Meddling with the Cockpit Set-up

I decided that the current set-up was putting unnecessary pressure on my wrists and climbing could be further enhanced with a more aggressive set-up. As such, I spent the afternoon tweaking the angles, hoping to get the best possible position. I took the bike out for a test-ride and it felt significantly different. Off-road tomorrow will definitely reveal more.

Total distance: 16.3km
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH 

Sembawang Circuit: 7km run

I was feeling real lazy today and after pampering myself with a chocolate ice cream, I was thinking of just slacking around at home. Somehow - it probably took great mental effort – I got into my running attire and once I managed to drag myself out of the house, it was no looking back.

I felt a little slow on the run today but surprisingly, I managed to hit a max rep of 17 pull-ups after the run. I think the last time I hit such a figure was nearly 2 years ago. I have never been particularly strong in my upper body strength anyway.

As I was walking home, I noticed several kids playing football at the multi-function hall and immediately, my memories took me more than seven years back when I spent my leisure time with a football. I remembered we played soccer so regularly and while we preferred the open fields, we had to make to do with whatever options available, be it the old street soccer court before it was demolished, the open space at the car-parks or the multi-function halls.

Trouble seemed to follow and scuffles aside, the major obstacle we faced were complaints from residents. They were just unwilling to accommodate a few kids (perhaps noisy and wild) on a lazy afternoon and often the police were called in to chase us away. We got so sick and irritated of being chased from almost every “pitch” we played on.

Kids will always be kids. As I watched the children play, surprisingly without interference from the same residents who were all-so-fond of giving us a good dressing down years ago, I felt a sense of nostalgia and delight that the kids were left alone in their own world. I will never understand why parents pressure their kids so hard these days and ironically, while they may have become more academically-inclined, their common sense seem to have taken a hit. Even more evident of an obvious degradation is their physical toughness. “Tofu” as the Chinese call, in reference to a weakling.

Another Neighbourhood Spin

My mileage this month will be low, largely due to the exams!

Total distance: 16.3km
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH

Getting a Breather (Sembawang Circuit)

Total distance: 27.2km
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH

Hitting 4000km…

With 2 laps of Bukit Timah today, I should have surpassed the 4000km mark on my Dakar XCR. Time to update my bike log.

Total distance: 23km (off-road); 20.6km (on-road)
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH, Pan

10km Run to Causeway Point in a Thunderstorm

It was difficult, cold, wet and my shades were fogging up. The flashes of lightning and subsequent thunder were irritating distractions as I endured the many stares in my direction. A distracted driver didn't realize the lights were in his favor until a persistent horn drew his attention back to the road. I must have caused quite a bit of trouble, eh!

Ride with Gordon

It has been a long time since I rode with Gordon and at last, our chance came today. It was a great time to catch up after almost a year since our last cycling trip! We did Mount Faber before having breakfast at Seah Im food centre.

Total distance: 52.6km
Money spent: $3
Participants: LSH, Gordon

Weary

The lack of sleep over the past few days is taking its toll on me. I tried to revise as much as I could but so far, I have not done any better than 2 chapters of Organizational Behavior every day, which is slow by all accounts, since I have barely started revising for Malay and totally left Statistics untouched.

I struggled to wake up in the wee hours for the past few days, grab a bite, pull on my jersey and roll my bike out for a spin. Or rather, some taxing action. 2 laps of Bukit Timah gave me some reprieve from all the revision but my thoughts were not really on the trail as much as I tried to enjoy myself. Most of the time I was wondering if I could get my revision done in time.

I just felt like quickly getting over the 2 laps and heading home but my muscles were protesting as I cruised over the bumps. On the climbs today, I seemed to lack my usual strength, perhaps a sign of accumulated weariness. Even the journey back home felt longer than ever.

My wandering thoughts nearly got me into trouble when I failed to notice I was climbing too close to the edge of the single-track. A branch caught my wide bars, jamming my front brakes and I nearly went over. Nonetheless, I would rather be out riding than studying!

It’s less than 3 weeks to the Penang expedition but we have problems with leave applications, last minute events cropping up, etc… I really pray that all goes fine and the expedition can roll, be it a couple of days late.

