Tag Archives: R@SKL

Kuala Lumpur to Penang: Day 1

Posted on October 16, 2019 by alchemyrider

Planning for a three-day ride from KL to Penang started in August. Culminating with a last meeting over roti canai and thosai. And a loaf of home-baked sourdough bread courtesy of AiLin.

Lay, Marvin, Amy, Pai and I were ready to go at 5:15. Mark isn’t in this photograph because he was the cameraman. Martin isn’t in the photo either because he was slightly late (he had to finish the breakfast his wife made for him before he was allowed out of the house).

The first leg for the day was from Taman Tun Dr Ismail to the KTM station in Kuang. It had rained during the night so the roads were wet. Our freshly-washed bicycles didn’t stay clean for long.

Staying true to the R@SKL raison d’etre there were two themes to this adventure. Riding and eating. Our first food stop was at a coffee shop across the road from Kuang station. Three of us fuelled up with plates of noodles for the train ride to Tanjung Malim.

The 7:27 am train was on time so we didn’t spend much time striking poses on the platform.

We had most of the carriage to ourselves. Once settled in our seats the first order of business was checking mobile phones. We did speak to each other during the one hour journey to Tanjung Malim. And one not-to-be-named person took a nap.

Amy provided her truck as a support vehicle. That was very helpful because we could put bags in the truck instead of riding with saddle packs. Mark was the driver on the first day because Daddy duties prevented him from riding with us at 5:15 am.

We met Mark at a roadside stall about a kilometre from Tanjung Malim station. We had only ridden 30km / 19mi but were already into our second meal of the day. Roti canai for those who hadn’t eaten in Kuang. If you ever find yourself on Jalan Ketoyang, north of Tanjung Malim station, stop at Restoran Al Kassim Maju. Their roti is the bomb.

The riding then started in earnest. Our final destination for Day 1 was Kampar. 88km / 55mi north on Federal Route 1. Mark would drive ahead of us and park on the side of the road. After we went past him he would leapfrog us again.

After ninety minutes we stopped for a break at Kampung Gajah, which is just south of Sungkai. Drinks only for all of us except for Martin, who had burned through his home-cooked breakfast and was hungry.

We were riding under clear blue skies. The temperature was rising steadily. It was 25º C / 77º F when we left Taman Tun. It was 38º C / 97º F when we rolled into Bidor at noon.

We had plenty of time to cover the 30km to Kampar. There was no point getting there before we could check in to the hotel. We spent ninety minutes consuming cold drinks and kai chai pang (chicken biscuits) under a fan at Restoran Mee Wah. Why the name “chicken biscuits” is a mystery because they do not contain any chicken.

Soon after we got going again clouds rolled in and we got drizzled on for a while. No one complained because the cooler temperature was appreciated by all.

10km / 6mi from Kampar the sky to the east got dark and the wind started to blow. A thunderstorm was on the way. We picked up the pace and got to the Kampar Boutique Hotel just ahead of a burst of rain.

After a shower and a short nap, we headed out to look for snacks. We found cendol, ais kacang and noodles.

It started to rain again, this time heavily, as we sat drinking and eating. We were trapped on the wrong side of the road from our hotel. After twenty minutes we gave up waiting for the deluge to stop and ran across the road through the rain.

Mark, Marvin and Pai were stuck on the hotel side of the road because of the rain, and couldn’t join us for cendol. Instead they went to Restoran Yin Phun Low, which is next door to the hotel. The rest of us joined them for dinner and beers. The food was so-so. I don’t recommend this restaurant.

The highlight of our time in that restaurant was deciding who would drive the truck the next day. In the week before the ride, everyone expressed a desire to drive. There was the talk of taking turns through the day as a way of getting some time off the saddle.

By the end of Day 1, that sentiment had changed. We had ridden at a relaxed pace. No one needed a break from riding. And Mark made it clear that the stop and start driving was no fun. There were no volunteers to drive the next day.

So Mark held out a fan of one ringgit notes and we each took one. Pai drew the note with the lowest last digit in the serial number. To the relief of the rest of us!

You would have thought that dinner would be the end of eating for the day. You would have been wrong. Kampar is noted for its Claypot Chicken Rice. A couple of the guys ventured out later that night for some.

