Dua and 3 Hills

The momentum just kicked in and I let myself play along. The rhythm is just nice with some family activities thrown in to make it merrier. Hence, the weekend is packed and solidified with awesome adventures and fun.

Approaching the OCBC Cyclethon for the kids, we didn’t prepare much. Only at the last minute, that particular Friday evening we were excited about it and ushered Amir and Umar for a spin around the block. With 3 laps and sprint intervals at each, in a fun way of course, we just hoped that it would be enough.

SK-2 Cross Country

Saturday morning was Amir’s school cross country run. His third year now and training was blatantly done during his soccer trainings at school and the evening soccer play with the neighborhood kids. We didn’t hope much but I reckoned that he has the legs for a placing. I was casually being there without raining him with pressure and just make sure he runs safely and smart. Deep inside, we understand that each of us had some expectation for success. Umar, as usual the biggest supporter when he requested to tag along.

As anticipated, it did turn out successfully though the waiting was a bit doubtful due to the time taken for Amir to arrive back at school and the number of kids finishing. He looked focused and strong charging towards the finishing line. He came back to me with satisfaction completing in third place! Alhamdullillah. We waited for the prize giving session and dashed back home for rest before the evening’s OCBC cyclethon.

Jr Toks

“Amir pakai strategi ayah bagitau. ‘Start slow & habis kuat’,” his quote over lunch and I respect him for holding to the advice. Kinda touching too.

OCBC Cycle Malaysia

Right after ibu came back home, we ventured into the Saturday afternoon traffic into KL town towards KLCC where OCBC cyclethon took place. Not quite a strategic venue though, since car parks and other logistic issues were the biggest challenge. Why didn’t they consider Putrajaya for such a lovely venue with beautiful landscapes and whole big roads for every cyclist?

Amir and Umars’ age category was scheduled to start at 3:15 p.m. However, upon arriving at the venue, we saw almost every kid had entered the holding bay and yet it was still an hour to go. They blew the horn early! Mere minutes after Amir and Umar got themselves in, the fun began with a bang! There were easily 50 little cyclists between 7-9 years old with all kinds bike. The atmosphere was so full of fun! Naufal, our neighbor and their best friend decided to tag along as supporter. And not forgetting KakLong thw whole life fan as well ;]

With the railings guiding them throughout the big circle in front of the Twin Tower, it was almost similar to a grand tour criterion stage, only a mini size one. The dashing and zooming of these little tots with big hearts was a great scene. We found our spot to cheer them along the course. Amir zoomed by with full concentration. He didn’t bother our shouts and cheers. Moments later Umar bobbing by on his undersized bike, upon hearing our cheers he found us and waved in excitement. So funny la this guy.

Konar baring or drift?!

Lead man

You're supposed to bite it, not suck it!

Yeay! Kami setuju esok kami tak akan kacau ayah ber-jimba!

Laps after laps, 4 altogether I counted, fatigue faces drooled in on everyone though some still have the courage to fight on. They completed the challenge and were guided towards the medal and drinks station. Such a very short adrenaline rushed for the kids as well as the spectators. Thumbs up guys!

3 Hills Backyard Ride

All the conundrums a day earlier was throttled at a manageable pace handling domestic tasks with tender loving. Sunday came totally for dad. The usual ‘kampung’ suspects planned for a smaller scale ala-Colmar ride. A short, localized non-travelling required and quick dash back home. We chose Bukit Sungai Tekali a.k.a. Bukit Hantu, Genting Peres and Bukit Ampang for the day’s menu, just nice for the climbing legs momentum workout.

Crowd was just nice. With 8 manageable buddies, we rolled off from the usual joint sharp at 7:30 a.m. Sunday traffic was light into Hulu Langat, only at the usual breakfast joints along the way. Quite a while since I went up Bukit Hantu, where the day’s first climb was managed at a slower pace reserving for latter.

The road was closed from traffic at the foot of the hill. Halfway up, we came upon a massive landslide that have taken away half of the pavement and the earth beneath it. Scary sight. The fall was too deep to survive which was almost the same magnitude that occurred to the road to Sungai Tekala.

Regrouping and down we went, heading towards Peres. Now the pace has throttled up and some decided to play catch. It was a fast climb and almost took most of my legs. We didn’t stay long since strong wind gushed through the Peres top chilling our sweaty form in seconds. The descending was fast too; basically everyone was synchronizing for the same thoughts for ‘roti canai’ at the usual Batu 18 stall.

After the ‘chase’ for ‘roti canai’, we had the bobbing idea about Bukit Ampang. 50-50.  Somebody rubbed salt to the wound some more when an idea came up to ditch the last climb. However, most of us were used to the pain from last week’s ride; hence we scaled Bukit Ampang under the knifelike sun. Though not as steep as Bukit Hantu, and not as long as Peres, the rising temperature adds up to the challenge. Legs almost jellied halfway up but it stood where it was supposed to be, on the pedal. Alhamdullillah.

