Old Roots, New Routes

BCG Tour Ijok – Teluk Intan – Ijok

Posted on May 9, 2016 by alchemyrider

When the first Facebook posts about a supported ride from Ijok to Teluk Intan and back appeared on my News Feed, I was intrigued. It was the maiden ride organised by Johan S and Danial AM, who together are BCG Tour. They describe themselves as “2 cyclists who are dedicated to spreading the joy and good feeling of cycling to everyone.”

BCG Tour Teluk Intan Organisers

I am always up for joy and good feeling. Leslie and I signed up, and joined eleven other cyclists in Ijok.

Right away we all made new friends.

Before we headed out onto Jalan Kuala Selangor we got a short briefing about what to expect along the way. We were given ziploc bags holding cue sheets for the route. There weren’t many turns to watch out for, so none of us were worried about getting lost. Danial and Johan would both be driving support vehicles, one of which was a pickup, so help would always be close at hand.

BCG Tour Teluk Intan Support

Johan is a photographer by profession. He started snapping photographs at the start, and regularly hopped out of his car along the route to take action shots. All the photographs in this post, unless indicated otherwise, were shot by him.

The route took us west from Ijok town to Jalan Kapar. There we turned right and headed north to Kuala Selangor and Sekinchan.

Route map courtesy of Ride With GPS

We made our first stop at Sekinchan after covering 48km / 30mi in 90 minutes. Pretty quick, thanks to Eric leading the way. It was time to regroup, and have a cold drink and a rest at a PETRONAS station.

The pace stayed high between Sekinchan and Sabak Bernam, which was our next designated regrouping point.

The staff at the KFC weren’t fazed by a throng of sweaty cyclists rocking up to the counter to order drinks and food. I’m not sure what the other patrons thought though.

We spent ninety minutes at the KFC in Sabak Bernam. By the time we were all ready to leave it was starting to get hot. Very hot.

Weather graphic courtesy of Weather Underground

Certainly hot enough for me to slather some more sunscreen on my exposed skin, and to tuck a bandana under my helmet to keep the sun off the back of my neck.

The last 40km / 25mi to Teluk Intan started with a 5km / 3mi detour through town and along the Sungai Bernam to avoid roadworks on the main road. The detour did include the opportunity to show off some cyclocross skills.

BCG Tour Teluk Intan Sabak Bernam Detour 2

BCG Tour Teluk Intan Sabak Bernam Detour

Photographs courtesy of Danial AM

Once back on the main road we hit the climb of the day – the entire route is so flat that bridges across rivers count as climbs.

Photograph courtesy of Danial AM

After that it was a non-stop ride to Teluk Intan.

I am sure we were all glad to get to the landmark Menara Condong (Leaning Tower) in Teluk Intan. The end point for Day 1.

Photograph courtesy of Yew Boutique Hotel

Overnight accommodation was at the Yew Boutique Hotel, situated a few hundred metres from the Menara Condong. The hotel ticked all the boxes. The lobby cum coffee house is bright and spacious. The room Leslie and I shared was clean and comfortable. The air conditioning worked well, as did the water heater for the shower. We were even allowed to bring our bikes into our room.

Most of us hung out in the coolness of the coffee house before heading up to our rooms for a shower etc.

BCG Tour Teluk Intan Yew Boutique Hotel

Once we were cleaned up it was time to eat. Next door to the hotel is the Medan Selera GSB (Glutton Square Baru) that serves delicious vegetarian popiah.

Photograph courtesy of Daniel N

Three servings, and some of Leslie’s shrimp wan tan, were enough to tide me over until dinner that evening.

Next came a dusk photo session at the Menara Condong.

BCG Tour Teluk Intan Menara Condong

A dinner tip from local boy Shahfiq was the udang galah (giant freshwater prawns) at Restoran D’Tepian Sungai. Udang Galah are a big deal in Teluk Intan. These big versions are at Dataran Udang Galah (Udang Galah Square), which we walked through on the way to the restaurant.

BCG Tour Teluk Intan Dataran Udang Galah

I took this photograph

As its name implies, Restoran D’Tepian Sungai overlooks the Sungai Perak. It is a simple open-air place.

BCG Tour Teluk Intan Restoran D'Tepian Sungai

Photograph courtesy of narizan.blogspot.com

Essentially just a roof over tables and chairs, with the river visible behind.

You don’t come to Restoran D’Tepian Sungai for a fancy restaurant experience. You come for this.

Photograph courtesy of Wikipedia

Ordered by the kilo, and cooked in your choice of six different ways.

Photograph courtesy of Daniel N

We were treated to an epic thunderstorm as we ate our prawns, squid etc. The rain persisted after we had all finished our dinners. By the time we could venture out into the open to walk home, some were peckish again.

Teluk Intan is noted for its chee cheong fun. The best is reputedly made by Liew Kee (Ah Lek) Chee Cheong Fun, which conveniently was on the way back to the hotel.

Despite all the food I ate for dinner, I was up early for the set breakfast that came with the hotel room. Toast and jam, a fried egg, baked beans and coffee set me up for the ride home.

Riders headed back onto the road when they were ready, beginning before dawn.

My day didn’t start very well. I had a puncture 9 kilometres from the hotel.