The rest of us called it a night. We had another early start planned for Day 2.

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Posted in Cycling in Malaysia and tagged Bidor, Kampar, KTM Komuter, Kuala Lumpur, Kuang, Penang, R@SKL. Bookmark the permalink.

R@SKLs Do Penang – Prelude

Posted on June 5, 2017 by alchemyrider

Photograph courtesy of Oat Anantachote

Penang is noted for its food, its beaches, its street art, and its bicycle lanes. The Tien Hotel Residence will soon join that list.

Fellow R@SKL TH Lim has been converting what was the Sky budget hotel into a swankier boutique hotel. Here he is in the upstairs lounge / bar area.

R@SKLs Penang Prelude TH in Hotel TH Lim

Photograph courtesy of TH Lim

The Tien Hotel Residence will open its doors to the public soon. TH invited the R@SKLs for a “shakedown” stay at the Tien. He wanted feedback from us so that any kinks could be ironed out before the official opening.

Photograph courtesy of Tien Hotel Residence

Eight of us jumped at the chance to be the first guests at a very nice boutique hotel located in the historic center of George Town. We did everything in the style befitting our accommodation.

Starting with transporting our bicycles. We hired an eighteen-seater van and driver to get our bikes to Penang and back. Nine bicycles (including TH’s bike) and our bags went into the van, with room to spare.

Photograph courtesy of Simon Soo Hu

The eight of us met at Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport on Friday evening for the short flight to Penang. Some beers were needed to calm the nerves after some of us had endured stressful journeys to the airport through particularly bad KL traffic.

R@SKLs Penang Prelude Subang Airport Hsing C Pai

Photograph courtesy of Tsing C Pai

Malindo Air got us to Penang on time.

Photograph courtesy of CK Lim

We each got a guided tour of our rooms upon arrival. The rooms have everything you would expect from a boutique hotel, plus a few extras. Along with the standard power sockets, the rooms also have USB sockets. So mobile, Garmin, headphones etc. charging cables can be plugged into the sockets without the need for separate chargers. There is also a wall-mounted HDMI port so you can stream A/V from a portable device to the curved screen television. Lastly, the shower head has a built-in Bluetooth speaker. What is really neat about the Bluetooth speaker is that it is powered by the flow of water through the shower head. Eco-cool!

I did say Penang was noted for its food. Given the Tien hotel’s location in the foodie area of George Town, we didn’t have far to walk for excellent street food. Char kway teow, popiah, wanton mee, oyster omelette, apom manis and lok lok. We had it all.

Simon and Pai were spoiled for choice at the lok lok stall.

Photograph courtesy of CK Lim

After dinner our minds turned to our bicycles. The van was supposed to arrive between 9 and 10pm. We had been told that the van would be delayed. This is why.

R@SKLs Penang Prelude Van Arrives

Better late than never!

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Posted in Cycling in Malaysia and tagged George Town, Penang, R@SKL, Tien Hotel Residence. Bookmark the permalink.

R@SKLs do Bentong

Posted on April 24, 2017 by alchemyrider

Photograph courtesy of gobentong.com

Before 1977, all traffic across the Titiwangsa range used the winding, narrow Federal Route 68, which runs from Gombak in Kuala Lumpur to Bentong, Pahang. Everyone going to Kuantan, Kuala Terengganu, Kota Bharu, and other points east of Kuala Lumpur drove through Bentong.

The Kuala Lumpur – Karak Highway, opened in 1977 and upgraded to a full expressway in 1997, bypasses Bentong. Today, the majority of traffic uses the Kuala Lumpur – Karak Expressway, leaving Federal Route 68 to learner drivers and cyclists.

Regular readers will know that the climb up to Genting Sempah is popular with cyclists from the Klang Valley. A more ambitious ride continues to Janda Baik. Even more ambitious is a ride to Bentong.

The R@SKLs are nothing if not ambitious. About twenty of us turned up at the Hospital Orang Asli Gombak car park for a 7am start toward Bentong.

Photograph courtesy of Daniel Lim

The first 16km / 10mi is uphill to Genting Sempah.