Only four of us left to ride back to Batu 9 and BTHO. I had the privilege to draft one of the finest bikes and cyclists. I couldn’t recall who was doing the work up front but it was a good strong one, awesomely cruising at 30-ish km/hr. I just had my senses gone numbed and kept on revving ignoring the pain.

The ride back home was satisfaction concluded. We went for a group ride in a synchronized rhythm less the sentiment issue, enjoying the camaraderie in the same passion, or shall I say it was one awesome sentiment-free-ride! 

Sickness - Bukit Tinggi

The idea of attempting hills of Bukit Tinggi came last year when Azmi a.k.a. Globe Rider started sowing the seeds of mountain love into my mind. It was then when Rozaimi wanted to train his mountain legs, I rolled out the proposal. In fact it was good for everyone who plans to start the new season with some strength trainings.

The words started spreading. Suddenly TOK came back alive with a few ideas and nonsense thrown in but the Colmar idea was pretty much doable. I notified Azmi asking for route direction but we get back more instead, he willingly wanted to lead the ride. Magnificento!

The words of mouth were so strong that we easily gathered about 21 buddies at Sup Awe that morning. With a few more groups with their own ride, the place can easily be mistaken for an event. Though, the rain clouds kicked in some wariness among us, a plan is still a plan that requires pursuances.

Three quarter way up Genting Sempah, we had a puncture. Slight drizzle and thick fog adds up to the drama. Fog was so thick, visibility was merely meters away. The feeling of Alps climbing fantasized in each of us.

Riding down from Genting Sempah towards Janda Baik intersection was wet, cold & numb. We shivered on our bikes while slowly grasping the brakes ready for any unwanted mishaps. With the weather looked unpromisingly good for the rest of the ride, 6 buddies bailed out & decided to detour to Janda Baik instead, leaving out the remaining 15 for the Colmar attempt. Beyond this juncture, it was a new riding route my most of us.

We rolled down the steep and winding road through Bukit Tinggi narrow street, busy with the Sunday morning hawkers and wet market. The only way into Colmar Tropicale was from the Karak Highway. Hence, we had to cycle on the highway for about 3km. The idea of cycling on Karak Highway was beyond my thoughts. Which means, we had to climb back up on Karak Highway to Genting Sempah…?

The real ordeal was the sight of the majestic climb right after we entered the Berjaya Hills entrance road. Similar to Fraser Hills, it has 2 optional routes navigating to the same point, which is the ultimate Colmar Tropicale peak.

Azmi suggested the left option which is pretty much longer but less nasty circumnavigating in a clockwise direction. Through to be told, we don’t have the slightest idea of how steep was the climb until Azmi shouted out the gradient reading from his tweeting Garmin. Damn! The variation threw in 9-10% average and it was kind of demotivating as well. We had the pleasure of beautiful overcast sky and cool breeze with a few recovery stretches along the climb. It can be tormenting should the sky open up since the climb was exposed without canopies.

The 14km long climb started playing yo-yo down to our quads and gluteus. Every stroke of the crank arm getting heavier each time we met with a new climb. Climb after climb, we started seeing resort buildings and that was a good sign for remedy.

The only thing that was a bit frustrating about this route is that we had to pay to enter Colmar Tropicale and food ain’t cheap either. Despite our engine-less vehicle, we were still charged without mercy of RM12. Trust me; next attempt will be until the ticket collection booth. I’m not paying again.

The most brutal climb is beyond that ticket counter, a 16% gradient for 100m, and we actually paid purposely for that. Call it stupidity. Almost similar to the one in Bukit Merah Resort climb.

It felt so steep, really. I can feel the steepness. The thighs were struggling to push the pedals for forward/upward motion. The hands were gripping the hoods for control and the core was burning trying to keep balance in place. Straight up was almost impossible; hence we were advised to zig-zag instead. I was lucky it was only 100 meters; else walk-the-bike approach should’ve been more logical.

We rolled in towards the entrance of the Colmar Street and rest our bike & butts at the bench that was put in a strategic pattern for photo shoots. Cold, wet & hungry, we had loads of photos taken to make every penny worth spent.

Pasukan Bola MSSD Bukit Tinggi (pic by Affendy Nanyan)

Starvation pulled us out early from the town. The idea of walking on the cobble stone was hindered by the security. They wanted us to park our bikes elsewhere instead. Now who’s gonna watch over those RM15k bike? Bad idea.

Now it was playing chase going back down the other way. Turn after turn with small turning radius at times. Loosing concentration may lead to crash or overshooting the safety guardrails. Balance and tossing around with the centre of gravity was skills! The scene from Chasing Legends when the pros went down mountain path with tires screeching and brakes whining suddenly caught my day dreaming from the cold mountain air. The recap of Jens Voight crashed at high speed descending was heart stopping.

Slowly reducing my speed and secured my approach at every corner avoiding any unwanted stunts. Completing the descent was also tiring.  We regrouped before entering Karak Highway again and started to string ourselves out like a bee line along the highway pacing our own selves in accordance to our empty fuel tank.

