RTW 27.05.2010 - leisurely, and shooting

left is the right way, never ride on the highway (except for 200m in my case)

 

Went out early again today (hey, this is getting to be a good habit).

 

This morning's RTW was actually more of an impulse. I decided to do it only half an hour prior. The bike's ready from yesterday's RTW (lubed, tire pressure okay, etc.; but not clean!)
 

I brought along with me the camera to get some shots, seeing that I would go out early thus having ample time for a leisurely ride.

 

Like yesterday, the ride this morning was using the same route; this time no short cut at Kip Mart Masai. It turned out that the 'hill' was only psychological. Not that intimidating this morning. Heck, I felt ashamed to even call it a hill at all.

 

As a result of my leisurely ride and various stops to shoot photos, the ride was way longer than usual. One nice effect to this is that I didn't feel as tired.

 

Check out the photos I managed to shoot in here.

 

Stats today:
Out from home	0655	hours
Arrive office	0747	hours
Door-to-door	52	mins
Ride time	39'05"
Distance	12.51	km
Ave. speed	19.2	km/h
Max speed	36.5	km/h
Odometer	4184.6	km
Doggies	0
Mode	leisure,	knobbies

RTW 26.05.2010 - laluan asal dan hensem di pejabat

Alhamdulillah, minggu ni dapat lagi peluang berkayuh ke tempat kerja.

 

Pukul 6.30 pagi Umar dah bangun tersenyum-senyum kelat dengan bau masyam dia tu. Maka, mintak tolong Mak hantarkan Umar ke rumah babysitter, sebab memang pagi ni dah sedia nak berkayuh ke pejabat. Sebenarnya, dah sedia dari kelmarin lagi tapi tak kesampaian nak berkayuh semalam.

 

Hari ini aku dah pasang niat awal-awal untuk kayuh ikut laluan asal, seperti masa aku mula RTW. Berbukit sikit (sikit aje pun, tapi mengah lah juga), dan terasa jauh. Bukan apa, sebab pagi ni aku berjaya keluar dari pintu pagar rumah sebelum pukul 7. Jadi, kena manfaatkanlah.

 

Laluan asal ni adalah laluan yang selamat, sebab tak ikut jalan utama. Maka, tak banyak kenderaan yang ditemui sepanjang perjalanan. Tapi cabarannya ialah beberapa bukit, turun dan naik. Mula-mula bukit dari Seri Alam kawasan Suria tu nak ke belakang Balai Polis Masai, kiranya masuk ke Kg Baru Masai lah. Selepas dari Balai Polis tu turun bukit dan naik semula satu bukit menuju ke sekolah rendah. Lepas tu aku ikut jalan kat belakang Stesen Bas Masai. Naik satu bukit lagi kat sebelah stesen minyak Esso. Lepas tu jalan rata menuju Kip Mart Masai. Aku tak daya nak layan bukit lagi dah, pintas secara selamba depan Pak Pengawal di Kip Mart tu. Terus berkayuh ke Taman Bukit Dahlia dan layan satu lagi bukit menuju ke lampu isyarat simpang empat Masjid Jamik Pasir Gudang.

 

Kalau nak ikutkan, sepatutnya aku tak naik bukit ke simpang empat tu. Seharusnya melintas dari Taman Bukit Dahlia tuju ke Taman Mawar dan susur ke Sekolah Menengah Taman Mawar. Dek terbiasa, maka aku turunkan gear dan terus aje kayuh konsisten naik ke simpang empat tu. Boleh dikatakan konsisten, sebab bila aku jeling-jeling meter, ada lah dalam 20.4km/h. Kaki tak rasa sakit, jantung pun rasa tak terlalu kencang. Zikir jadi peneman untuk breath pacing, dan aku sampai ke atas tidak terlalu penat (penat tetap penat laa bang).

 

Aku sampai kat pejabat awal, dan boleh mandi-manda kat shower room dalam tandas dengan santai (taaakk, takde main-main buih bagai...).

