smiling inside.

We went into the rubber estate up a mild ascent which continues for quite a distance. A mandatory rest atop the hill followed, before bombing down the rodeo. As soon as I stopped for a rest, my exposed skins (arms and calf) swarmed by a hoard of mosquitoes. Blood donation drive, there (and every stop elsewhere too). After a few minutes of rest, we continued down the rodeo. Moving on, almost everyone went down the steep and short ledge (Zaid, kau masih belum lepas lagi kan?). To tell the truth, I hesitated at first. In the end, I positioned my butt way back and tackled it nicely.

We went to the usual landmarks, but only for a brief stop at each place – Mashi Maro, Badminton.

9 of us went to the lake, while Panjang went back early, for he didn’t feel quite well. Ehm ehm, there were also 5 others who went out with him, as ‘escorts’. Quite a disheartening view at the lake, seeing it further depleted. You can see in the photo above, it’s the greyish section of the lake – left fork on the 5^th 4th finger from the right. We didn’t stop for long, as it is quite a dumb thing to loiter around under the hot sun. Anyway, that’s the only stop where mosquitoes weren’t present.

Went out at Seri Alam, near the horse ranch at about 12 noon. I cycled home early that day much to the delight of my missus. And, the bike’s not so dirty, so I parked it in the house nicely without any cleaning necessary.

:D

Oh, I got a medal on my left thigh, from a fall. I have this nagging problem of tackling the snaking rut on one of the sections. Need to improve on that. Luckily I didn’t fall on the nearby stump.

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04.04.2010 - Seri Alam Offroad in the rain

Last Saturday after cutting the grass (or is it lalang?) I spent some time cleaning up both bikes - the missus' and mine. Plus the slicks wheelset that I use for my RTW. Well, not the whole bike, just the drivetrains.

 

Cleaned up the chain on the bike (a bit lazy to take it off for a full cleaning job), and cassettes too. Two chains and 3 cassettes. Lubed them up, and stood back to admire the gleaming drivetrain. Whole lot of fun.

 

The Area A3 (Kluang, Seri Alam, Pasir Gudang & YPJ) Div.A District 51 International Speech & Table Topics Contest was supposed to be on last Sunday, but postponed to 11th April. And so, I was rearing to go for offroad last Sunday, since I could procrastinate another week of speech prep and practice (aiyah... sure kalah one, like that).

 

SMSed Panjang on Saturday evening to check if he'll be riding offroad, but went unanswered until early morning on Sunday. The message tone from my phone was accompanied by the melody of the rain outside. It was about 6.40 am; still early to discount the ride cancellation possibility.

 

Yad, my office mate (a newlywed who had been putting off cycling offroad for quite some time due to ehm ehm), SMSed me asking if the ride is on. I told him Seri Alam is still raining, and I sensed that the bed is more appetizing than the ride with that kind of weather for him, that morning.

 

I hoped and prayed (while Naza was smiling as she snuggled on the bed fluffing my pillow besider her) that the rain would stop and daddy could go out and play. A series of SMS with Panjang and Yad later, I decided to stay at home. Err... in bed, more accurately.

:)

 

With the laziness of a Sunday, the comforting symphony of the rain, and the somewhat bright but cloudless sky, it's a reminiscence of the days in Manchester (yes, it's raining practically every day over there).

 

The prospect of cleaning again the drivetrain (of course, not the whole bike!) from mud, dirt and whatever-you-may-have, plus the possibility of grinding to zero my precious brake pads put me off the thoughts of riding offroad in the rain that day.

 

So I went back to bed lah.

Mahalnya!

Masa aku dah start boleh kayuh basikal waktu kecik-kecik dulu, waktu tu zaman BMX tengah popular. Tak terdaya nak beli basikal sendiri, sebab harga $200 (masih guna simbol $, Anwar Ibrahim belum tukar jadikan RM) untuk BMX Skyway bagi seorang budak darjah tiga masa tu amatlah besar. Berapa banyak Lego boleh dibeli tu.

Kenapa Skyway? Entah, mungkin sebab keratan rentas batang kerangka dia bentuk 'diamond' agaknya. Sakit punggung kalau tumpang duduk membonceng dengan kawan (harapnya orang takkan tumpang duduk). Agak unik juga lah, bentuk batang kerangka sebegitu. Apa kelass kalau batang kerangka jenis bulat, kan.