Finally lunch break came when we stopped at the Bukit Tinggi town. The town always reminded me of Cameron Highland’s Farmville, small and busy to itself. A Malay restaurant serves the best lunch for the day with a cup of hot Nescafe ‘O’. Sumptuous.

Pump-it up! (pic by Halil Rahman)

We had a short discussion for alternatives way back up to Genting Sempah intertwined with laughter from the day’s feat. Jokes started flying around the lunch table, but we yet to see the final of it.

It was either via Jalan Gombak lama with 2km steep incline plus 3km granny or the 3km continuous 10% Karak Highway. We chose the latter for a shorter torment & time. The climbing speed was almost similar to the YTL cement carrying tanker. It was totally solitude as one stayed to our own selves despite the revving engines from the highway. It seemed endless but still the final push from Genting Sempah R&R will be the ultimate challenge.

Bike portaging is part of the game (pic by Halil Rahman)

We took a breather at the R&R while regrouping before the last climb. The last climb almost had most of us. With tiring legs, we cursed our selves left and right. This climb is always being remembered as the painful one, almost for every cyclist.

Here we go up Karak Highway (pic by Halil Rahman)

The rolling down Genting Sempah to Sup Awe was mixed with boredom and smile. We checked-in at 2:30 p.m. and that provide enough time for a quick cleanup and ABC.

With a few more ride plans down the line, more posts will be inevitable. Looks like the legs are twitching for more & looks like running will be at bay for a while.

Lets get crazy...

Feel Again

Year 2013 came with a bang for most of us. Alhamdullillah. Me, I just planned for a slow crawl into the building blocks back into shape after a year of absence and just plain building guts.

The original plan to revisit Bukit Ammah was shelved due to the lack of morality, but in another perspective, I was wise enough not to. Running milage took a yo-yo trip with all those school break trips. Eventually, I had to post it at Bib-2-let on FB.

Watching down the line of 2013, it may seem that getting the running legs back into shape isn’t easy. I’ll be busier ‘running’ around the neighborhood juggling domestic issues, literally. Marathon? KIV for another year. That’s two years in a row now.

The cycling part is more enjoying for the time being. That’s because I can only do it once a week over the weekend, and there’s nothing more demanding than that. It’ will be either a simple cup of coffee ride or the ones that you-can-bite-more-than-you-can-chew kind of ride.

Right after the school opening drama settles down, it was back to my dusty drawing board to plan for building a mileage program. This old goat needs a twitch to the age old stuff; hence we need some kind of a slow build up. Strength first, mileage comes in progressively. Possible?

With what was left from the kayuh laksa jamboree kicked-off, the rolling back into Langat and up Genting Peres was fortunately manageable. Though it may seem like a crawl pace, but it was still enjoyable less gritting teeth and curse.

The second ride to Lenggeng Loop for the lovely nasi lemak ikan sembilang was absolutely fantastic. Now I can feel that the gear starts kicking in and drools for more.

Ride plans came in like a gush of silky wind over the window seal. We have a few plans down the line for January and February already. Event calendar have yet to be settled since a few wish-to-do events threw in blood sucking participating fee.

We have just completed the Colmar climb yesterday. We rode from Gombak to Colmar and back. A very hilly route and it paid a handsomely rewarding lower back pain! Been a while since I did a suffer fest ride this. It should be a good one for the starting block though, of course after this back pain subsides.

My feet and heart is numb... 

Bek-2-Bek

When the legs are feeling obnoxious and when adrenaline pumped in so bad, the head kept on spinning plans for whatever spinning options available. My weekend was pretty much tight up with a bek-to-bek spin. Surviving both rides and post ride recovery was surprisingly OK.

Putrajaya

Been awhile since I last joined the Putrajaya Night Ride. With the weekend plan scheduled to be in Seremban, the least I could do was to hook up with these guys. It was a late entry after some delay with the kuliah but all was good since these guys were the considerate bunch plus, it's Friday night! What's the rush for anyway?

Dataran Putrajaya was packed! Traffic was pretty much hectic too. I just squeezed in at any available space I could find, ignoring any thoughts of getting summon. Too late to think about it either.

Wow! So many people joining meh? I think easily there were almost...30?! Some familiar faces but most of them aren't in my contact list. I tried to be as casual as possible and open up for any kind of riding pattern these guys had up their sleeves. Though my initial plan was to do it at an easy pace, soon I regretted making plan for a mtb ride the next morning. Argh!

Begini Pak caranya!

Jangan bikin pening-pening.
Bawak bertenang ya!

Satu pose untuk anak-anak. Peace yo!

It was more like a paint ball game instead of cycling. Attacks came from every corner, at almost every stretch and by almost everyone! Damn! None breathtaking chances. You just need to kick in and hooked up with the group. The quads were screaming by the time we almost ended the ride approaching Alamanda. It was a good workout in a sense for a short ride, but the muscles might have some premature exertion in another sense. That was kind of risky though. I was glad I survived most of it. The worry was more on the next morning plan.

