Monsoon Ride

At last, the long waited east coast ride.
This year, I ended my cycle tour riding the east coast of Malaysia. Initially, the plan was to ride during the month of October, before the monsoon season. Some fellow riders insisted to ride during the school holiday. I have no problem with that, as long as they are willing to ride in the rain, I said. True enough, we had to endure five hours of drizzling and occasional drench along the LPT (Lebuhraya Pantai-Timur) to Jabor. The ride started around 3am. According to the hiway officials, we were not allowed to ride the LPT during the night time, but since our transportation had engine troubles, they had to allow us to ride the LPT. We reached Jabor interchanged at 11pm, so had lunch.
Everybody was so hungry that we took quite a heavy meal of nasi campur.

With heavy stomach, we had to ride slow. Still had another 20km to Pantai Cherating. That's where decided to stay for the night. We spent the night at Little Bali. I shared the challet with my friend, Billie. All of us took three chalet and shared. As for today, the ride was a bit memorable, had to ride in the rain for five hours without proper preparation. Another valuable lesson learned, ALWAYS EXPECT THE WORST. For me, I rather ride in the rain, rather in the hot sun. We only had one bottle of mineral water each, for 90km ride, imagine that. And as for Billie the rain has caused him to cut his ride short. The stitches to his old injury has re-open. He decided to return to Kuala Lumpur by bus the next day.  

Ready for 2nd day ride. well, except Billie, had to return to KL

The second day ride was fun, as it was clear day, not much of sun. Billie is taking the bus to KL at 1130hrs. After a brief goodbye, we continued the ride to Kuala Terengganu. It was friday, so we had to stop during the Friday prayers at Pantai Kemasik. Then continue the journey. Everybody was enjoying the ride so we travel really slow, too slow in fact we did not reached Kuala Terengganu on the second day. Had to stayed at a chalet just 30km away from Kuala Terengannu.

Yup that's how happy we were, thus the slow ride.

Tour Ride to Mersing Day 1

Before the month of Ramadhan, we decide to ride to Mersing. Initially our plan was to ride to Kuantan, but that was when there are 6 of us, since only three riders manage to get leave from work, so we decide a much shorter route. So Mersing it is. The lucky three were, myself, Ajeeb and Atan. This is Ajeeb's first touring ride. So he was pretty much excited of what lays up ahead.

Yup, Ajeeb pondering his suffering to come.

All of us started our ride from home, as for me, I started at Gombak, my father's house. Meet up Ajeeb at Kg. Baru and we head to Pandan Indah to rendeavous with Atan. He had an errand to do first so we had to wait for him. At 2300hrs Atan arrives and we are off to my house in Semenyih. Riding during nite time to my house is quite enjoying for me, as I am used to it. For Ajeeb, it will be his first, Atan have rode to my house twice. So, not much of a problem for him. Distance from Gombak to my house is around 70km. We'll rest for a while and continued the ride at 0500hrs.

hope my wife will not see this picture..

My humble abode.. yup yup. while the others are resting, sleeping more likely, last minute check for the ride keeps me awake. Normally I could not sleep if I am to ride in the morning. Since Atan assured me that he can wake me up, so I catch a shut eye for 2 hours. Waking up at 5am, Ajeeb wakes me and Atan. At 0530hrs, averything is settled, and we are off. Starting off early so that we dont have to endure the hills of Bukit Mendum and Bukit Tangga to Kuala Klawang when the sun is up. My last experience riding those hills, made me think twice before I do the same mistake again. As for this tour ride, these are the only excrutiating hills that we will encounter, the rest are just rolling hills. It was 0600hrs when reached Pekan Lenggeng, still dark, a quick photo session was in order. Riding through few kampungs, from my house to Pekan Lenggeng we had the road to ourselves. No shops are opened yet, so had to take breakfast at Pekan Kuala Klawang.