Kira-kira kalau kumpul seposen sehari, maunya ambil masa 5.5 tahun nak kumpul. Boleh la, seposen dari lima posen duit belanja harian. Ikat perut siket. Tapi itu kalau masuk Sabtu & Ahad, cuti umum dan cuti sekolah; mana ada dapat duit belanja sekolah pada hari tak sekolah, kan. Duit raya pulak masuk tabung. Jadi, senang cerita, lima posen sehari digunakan sepenuhnya di kantin sekolah.

:P

Namun itu tak bererti kita tak boleh berangan. Maka aku pergi lah jugak jenguk-jenguk antara kedai basikal tersohor kat KL masa tu, Kedai Basikal Sum Ming. Kedainya masa tu kat Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, kat belah belah panggung Coliseum. Sum Ming ni siap ada team BMX, bukan calang-calang juga. Kalau diorang masuk race Hari Wilayah kat Taman Tasik Titiwangsa, memang ada aje lah rider team lain yang makan pasir (BMX takde asap. Pasir? Err... pasir trek).

Terkejut aku tengok, kat dalam kotak tersergam kemas crankset Shimano untuk basikal racing (sekarang-sekarang ni orang panggil 'road bike') dengan harga selamba $250. Mak aii... harga barang aje dah lebih dari harga basikal idaman. Masa tu, Shimano aje lah brand yang up siket, yang kitorang tahu.

Tapi itu dulu... masa aku tak berapa faham tentang prestasi. Dah budak-budak kan, asal dapat kayuh aje dah kira sedap la tu. Tambah pulak bila tak ada basikal sendiri. Dan masa tu minda pun masih budak-budak lagi, belum disogokkan dengan ini:

Keith Bontrager kata "Strong, Light, Cheap... pick 2".

Maknanya, kalau nak basikal yang kuat dan ringan, tak murah. Kalau nak basikal murah dan ringan, tak kuat. Macam basikal-basikal kat Giant tu lah. Err... Giant supermarket, bukan brand Giant. Kalau nak basikal yang murah dan kuat, tak ringan lah. Ada betulnya, dan aku tambah lagi: kelancaran mekanikal, cantik, bergaya, dan (mungkin) tahan lama.

nota: basikal kat supermarket biasanya berat, tak kuat dan murah.

Lepas tu, masa aku makin membesar dan membaca lebih sikit dari waktu budak-budak, ada terjumpa kata-kata dari Confucius:

"Cheap thing no good, good thing no cheap".

Tentunya Confucius tak berkata-kata dalam Bahasa Inggeris, tapi kita fahamlah kan maksudnya tu. Kalau aku letak kata-kata tu dalam bahasa Cina, aku pun tak faham juga. Lagipun nampak macam cantik siket bila letak dalam Bahasa Inggeris dengan telo Cina.

:)

Lepas tu pulak aku belajar lagi, dalam kejuruteraan. Adalah sikit-sikit belajar pasal rekacipta, pembuatan, dan sebagainya. Maka fahamlah sikit sebanyak tentang prosesnya. Agak rumit dan perlukan masa yang lama. Kalau masa itu emas, maka kos untuk keluarkan produk yang bagus agak tinggi. Kalau nak masa yang singkat, senang aje. Beli masa. Maknanya, tambahlah pekerja. Natijahnya, memang kena keluarkan kos yang tinggi. Tambah pulak untuk produk yang inovatif dan pioneer.

Jadi sekarang ni aku dah faham tentang mengapa harga crankset tu macam tu (dan jugak mengapa kedai basikal jual kerangka sahaja; tapi itu untuk cerita di lain hari). Aku jugak dah pernah naik basikal yang murah dilengkapi komponen yang 'asal boleh'. Rasanya memang berbeza. Dan itulah yang kita bayar.

Orang putih-putih (kata abang aku) ada berkata-kata: "You get what you pay for".

Sekarang-sekarang ni kalau ada antara kawan-kawan aku yang tersenyum sinis bila aku kata basikal aku harga RMxxxx (empat digit tu), aku pun turut senyum juga lah. Kalau diorang nak tanya kenapa mahal macam tu, aku sedia huraikan. Kalau diorang nak bandingkan harga basikal aku dengan harga motor, silakan. Tapi tak logik lah kalau basikal yang jauh lebih bagus daripada basikal kat supermaket dibandingkan dengan kapcai aje kan. Kurang-kurang pun, taraf Ninja jugak tu.