I skipped the teh tarik session (if there was any), and drove back juggling the plan for tomorrow. Threw the road bike out of the car and dumped in the mtb (crazy thing) and forced my eyes shut while rubbing the quads with concerns at 1.30 a.m.

Kiara

I was overly lethargic the next morning, but bailing out and breaking a promise is not in the list. Besides, mountain biking is more FUN! And I'm going back into the Bukit Kiara trails! That is one thing I don't want to miss.

I was running a bit late meeting Alwin at the RV point but all was good. He was late too. It drizzled a bit but the trail kept on giving promises for a good ride. Though with heavy legs and a slight feeling of groggy, the simplest plan was to have an easy Kiara welkambek ride and finish by 10.00 a.m.

Soon before we hit the trail head, we were welcomed by a few old time buddies. Definitely they were surprise seeing me and pleased indeed. We hooked up and decided to ride together as the regulars were tailoring the trail plan. I just tag along, lost into the new roller coaster Kiara trails.

We entered via the Carnival trail head and hit the first climb spot on. It was still an impossible climb like it used to be years ago, only with an improved rock surface to stop erosions. It appeared to be more brutal in another way. Scary!

We skipped Lung Buster for Office, new for me. Slowly carving away deeper into the spiralling single tracks with ups and downs, and tight switchbacks. 200% concentration plus skill  between brakes, legs and balancing. The damped ground and wet roots from last night's rain added extra bonus. The 680 mm wide bar got strangled up at some very tight switchbacks. The grogginess adds up to the distraction. Office itself provide more than just warm ups. Zapped half my dwindling juice.

A buddy had some difficulty catching up with the pace and the technical trail. We rerouted our plan for a quicker and less technical trail. Still, the originality of Kiara remains for the rest of it until we reached Sri Hartamas. I tossed down a Nescafe (go away groggy!) and a nasi lemak ... and a roti canai (what?!).  Sorry. Can't help it. Suddenly I was starving. I remembered having breakfast though.

Round the table chat covered the usual mtb stuff. Most of it browsed around yesteryears' epic rides. Those were the days. If asked for a repeat, perhaps I'll take a rain cheque. Not into the adventure thing any more I guess. Alwin and me decided to ride back to Lembah Kiara via the Sprint Highway and not with Komeng, Ajak & Zul. We needed to round up our ride.

The remaining weekend was in zombie mode and legs weigh a tonne. I was however surprised that it didn't last long that I used to feel. I was happily cleaning the bikes on Sunday evening, ready to store it for 2 weeks zero ride.

The 2006 Pat's Kiara Trail Map

Current map (Endomondo)

Le profil

Epically X-Rated Kayuh "Laksa" Version

The word “epic” is best explains the X-Rated Kayuh Lasak. What turns out to be a planned ‘kayuh laksa” ride, gave birth to an epic “tolak basikal” ride. Nothing gets easier than that. And there goes my whole week of lower back ache and insufficient beauty sleep. Not about complaining here, but rejoicing the adventure and torment celebrating the 10^th Kayuh Lasak Penang Jamboree served by KOTRT. Thumbs up!

Four of us planned for a quick getaway for this ride over the weekend, but it proves that you don’t get enough of Penang from just a night stay. And you would just kill yourself from the oversize traffic chaos.

I’ve skipped a few Kayuh Lasak. Done my first in 2003 for their second Kayuh Lasak edition and I was addicted for more suffer fest when KOTRT kept on adding more thrills and challenge. I came back for the next 5 consecutive years before I hung up the bike for a more ‘clean’ ride on the road bike :P

Kayuh Laksa version for me, as always, was due to the lack of training…macam ler dulu-dulu pun train? Yesteryears was once a week aje kayuh, hence this lazy butt adopted the same ritual. And you’ll be amazed at the moment of truth where the big momma’s climb can be really a pain in the butt.

Penang has been popular about the traffic, which started from the Juru Toll. Though we tried planning our travel time, the traffic conundrums can’t be avoided. It continued on entering the bridge but surprisingly Jalan Masjid Negeri was silky. It rained throughout the evening over the island, and that was just promising for a bonus thrill on the trail. However, we had loads of Penang meals to chase the worries away. From nan tandoori to cendol and Penang laksa. Nasi kandar? Save that for post ride.

The volume of participants grew year after year. My first Kayuh Lasak had only about 500 passionate mountain bikers putting on our trail vacation spirit, tasting those holy single tracks left behind from the Colonial age. This year, the crowd grew immensely into easily 1500 riders, and that created a huge impact on the trail traffic as well.

We came late that morning due to logistic issues and of course parking issue. Hence, Alwin and me decided to chill and rolled off from the tail end. Honestly, we were actually the last ones leaving Youth Park and the last ones crossing the gate up the Jeep Trail. But, it didn’t last long before the climb starts and hundreds of riders started to stop pedaling and started pushing. Jeep Trail was packed! People were pushing bikes all over the place and that left only a single line to keep pedaling. If this guy pedals too slowly, then we were stuck tailing him without any room to overtake. It was a 4km climb and I lost a kilometre from bike portaging. Attempting to ride it was almost impossible. It was just too steep for me. I should come back for a revisit.