Bukit Mendum, as I called it, because that's the name of the kampung we past to climb our first painful climb. The climb was steep enough, when you descend, your speedometer tags at 80kmph, imagine that. Passing Hutan Lipur Lenggeng, sure enough, photo session. Yup.

The climb to Kuala Kelawang turn out to be quite enjoying, Bukit Tangga is so kind that when we climb, it was still fogging cold. The view well, we had to enjoyed it because we stopped quite a lot to take pictures.
At 0900hrs, we reached the peak of Bukit Tangga and its still fogging. It was a 7km climb all the way to the welcoming signboard. Next, a 3km descend and 10km flat road to Pekan Kuala Kelawang.

As for Ajeeb, the climb was quite challenging, had to ease his mind that this is the only steep climb that we had to go through for this ride to Mersing. Atan, well.. his picture tells his story.

Arriving Pekan Kuala Kelawang, we had our breakfast, it was 1030hrs, so all of us are hungry. I had lontong, extra egg and two ice milo. As the sun starts to heats up, we decide to take a half hour rest before heads to Pekan Pertang and Simpang Pertang. After breakfast, we stroll around Pekan Kuala Kelawang. Ajeeb got himself a stand for his bike, I bought sunglass as I forgot mine.

Pekan Pertang is small, so we decide to pass by. As entering Pekan Simpang Pertang, my chainwheel broke off. The only bikeshop did not had a 9speed chain ring, so had to use Atan's chain connector. Lucky me.

The shop owner is very helpful, that he tried calling all of his suppliers and other bikeshop asking whether they had a 9speed chain ring, and if possible to send it over. Had to connect the chainwheel myself, as the shopowner is busy making phone calls. It is expected that a kampung bike shop dont have much high end spare parts, its just an excuse for us to rest for a while at his bikeshop though. From Pekan Kuala Kelawang to Pekan Simpang Pertang took us about 26km ride in the sun, so taking long breaks is expected.

Leaving Pekan Simpang Pertang, we noticed a signboard of a homestay, so we decided to check it out. My earlier plan was to stay the night at Bandar Tun Razak, but the homestay is much closer.

When we reached Felda Serting Hilir 2, where the homestay is at, the office was already closed. Remembering that I had a friend there, I decided to call Sham who then informed me that Hadi his nephew is staying at Felda Tembangau, next to Felda Serting. Lucky me.. again.

We meet up Hadi at PULAPAH, and he directed as to his house at Felda Tembangau 1. Yess.. we are saved for the day.

The stay was memorable, of course lerr... free stay and meals.. what more could you asked for when you tour ride. Otherwise we be staying in a surau at Felda Serting Hilir. What can I say on my first day.. LUCKY ME.. YEH BEBEH..

Ride up to Cameron Highland

Yup.. the yellow jersey is a girl, Jun. Zol, her boyfriend trained her for three months for her to prepare for this tour ride. For her, she was on her way to work, as she had a business meeting at Cameron Highland. Can't imagine her boss's face when he found out that she rode her bike to Cameron Highland.

Its been a while since I last updated my blog, but again, all good things came last. Ever since my last tour ride, I've been lobbying for new tour partners. Yup yup, manage to convince few riders to take up the challenge of touring ride. Glad to see there are lot of riders who are interested in touring rides.The only constraint that they encounter is trying to get leave from work, so weekend ride is the best option.

Cameron Highland, ahh.. yes.. the climb, normally not my best choice of places to ride, but when you tour ride, speed is not in your mind. The view, the company, and the experience, is all that matters. and the result... the smiling face with the background view to match, like the photo below is all what's its all about,

Yeh Bebeh..

I was supposed to start my ride from KL, unfortunately waking up early was not my thing.. so My fellow riders start off without me at 0600hrs that morning. Waking up at 1030hrs, I call Zol, and informed me that they were at Rawang. I told them to proceed without me on the first day, and I will join them at Pekan Tapah the next day. So I had to take the train to Tapah. Had to ride to Rawang Rail Station, because KL sentral did not allow bicycle to enter their premise. Took the 2100hrs train to Tapah Road Station. Reached Tapah Road Station at 2330hrs, after assemblying my Speciliazed bike, head for the nearest stall for a late dinner. From Tapah Road Station to Pekan Tapah, had to ride for 10km to reach Pekan Tapah. They were staying at Hotel Utara.