 

Sekarang ni aku dah mula berpakaian hensem kat pejabat walaupun pergi kerja berkayuh. Pihak korporat dah tak benarkan pakai kemeja-t berkolar. Tiada masalah, sebenarnya, sebab masih boleh dipakai, tapi dengan berjaket di luar. Tapi tak apa lah, lagipun aku nak juga buktikan pada diri sendiri, masih boleh berkemeja di pejabat walaupun berkayuh. Orang lain boleh buat, aku pun boleh juga. Tak sesusah mana, sebenarnya. Cuma lagi hebat kalau dapat berkemeja dari rumah dan kayuh ke pejabat.

 

Tak, tak mungkin. Melainkan Pasir Gudang dah tak ada asap, dan badan aku tak berpeluh sakan masa berkayuh.

Jugak, kalau aku konsisten keluar dari rumah pukul 6.30 pagi. Bila lah tu...

 

Stats today:
Out from home	0654	hours
Arrive office	0732	hours
Door-to-door	38	mins
Ride time	35'12"
Distance	12.46	km
Ave. speed	21.1	km/h
Max speed	40.0	km/h
Odometer	4161.6	km
Good doggies	1
Mode	laluan asal,	knobbies

Terima kasih sudi berkunjung.

RTW 21.05.2010 - pancit

Alhamdulillah, bukan tayar yang pancit.

Pengayuhnya yang pancit.

 

Lama dah tak laporkan kayuhan RTW kat sini. Dok sebok berceloteh pasal benda-benda lain. Kadang-kadang tu bila RTW, meter tak set lah, lupa nak ambik stats lah, dan jugak alasan universal - malas....

:)

 

Menyedari cuma ada beberapa sesi kayuhan aje yang sempat dibuat menjelang kayuhan jambori kecil di FRIM nanti, maka cargaslah aku berkayuh pagi ni.

 

Semalam petang lepas kerja aku ambik semula rak belakang dari Yad, terus ke Plentong untuk bawak balik ke rumah hardtail tu ke Seri Alam. Dengan lumpur kering bercapuk kat sana sini (harap-harap tak bercalit tahi lembu segar) hasil penangan kayuhan malam + BBQ Cyclemotion tempohari, aku belasah aje gantungkan kat belakang kereta. Tapi bila bawak basikal kotor camtu, nampak otai siket la kan... Apa barang beskal offroad tapi berkilat bagai.

 

Sampai rumah aku terus cuci (err... pancut air je lebih kurang kasi buang lumpur). Pastu biar kasi kering siket sebelum parkir kat dalam rumah.

 

Pagi tadi Umar tidur elok aje, maka aku pun berpeluanglah nak RTW.

Alhamdulillah.

 

Punyalah lama aku tak RTW, rasa berat aje. Iye lah, tayar bunga satu hal, lutut sakit (siket aje) satu hal, buku lali (penyakit lama) sakit semula satu hal. Pastu pagi tadi baru lepas hujan, kelembapan udara terasa sedikit menyesakkan nafas.

 

Dah tu, aku pulak keluar rumah 7.11 pagi. Kira lambat lah tu, walaupun masih sempat nak sampai sebelum pukul 8.00. Terasa nak kayuh laju-laju konon nak kejar masa. Tapi tak boleh la kan, kena kayuh rilek-rilek. Rilek-rilek pun, 35 minit jugak dari pintu ke pintu. Kira laju jugak tu. Eh, tapi tak... aku ada ambik short cut siket. Bukan apa, kat jalan yang biasa aku lalu tu dari jauh aku dah nampak ada 4-5 ekor sekawan anjing dok jalan santai cari sarapan. Walaupun aku tahu diorang takkan ambik port pun kalau aku lalu sebelah diorang, tapi aku taknak ambik risiko. Dah lah tengah pancit, pastu jalan tu naik bukit (alah... siket je pun).

 

Sampai ofis dengan selamat, dan trafik pun tak sesak macam hari biasa. Ramai orang ambik cuti kah? Atau diorang ramai-ramai datang pukul 7.30 pagi tadi? Peduli apa aku...