Traversing the island via Penang Hill towards Balik Pulau was plainly 100% epic and 200% adrenaline. Every mother climb gave birth to mother downhill. The continuing descending from the Jeep Trail climb brought me back down memory lane. It was an endless technical descent and you’ll be using all your muscles for it. Siapa kata turun bukit tak guna muscle? The straining starts from the tip of the finger till the tip of the toe. And you’ll start asking yourself when it will end? It was just awesomely long!

The tax of climbing came abruptly before you even dreamed of reliving the smile from the descending. The second climb was nothing less than the first one, only with less traffic. But the scene was different. It was better. We climbed through a durian orchard and the endless sight of Balik Pulau coast on our right was simply breathtaking.

Not quite finish with the hefty climb, we were challenged with a technically suicidal descend. That slippery concrete narrow lane swerved at switchbacks after switchbacks bringing another endless adrenalin rush, and dangerous too. A split second of wrong judgment, I could’ve overthrown myself over the side and land in Balik Pulau! But, that didn’t take any toll so far since the swerving trailing of 10 riders was caught up by the over cautious ones up in front. That was just a little too bad for the adrenalin junkies. Or else, it would be a lovely snaking descent.

We reached Balik Pulau and started climbing back up on a tar road, just like Genting Sempah only with a slight blow from the coastal wind. This was supposed to be the pre-climb or legs loosening part because what wait was another big momma! The final one I hope. It was just plain monotonous except for some single track section climb that was just very tricky when you don’t have the rolling momentum while tailing another group of over cautious riders. Sometimes I had to give a bit shouting motivations just to keep them going. Pressure sikit la konon J

Eventually the trail came up to a slight civilization whilst approaching the Ayer Itam Dam, after another round of tricky switchback. By this time, there’s lesser canopy from the foliage and becoming hot by the minute. The following downhill thrill was nothing more than pain and fatigue in the forearms. It was another slippery concrete descend and it was too steep. There was no more tapping on the brakes but more like squeezing it for your life! My mind started playing the “Rumor Has It” tone all the way down and when it was about time to bail out from the over kill, the final checkpoint await. BIG Phew!

6KM ride back to Youth Park via Ayer Itam town and part of Greenlane, blending in back into Penang chaotic traffic. I guesstimate that it was slightly after 1.00 when I crossed the gantry…smiling of course. The rest of the gang was already chilling out with fruits and cans of Red Bulls. Sumptious!

Though I missed Checkpoint 8 when I failed the cut-off time, it was still an awesome jamboree. I gave this a 5 star when all the previous 3 jamborees in 2012 combined would never come up to this one. Coming back? Definitely, not just for the ride but for Penang heritage J

Segenggam Ilmu

Tatkala dunia sekeliling sibuk berlumba-lumba mengejar impian masing-masing, aku hanya akur dengan kehendak Illahi dalam menatang tanggungjawab yang telah diamanahkan olehNya. Satu tanggungjawab yang di dalamnya mengandungi proses pembelajaran untuk pengalaman baru yang secara dasarnya merupakan titik permulaan untuk cabaran-cabaran yang akan datang.

Lumrah dunia dan lumrah manusia, evolusi hidup perlu dilalui mahu atau tidak. Orang yang disayangi akan lebih membawa pengertian dalam perjalanan hidup kita, lantas mengorek setiap inci komitmen dalam diri ini demi untuk melihat kejayaan.

Sesungguhnya segala ketentuan yang hakiki adalah ketentuan Illahi, namun seperti yang diriwayatkan, kita adalah kita yang kita bentukkan. Kecintaan dari Yang Maha Esa merupakan titik perubahan sama ada ketentuan kita akan menerima anugerahNya atau tidak.

Jiwa kehambaan dan senantiasa redha dalam mencari ilmu Allah digalas dengan penuh cermat agar tidak sekali terlondeh dari pegangan. Tatkala bahu dan tangan terasa lemah, tatkala itu seruan Illahi menyeru kembali agar perjuangan diteruskan demi mencapai ketaqwaan sebenar. Begitulah yang dirasakan hubungan kasih sayang dari Pencipta Yang Maha Penyayang.

Hari-hari yang berlalu diambil sebagai pengajaran. Hari yang ditunggu-tunggu muncul tiba dengan penuh rasa sayu dalam kegembiraan dan kesyukuran. Genangan air mata berkaca seketika, memikirkan kebesaranNya dalam memberi nikmat dan balasan tatkala suasana hingar bingar di institusi. Segunung tahniah dan syabas dari hasil perjuangan yang tidak berbelah bagi.