Walaubagaimanapun, jom Ahad ni bawak masuk kapcai kau; kita layan offroad kat Plentong.

bicycle on Microsoft Clip Art

If you're doing posters or flyers for cycling event using Microsoft Office, consider using clip arts as the stock image/icon/vector graphics.

Here's the link for my search on 'bicycle' in Microsoft Office Online clip art. It returned 31 pages of 12 clip arts featuring all sorts of bicycles, although included in the set are 3 motorbikes (appahalll... bicycle wannabes?).

Other uses include as a temporary image/avatar for bike forum membership, or even facebook. Just don't use them as a 'bike for sale' photo for your BBS ad.

Amri's First Offroad

Introducing my elder brother Amri.

 

He was in Seri Alam last weekend with his family and my parents for a relative's wedding in Bandar Penawar (Saturday) and Taman Pelangi (Sunday).

 

I invited him to ride offroad with me in Seri Alam, while he's here. And he's up for it. So he brought along his helmet, bag (with patches, patch kit and multi-tool ready), and shoes. Naza and I offered him the Diamondback as his ride.

 

I woke up a bit late that Sunday morning, and rushed to do a few things. I went to Osman to get take-away roti canai for the family's breakfast, while he's at home stuffing Innova with our bikes and riding paraphernalia.

 

8:00 am we arrived in Ruza Taman Scientex for our breakfast. He went for his, while I was busy setting up our rides. Only after that I took my breakfast of nasi goreng with fried egg and warm Milo all devoured in 5 minutes time. Should've asked the girl at the restaurant to blend my breakfast + Milo - easier for me to slurp it up while riding towards Flora Heights.

 

Yup, we went offroad from FH, with 14 other riders that morning. Amri's knees gave way during the climb, and so he TnT (turun and tolak) all the way up. I chaperoned him and kept his company.

 

After FH, we went on another mild climb in the rubber plantation until the stop before going down the rodeo downhill. Another TnT for my bro, and another slow ride for me. Along the route, however, when it's a mild downhill, I sped up :). I don't know how long it took to regroup with the others, but I'm sure the guys are having a good time resting after the climb (while donating blood, of course).

 

We went into various terrains - uphill, downhill, singletracks, wide paths, rocky trail, rubber plantation, palm oil plantation, and a visit to the lake. Also, to the usual stops - Mashi Maro and Badminton. Quite comprehensive, and it would be even better if we have a waterfall too!

 

Among the riders are also Wahid of MR MoBiC who came all the way from Melaka. It's always a pleasure to have people from outside our locality to join the rides. Anyway, the trails are not that unfamiliar to him, for he rode with us here before this. It was in March last year. Hmmm... seems like an annual excursion, eh...

 

Amri and I went out at Seri Alam's Big Valley Ranch at around 12.30pm. We pedaled home straight away, with the idea of fetching the car at Taman Scientex later on. Reason being, we are to leave for the wedding reception after zuhr. Of course, yours truly was a bit exhausted as well. Have to admit that.

 

For me, it's quite a nice ride. Especially as I have not ridden the trails in March at all. Much more, is the presence of my brother.

 

To Amri, jangan serik. Lain kali join kayuh lagi...

 

Ride photos are here.

 

He ain't heavy... he's my brother

Lyrics here

 

 

 

 

Rad (1986)

Perhaps the best BMX movie I've ever watched (all three of them, including Roda Roda, a Malaysian movie) during my primary school years. Someone from my neighbourhood was able to get the VHS tape (plus located the player), and we gathered to watch the actions in awe. To me, especially the backflip that the main character practiced at home (and failed many times, of course) and executed well in the race.

What's nice to see during those time was that in the US, they already have proper dirt track for BMX races on the hill, flowing through trees and rocky sections much like XC trails. This, of course is to compare it with the BMX track at Taman Tasik Titiwangsa for races on Hari Wilayah (those were the days, my friends).

It'd be rad to have a copy of the official DVD. If they are to release it.

Help 'em.

Info from Wikipedia here.

Info from fast-rewind here. Ignore the last sentence. Like BMX, mountain bike will never fade.

On a side note, Premium Rush is a movie I'm looking forward to, due 2011.

poster taken from the bring back page

Tire Bag

What: Dimpa, transparent storage case from Ikea (I call it the Ikea spare tire bag).

