Barely four months we were invited again to ride for another cause. All the loonies out there converged for the MAD (Make a Difference) ride where donations will be given to several charity homes around Keluang in hope that the donations will make a difference in their lives. It is also a chance for us to give back to the society and help them by lessening their burdens financially.
6.30am After a sumptuous breakfast (My usual breakfast would be 4 pcs of bread, 3 sheets of cheese, a mug of cereal & energy drink) I can last 50km on these.No odd rubbish like nasik lemak or anything spicy even though I'm a chili freak. For 3 days I'll absence my gut from the hot items.
7.30am The day started with an unusual morning exercise where I had worn a sarong. I knew that the TV3 guys would look for an eccentric figure & it just did the trick. Me & the sarong was later featured on TV3's Scoreboard midnight magazine.
Pak Berahim passin' by his office sweet office which sponsored his jersey
Flagged off from the lush Tropicana & exited thru the busting city traffic chocked in smoke! Not until we reached Dengkil then the intoxicating fumes ebbed. 50km later we were treated with buns minus the bunnies. Nevertheless, it was a sight for sore eyes.Refreshed with more isotonic water & rolled ahead.
Juliana so coy & cool
The pace was a usual steady 28kph as set by the organizer. It came to frenzy toward Salak & as I screamed to some of the rides to avoid the pebbles, I was hit! Wobbled steadily & 2 seconds the support car scooped up my rims & replaced them with another. By then, the pack had already left 1k ahead of me. Pushed hard to a 40kph & caught them at the Bandar Enstek junction - nearly out of breath.
Azmar, Aini & The threesome groupies.
From then, I hid myself between the swarm of skin-tights homo sapiens & let the flow pull me. Then came the crunch. Didn't feel much of a drag until we approached the famous piglet's home - "Bukit Pelandok". All of a sudden I had to put an extra effort to the peak.Whoa! The mechanic had fixed me an ancient Mavic wheels with stainless steel spokes. No wonder I was struggling like hell. It weighs a ton!
Alas, we reached Port Dickson & gobbled-up as much carbo as we could. Sol was almost up & takin a toll on the riders.
Next long stretch took us to the beautiful but windy Pengkalan Balak. The gale was so strong that it blew-off some of the parked bikes.Worse, those like me who rode on high profiles wheels. From the C50's to the ever boastful looking C88mm's suffered the most. I recalled Tuan Azhar, the Warrant Officer from Lumut veering to the left & right - trying to his best to avoid the ferocious gust.Me & Tuan raced forward & tucked ourselves between the bunch. Fuh, that's one cyclonic condition.
MAPLAY boys
It rained heavily after the short stop in Pengkalan Balak & I took the opportunity to test my new Sony waterproof camera. Captured the riders drenched to the bone, body bathed in the porous liquid, saliva mixed with sand & mud. It was all great from the beginning of the ride but as we reached the gates of A Formosa Resort, the camera went kaput!No matter what I did, it just wouldn’t work. The damn thing just seized-up & I gritted my teeth. Got into a fit & flew into purple rage. The thought of smashing the cam onto the hard cement was so tempting but after thinking that I had spent a fortune on it, I refrained from doin so. Hard earned cash was about to go down the drain.
It rained heavily after the short stop in Pengkalan Balak & I took the opportunity to test my new Sony waterproof camera. Captured the riders drenched to the bone, body bathed in the porous liquid, saliva mixed with sand & mud. It was all great from the beginning of the ride but as we reached the gates of A Formosa Resort, the camera went kaput!No matter what I did, it just wouldn’t work. The damn thing just seized-up & I gritted my teeth. Got into a fit & flew into purple rage. The thought of smashing the cam onto the hard cement was so tempting but after thinking that I had spent a fortune on it, I refrained from doin so. Hard earned cash was about to go down the drain.
In all I could only salvage 5 shots after extracting the images from a card recovery program. Some pix of the mornin exercise & shots of Pak Berahim donning his WD sponsored jersey ridin past his Western Digital plant in Kelana Jaya. All the other images & videos were corrupted. I frowned & sigh in displeasure of my misfortune....All the fun, sweat & tears washed by the frigid rain.
Wild wet & dirty, we soiled the carpet
We spend the night here before continuing on the second day, makin sure I had the usual Apple Vinegar & recovery drink to avoid cramps.
Not enuff vinegar, pity this fellow
The almost never ending AMJ ended with a pit stop 10km away from the original plan. The long straight stretch was just not tiring to the physique but made my eyes tired too. I hate highways. That's why I rarely ride The MAX, LEKAS or any highways for that matter. They bore me to death. Mind you, I'd rather do the 100km Bangi-Tekala-Perez-Bt18 loop or even the killer Broga. Ridin to Bentong is the horniest; you'll get pleasurably excited by the sound of the cicadas mating.
Linin' up is the most boring part.