Jazaakumullahu Khairan Kathira

Allahuakbar 

Genggam bara api biar sampai jadi arang

More muds...Sepang Jamboree

The soak-ier the trail, the more la we lunatics want to roll around in it. We don’t prefer running or cycle on the road in this raining season. It’s just too dangerous and probably a bit insane. The best way to keep activities in sanity, we signed up for a mountain bike jamboree. Rain or shine, the fire trail of Sepang palm oil plantation estate serves a great getaway and monstrous epic adventure.

During my heydays, mountain jamborees are rare. Back in 2004 and a few years that followed we only had 2 major rides. The PCC Presidential Ride which later followed by KOTRT Penang Jamboree a.k.a. Kayuh Lasak. Both were purposely held at the end of the year where trails are ‘plush’, sweet and juicy. I don’t miss either of them year after year. For rest of the year, we were the genuine weekend warriors. Defined weekend warriors, the fun & workouts combined into a Sunday ride. No weekday’s hamster trainer or secret trainings. In and out of mountain bike trails all over Klang Valley. Sometimes we plan for an epic ride once a month that would take a whole day camped out.

As of now, jamborees can be on every weekend! With the increasing number of cyclists in the region, the sport is also blooming with events and bike demands. That’s a good sign for healthy living awareness, as long as we keep to healthy economic expenses as well. So, what does Mr. Government do about that? I would like to suggest, stop raping our green lungs and let the rakyat enjoy what remains of Mother Nature. And perhaps, remove the tax on sporting goods. You guys kaya already meh! You get taxed for bike components but not for a complete bike. What’s with the discrimination?

OK back to Sepang Mountain Bike Jamboree 2012 (SMJ12). With so many sporting events in Malaysia’s calendar, I almost had my eyes checked once a week looking at it. Banyak sungguh! Even Powerman’s photos are still up on Facebook till now. If I were to dunk myself into every event, I’ll be like super maniac la kot. The only way to participate in a less competitive manner and down to earth style is to sign for a jamboree. As shared before, these dirt fans are the coolest ever. Even the event venue was relaxing mode without Gangnam pumping songs and loud Deejay.

You don't get to see super expender with super expensive bike parading around, tapi kayuh tak pernah podium. You don’t see super bike models parading in trendy bike apparels tapi setiap kali ada bukit, tolak basikal. And you don’t see gadget freaks wearing super GPS watches moaning about the battery will kaput if the ride is more than 5 hours.

Alwin and I planned for early rendezvous to allow for slow-mo bike setup and a bit of warm up. Weather was awesomely chilly after a night rain. Muddy trails await my 13 kilos baby tapir and yours truly. No top of the range groupo, no stiff and feather weight wheels, no carbon here and there, not even a cyclo meter! Two bottles is enough and I have the trails to pump at whatever endurance I have with juice in my legs.

Oh! Forgot to share the new family member, the Scale 29er. Al-cheapo used bike purchased from a chap who don’t seem to have the challenge to handle a baby tapir. No more bike borrowing lah. Segan & malu you.

Warm up macam pro. Sampaikan orang nak flag off baru tersengih-sengih kambing nak masuk kandang. But the organizer was cool with that. Chillax event, remember? The neutralized zone of 6km road start really burnt up this shabby old diesel engine. I didn’t push myself too early, which would be too premature for an old goat. Surprisingly the guys around me paced themselves the same way?! Betul punya casual ni. Bagus punya non-competitive environment. I like. No kiasus breathing up your neck taking advantage at any opportunity to be competitive.

A total of nearly 40km fire trails inside Sepang palm oil plantations. Just plain fire tracks, neither Holy Grail single tracks nor cool river crossing. Reminds me of Ladang Elmina, Sungai Buloh and Bukit Subang. The matured palm trees provide covered trails from the sun and rain but be extra careful for the mossy ones. Those green surfaces could be quite tricky for climbs and fatal on descends. Rainy season adds up to the slippery mud that sucks up the bike and at the same time throw you away at high speed corners. Remember those super models with Gucci bike apparels? You’ll get dazzling chocolate expresso top in minutes once you hit the trail.

My bike handled every bit of the jamboree satisfactorily. My first experience the hyped about these giant off-road breed. I trust that Newton’s theory should come in handy. The bigger and heavier they are, the more UMPH! it delivers for such kind of trail like these. I may have relived the suffer fest of delivering this baby tapir up steep slippery climbs but the grannies helped me with patience and virtue. One rotation at a time and the knees and quads are playing in rhythm. Should I push myself into red zone; I could be bailing out at the next chicken loop. But the pleasure comes in all kind of rewards. This heavy steed thumped the descending with high speed confident rolling over ditches and ruts.

"Look Ma! I'm floating going downhill here (not flying though)!"

The front heavy coil spring shock absorber performed at every technical trail it can sucks in. When I was high with adrenalines, the inner laughter of macha-style almost broke out of my ribs.

I smiled to myself at times for the pleasurable torture. I used to be passionate about this crazy stuff. Grooving my way back is something seemed possible, but at my considerable pace of course.