Price: used to be about RM10, at the time of writing it's RM12.90.

Usage:

1. as a storage bag for spare wheelsets

2. as a storage bag for spare wirebead tires

3. as a cargo bag for wheelsets to put inside the car

 

Keep your store room neat. Put your wheelsets, rims or tires in the spare tire bag. The size is quite right for a pair of mtb wheelsets, although you may find that at times you would have to squeeze them in a bit.

 

If you store both your front and rear wheelsets together, you might want to consider putting a rag or foam between them to protect the skewers, cassette and spokes from rubbing each other during handling. Otherwise, you can have dedicated bags for front and rear wheelsets.

 

If, like me, you prefer to carry your bike in the car rather than using the rear rack, you can use the bag to stow your mud laden wheelsets in the bag and put them on the back seat or in the bonnet. Note that the mud's there not necessarily after offroad ride, it may present before the ride (lazy to wash, from last weekend offroad).

 

For the bike, perhaps you can use Frakta tarpaulin to put cover your car backseat as a liner.

 

Alternatively, for the bag, you can get quite the same item from Tesco stores. Look for it on the DIY aisles. Don't be surprised if you find other familiar Ikea items on their racks as well.

 

photo taken from Ikea Malaysia website

A Chance Meeting

With the family on tow, I went to Senawang yesterday for Yad's wedding this afternoon. Sorta killing three birds with one stone. The other agenda is balik kampung to my mother's place in Seremban Jaya (technically still in Senawang), and to pay a visit to Jeffree's bike shop at Taman Seri Pagi.

Actually there's nothing else for me to look for at a bike shop, buy hey, if I don't ride, I write. If I don't write, the bike shop I go to (macam banyak duit). Just browsing through, a few things caught my interest. Particularly, the Specialized Sirrus on display. Immediately I noticed that it's a commuter bike, with ergonomic grips (winged for the outer palm) and rigid fork with threaded hole for pannier rack. I didn't notice the suspension seatpost as stated in the specs on the website, though. At RM1680, it's a nice bike for RTW (and touring) it seems, with the sexy curvy top tube to boot... hmm...

While in the shop, Jeffree came up to me and said "Akmal tengok tengok dulu ya, saya ada kerja sikit nak buat". He remembers me by name! What a guy. Then shortly after three guys came in and were talking to Jeffree about a biking accident. I was not paying attention to what they were talking aboutTh, until suddenly someone said "tanya lah Man CIOCC ni... bla bla bla". Hey, wait. Man CIOCC is a follower of this blog. I extended my right hand to Man and said "Akmal". He replied, "akmal bike park?". He he... another face now attached to a familiar name. No camera at hand. If not, I would have another photo with my blog follower for my collection.

He was surprised I was in Senawang, when he learned that I live in Masai. Well, I'm sursprised to see him in Senawang too, as Man's house is in Bangi! So we spent some time chatting in the shop. Truly a chance meeting, I'm glad I went to the bike shop yesterday.


And man... that Sirrus is haunting.

Firsts - a note to self

Note to self:
My first mountain bike is a 24 speed Polygon Xtrada, bought second hand in August 2007 during my short stint in KL.
My first offroad (it was at FRIM) was on Deepavali 2007 (November) .
My first offroad in Pasir Gudang was on Sunday, 6th January 2008.
I first started my RTW on Saturday, 12th July 2008.

LTdL 2010

Le Tour de Langkawi 2010 | 1st - 7th March

Two things amiss:

1. Langkawi is not part of the tour
2. What's with the event name in French?

What's wrong with 'Jelajah Langkawi' or 'Jelajah Semenanjung Malaysia', for the sake of logic.

Bahasa Melayu is not good enough for the world stage?

Also, people are quite surprised there's no criterium in KL this time.

Cateye Mity 8

I lost my trusty meter during last Sunday's offroad outing in Seri Alam.

How's that for a nice excuse to get myself a new one. Yay!

Thinking that it would serve a few purpose, so I went ahead with it. To be honest, it was not really with much thinking, actually.

Anyway, it means:

1. A newer design than my Velo 8.

2. Hopefully better features.

3. A spare magnet for my RTW wheelset with slicks.

It was purely by chance that I ended up with Cateye Mity 8 (CC-MT400). Well, it's no accident that it's a Cateye, since I wanted it to be compatible with Velo 8's bracket and sensor. I've more or less narrowed down my choice to either Enduro 8 or Mity 8. I made a few calls that Sunday afternoon, and most shops are selling at about RM85. Surprisingly, Velo 8 is priced at RM80.