Photograph courtesy of Khoo Yit Kiat

This was early on in the ride. Clockwise from top left, Luanne, Tomoe and Daniel, Arthur, and Kelin.

Photograph courtesy of Daniel Lim

We regrouped under the flyover at Genting Sempah. Behind us is our support vehicle. Leonard very kindly provided his pickup and driver. Plus coolers of ice and drinks. Top man Leonard!

Photograph courtesy of TH Lim

From the flyover we let gravity take over for the 20km / 12.5mi run downhill to the Suria Hot Spring Resort. We regrouped there before riding the flatter 17km / 10.5mi to Bentong town.

Photograph courtesy of Lee Heng Keng

Some of us had the dubious pleasure of being dragged along from the hot spring at up to 44kph / 27mph by Daniel, as he waved his hand in the air, urging us forward. I for one was glad to see the outskirts of Bentong.

Once in Bentong the only thought on everyone’s mind was food. We rode into the streets where the Sunday morning market is held, and stopped at Po Lai Kam kopitiam. We queued to fill our bowls . . .

Photograph courtesy of Khoo Yit Kiat

. . . and then filled our stomachs.

Photograph courtesy of Khoo Yit Kiat

There had been some talk of riding on to the Chamang waterfall. The consensus on the day was that it was too hot for extra kilometers.

So we rolled back toward the hot spring. At a much more sedate pace. Well, some of us rode at a more sedate pace. About half the group had shot off ahead. We all stopped at the hot spring for a rest in the shade, and something cold to drink.

If it hadn’t been a hot spring I might have jumped in.

Photograph courtesy of Khoo Yit Kiat

We had all enjoyed the 20km / 12.5mi downhill roll to the hot spring on the way to Bentong. Now it was time to pay the piper.

After 10km / 6mi and 270 meters / 885 feet of elevation we were ready for another rest. This time outside the Bukit Tinggi secondary school.

Photograph courtesy of TH Lim

We weren’t yet halfway through the grind back up to Genting Sempah. There was another 8.5km / 5.3mi and 405 meters / 1,330 feet to climb before we got to the Genting Sempah R&R.

We all got to the Genting Sempah R&R – eventually. But we couldn’t celebrate yet. There was still the not insignificant obstacle of Hamburger Hill to surmount. Exhilarating to descend, but a lung-burning, leg-breaking 81 meters / 266 feet, 6.4% average grade climb over 1.1km / 0.7mi, especially after the kilometers ridden and meters climbed to that point.

Lay, Mark and I delayed the inevitable by detouring to the McDonald’s at the R&R. I for one needed a sugar boost – in a big way. McDonald’s delivered.

Photograph courtesy of Gerbang Alaf Restaurants Sdn Bhd

I might not have been able to get up Hamburger Hill (you see the reason for the name now) without that pie and sundae flooding into my bloodstream.

The other R@SKLs didn’t need a McDonald’s boost. They had made their way up Hamburger Hill and down to the Hospital Orang Asli car park, and had packed up and left by the time the three of us got there.

As Leonard said, it was fun. Painful fun at times, but fun nonetheless.

You know what they say about ambition. It grows.

The R@SKLs have decided that Fraser’s Hill is next.

Photograph courtesy of malaysiasite.nl

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Posted in Cycling in Malaysia and tagged Bentong, Genting Sempah, Hospital Orang Asli, McDonalds, R@SKL, Suria Hot Spring Resort. Bookmark the permalink.

CIMB Cycle @ Seri Menanti 2017

Posted on April 18, 2017 by alchemyrider

Seri Menanti is the royal capital of the state of Negri Sembilan. It is a tiny town about 100km / 62mi southeast of Kuala Lumpur. Among its landmarks is the old wooden palace know as Istana Lama, built without the use of a single nail.

Photograph courtesy of The Star Online

On Saturday March 26th, Seri Menanti was the venue for a 120km / 74.5mi ride, sponsored by CIMB, which is an international bank headquartered in Malaysia.

I signed up to ride with a group of friends who call themselves R@SKL.

Given how far away Seri Menanti is from Kuala Lumpur, most of us opted to drive down on Friday, and spend the night at the Melang Inn Hotel in Kuala Pilah. The hotel is about 12km / 7.5mi from Seri Menanti.