Photograph courtesy of Leslie T

The fix was complicated by a valve core that kept unscrewing from the valve, rapidly releasing all the air that Leslie and I had just worked hard to pump in. Fortunately Danial appeared in his truck, with a small pair of pliers, and perhaps more crucially, a foot pump that had a push-on rather than a screw-on head.

Once my rear tire was back on my bike, we had no more trouble. We retraced our route back to Ijok, this time without the need to detour around road works.

As it had done the day before, the temperature climbed steadily through the morning. The humidity level was also very high after the heavy rain during the night.

Weather graphic courtesy of Weather Underground

I wasn’t the only one sweating buckets on the return ride. Leslie and I stopped at a Caltex station in Batang Berjuntai for a cold drink and a dose of air conditioning.

We stopped again at the Padi Box in Sekinchan, which was the scheduled regrouping point.

The Padi Box is a homestay place built out of repurposed shipping containers.

Photograph courtesy of Seng Chee Photography

Unfortunately the cafe was closed because there was a video shoot going on. So we descended on the fruit stall on the corner of Jalan Tali Air 4 and the main road. Where I drank three large glasses of fresh mango juice in double quick time. I had been drinking regularly from my bidons, but the fluid was dripping out of me almost as fast as I was taking it in.

20km / 12mi later we stopped at Cendol Durian Borhan in Kampung Permatang. Yet another food outlet that has achieved stellar status in the eyes of foodies.

I can’t fault the decor.

BCG Tour Teluk Intan Cendol Durian Borhan

Photograph courtesy of asparaguswhite.blogspot.com

The cendol was very good.

Photograph courtesy of Leslie T

So good that I had another bowl after I finished the two in front of me.

Given the amount of fluid I had drunk during the previous two hours, I am surprised that I wasn’t sloshing around during the 25km / 16mi from the cendol stop to Ijok. It was straight into the 7-Eleven at Ijok for another drink as soon as we finished.

BCG Tour Teluk Intan Finish Ijok

Johan and Danial did an excellent job making sure that everyone got back to Ijok safely. Kudos to the both of them for organising a fun event. And congratulations to all the participants. For some this was their longest ride to date. Well done.

If you are interested in joining the next BCG tour event, click here. Kajang to Melaka and back on June 4th and 5th. 260km / 162mi in all. I’m sure you will enjoy it.

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Posted in Cycling in Malaysia and tagged BCG Tour, Cendol Durian Borhan, Ijok, Liew Kee (Ah Lek) Chee Cheong Fun, Medan Selera GSB, Menara Condong, Padi Box, Restoran D'Tepian Sungai, Teluk Intan, Yew Boutique Hotel. Bookmark the permalink.

FSA K-Force Light SB25 Seatpost

Posted on May 6, 2016 by alchemyrider

Graphic courtesy of Road Bike Review

I have written a few posts about my Alchemy Eros. Starting with A Bicycle for the Cognoscenti Adventure, followed by My New Best Bike: the Alchemy Eros, and 4,000 km / 2,500 mi Update: Alchemy Eros.

A common theme in the two later posts is that the trade-off for a stiff and sharp handling titanium frame is a ride that is sometimes jarring. I have owned, and still own in the form of a Ritchey Break-Away Road Ti / Carbon, Ti bicycles that are more comfortable.

I lived with the tradeoff between frame stiffness and comfort until I read an online article in VeloNews titled Getting the Most From Your Post. First published in June 2012, the article is somewhat dated, but still relevant. The article attempted to determine the role the seatpost plays in rider comfort.

In its typically thorough fashion, VeloNews set out to answer this question by testing 14 seatposts of different materials, setback and design philosophy. At Boulder’s Microbac accredited test laboratory, they measured vibration damping over small bumps with an accelerometer, and they measured linear deflection (flex) under body weight in two dimensions.

The winner was the FSA K-Force Light SB (Setback). VeloNews judged the FSA seatpost to be the best choice for long road rides. The FSA seatpost has excellent vibration damping, which makes it noticeably more comfortable, especially on long rides, dirt roads, or concrete or asphalt with lots of small cracks and expansion joints.

The seatpost that came with my Eros is the Ritchey Comp Carbon.

Photograph courtesy of Ritchey

This seatpost was not one of those tested, but three other Ritchey seatposts, the WCS Carbon SB, the WCS Aluminium SB, and the WCS Carbon Straight, are among those in the Velonews review. The Ritchey seatposts came in sixth, tenth and last respectively.

The Comp Carbon sits at the lower end of Ritchey’s seatpost offerings. I thus assume that it would score even lower than its siblings on the VeloNews test.

Eager to soften the ride of the Alchemy Eros, I bought an FSA K-Force Light.

Photograph courtesy of Full Speed Ahead

I have the version with the same 25mm of setback that my Ritchey Comp Carbon has. For purely aesthetic reasons I opted for the black and grey graphics rather than the red and white.

VeloNews had discovered that a setback post will give you greater pedaling efficiency and more high-frequency vibration damping. My usual routes don’t have big bumps, where the greater flex of a straight seatpost is an advantage.

I have ridden 370km / 230mi on the FSA K-Light. The ride quality of my Eros has noticeably improved. Even with 10psi more air pressure in each tire. There is much more vibration damping now. My Eros rides much more like I would expect a Ti frame to ride. So my qualitative impression so far matches the quantitative findings at VeloNews.

I have a 240km / 149mi ride, split over two days, this weekend. I am looking forward to a more comfortable long-distance ride than I have had before on the Alchemy Eros.