 

Stats today:

Out from home	0711	hours
Arrive office	0746	hours
Door-to-door	35	mins
Ride time	32'42"
Distance	11.68	km
Ave. speed	21.3	km/h
Max speed	36.0	km/h
Odometer	4138.4	km
Good doggies	1
Mode	pancit,	knobbies

15.05.2010 - Offroad Plentong Night Ride + BBQ

An email from Azam of Cyclemotion came into my inbox last Wed; there’s a night ride being organized, plus barbecue after it.

 

One not to be missed, for sure. Me, I was not sure whether I could ride, though. It’s been quite some time since I last rode offroad. Also there’s the issue of my left knee and right ankle feeling a bit wobbly from the last 2 weekend’s volleyball games.

 

Eventually I went to Neo’s place that night, albeit 15 minutes late (gosh, I hate to be late). Well, I was there, with my bike well lubed, nicely set and squeaky clean from the morning’s scrubbing.

 

We rolled off at 9.07pm from Plentong into the darkness of the palm oil estate. It’s quite interesting how familiar terrain is completely different at night. Well, if your headlamp is bright as day, then you have a big advantage. Somehow, however, the enigmatic feeling is awesome. To some extent, of course. As long as you don’t meet a horrifying accident due to unseen gap or rut or fresh water channel from the day’s heavy rain.

 

We took multiple rests along the trail. Numerous punctures (different bikes, of course), and a few five minute breathers. One of them was at the Big Valley Ranch, before heading home. Izad and Ramesh ‘escorted’ a few others to get back to Plentong via Seri Alam on tarmac and Jalan Masai Lama – the chicken run. On the way back I felt a bit tired and was actually wondering why I didn’t follow them. Oh yes, ego that is.

 

We made it back to base, and the time on my cyclocomputer showed 1.00 am. No wonder it’s tiring, it was a 2-day’s ride man!

 

The smell of barbecued chicken wings greeted the hungry and tired riders at Neo’s. How befitting, the chefs on the grill were the chicken route riders ;)

 

I reloaded my carbs with fried mihun, some protein from the chicken wings, and some fat from the ‘gearbox’ stew (was it stew? Aahh… bedal aje). Rehydrated with cold orange-syrup drink. Topped it all with some bite size cakes, for extra energy to get back home. Gone were the calories burnt from the 4 hour ride in 20 minutes. Err.. could I say that was a balancing act?

 

I cycled for a few hundred meters to the house in Plentong and stored my bike there unwashed (bila laa nak basuh tu). Hopped in Reza’s Myvi for a ride back home in his car. Reached home 2.00am and went to bed after a warm shower.

 

Awesome ride, I must say. Not much singletrack, but I love how different a quite familiar trail is when the sun is at the other side of the earth. Kudos too, for the excellent food spread at the end of the ride. Perhaps this should be a monthly thingy. I strongly would agree to it. Just that I was a bit frustrated with my level of fitness. Won’t be riding this weekend, and the one after that. After that I’ll be riding in FRIM insyaAllah. Can I make it? Hope so. I’ll definitely have to train through RTW. On road with knobbies, for the extra punch (read: lazy to change the wheelsets).

 

The big question remains… bila nak basuh beskal ni?

 

Special thanks to Capt Neo and friends at Cyclemotion, the chicken run chefs, Reza and other riders with ultra bright lights.

 

Thanks for reading.

Have a nice day to you.

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6.6.10 - FRIM MTB Mini Jamboree

Green Cycle II 2010

 

It's advertised in BBS, and Dino too, sent me the link in his first line of chat a couple of days ago.

 

Interesting, indeed. Been quite some time since my last ride in FRIM.

 

I secured a loan bike this afternoon, that leaves a few things more need to be sorted out. I'm thinking of going up to KL by bus (yeah, been quite a while also since my last bus trip) and carry with me riding essentials, sans bike (read: cheap transport).

 

According to the organizer's site, entry closing is extended to 16th May. Ample time for me to register for the event.

 

I read somewhere that they are targeting at least 300 participants. At the time of typing, the number of registered riders has reached 148. Are you in?

 

Download the registration form here.

Trail info here. Yes, Steroid is included. I've never been to the helipad. Well, there's always a first time for everything, right?

 

See you there, insyaAllah.

 

Thanks for dropping by.

Have a good weekend riding in the woods (or palm plantations)!

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.