Riding with LYN forumers @ Kiara Trails

Last weekend's ride was fun @ Kiara. Why? Well, because it's so dry that you can ride a little faster than usual but still, if you are not careful enough, your rear section will slide off to the side easily. Since I am not so familiar riding at Kiara, I had to play safe all the time.

We started of as usual from the Kiara Park's uphill section to the inner tarmac section of the biker's playground. There you will see many people parking their car and then walk up for a tarmac loops surrounded by the green lungs of KL - Kiara Hills. We saw a long skinny snake during the initial climb, at the bushes parallel to the road. We just stood there watching the snake pass by and then only we continued.

In order to get into the 2K trail, we had to climb up on tarmac road up untill a cross junction is visible. There, you should be able to spot 2 huts on your left and right. The one one the left looks more like a guardhouse to me. There we quite a number of joggers and hikers along the way. The hut situated on the right side of the cross junction was flooded with bikers surrounding it as it is a good place for bikers to rest after a quick thrilling lap in 2K trail.

Most of us panted by the time we reached the cross junction as this is part of warm up before entering the off road trail. We continued further without wasting much time as CK and Adrian gotta rush home early on that sunny Sunday morning.

Once completed the roller coaster ride in 2K, we carried on to the further down after the Bukit Kiara Equestrian Club. There we took an exit out to a section whereby you will be riding along the highway towards Hartamas / Mont Kiara for approximately 3 to 4 hundred metres before heading back to the forest.

At one point, we were tackling a steep switchback towards a stream and CK who happened to be in front of me, saw a barking dog heading towards his way when he was crossing halfway on the narrow bridge.

He jumped out of his bike for safety and before i could proceed further, the dog just passed me swiftly with serious deep wound on its head with the size of a diameter of a small bowl. CK told me that he could see the brain! Yucks! That dog must have been tortured by someone with sharp object - So cruel! I felt so pity and kept on thinking about how long can the dog survive without proper medication.

Adrian Ngiam's bike puncture twice on the way back! One on flat path while the other was during the Rock Garden. The video shown in this post was taken at Rock Garden & Kiara Park(ending of the trail).

I hope to ride more as the 45km nite ride @ Malacca is just around the corner. :)

Nite Jamboree Preparation 01: Fuji Tahoe SL Mountain Bike

The last Kiara ride was fun but i sensed something wrong with the switchback climb. My front wheel lifted up easily even when using TORA 302 heavy-solid fork. Hmmm, after inspecting my bike, I have concluded that the current Race Face Prodigy could be the minor cause.

Since Fuji Tahoe SL's seat tube is already very close(good for climbing) to the rear wheel, I don't think I should stay with the bent seat post design as my weight distribution will be more towards the rear section and this could cause my front wheel to be lifted up easily during climbs.

I dropped by Tat Seng and found a nice "Kona 400mm XC/BC Deluxe Seatpost" which is pearl in colour. It is also quite light, considering its length of 400mm. After some decision making, I bought it together with "Velo VL 1261 B Saddle".

I purchase the saddle based on the comfort, slim design(for quicker move towards the back prior to downhill section)and also the air vents. The specs of this saddle can be found attached.

Kona 400mm XC/BC Deluxe Seatpost Product Details:
•3D forged 1 piece head & post
•2014 aluminum
•2 bolt clamp design
•27.2mm diameter or 30.0mm, 400mm length

Velo VL 1261 B Saddle Main Features:
•AirThru™ VENTILATION Perforated base and upper for ventilation.
•Crossbow™ SUSPENSION Laterally disperses road vibration.
•HONEYCOMB GEL PADDING Gel inserts at three key pressure points

Once fitted both items to my bike, I took a short test around the housing area. I found that the seating position is a little bit forward in which it exceeds my expectation. I am still trying to get used to the new saddle and hopefully these will assist me to ride easier during the upcoming Nite Jamboree [ http://eccmalacca.blogspot.com/ ].

Too compact? Get Deuter Race !

Recently, I realized how small and compact my Hydro Lite 2.0 is. Just look at the photo below during recent ride whereby a member named Adrian(N) got his rear wheel punctured.

CK promptly unload his hydro-pack and took a toolkit. By looking at that, I was wondering, what if I happen to puncture my tire and my compact back is without any toolkit?

I was at Summit USJ and I was looking for Adidas outdoor shoes yesterday but that shop was running out of stocks. I then wandered around and found a shop with some Deuter bags. I went in with my wife hoping to get a bag to put junior's stuff.

We found Deuter Race year 2009 on display and discussed about it as I can use if for biking or putting milk bottles for baby... LOL. Since I need a bigger back for weekend riding, I decided to purchase the bag as I know it would be useful. 10 litres capacity is good enough for weekend's few hours ride.

Pics and specs taken from Deuter's website.[http://www.deuter.com/en/products/32009_Race_09_DEU.php]

Specifications:-
Brand: Deuter
Category: Bike
Model: Race
Year: 2009
Weight: 520 g
Volume: 10 l
Size: 43 / 23/ 16 (H/B/T) cm
Material: HexLite 210 / Microrip-Nylon

After many years, I still love Deuter products. It is not so expensive as compared to other brands like Vaude, Solomon and etc. and their products are really high in quality.

RRI Ride & Chung San BKT

It was on last Saturday(Sept 5th) when I rode the first time @ RRI offroad trail. It was organized by Adrian Wong and the boys (Harrison & Benjamin brothers). Kelvin and AL joined last minute the night before.

When we first rode in, I sense that the trail is somehow similar to the one @ Elmina along Guthrie Highway - both on plantation area. The only difference are the plantation type and offroad surface. RRI is covered with rubbers trees with muddy and gravel stretch while Elmina is covered with oil palm trees and laterite surface.

Riding @ RRI does not require specific skills as the trails are flat with some minor climbs. This can be enjoyable if there is a huge crowd riding together. We had some fun exploring the trails but halfway while riding and chatting with Kelvin, I got stucked at the muddy area! The mud was so thick that my shoes and tires looked so thick! LOL!

The most interesting part about RRI is this place is infested with mosquitoes! Most of us were attacked badly during the last stretch. AL's arm was covered with SO MANY redspots because he has fair complexion.



We decided to have lunch together after the ride. Peter Wong (Adrian's cousin) brought us to Chung San Bak Kut Teh near Sungai Buloh commercial area. That lunch was nice, thanks to Peter and he paid for all of us. We wanted to return him the cash but he refused as he said we should celebrate for SinC because he is going to be a father soon. So embarassing! :)