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Posted in Gear and Tools and tagged FSA K-Force Light, Full Speed Ahead, Ritchey, Seatpost, VeloNews. Bookmark the permalink.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016

Posted on May 3, 2016 by alchemyrider

There was a twist to this year’s Shimano Highway Challenge. Unlike the 2013 and 2014 events, this year’s ride was at night. The LEKAS Highway was closed from 5.00pm until 3.00am so that participants could cycle on an empty highway under LED street lights that came online in December 2015.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Lighting

Photograph courtesy of GigaTera

I have done one other night ride. The Moonlight Bicycle Ramble in Houston. The Ramble was a well-organised event. The Shimano Highway Challenge, however, has been in a class of its own right from its first running in 2013. Heavyweight sponsors will do that for you.

RHB, which is a Malaysian bank, and Shimano were the title sponsors this time. RHB put out a number of tips for participants leading up to the event.

Cycling Plus magazine has just launched a Malaysian edition. IJM Land, a local property developer, has an in-house magazine called “like.” Copies of both publications were in the goodie bags, along with a Brother branded water bottle and a PowerBar.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Schwag 2

The benefits of generous sponsorship extend beyond schwag. It also funds proper and sufficient resources to run the event well. The organization of the event, as it has been in past iterations, was excellent.

The goodie bag, and bike and rider identification number, distribution was efficient and fast. There were a large number of volunteers working the process. It was obvious that a lot of effort had gone into pre-packing bags and pre-sorting identification numbers.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Pickup 2

3,000 or so riders lined up at the start point for either the 78km / 48mi or the 105km / 65mi ride. Here are some of the guys I regularly ride with, all set to go.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Start 1

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Talisman Guys Azad Z

Photographs courtesy of Mark L, Tan MG, and Azad Z

The outstanding kit award has to go to these modern-day Les Forçats de la Route (Prisoners of the Road), a phrase immortalised in a piece written by Albert Londres for Le Petit Parisien during the 1924 Tour de France.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Prisoners CMM

Photograph courtesy of Cycling Malaysia Magazine

LEKAS, the highway concessionaire, estimated that closing the highway for us would result in a loss of traffic volume of approximately 50,000 vehicles. Despite information about the closure being disseminated through various media, there was quite a traffic jam as motorists clogged up alternate routes in the area.

Inconvenience to motorists aside, it was a treat to be able to cycle on the fast lane of a three lane highway. We joked about needing our Touch ‘n Go electronic cash cards to get through the toll booths, which of course had been disabled.

In a nice touch, the electronic highway information signs had been reprogrammed for this ride.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Go Go Peter Lim Hang Weng

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Legs Bard KR

As in previous years, the route was an out-and-back one, with a 4km / 2.5mi climb to test the legs. If you rode the 105km / 65mi option, you had to repeat a section of the route.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Route Map

The 105km riders rolled out right on time. As we always do, my riding buddies and I positioned ourselves at the rear of the pack at the starting line. Even so, we got swarmed a few times in the early kilometres by bunches of riders moving faster than we were.

There were, as is always the case, a few crashes. One happened right beside me when there was a touch of wheels in a group that was overtaking me at speed. Other crashes were announced by the wail of an ambulance siren. As far as I know, none of the crashes resulted in serious injury.

Crashes aside, this event was once again among the best on the Malaysian ride calendar. The evening start time was universally appreciated. It was cool with minimal wind. Which meant that overheating and dehydration were not a problem.

As you would expect from a highway, the road conditions were excellent. Smooth, pothole-free asphalt under bright LED lights. The rolling terrain, coupled with no disruptions from motorized traffic, were a delight.

I didn’t stop during my ride (a first for me on a ride exceeding 100km / 62mi), but reports were that the water stations were superb. Although there was an issue with a shortage of water at the first stop. All the other stops were literally overflowing with cool water, 100 Plus, bananas and PowerGels. I’ve never been in a Malaysian ride where PowerGels were given away. As many as you wanted.

The marshals were excellent. Each highway exit was manned with volunteers holding lighted batons with which to direct riders. Marshals on motorbikes patrolled the route. The need for route signage was minimal, but it was clearly visible where needed.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Support CMM

Photograph courtesy of Cycling Malaysia Magazine

The entire mood of the event was festive. The lively music at the start, the upbeat volunteers, the outstanding facilities, the magical sight of thousands of red lights blinking on down the highway, and the reception at the finish line all helped make this a memorable event.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 JM Finish BaikBikecom

Photograph courtesy of BaikBike.com

The good times continued at the finish area. Sponsors like Garmin, Volvo and Polygon, a local bike shop chain, had booths displaying and selling their products. Clear Marque, the local distributor for Volvo Life Paint, was demonstrating and taking orders for their unique reflective spray. As Volvo says, “The best way to survive a crash is not to crash.”

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Volvo Life Paint Karen Khoo

Photograph courtesy of Karen Khoo

Like on Friday during the goodie bag pickup, the Starbucks van was doing a good trade in Frappuccinos.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Starbucks 1

Lots of free food was on offer as well – satay, muffins, coconut shakes, fruit. There was a massage tent. There were lucky draw prizes to be given out.