I went to the bike shop in Masai to send Marsya's front wheelset for repair. They have a Mity 8 (the only Cateye meter in the shop), and after haggling with the owner, I managed to get it for RM80. Not too bad. No need to burn fuel to Skudai or Tampoi. No need to wait for a few days if through BBS. And best of all, it's priced the same as Velo 8 - although I would be happier if it's not more than RM70.

Spent an hour to understand the functions of Mity 8 through the included manual. The difference with Velo 8 is that this one does away with the calorimeter (not of much use to me, by the way). Other new functions are dual trip distance and dual tire setting. Both are perfect for my RTW/offroad rides.

With dual distance, I could set the distance for my RTW to and from the office. With dual tire setting, I could set it for the two wheelsets I'm using - one for slicks (26/1.6") and another for knobbies (26/2.1").

Another plus: I could set the odometer manually. Currently continuing at 3500 km mark (my rough estimate of my dear 'ol Velo 8's reading).

I have to note here also that Cateye has improved the meter bracket for handlebar (no more using cable ties) and the sensor bracket for fork leg mounting. Much better than the Velo 8's.

Well, it proved to be a good buy in many aspects. Just that this morning I went out RTW without installing the new extra magnet on my slicks wheelset. Duhh!

Night Ride: Offroad Seri Alam - Plentong

19.02.2010 - Friday

Panjang et. al. have been doing NR around Pasir Gudang on Friday nights for a few weeks already. I joined them for the first time last Friday, thanks for things being in order at home. The other factor is that that Saturday is a non-working day for me.

I phoned Panjang half an hour before they start rolling from the RV point in Nusa Damai. He told me to use knobbies instead of slicks, for we are going offroad. Due to lack of time, I decided to wait for them at Seri Alam.

At the back of my mind, I thought we were to go only a short distance offroad. Heck no, we went offroad all the way from Seri Alam to Plentong! Return route was via Jalan Masai Lama on tarmac. I went with them to the restaurant in Seri Alam near Atuk's residence for a drink, and then only we part ways.

Two things:

One - what a nice different atmosphere! Totally different experience, although we went through familiar routes.

Two - the headlamp I got from BC Kelolo is simply awesome. Retailing at RM45, uses 3 AAA batteries, it lit up the trail very well. So much so that I was unofficially nominated to be the sweeper. It lasted for a good one hour and a bit more on the batteries using low power.

Kadafi, Yad: korang takde masa tu. Best gile (sebab offroad NR, bukan sebab korang takde).

Jamboree MTB Jasin 2010

What: Jamboree MTB Jasin 2010

When: Sunday 2nd May 2010, 0900 hrs

Where: Stadium Jasin, Jasin, Melaka

Fee: RM50 (before 2nd April), RM60 (2nd April onwards)

Ride description, taken from http://www.mbikejbc.co.cc/2010/02/jamboree-mtb-jasin-2010_18.html:

Jarak laluan untuk program ini adalah dianggarkan sejauh 50 kilometer dan lokasi laluan ini adalah meliputi lima ( 5 ) rupabentuk mukabumi ( Laluan Jalanraya / Ladang Getah / Ladang Kelapa Sawit/ Taman Perumahan / Kawasan Kampung ) di kawasan sekitar Pekan Jasin yang meliputi Kampung Air Barok, Kampung Kesang, Kampung Kesang Pajak, Kampung Kemengkang, Felda Tun Ghafar Baba Kemendor, Kampung Seri Kesang, Kampung Orang Asli Gapam II, Kampung Bukit Katong, Kampung Rim, Jasin Height dan Stadium Jasin.

Secara teknikal, Program ini bukanlah berbentuk pertandingan tetapi lebih kepada acara ' cross country ' yang memberi peluang kepada para peserta untuk menjelajah laluan yang telah ditetapkan dalam tempoh masa selama lima (5) jam.

For more info, go here: http://jasinjamboree-mbikejbc.blogspot.com/

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One good reason for me to go back to Jasin (after a long, long time).

Perhaps I could spare some time to visit the school, too.

Shahnaz, Zul Hess, you're up for it bros?