Things gone a bit sour and monotonous when you don’t have any idea of the distance covered (padan muka takde cyclo meter) and the lack of marshal to ask. Even chunkier for the brain to digest is when the legs get weaker and stomach started to growl.  That was 3 hours into the ride I guess.

“Ishk! Bila nak habis ni?!”

“Argh! Ada climb lagi?!”

“Weiiii….brader depan ni bila nak give up kayuh? Kuat pulak dia nih…”

The last checkpoint served Revive and bananas. Phew! Alhamdullillah. Allah Maha Pemurah lagi Maha Penyayang. I swallowed dengan rakusnya and the salty/sour taste of Revive was really…errr…reviving la kot. Slowly get myself checked in at the CP and politely asked the marshal with fake smile.

“5 km to go!”

“Argh”

But my baby tapir stayed loyal and obeyed at the remaining tricky trails ahead. The only technical despair was the few times of chain-suck. Argh! I hated it. It was just demoralizing. The stopping agony of holding you from getting the momentum was awful. Next time, bring bottles of lube OK?

Finally it was over. And it was still before 12.00 p.m.! Wow! The overcast weather kept the relax mode at bay for the rest of the event. Thumbs up for the organizer for the ample bike wash bay and good healthy lunch! You don’t get these at other jamborees. Guess what? They served steamed broccoli, steamed potato, fish balls and fried chicken with an either black pepper sauce or mushroom sauce. Pergh! Bukan nasi dengan ayam goreng and curry. Sorry. These are great stuff, and top  on healthy food chart!

Kalau nak ikutkan taku cukup tapi bedal sehingga
menjilat jari

Met Alwin moments later. He bruised the right knee while clowning around at the slippery green mossy climbs. Hehe. And met a few other familiar faces. A buddy sprained his shoulder from a crash at the tarmac stretch in the beginning of the ride. Speedy recovery bro.

Alwin, Hancik and I obviously were craving for something more UMPH! for the taste bud. Besides, the free lunch burnt so fast and we were already starving for more. Maggi sup was the ideal momento at this kind of mandom like weather. Perfect for calorie replenishment.

Things are getting into place. That’s a good sign. I don’t have anything grand to shout about, just as long as the word ‘enjoy’ is relived and clearly defined.

Rehat kejap lepas chop buat sawit

Dirt to Dirt

Aku rasakan gema takbir raya Aidil Fitri macam masih lagi segar di cuping telinga. Kini gema takbir raya Aidil Adha pula muncul, lantas sedikit sebanyak membawa aku mengelamun seketika pada suasana ibadah haji yang acap kali aku saksikan di kaca TV. Bila lah aku mampu nak melalui pengalaman ibadah Rukun Islam ke-4 tu ye? Niat dah ada, kemampuan sedang diusahakan. InsyaAllah.

Seperti tahun lepas, aku decide untuk just chillax di KL bersama-sama mengerjakan ibadah qurban di kampong tercinta BTHO dengan orang-orang kampong. Al-maklum, BTHO dah menjadi kampong ku & juga kampong anak-anak aku nanti. Jadi, sebagai menjalankan tanggungjawab ber-kampong /berjiran, jangan sekali-kali kita abaikannya. Lagi pun, apabila mendengar laporan trafik, aku cuma mampu menggeleng kepala.

Kemeriahan kami bermula sebaik sahaja selepas menunaikan fardhu Maghrib di surau. Ribut petir mengiringi bacaan takbir kami sehingga masuknya fardhu Isya’. Lepas tu kami berduyun-duyun bertakbir ke lapan buah rumah jirang-jirang yang lain sambil mengharung gerimis di malam raya (fuiyo! Dah bunyi macam lagu balada beb).

Kids paling enjoy. Yep, everything aku buat untuk kids. Zaman budak-budak aku dulu, kurang dapat peluang sebegini especially exposure ke dunia Islamic. Penerapan melalui parents dan hidup berjiran yang bersyariat aje lah salah satu channel kita mendidik anak-anak ke arah jalan yang benar! Benar Pak!

Habis takbir dah hampir 11.30 malam. Kids memang lepak & perut ayah dah semakin terbina. Ngeh ngeh ngeh. Lapan rumah beb. Rumah ke lapan dah ramai main cuit-cuit aje makanan yang dihidangkan.

Alhamdullillah setelah semalaman hujan, pagi raya menyinarkan hari yang sangat indah. Takbir raya bergema seawal selepas fardhu subuh. Hasil kepenatan semalam, aku hampir mendapat subuh gajah. Setiap kali lidah ini melafaz takbir, tahmid & tasbih setiap kali itu juga hati ini terusik dengan kebesaran yang Maha Esa.

Al-Ansorian in action

Ibadah qurban bermula 9.30 pagi. Alhamdullillah semua berjalan lancar. Sedangkan kami ada limited time untuk settle kan semua sebelum solat Jumaat. Berkat ukhwah orang kampong, semua kawtim.