Ahh.. the official photo to show off the agony and suffering of climbing Cameron Highland. 1045hrs, is considered as late a start, but again, remembering the breakfast we had, we joyfully embraced the sun's heat.

After a 10km flat road, we started to climb. Pretty much reminds me the climb of Genting Sempah though. Riding with your helmet mounted on your handle bar, and showing off your belly was not advisable, but then again, our pace was slow as we tried not to get separated from the group.

Reached Lata Iskandar at 1500hrs, time for lunch. Late lunch though, since it was the only stops that we make that had shops.

Lata Iskandar did not changed much since my last visit in 1993. Yup.. that long ago.

Tasik Kesuma to Melaka

My house at Bandar Tasik Kesuma, Semenyih,

This will be my second time I tour ride to Melaka. New  fellow riders has taken up interset to tour ride, so as fellow rider, I willingly join the ride.

We start a bit late, as usual. Then Zul had to turn back to my house as he forgets his gloves. its ok cause he's a strong rider so he can catch up. 15 minutes of riding we reached the Negeri Sembilan Border. Yup thats short ride from my house. 

The weather was fine, a bit hot though in the morning, but we are not concerned very  much as we had ample time to reach Melaka. Thus, a lot of stops to enjoy refreshments. Most of the riders are seasoned riders, so tour ride will be fun. 

Reached the town of Seremban at 1130hrs. Stopped for a while to enjoy the local color. Well not very much though, as we were resting at Dataran. So a lot of  traffic. 

Heading out of Seremban, the trunk road is a bit tight especially for cyclists, so had to break group. Stronger riders ride up front, while the rest pair in two. 

As usual, a stop such as cendol is a must. the waiter is quite entertaining as he pantun most of the times. The thing when riding with a group is that you tend to waste a lot of time waiting for other fellow rider getting ready to get on the saddle and continue riding. and the set back will be that you loose a lot of precious riding time. The route past Seremban town would be more hazardous as the side table is narrow and it is considered as a busy road, especially for travellers who tries to avoid paying toll. Had lunch at pekan Pedas. the sun is getting a bit hot so we take a long rest, again.
its ok though, cause we seems to considered time as not of the essence, as long as every riders arrive at our destination i.e Melaka safe, that is more important. Nearing Alor Gajah I began to feel a bit fatigue. Maybe because not enough rest last night. so, I began to fall behind and ride as slowly as possible. Riding along AMJ highway heading towards Melaka town, can be a bit boring. I think this is the only highway where there are a lot of traffic lights.  Most of the riders have reached Melaka town around 2030hrs, and me, I arrived two hours later with Atan who accompany me. After dinner, Zul and Jun checked in into a hotel. While the rest of us decided to camp out at Pantai Puteri. For me when you ride touring, as far as possible try to economize your travel. Besides, I prefer to camp out because I dont have to worry about check out time. I control my time.

The next day, we ride back to Kuala Lumpur. and took the coastal road heading to Port Dickson. Quite a quite road heading to Sungai Udang, and had lunch there. Arriving at Pengkalan Balak, which is Faezal's hometown, we decide to stroll around for a while.

Nearing Faezal grandmother's house, had a little accident. Faezal, who at the moment just as trying to reach his handphone, ride across a road hump, and causes him to loose balance and fell of his bike. Suffering from cracked bone finger, he cannot continue his ride. So had to stayed the night at his grandmother's house. 