Total distance: 23km (off-road); 23.3km (on-road)
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH

The Pender Loop, Mount Faber

I hardly do the Pender Loop, usually preferring the steeper Mount Faber Road loop to this. Nonetheless, 12 continuous laps (2.9km per lap) of climbs still proved to be great exercise on the muscles. Eric and Amreet clocked 26 and 20 laps respectively, pretty sick numbers and there were a couple of guys going for 30-odd laps. I wonder if anyone continued till the magical 50!

I had fun on Mount Faber today and I hope Yuva had a great inaugural “climb”! =)

Total distance: 87.4km
Money spent: $3
Participants: LSH, Amreet, Yuva, Eric and his team-mates

Tree Clearing @ Bukit Timah

Since Pan was going to be late, I dropped by the zoo but it was too early for it to be open. At least I got to see the sun rising above the Mandai reservoir and enjoyed a quiet atmosphere. I guess things didn’t really go well for Pan today. Soon after we started the trails slightly later, we found ourselves stranded with a broken chain. Unfortunately, none of us brought a chain-breaker and he had to take a cab home.

There were so many falling trees obstructing the the trails today, both in Track 15 and in Bukit Timah. I decided to cycle 2 laps but when I was back at the Visitor Centre entrance after 1.5 laps, I encountered this:

Hobson’s choice, I took the road home from Bukit Timah (18.6km). The sun was scathing as I made my way back and washing the caked mud off my bike wasn’t that pleasurable an experience.

Total distance: 14km (off-road); 32.1km (on-road)
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH, Pan

Causeway Point: 10km run

A Bad Day at Bukit Timah

When it isn't your day, it will not be. In just two laps of Bukit Timah, I fell twice and nearly totaled my bike against a huge slab of rock.

The first fall came when I was on the rock gardens at the entrance (2nd lap). There was someone ahead of me and I slowed, only to lose my balance on the rocks. The grips took the brunt of the impact. I believe I made 4 successful attempts up the entrance out of a total 6 tries today.

The second crash took place when we were practicing on the rock gardens. As I cleared the last slab of rock at the entrance, my control just went wide and the bike slammed sideways into a huge rock lining the path. I half-expected to see dents in the frame but fortunately the bottle cage took the brunt of the impact. My bottle flew off and what left of the holder was a twisted piece of metal which broke when I tried to pull it back into position. My crank arm also took some scars and the pump bracket nearly got ripped off. The plastic bracket was slightly damaged but what surprised me was the screws which held the bracket to the frame. They were twisted out of position. Imagine the force I had hit the rock with.

I just felt tired on the ride today. To mention that my control was poor would be an understatement. On a positive note, I met Jeremy – I think it has been 4 years since I last saw him. His new Giant Trance X3 is a beauty. Its slack geometry inspires more confidence downhill.

Total distance: 23km (off-road); 20.6km (on-road)
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH, Jasper, Terence, Jeremy Yeap

Volunteering @ Osim International Triathlon

I guess being the lead bike / rear sweeper for the run component is a pretty good way to clock mileage. And the job is pretty interesting – at least I get to ride! There was the rain, the delay, the hunger, but also the satisfaction from a job done. The international youth athletes were fast. They were running at around 16km/h throughout the 5km. I am impressed.

Total distance: 90km
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH

Sembawang Circuit: 7km run

Sembawang Circuit De-stress!

Total distance: 20.2km
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH

Cycling Mount Faber in the Downpour

I thought the weather would spare us early in the morning as I pulled myself out of bed at 4.30am. Unfortunately, before we reached Mount Faber (around 6.30am), it started to pour heavily. I was shivering from the cold as we continued our ride and Dad was not willing to take any risks with the slippery descends hence after one lap, he waited for me at the foot of the hill while I went on the smaller loop. One loop became two, two became three and finally five when I was finally done. We had a simple breakfast at Tiong Bahru before heading home in the rain.

Home - Mount Faber (23.8km)
Mount Faber Loop (1.6km)
Mount Faber Lap (Faber - Pender - Morse - Kampung Bahru) (5km)

Total distance: 60.6km
Money spent: $4.60 for 2 pax
Participants: LSH, Dad

A Muddy Bukit Timah on Good Friday

Days of high rainfall meant muddy trails and after 4 laps of Bukit Timah, my bike was heavily coated with a layer of stinking mud. The drivetrain was also "grease-free", creaking as I pedaled home to a nightmare of washing up both rider and equipment.

Total distance: 36km (off-road); 23.3km (on-road)
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH, Jasper, Terence, Eric