Sabtu pagi aku sudah lambung Amir untuk kayuh. As usual memang dia tunggu aje pelawaan aku. Tambah lagi dia nak test kayuh baru & bib baru. Hehe. Layan kat Putrajaya aje. Park kat Taman Empangan & both us spinned our way towards Alamanda interchange & turned back.

Macam biasa kalau sekali sekala long distance (for his level la), akan aku terima beberapa complaints. Aku layan aje. On our way back to Taman Empangan dah nampak muka hampir bonk tapi aku this kid memang strong, cuma kena play around sikit dengan mental dia. So, bila aku nampak ada traktor trailing 500 meter belakang kami, aku challenge Amir not to give up and to stay ahead of the tractor seberapa lama yang boleh. He sure did. On the way balik, dalam kereta member dah lelap kena aircon. Hehe. Lepak ler tu.

The key event for the weekend was yesterday. Attempt kali ke-2 aku kembali menerjah trail mountainbike. Ni semua hasil lambungan kaum jugak. Sign aje. Since first attempt aku kat UPM MTB Fete awal bulan hari tu went well, aku sign untuk seksaan di Slim River MTB Jamboree pulak.

Kami car pool 4 orang seawal 6.00 pagi. First time sampai Slim River. Venue kat taman tasik. Ramai dah participants beratur kat starting line. As usual, with our casual mode we joined in at the tail of it.

Alwin & Azmar were men on a mission. Targeting to qualify for placing their category. Aku? Setakat nak kasi habis with minimal suffer. Al-maklum training pun casual mode.

Rolling start on-road for almost 5km. The 1000+ participants all strung out and aku tercungap-cungap untuk catch up putting myself as close as possible to the front, which is actually impossible la sebab aku tak nampak langsung yang depan sekali tu. Hahaha. Takpe, just trying be motivated. Antara tujuannya ialah untuk mengelak bottle neck once dah masuk trail.

99% from the overall trail was riding in a palm oil plantation road. It was totally undulating with ruts, cow dung, bukit ammah and steep fast descending sections for the whole 42km (eh? Dah macam marathon distance meh?) Punya lah aku tak power & jugak perhaps trail yang demanding super power quads and calves, aku kawtim dalam 3 jam setengah jugak lah. Champion kawtim sejam setengah. Which means the surplus 2 jam lagi tu was pure penyesalan :|

Alhamdullillah kaki tak meragam dengan cramp atau lemah kepala lutut. Endurance OK cuma strength aje aku kurang. Sebab malas training. Weather was also a bit on the killing side. Bukan aku nak salahkan cuaca tapi memang betul punya cabaran. Tatkala sinaran mentari tajam menikam setiap ruang kulit ini tanpa sedikit pun tiupan angin sepoi-sepoi bahasa di saat sedang meng-granny panjat bukit, setiap kali itu juga lah memori ngeri Sahara Jamboree mengimbas kembali. Meremang bulu tengkuk beb.

OK. 100% Slim River trail are rideable. Bila steep climb, aku engage grannies dan spin lenggang lenggok so as not to impose any stress to the legs. Bila part super sonic descending aku cuba layan full concentration with light taps on the brake levers so as not to introduce any unwanted crash nor endo.

Lantas untuk tempoh masa 3 jam lebih dok perangat saddle tu, minda aku mula membuat beberapa perhitungan statistic ringkas (sebenarnya nak bagi hilang bosan & penyesalan…keh keh keh).

1.   Kayuh cross country mountain bike is equivalent to kayuh interval on road bike. 3 jam lebih punya interval pace memang totally demanding.

2.   Kayuh off-road tiada ruang untuk lalai atau santai, hence memerlukan focus & perhatian throughout the whole thing. Unless terus dismount & chillax bawah pokok kelapa sawit :]

3.   Kayuh road boleh coasting or drafting, but not here. Your legs, your effort.

Setibanya di garisan penamat, aku menghela nafas lega yang amat. Jumpa kaums pun aku masih belum mampu untuk bersembang & hanya mampu duduk sejenak collecting my thoughts back yang dah spread out all over the trails tadi. Cuaca yang sangat panas menyebabkan aku hanya mampu dehydrate seberapa banyak yang boleh & mix dengan fruits yang penganjur sediakan.

Badan memang lenguh-lenguh from the ride beating. Kaki juga masih sengal sikit-sikit from the long hauling. Bila badan dah tuo, recover may take longer. I can live with that, sebab aku bukan extreme weekend warrior yang setiap minggu masuk event. Keh keh keh.

Tapi it was a good ride, especially when it is a birthday ride. Takde la teman ni beriya-iya sangat plan for it, cuma coincidence aku signed up for the event with the same date. Dah lama tak suffer, perhaps it could be the start of more sufferfest to come.

Aksi ketap bibir sebab tahan kejung
buah pinggang :P

Thumbs up to the organizer. With a small fee of RM50, it was a great event, cool goodies and awesome prizes. And how come other events like running and road bike races still want to cekik the fee too much and yet give sampah in the goodies with cheapskate prizes? Kena kaji tu.