And post-ride was a great time to catch up with friends.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Friends Farid

Photograph courtesy of Mohd Farid AB

Including these former colleagues of mine in their spiffy corporate jerseys.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Astro Guys Khairul MS

Photograph courtesy of Khairul MS

There are some who didn’t think that the RHB Shimano Highway Ride was a tremendous success. Mostly drivers who were caught in the traffic caused by the closure of the LEKAS highway. The rest of us can’t wait to do it all again next year.

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016 Medal

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Posted in Cycling in Malaysia and tagged LEKAS, RHB Shimano Highway Ride, Volvo Life Paint. Bookmark the permalink.

Los Gatos Creek Trail

Posted on April 27, 2016 by alchemyrider

I had one more stop on my California road trip before I had to fly home. Los Gatos, in the Silicon Valley, to visit a college friend.

I had an easy drive in the Jeep Compass with my bicycle and luggage, from Chico to Los Gatos by way of the Rapha Cycle Club San Francisco.

CCSFC

I had a free afternoon before having to pack up my Ritchey BreakAway. My had friend mentioned the trail that runs through Los Gatos. A quick look at Google Maps showed me the quickest way from my hotel to the Los Gatos Creek Trail.

Los Gatos Creek Trail Sign wwwlosgatoscom

I rode down the slope from Maple Place and turned right on the gravel trail. I hadn’t expected gravel, but it would do.

The trail northward runs parallel to Highway 17, with Los Gatos Creek on one side and a large water pipeline on the other.

Los Gatos Creek Trail Hill wwwfinchester.org

Photograph courtesy of http://www.finchester.org

The sign warned of a hill, but it didn’t alert me to just how steep the hill was. I had to strike a fine balance between keeping enough weight on the rear wheel so that it maintained some grip on the gravelly trail, while at the same time not unweighting the front wheel so much that it lifted off the trail.

At the top of that short steep climb the gravel gave way to pavement. One more longer and only slightly less steep climb brought me onto Alma Bridge Road, which encirles the Lexington reservoir.

Los Gatos Creek Trail Route

At the time I didn’t know that Alma Bridge Road ran around the reservoir. So at the 13km / 8mi point of my ride I took a photograph of the reservoir, and turned around.

Los Gatos Creek Trail Lexington Reservoir 1

I kept going south past where I had joined the trail at the start of my ride. Not far from that point the trail changed from gravel to paved. That is how it stayed all the way to where I left the trail in San Jose.

Los Gatos Creek Trail pedalspaddlespacksblogspotmy

Photograph courtesy of pedalspaddlespacks.blogspot.my

The Los Gatos Creek Trail passes through a number of parks, including Oak Meadow, Vasona Lake County, Los Gatos Creek and Campbell. There is a miniature train operating at Vasona.

Los Gatos Creek Trail Vasona Park Train Amit Basu

Photograph courtesy of Amit Basu

Some of these parks contain lakes.

Photograph courtesy of TripAdvisor

There are also a number of bridges crossing Los Gatos Creek.

Photograph courtesy of TripAdvisor

I should have crossed one of those bridges to stay on the trail in the Willow Glen neighbourhood in San Jose Instead I found myself on Willow Street, which I followed for about 4km / 2.5mi before I turned around and retraced my route.

Later on I found out that there are two sections to the Los Gatos Creek Trail. There is the Campbell section, which I rode end to end, and the shorter San Jose section. The two sections are separated by about 4km / 2.5mi.

I ended my ride back in Los Gatos with a latte and some banana bread at Great Bear Coffee. My bike was leaning against this tree as I sat inside.

Los Gatos Creek Trail Great Bear Coffee losgatosshopscom

Photograph courtesy of http://www.losgatosshop.com

On balance I preferred the American River Bike Trail because it wasn’t as busy. Where the Los Gatos Creek Trail passses through parks it gets crowded with pedestrians and other traffic. But I would ride the Los Gatos trail again. Including the San Jose section into downtown San Jose.

Los Gatos Creek Trail Sign

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Posted in Cycling in California and tagged Lexington Reservoir, Los Gatos Creek Trail, San Jose. Bookmark the permalink.

American River Bike Trail

Posted on April 27, 2016 by alchemyrider

After the BP MS150 I took a little road trip from San Francisco International airport to Chico, CA. I went to university there many many years ago. I wanted to see how the university has changed since then, and more importantly, to see old friends.

The timing of my flight from Austin to SFO meant that it would be quite late by the time I got to Chico. So I researched bike rides in the Sacramento area, where I planned to stop for the night.

TrailLink showed me the American River Bike Trail, also known as the Jedediah Smith Memorial Trail. “Yes” I had to look up who Jedediah Smith was. He was, among other things, a noted explorer, but his accomplishments were not recognized until 75 years after his death.

I had found a trail to ride. I had booked a hotel room in Woodland. Hertz put the final piece of the puzzle in place by upgrading my rental car to a Jeep Compass. I had wondered if I would be able to fit the bike case, a suitcase and my built-up bicycle into the mid-sized sedan that I had reserved. Everything fit with room to spare in the Jeep.

The trail runs between Discovery Park in Old Sacramento to the shore of Folsom Lake, 51km / 32mi from end to end. I started from Discovery Park.

American River Bike Trail Route

As the name implies, the trail follows the banks of the American River. It is paved for its entire length, and is complete with mile markers, rest areas, water fountains and emergency telephones.

Much of my ride was through shaded tree-lined pathways like this.

Photograph courtesy of TrailLink.

The trail isn’t in wilderness per se, but there is a lot of wildlife about. I saw wild turkeys. And this guy.