One rider just couldn't control his bowel & had to "Let-go" by the banana trunk.
Thru Bakri, we came across some familiar places in Muar which is the best pod for "Mee Bandung". Overheard some lady-riders yapping about wanting to stop-over Yong Peng to shop for the ceramic/clay ornamental vases but were scoffed by the marshals. Lucky for the men, we zoomed past the shops with the dejected faces from the girls. Ha ha.The bunch got soaked again. The mushy socks were makin a squelching sound. It was uncomfortable for the feet but great for the head after the much dull but humid conditions.
Stalls selling "Dokong" fruits & coconut water drooled us but only after 95.7 km on the 2nda day that we stop for the deliciously cooked asam pedas & Masak Lemak Tempoyak (Fish cooked with coconut milk & fermented durians). I had 4 helpings of "Patin" & the fermented durian made us fart & belch like stuffed pigs. What a scene.While waitin for the rest of the guests to clean up the plates, Juliana & I decided to help the grocer to clean up his store. As Juliana swept the cement & I rearranged the turnips.
Juliana & me had to work to get food
I hooked to the main group as not to loose momentum but Keluang seems sooooooo faraway. The rolling hills didn't help either. We were pushin hard & nerve wrecking.
At the one hundred & thirty fifth kilometers (135km), the heard we ushered to a playground to feast & quench ourselves with red big melons.
Some eased themselves by the bushes as me the TV3 fellas went for a few rounds of kiddies-sliding. It was sheer fun. A big break from the monotonous cadence.
Team MAPLAY & MAPEI roadie. Yazid - the tallest guy in the centre
25km later we regrouped again for the last time in Zenxin Organic Farm. Some of us took the opportunity to get drunk with the sourly Roselle drink. Others especially the MAPLAY boys were lazily lying on the benches & swings sucking up the beautiful surrounding view of the water fountain within the farm. Little boy Zul just couldn’t resist the temptation.
This young man is still a kid. Zul Lumut
Jack giving some tip of how not to get drunk from Roselle.
Wak Kamsani (Centre) & the troupe of Keluang
Some riders from Keluang led by Wak Kamsani led us to Keluang town. It was great to see Wak Kamsani & the gang. He recognized me eventhough 2 years ago we rode to Gunung Belumut.
Some riders from Keluang led by Wak Kamsani led us to Keluang town. It was great to see Wak Kamsani & the gang. He recognized me eventhough 2 years ago we rode to Gunung Belumut.
We were given a grand reception. Big bang of confetti’s sprinkled from the sky like colorful raindrops. Close to a thousand spectators from every corner of Keluang came out to see us. The carnival like atmosphere & boisterous crowd was so was ecstatic, we felt like some pros who had finished a race stage.
RM100 from every registered cyclist, were given to the charity homes as a contribution from the cyclists besides the contribution from various organizations. Miriam Home, Pertubuhan Kebajikan Anak-anak Yatim Damo, Che Luan Khor Haemodialysis Centre, Kelab Kiwanis Kluang Mandarin & to OKU Sembrong benefited from this.
RM100 from every registered cyclist, were given to the charity homes as a contribution from the cyclists besides the contribution from various organizations. Miriam Home, Pertubuhan Kebajikan Anak-anak Yatim Damo, Che Luan Khor Haemodialysis Centre, Kelab Kiwanis Kluang Mandarin & to OKU Sembrong benefited from this.
I'm so elated when we were given to ride with the privileged few & do a little bit in helping the needy & displaced.
Stolling with cleats in Keluang Mall
After settling the certification ceremony, we met up with two female fans & had another cuppa-tea with MAPLAY the blokes.
Early next morning we had breakfast in Keluang KTM Station & chilled out with rest of the boys. The Lumut people invited me to ride in Pangkor & as they can't wait to see me there, especially arwah Hj. Isa - the traithlete. Allah loves him more & he left us barely a week before I could meet up with him again. AlFatihah. We will miss you Hj. Isa.
Zul, me, Rashin, Tuan Azhar havin a cuppa with the late Hj. Isa (Back facing camera).
Pak Berahim, Rashin, Bedul & arwah again (Xtreme right with aero-bar) featured in the ridin pix.
Back home, I remembered that I had left my blue sarong used during the mornin workout in Shahril's Malakoff's 4WD bound for Manjung. I wonder why...
Map - Tropicana Resort - Keluang, Johor
Thank you Yazid (MAPLAY Cycling Club), Juliana & some others for these pix, I ripped it off from your FBs. Without your pix, this tale will never be told...
*Moral of the story - As I have always carried a spare battery for the camera, one should also gat a spare SD card. Losing an entire images of the ride is like losing ones mind, hence - MAD
*Moral of the story - As I have always carried a spare battery for the camera, one should also gat a spare SD card. Losing an entire images of the ride is like losing ones mind, hence - MAD
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