The rest of the riders continue to ride to Port Dickson, and stayed for another night. Did not get much sleep at Port Dickson as it was too noisy, motorbikes a.k.a Mat Rempit trying to attract attention. Yup that what I called them, attention seekers. try to get some rest as tomorrow ride will be punishing, especially at Bukit Lukut. yup that the route we'll be taking tomorrow. Eventhough I have ridden the same route a few times, still cannot manage to conquer with good cadence. Still need the help of the granny gear. As usual, Arriving at Pekan Sepang, we regroup with other riders which falls behind and continue riding back to my house at Bandar Tasik Kesuma. the total distance was 440km. I consider it as a good short tour ride... YEH BEBEH.

Hutan Belum Fishing Trip

Mac 2009, Me and my friends from MPAJ went to Hutan Belum in Perak for a fishing trip. Hutan belum is quite secluded from tourists as it is not entirely open for eco tourism yet. But still there is a challet for those planning for a family trip. As for me and the gang, we prefer to camp it out. As we spend most of the time fishing, we only get back to the camp site for meals. Finding a good "lubok" is essential to find the winning fish, Kelah, the King of the river. From the Tasik Banding jetty, it took us one and a half hour by speed boat to reach Sg. Kejar, our campsite. After settling down with the campsite, I'm off for the early casting. No luck, we went ti the lake side to catch us Toman. I managed to reel in a 3 kilo size Toman, and my friend Sar, a 1 kilo Sebarau. Not bad for that evening. Night time its for the Ikan Baung. Quite plentiful, as many of us are relaxing by the river shore while fishing.

The next day, we start to trek upstream for one hour. There are lots of good "lubok" so we stop and cast along the way. My friend, Jasri, managed to catch the elusive Kelah, beginners luck, yup. This was his first fishing trip with us. As for me I have to be satisfied with another Toman. The trip was not as fullfiling as the trip to Hulu Tembeling, maybe we will be gong there next.

Me as a film crew.

December 2008, My friend Nizam offers me a job as a film crew. At first I'm a bit worried that having no experience what so ever, I'm not suitable for the job. Nizam assured me, under him, I will be briefly trained for the job. The job was for a television drama entitled "Aku Budak Minang". An adaptation from a book by the famous cartoonist, Ujang. My job description would be as an assistant cameraman. My friend Nizam is the cameraman, so I will be trained under him. It was such an eye-opening experience. The job has opened a new perspective of my perception of local television drama. Before this I was somewhat reluctant to watch local drama. But now when seeing local drama, I would understand the difficulties and hardships that the the entire crew and artist have to endure. Other perk, on the job is that you may end up acting as an extra. Yup, I got a small part as the village tug, Though might be my first time, acting, but still I enjoyed it.
The location was at Kampung Talang, Kuala Pilah in Negeri Sembilan. This is because the main character of the comic was supposed to be from Negeri Sembilan. kampung Talang was such a beautiful Malay kampung, I really enjoyed my stay there. It took us a full one month to shoot the entire drama, and 80% of the scene was at Kampung Talang. Only a few final scene were taken at Kuala Lumpur.

Me an the entire crew at the last scene. Shot somewhere in Kota Damansara. After the final shot, we head to the nearest mamak stall and celebrate, while our Production Manager distributes our extra pay for taking part as an extra in the drama.
As for me, I only did two scenes, so I get RM140, that RM70 per scene.






And as usual a photo to remember with the main character, Along cam from Raja Lawak with his to be wife, Zila.

Touring Ride From Bentong to Taman Negara Pahang.

The ride was great. It was such a great experience, especially when riding with Abg Ramli, a seasoned touring rider. I gain a lot of knew knowledge and experience while riding with him. It is therefore I humbly submit that he is now officially my bicycle touring sifu.. Yup Yup.. All my experience riding bicycle, I could still be learning knew things. Plus, riding at the speed of 20-25km per hour sure gave me a chance to enjoy the scenery and company.

When I told my friends that I ride from Bentong to Taman Negara, most of them imagine that it would be hard and difficult. Well, sorry to say that it was a misconception. I would recommend my fellow riders to get involve with touring ride. It was such a great experience.