American River Bike Trail Deer

At the Folsom Lake end of the trail, where Folsom Lake Crossing meets the Folsom – Auburn Road, there is a little shopping centre. I had a latte and a very nice bagel at the Folsom Grind.

You can walk into Folsom Bike from inside the coffee shop. Very convenient if you need a spare inner tube or an energy bar to go.

American River Bike Trail Folsom Grind & Bike

Photograph courtesy of Folsom Bike

Speaking of spare inner tubes, my ride back to Discovery Park was punctuated by a flat tire. I couldn’t fault the scenery around me as I made the repair.

American River Bike Trail 1

I now know that I stopped at Hagan Community Park. It was so pleasant that after I changed the inner tube I sat for a while and enjoyed the view.

American River Bike Trail Park Bench

Only for a while though. It was getting warm. I still had 25km / 15.5mi to Discovery Park. And after that, 90 minutes of driving to get to Chico.

I am very glad that I made the stop in Sacramento to ride the American River Bike Trail. If I get the chance I will ride it again. And if you get the chance, you should ride it too.

American River Bike Trail Flowers

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Posted in Cycling in California and tagged American River Bike Trail, Folsom, Sacramento. Bookmark the permalink.

2016 BP MS150

Posted on April 26, 2016 by alchemyrider

Logo courtesy of National MS Society

There was a reunion of good friends at the 2016 BP MS150 charity ride from Houston to Austin. Friends who had ridden together in the 2011 and 2013 editions of the event.

Tom travelled from New Jersey. I probably had the longest trip of all the participants. I met Tom in Austin early in the week. Tom rented a bicycle in Austin, and I brought my Ritchey BreakAway. We had decided to rent a Dodge Grand Caravan for the drive to Houston. It was probably a bit more than we needed, but I have to say I enjoyed being able to wheel both our bicycles upright into the rear of the van. And still have plenty of room for suitcases.

We spent the rest of the week in Houston catching up with friends, eating too much, and doing the Thursday evening 6:30 ride. I miss that “Two minutes” call

The weather forecasts in the days leading up to the ride weekend had not been favourable. A broad and heavy band of rain was expected to sweep through Austin on Sunday.

By Friday the prospects for bad weather on Sunday had worsened, as the doppler radar images showed. The organisers took the only option open to them given those forecasts. Day 2 of the ride was cancelled.

BP MS150 2106 Day 1 Weather

Team Hess quickly told its riders that the Day 1 evening arrangements at La Grange would continue as planned. We could enjoy the barbecue dinner and spend the night at the VFW Hall if we wished. The live concert at the fairgrounds would go on as well. So it wasn’t all bad news.

Skip, Barbara, Tom, Dane and I started as we usually do, from the entrance of the Omni Westside Hotel.

BP MS150 2106 Day 1 Start Others started, under threatening skies, from one of the three official start points at Tully Stadium in Houston, Rhodes Stadium in Katy, or Waller Stadium in Waller.

Photograph courtesy of MarathonFOTO.com

The weather may have put paid to Day 2 of this year’s ride, but in exchange we had excellent conditions on Day 1. The overcast skies meant that it was fairly warm at the start. Those same clouds shielded us from the worst of the sun as the day progressed.

The wind was kind to us this year also, blowing us toward Austin rather than back to Houston, as has often been the case in the past.

I thought it would rain at one point. A few light sprinkles prompted me to put on my rain jacket, but it was a false alarm, and my rain jacket came off again ten minutes later.

BP MS150 2106 Day 1 Route

The route was unchanged from previous years. We skipped the first rest stop in favour of the second stop in the MHWirth parking lot, 36km / 22mi into the ride.

We then rode non-stop to lunch at Belleville. Belleville is at the halfway point between the Omni Westside Hotel and La Grange. The Hess volunteers took excellent care of us at the lunch stop. They made sure we were well watered and fed before we headed back out onto the road.

BP MS150 2106 Day 1 Lunch 2

Tom and I always visit the rest stop at Industry to say hello to the West End Bicycles guys manning their customary service tent. So far it has been social visits only to the West End tent. I can recall only one puncture between the five of us over the three MS150 rides I have done.

Others are not so lucky. The West End tent is always busy attending to the mechanical woes that have befallen unfortunate riders.

BP MS150 2106 Day 1 Industry

After Industry comes one of the highlights of Day 1. Riding into Fayetteville.

Photograph courtesy of MarathonFOTO.com

It seems like the entire population of 262 line the sides of the road to watch the ride go by. Cowbells, bubbles, music, and lots of clapping and cheering.

Photograph courtesy of MarathonFOTO.com

Again this year there was an amazing spread of home-baked cookies and cakes on offer at Ye Ole Garage on the corner of West Fayette Street and North Rusk Street. A highly anticipated stop after 127km / 79mi of riding.

Kudos to the lady who does all the baking (I wish I knew her name). She accepts donations from sugar-sated riders. This year the collection went to a local school.

Even the Ye Ole Garage rest room maintains the theme.

Photograph courtesy of Dane Schiller

After covering about 160km / 100mi, we all pulled into the fairgrounds at La Grange, accompanied by lots of whoops and cheers.

Photograph courtesy of MarathonFOTO.com

It was a good day for the five of us. We all rode well, had a lot of fun, and stayed safe. So it was smiles all around, despite the cancellation of Day 2.

