Riding on and on: Revisiting Gunung Pulai

Pictures speak a thousand words. So here we go…

We started our trip slightly past 5am and reached Pekan Nanas before 8am. I have lost count of the number of times I have patronised a certain coffee-shop (in fact, every time I pass the "Pineapple Town") so we decided to try something new this time round. Jasper and Eng Joo sure looked to have floated off somewhere when we stopped at the "Nanas Besar" to take a few pictures.

By the time we reached the foot of Gunung Pulai (654m), it was already close to 10am. We had spent considerable time in town having breakfast, slacking and visiting the bike shop. We met many local hikers and a group of bikers who was waiting for more friends before they cycled to the peak. Everyone was so friendly and encouraging as they watched us suffer on the climbs. Amazing.

The weather was definitely more dry as compared to what I experienced on my previous trip a year ago. As such, the road up was more dry and less cluttered with debris. Also, the hikers have returned (I guess some time has passed since the tragedies and things go back to normal). However, the conditions of the road have remained as bad - road bikes will just get totaled at the huge gaps between damaged drain covers.

The gradient was refreshingly steep. Nothing like what you see in Singapore. I was glad to be climbing again even though more pain lay ahead. I gave myself a challenge - to use no lighter than the 32t (front) - 34t (rear) gear combination. I can't describe how painful it was. I nearly stalled on several super steep sections. My cadence was no longer smooth. Rather, it became a rather jerky two-pronged force-down, pull-up action. My muscles protested in pain, reminding me I was still at least 70km of tarmac away from home. The logical section of my brain urged me to regain sanity and shift down to a lighter gear but the crazier part told me to push on. I let my stamina take over most of the climbing effort.

The weather sure looked menacing at the top of Gunung Pulai. Dark clouds loomed over us and it was definitely much cooler at that altitude. We could not really see Singapore which lay covered by haze in the distance.

Then came the stressful part. We descended the narrow and winding road, hitting speeds of around 60km/h. Just like Genting, I put 100% concentration on the descend. There was no room for mistake. My brakes failed momentarily on a steep turn and I careened towards the edge. My heart nearly jumped out of my chest. No roller-coaster ride had ever come close to that moment. Fortunately, I managed to steer the bike back on course. This definitely emphasises the importance of ensuring a functioning bike. My brakes have jammed up twice in recent months and after I did some maintenance work on them, the rear is in need of a re-bleed - the lever is almost touching the handlebar, while the front lever jams for a split second when the bike is moving. I had intended to get the bike checked a couple of weeks from now, underestimating the challenges of Pulai. Bad move.