Sg. Bil, Tanjung Malim

Azlan, centre, our newest member, so we organize a fun and easy ride for him. From the famous Pau shop, we parked our cars and start off at 10.30am. After a quick check, and we are off. The distance is about 18km, so its suitable for beginners. Ride next to him so that I can monitor his gearing. Proper gearing is important if you want to conserve your energy.

The weather was kind, so for me it was a fun ride to Sg. Bil. For Azlan a beginner, its his beginners luck. The trunk road is quite peaceful as not many cars passes by, so chatting while riding is quite enjoying for the group. Rizal is our cameraman, so you would expect him to rode upfront and stop to take the photos.

From KL to Pahang National Park

On the 23rd October 2008, me and my fellow riders are planning for a ride to Pahang's National Park. So far only four riders confirm to join in. Since my last solo ride, This will be the first that I ride with a group. Surely it will be a different experience. Riding solo you can take your sweet time, according to your own pace. With a group, you need to confirm with the speed of the group. If you are faster, then you need to pace down a bit so that the rider behind wont be too far off. At least maintain visual of the rider behind.

The best thing about riding in a group is that you'll not easily get bored. Riding long distance is a mental challenge. If you are not used to riding solo, dont try to ride long distance by yourself. Sure you are fit, your average speed is 30 and a 50km ride is only when you brake sweats, but in a long distance ride, all of that does not matter much, especially in a group ride. In group ride you need to be more supportive, especially slower rider than you.

For this ride, I'm still not sure with the fitness level of my ther fellow riders. Hopefully I'm not too far off. From what Zol told me, I can expect a quite a fun ride. Well, I guess it is still to be seen. The plan so far is that we will start the ride at the pekan of Bentong at 0800hrs and expected to stay overnight at Jerantut. As for me, I'll start my ride from my father's house at Gombak. I'll join them in Bentong.

Yup yup.. got my photo uploaded after the trip. Some experience it was. Definately, touring is now my favourite ride. YEH BEBEH.

Solo ride from JB to KL

7th October 2008 I began my ride to Kuala Lumpur (KL) from Johor Bahru (JB). 0330hrs left my childhood house in Kampung Setanggi, with my Specialized bike. It still way early in the morning, but for me its the best time if you want to cover more milage. I would be expected to be in KL on the 8th Oct 08, oh.. by the way, it's my 41st birthday. A quick stop to get my cancer stick, and I'm off. My first strecth will be from JB to Air Hitam, a 96km trunk road ride. Since bicycles were not allowed on the PLUS hiway, cyclist had to take the trunk road.

I reached Air Hitam at 0900hrs. My next stop will be the town of Yong Peng. The sun is starting to shine, so I'm expecting some very dehydrating rides onwards. Yong Peng is onlys18km from Air Hitam, but the hills and sun surely will make the next strecth a bit harsh. A stop at Yong Peng takes me a for lunch brake. It's quite normal and expected when you stop at any stalls, that you'll be interviewed by the locals. Surely they could recognise that you are not from around there, and cycling with a bag, they get the idea that you are touring on your bike. Finish my lunch, and I'm off. After 20minutes of riding, nearing the town of Parit Yani, it began to rain heavily. Had to stop to unpack my raincoat. Ready to brave the rain, just when I was about to turn on my blinker, it was not there. Must have fallen off somewhere. Well, have to get a new one though. And got one at the Pekan Parit Sulong. The bike shop is not entirely a bike shop. It's also an electrical outlet. The guy had to take the blinker from his store. After a quick check and installing the blinker, continue my ride to my grandmother's house in Panchor.

So had to take the route to Pagoh first. The rain almost stops, but still its a wet ride though. I reached Panchor at 0600hrs. My grandmother is at in front of the house with my uncle Zainal. Unload and unpack, I have rode for 190km today. So I guess I'll continue my ride tommorow and stayed the night here.