Photograph courtesy of MarathonFOTO.com

Tom and I stayed overnight at La Grange with a diminished number of other Team Hess riders. The transport options were such that Barbara, Dane and Skip, and many others, headed back to Houston that evening.

The Team Hess volunteers did their usual outstanding job of looking after us at La Grange. They gave us plenty to eat and drink, including a delicious barbecue dinner. There was a very nice shower truck reserved for our use. A masseuse was on site for us.

Can you blame me for wanting to come back and ride with Team Hess every year?

The BP MS150 organisers did very well with the last-minute need to move people, bicycles and bags from La Grange back to Houston on Saturday evening, and again on Sunday morning.

Tom and I, along with many others, were on the morning bus to Austin.

BP MS150 2016 Austin Bus

Our bikes were delayed, which caused us a bit of concern, but they did eventually arrive in Austin. Even though we weren’t able to ride on Day 2, we posed for an Austin Glory photograph in front of the State Capitol. The customary closing to the BP MS150.

BP MS150 2106 Day 1 Austin

We are already planning for 2017.

Graphic courtesy of National MS Society

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Posted in Cycling in Texas and tagged Austin, BP MS150, Fayetteville, Houston, La Grange, Ye Ole Garage. Bookmark the permalink.

Grow Your Jersey Collection One Ride at a Time – 2015

Posted on April 6, 2016 by alchemyrider

In 2015 I participated in five organised rides that had event jerseys. The jerseys from those events are below.

If you want to see the jerseys from the 2013 events that I rode in, click here.

For jerseys from the 2014 events, click here.

2015 kicked off with the Rembau Century Ride.

Rembau

Next came the Kedah Century Ride, which unusually, didn’t have an event jersey.

Jersey number two for the year came from the Shah Alam Enduride.

Enduride

The Janamanjung Fellowship Ride had a t-shirt, as is the norm for this event.

Janamanjung

Jersey number three came from the Century Ride de Kelantan.

Kelantan

The Maybank Save a Child’s Heart Ride was in August.

Maybank

The Melaka Century Ride was the last of my organised rides that came with a jersey for 2015. I can’t find my jersey, so until I do, this graphic from the organiser’s website will have to do.

Graphic courtesy of Melaka Century Ride 160KM 2015

There is already one jersey earned and in the queue for the 2016 collection post. I should have a BP MS150 team jersey in two weeks. I’ve also signed up for the Perlis and Perak Century Rides.

The collection keeps growing!

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4,000 km / 2,500 mi Update: Alchemy Eros

Posted on February 18, 2016 by alchemyrider

Photograph courtesy of Alchemy Bicycle Company

I wrote an early review of my Alchemy Eros in October 2015. At that time I had ridden the bike 1,400 km / 870 mi. Today it has more than 4,000 km / 2,500 mi on it. I have had some long days on this bike, including a 220 km / 137 mi brevet.

My impressions from last October still hold true. This is a stiff frame with sharp handling, thanks to the large-diameter titanium tubes and the excellent welds, which meet the American Welding Society guidelines. It tracks precisely through turns. I have yet to induce any shimmy at high speeds. This frame flexes very little, if at all. The integrated rear derailleur dropout helps in that regard.

The tradeoff for this degree of stiffness is that the frame does transmit road vibration to the saddle and bar. This is not a silky-smooth riding Ti bike. I continue to steer around as many of the ruts, cracks, patches and other rough stuff on the roads as I can.

Fortunately the wheels that were specified with the bike, ROL Race SLs, certainly help to smooth out the ride quality of this frame.

Photograph courtesy of ROL Wheels

The rims are 23mm wide, which allow me to use 25mm Continental Grand Prix 4000s. I can run 80psi in the rear and 70psi in the front, which certainly helps dampen road chatter. The ROL Race SLs are not super light at 1,555grams for the wheel set , but they are excellent value for the USD675 asking price. The build quality is excellent, and the wheels have taken some significant hits – potholes and the like – without any ill effects. The wheels are as true today as they were when I took delivery of this bike.

A few days ago the bike went in for its first tuneup since it left the Alchemy Bicycle Company. The SRAM drivetrain needed a slight adjustment to offset the normal cable stretch / housing compression that happens during a new drivetrain break-in period. And the Cane Creek 40-Series IS headset that came with the frame had loosened slightly, probably from clattering over speed bumps and the like.

I reckon it will be another 4,000 km before this bike needs another tuneup. Assuming I don’t inflict any damage on the bike by dropping it, or, heaven forbid, crashing it. By then I will be looking to replace the chain, and perhaps the brake pads. In the meantime, this “Twin Towers” Eros will continue to be my ‘go to’ bike.

Photograph courtesy of Alchemy Bicycle Company

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Posted in Gear and Tools and tagged Alchemy Bicycle Company, Cane Creek, Continental Grand Prix 4000, Eros, SRAM. Bookmark the permalink.

Pulau Indah 180 2016

Posted on January 18, 2016 by alchemyrider

180km / 112mi is further than most organised rides. An extra 20km / 12mi didn’t sound like much, especially as a few of us had made it through the 220km / 137mi brevet a couple of weeks before. As it turned out, this ride was much more challenging than even the brevet was.

The attrition rate in an event is one sign of how challenging a course is. 592 riders started the Pulau Indah ride. 398 finished within the cutoff time of 7 hours 30 minutes. So 33% of participants either did not finish, or finished outside the cutoff time.