Some of the guys are avid golfers. On Friday afternoon they played a partial round, truncated by rain, at the Staffield Country Resort, which is about halfway between Kuala Lumpur and Seri Menanti. I met the golfers for dinner at the Regent Restaurant in Seremban.

Then we drove the rest of the way to the hotel. Golfers and nongolfers alike met up for a drink at the Hailam Kopitiam restaurant next door to the hotel, before one by one, we headed to our beds.

Anyone planning to park at the starting point had to be there before about 6.30am. So it was an early start for everyone except me. I rode to the start. My deadline was the flag off time of 7.30, so I had an extra hour of sleep.

Pink was the jersey colour of choice for the R@SKLs. I don’t own a pink jersey. The best I could do was a pink base layer.

We got off the stat line bang on time. Well done organisers.

CIMB 2

The route was a counter-clockwise loop. From Seri Menanti we rode back past the Melang Inn Hotel in Kuala Pilah before heading roughly north to Kampung Serting Hulu and Kampung Chawas at the northernmost point in the loop. To that point the terrain was almost pan flat, so the riding was comfortable.

Map courtesy of CIMB Cycle

You will notice from these photographs that the R@SKLs were wearing white arm screens Those were provided by LGB Group, a Malaysian multinational with subsidiaries in a number of industries.

Photograph courtesy of Cyclery

LGB Group were one of the corporate partners for this event. In addition to the arm screens, they provided a support vehicle for us. Always a comforting thing to have on a long ride.

Photograph courtesy of Cyclery

We hit a few small climbs as we meandered westward to Kuala Klawang. The real climbing action started about 10km / 6mi southwest of Kuala Klawang. The infamous Bukit Tangga. 4km / 2.5mi with 280m / 919ft of elevation.

Fortunately it was overcast as we dragged ourselves up Bukit Tangga. By the time we got to the top it was raining. Which kept us cool as heart rates became elevated.

Luckily the rain was very localised, and the road was completely dry after the initial third of the descent. We caught our breath after the descent at a Petron station in Taman Panchor Jaya. Then it was 4km / 2.5mi along a series of busy intersections to the foot of the next climb, up Jalan Kuala Pilah. This ascent was 6.5km / 4mi and 315m / 1,033ft of elevation. Not helped at all by a relatively strong headwind.

When we crested that second climb it was past midday. And hot. So everyone appreciated the 3km / 1.8mi blast down the other side of the hill. The next 10km / 6.2mi was slightly downhill, but the headwind prevailed, making it harder work than it should have been.

The ride organisers put a sting in the tail of this ride, as you can see below. The climbs, from the left, are Bukit Tangga, Jalan Kuala Pilah and Seri Menanti.

Graphic courtesy of veloviewer

That last 1km / 0.6mi kick, with a red section at 15%, came with just 5km / 3mi of the ride left. More than a few riders had to push their bikes up that vicious 90m / 295ft climb.

As is always the case, there was lots of moaning during the climbs, but everyone was in good spirits after the ride. We older, i.e. slower riders made it safely to the end. Sadly one younger i.e. faster R@SKL got caught up in a crash, which fortunately damaged his bike more than it damaged him. But the crash meant the end of his ride.

It had seemed like a good idea to ride to the start in the cool of the early morning. It didn’t feel like such a good idea when the sun was at its peak at 2pm. I got a lift back to the hotel. Definitely preferable to getting broiled while riding. We all had lunch at the Hailam Kopitiam, amidst much laughter as we shared stories about the ride. The R@SKLs are a fun group to ride with.

If CIMB organises another ride next year, I’ll be up for collecting one more of these.

CIMB Medal

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Posted in Cycling in Malaysia and tagged Bukit Tangga, CIMB @ Seri Menanti, Kuala Klawang, Kuala Pilah, Melang Inn Hotel, R@SKL, Seri Menanti. Bookmark the permalink.

Old Roots, New Routes

Tag Archives: R@SKL

Kuala Lumpur to Penang: Day 1

R@SKLs Do Penang – Prelude

R@SKLs do Bentong

CIMB Cycle @ Seri Menanti 2017

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