The three of us rode together. I missed the memo about the choice of jersey! I can assure you that we didn’t look so cheery eight hours later.

Pulau Indah 180 2016 Justin, Liang, JM Justin

What contributed to the attrition rate? I think it was a combination of the road conditions, the winds, and the mid-day sun.

As the name of the event suggests, the ride started and ended on Pulau Indah. The island is separated from the mainland of peninsular Malaysia by the Straits of Lumut. Pulau Indah is home to Westports, the largest sea port in Malaysia. Together with Northport nearby, Westports has become the 18th busiest seaport in the world. Pulau Indah is also home to an industrial park.

The side streets and the Pulau Indah Expressway carry a large number of cargo trucks everyday. Which inevitably leads to potholes and cracks in the road surface, and then patch upon patch as the damage is repaired.

Pulau Indah 180 2016 Route

The organisers did warn us about the poor roads during the technical briefing before the race / ride was flagged off. I don’t think all the participants fully appreciated the warning, and some started out riding too fast for the conditions.

By the time we got to the bridge over the Straits of Lumut, a number of cyclists had suffered pinch flats or damaged carbon wheels. There were lots of bidons on the road. I also heard that there were a few crashes. Signs that the roads were damaged and very bumpy.

Pulau Indah 180 2016 Bridge

So the first contributor to the attrition rate came early. Puncture a tubular tire, or crack a carbon rim, and your day is over.

The poor road conditions continued after we turned right onto Jalan Banting Klang. through to Banting town. Things improved a bit along the coast after Morib, but concentration on the road and riders ahead remained very important over the entire course. Even Cat’s Eyes could catch you out.

Photograph courtesy of Jack Mah

I think the energy spent constantly concentrating on the road conditions was energy that was not available to turn pedals later on in the event.

I must credit Central Spectrum SB for doing a fine job organising the Pulau Indah 180. This was one of the better run events I have participated in.

Central Spectrum couldn’t do much about the roads, but they did very well with other aspects of the ride. Directional signage to the start point was good. Goodie bag pickup went smoothly. There was free coffee, tea, and some munchies on offer before the start.

We started on time – hooray. Always a good indicator that the organiser is on top of things.

Pulau Indah 180 2016 Start Cycling Malaysia Magazine

Photograph courtesy of Cycling Malaysia Magazine

The directional signs along the route were large and clear. Especially helpful were the signs warning of humps in the road.

The marshalling along the route was excellent.

Pulau Indah 180 2016 Moto Marshalls Cycling Malaysia Magazine

Photograph courtesy of Cycling Malaysia Magazine

Some busy roads through Banting were closed off to traffic, which made life less stressful for the riders.

Pulau Indah 180 2016 Closed Road Cycling Malaysia Magazine

Photograph courtesy of Cycling Malaysia Magazine

We did have to ride with traffic in some places. Again concentration was important.

Photograph courtesy of XviCliX

There was free food and drink at the finish.

Kudos Central Spectrum SB.

The first water station was 50km / 31mi into the event, on the south side of Banting. Bananas, water, and 100 Plus were available.

Pulau Indah 180 2016 Water Station XviCliX

Photograph courtesy of XviCliX

17km / 11mi later the three of us stopped at Morib for breakfast. I was surprised that not more riders stopped at those food stalls beside the sea for a rest and some eats.

It had been overcast for most of the distance to Morib, so the riding had been comfortable. We averaged about 30kph / 19mph to that point. A bit faster than I had anticipated, but my average heart rate was only 107bpm. I must have been drafting the entire way!

Conditions changed after Morib. We were riding along the coast, and the wind was making itself felt. It was my turn to pull, and started riding in the drops. I was crouched low against the wind for much of the remainder of the course. Which explains why my glutes are so sore today.

We chased down a group ahead of us, which gave us the relief of a draft. I noticed a red Specialized Roubaix in the group, and wondered if it was Simon.

Photograph courtesy of Joy Saidin

A salute to the guy on the fatbike. It must have been an effort to push those tires aound the course.

Simon and his girlfriend had found my blog, and had contacted me some weeks before the Pulai Indah 180. Simon was making the trip from the UK to ride this event, and asked if he could rent a Roubaix in Kuala Lumpur.

The short answer is “no”. The availability of rental bicycles in KL is extremely limited. The only shop providing rentals that I know of is Cycleism in Taman Melawati. They have Lapierre bicycles for rent, but only in size M.

Simon decided to bring his Roubaix with him to KL. I didn’t manage to chat with Simon during the ride, but did see Farrah and him at the finish area. It was very nice to chat with them. I am pleased that we connected through this blog.

By the time we got to the second water station at 103km / 64mi, the sun was out, and the temperature was quickly rising to the predicted high for the day.

Graphic courtesy of Weather Underground

Some were better prepared than we were. There was a contingent of rider friends from Van’s Urban Bicycle Co. They had a support vehicle with, among other things, an ice chest full of drinks. Certainly made our lukewarm mineral water look distinctly second-best.

Pulau Indah 180 2016 Support Car William Cheang

Photograph courtesy of William Cheang

There was a time check at 110km / 68mi, right outside the Sepang International Circuit. It would have been fun to ride a lap of the circuit as part of the route.

Hope for some relief flickered briefly at about the 120km / 75mi, when a light rain started to fall. That lasted for all of a minute, after which normal sunshine resumed.

We were getting cooked, and wind hadn’t helped us. We were hoping for a tail wind on the way back to Pulau Indah. But the wind had turned, so we rode against it for most of the rest of the event.

A cold drink stop was in order. We pulled into a PETRONAS station at 130km / 81mi. A spot of air conditioning and three cold chocolate milks hit the spot for me.

We were starting to drag, as were many of the other riders around us. This ride was becoming hard work. I can’t imagine what it was like for the elite men and women, who were racing for cash prizes. RM3,000 for the category winners. Not to be sniffed at.

The third water station at 150km / 93mi couldn’t come fast enough. Lukewarm water served to rinse salt off our faces. Fortunately there was a row of shop houses behind the water station that provided a source of cold drinks, and some shade.

We lingered in the shade for longer than we probably should have, but the thought of another 30km / 19mi in the wind did not appeal.

It was hot. It was windy. The roads were bad. It was hard work. My average speed over the last 60km / 37mi dropped to 27.5kph / 17mph. My heart rate went up to an average of 134.5bpm.

What a relief to see the 5km / 3km / 1km to go signs.

Pulau Indah 180 2016 3km Sign Catherine Wong

Photograph courtesy of Catherine Wong

The organizers were about to dismantle the timing gantry when I got to the finish. I think I was the last finisher to get an official time. Just a hair outside 7 hours and 30 minutes.

I could have used a spray down at the end of this ride, but the fire truck was long gone by the time I finished. Not even a wet patch on the road remained to show that they had been there.

Pulau Indah 180 2016 Bomba Cycling Malaysia Magazine

Photograph courtesy of Cycling Malaysia Magazine

For those of you into numerology, check out my ride number.

Pulau Indah 180 2016 Medal

Unfortunately it was D007 that won a prize in the post-ride lucky draw!

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Sweaty Eyeballs

Posted on January 13, 2016 by alchemyrider

Graphic courtesy of creativealliance.org

The bane of every cyclist. It is hot. You sweat. The sweat drips into your eyes. It stings your eyes and smears on your glasses, impairing your vision. Usually just as you are approaching a pothole or a sharp corner at speed.

I started cycling in Houston, Texas. Where summer temperatures are consistently in the mid 30s C / 90s F. So it wasn’t long before I was looking for a way to keep sweat out of my eyes. I settled on a Sweat GUTR. A soft plastic headband with a lip across the front which channels sweat away from your eyes and glasses.

SweatGUTR_0001_Hydro-White

The Sweat Gutr worked well, but it had one shortcoming. My forehead gets oily as I sweat. The smooth plastic headband would start sliding down my forehead, breaking the seal between skin and band and allowing sweat to leak into my eyes.

I either had to keep pushing the band back up above my eyebrows, or tighten the band. A tighter band solved the slippage problem in exchange for a pressure headache. I settled for pushing the Sweat GUTR back up my forehead when necessary. Once the dog days of summer gave way to cooler autumn days, my Sweat GUTR stayed in a drawer.

Then I moved to the Netherlands, where even on the hottest days, sweaty eyeballs are much less of a problem. My Sweat GUTR continued its stay in a drawer

It came out of the drawer when I got home to Malaysia. But the average humidity of 80% or more made the slippage problem worse than it had been in Houston. The Sweat GUTR was soon consigned to the back of a drawer, never to be used again.

For a while I resorted to wiping the sweat off my brow with a bandana. I built up quite a collection of bandanas.

Bandana

They weren’t a particularly effective solution. Too often I was reaching into a jersey pocket for a bandana after sweat was already stinging my eyes.

A friend suggested streaks of Vaseline above my eyes. That may have worked, but I foresaw one major drawback. I would forget the Vaseline was there, and would smear it everywhere the first time I wiped my face.

So I relied on my bandanas. In other words, I put up with stinging eyes.

One day a riding buddy turned up wearing a helmet liner.

Mission Enduracool Helmet Liner 1
He raved about how this particular helmet liner uses a “proprietary technology . . . to create a prolonged cooling effect.” Mission Athletecare website

I needed help coping with the heat. The helmet liner was worth the price just for the cooling effect.

Now that I have worn these helmet liners for the better part of a year, I value them for more than just their cooling effect. The helmet liner wicks away sweat from my forehead before it can trickle down into my eyes. No more sweaty eyeballs!

The stretchy fabric stays comfortable over long periods. No more pressure headaches!

The fabric is stretchy enough for me to stuff some ice cubes under a liner to cool my scalp on particularly hot days.

Graphic courtesy of http://www.debtfreecashedupandlaughing.com.au

A multi-tasking piece of cycling kit. The best kind.

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Posted in Cycling in Malaysia, Gear and Tools and tagged Bandana, Heat, Helmet Liner, Humidity, Mission Athletecare, Sweat GUTR, Vaseline. Bookmark the permalink.

Old Roots, New Routes

BCG Tour Ijok – Teluk Intan – Ijok

FSA K-Force Light SB25 Seatpost

RHB Shimano Highway Ride LEKAS 2016

Los Gatos Creek Trail

American River Bike Trail

2016 BP MS150

Grow Your Jersey Collection One Ride at a Time – 2015

4,000 km / 2,500 mi Update: Alchemy Eros

Pulau Indah 180 2016

Sweaty Eyeballs

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