25–26 Dec 2012: Singapore – Kanchanaburi (1930km)

PART I.

2am on Christmas. We dragged our lethargic, backpack-laden bodies up the MSCP, threw everything into the car, and linked up with Jasper. At the Woodlands customs, traffic was slow moving as Malaysian party revellers headed home. It was about 3am by the time we crossed into Johor Bahru.

Past the first North-South Highway (NSH) toll, it was the moment we had been waiting for. The itch to stamp down hard on the gas. As expected, traffic was scarce and there were no “flies”. We decided to have breakfast at the Sungei Buloh overhead bridge restaurants (past KL). It was just 6.45am when we reached, but I was pretty hungry by then. Mee hoon goreng and hot tea were a welcomed relief.

Precision parking!

SJ took over the wheel thereafter. It was barely 8.30am when we passed Tapah (foot of Cameron Highlands). After the Sungei Perak rest stop, Jasper took the wheel until we made a lunch stop in Sungei Petani, where we visited Giant to purchase two 5l containers of drinking water, among other essentials. My windshield wipers were failing, so we threw in a refill pack for RM1.99. We then searched for the famed wanton noodles (Restoran Tian Tian Liang) but were left disappointed, and vowed to return some day.

Jasper’s very memorable tow-proof parking

After lunch, we lost some time on the draggy federal highway from Sungei Petani to Bukit Kayu Hitam (BKH). The upside of travelling through Alor Setar was the very reasonable RON 95 fuel. Petrol in Thailand was going to be expensive hence we pumped as much as possible in M’sia before crossing the border.

The M’sian customs were efficient and getting past it into “No Man’s Land” was never going to be a problem. We were expecting the worst at the Thai border and we weren’t disappointed. After some confusion over parking at The Zon, we finally found the vehicle insurance counter where we purchased 9 days’ worth of coverage for RM23. The compulsory vehicle Insurance is sold by a rather inflexible, pre-determined number of days (I can only remember 9 and 19), so some good planning is required. There was also some fuss over inadequate details provided by the LTA vehicle log card (simply print a copy from OneMotoring) – they required my address – fortunately I had copies of my IC and driving license on hand.

At the Thai customs, we had to park at a huge car park on the left (facing Thailand) before settling the necessary papers. The Sadao town was literally a couple of steps away, just past a very permeable border. I could have driven or walked through without the proper papers and no one would have known or cared either. We spent nearly two hours queuing (and re-queuing) because we did not know how to go about processing the vehicle import form and the border guards seemed indifferent. After being rudely directed from counter to counter, and paying some cash, we finally had that piece of paper and our passports stamped. At 3pm (BKK time), we were through!

We made a run for Ton Nga Chang (Ivory Tusk Falls), on the outskirts of Hat Yai. At our first “real” destination, we marveled at the sight of water cascading down the largest waterfall in Songkhla. It was already dusk when we left Ton Nga Chang for Hat Yai.

 
A village market proved too irresistible that we just had to stop.

Over a dinner of pork innards, we had a brilliant idea! Since we were still alert (despite driving for the last 18 hours), we decided to drive through the night so as to scrimp on a night’s stay in Hat Yai, and to earn some “time”. The next target: Hua Hin.

For navigation, we relied on both GPS and the traditional printed maps. The printed maps consisted prepared copies from Google Maps as well as a Lonely Planet traveller’s guide borrowed from the library. Our GPS devices were basically phones – a Nokia E72 and an iPhone – but they proved to be our best companions on the trip.

Our adventure continues…

Review: Aerozine XB1.0A Flat Bar & XS1.0 Stem

I think it has been nearly half a year since I changed my cockpit configuration so it’s about time I give a run down on the changes I have observed so far. My previous set-up consisted a Ritchey Comp low-riser bar coupled with a 90mm Aerozine XS1.0 stem. I decided to opt for a an Aerozine XB1.0A flat bar with a 80mm XS1.0 stem.

The biggest advantage of the change to a shorter flat bar is a more comfortable riding position in races, especially through dense forestation where tight corridors threaten to trap wider bars. Detractors may criticize flat bars for their poorer control on harsh terrain but I have yet to experience any obstacles on cross country trails tough enough to expose this weakness. In fact, the use of a 80mm stem compensates the more aggressive riding posture and facilitates greater allowance for the rider’s weight to be moved behind the saddle. As such, I found greater confidence taking on bigger drops and rock gardens.

I had the opportunities to test the equipment rather comprehensively on varying terrain both on- and off-road. The harshest road test probably came in the form of Gunung Pulai with its 40% gradient on the steepest sections. As expected, climbing control was brilliant and the front wheel tracked the climbs almost perfectly. On the descends, even when the wheels slammed full speed into the deep irrigation ruts, or as I railed round the tight corners, control was never compromised.

Most of my time mountain biking is spent at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve and the current set-up suits the terrain, allowing me to fully exploit the bike’s capabilities. Heading over to Reverse Gombak and Bukit Kiara was an eye opener as particular technical sections were less welcoming to short travel XC machines. With 4 inches of travel at the rear, I could still take some of the technical obstacles (mainly drops) but my aggressive set-up meant that more caution had to be rendered. I definitely learnt my lesson the hard way as my poor cornering techniques sent me sprawling on a very steep and narrow switchback descend. Nonetheless, as an XC rider, I have never been more satisfied with this current flat bar and 80mm stem set-up. These components can be ordered online via www.conticomponents.com.

The Switch to Dyna Sys

After more than 2 years, it was time for my old groupset to go and I made the switch to a Deore XT 10-speed Dyna Sys set which I got for a steal off Togoparts. It coincided with the Nusa Iskandar race and to avoid any potential teething problems, I put off installation till weeks after the ultimate painful experience.

Today, I finally put the groupset to test on the trails and I was quite surprised by the crisp shifting (an improvement over the 9-speed groupsets, due to the closer spaced cogs as well as chain rings up front). Also, the smaller differences between gear ratios allowed me to engage more appropriate gears in the corners but any justifiable improvements can only be quantified with time trial.

Coupled with the ZTR Crest wheels (Relic Prop hubs) which I acquired brand new a couple of months back, I thought the bike performed pretty well in terms of control. The worn tires were obviously a let-down but without factoring that aspect into the evaluation, I was really enjoying the ride and pushing my equipment to their limits.

Of course, there are downsides to every thing in life, and I immediately noticed the drivetrain imposed “speed limit” while cycling on the roads. A 44t chain ring had always provided me the capacity to reach higher speeds (which I do max out on many occasions anyway) and I suddenly found the 42t ring restrictive. True, it eased the “load” off my cadence but I was less enthusiastic to trade road speed with an easier cadence.

I learnt a lot on today’s ride to Bukit Timah and beyond. Bukit Timah has become almost a second home  - every nook and cranny is firmly etched in my memory. But I really enjoyed the company of others in group rides. Never mind the pace, it’s the “fun factor” that keeps my passion for the trails burning. I was quite excited to be able to clear the four flights of stairs (upwards, of course) at a certain section of Track 15 and repeated my first attempt to be sure. But my strength in producing sufficient torque to move the bike up the stairs failed me on my final two attempts. I felt breathless!

After such a long long time...

Team NTU on the way to Melaka...240km on 26 December 2011.

Burn, Burn, Burnt!

I was looking forward to getting away from the stress of school and what better way to start the recess week with a 180km ride through eastern Johor. Like the numerous trips I have done to Sungei Rengit via JB and Desaru, I expected to be home mid-afternoon. With two other pretty seasoned riders on this ride, what could possibly go wrong?

We met up at 4.30am but it was past 5am when we set off. Getting across the border by 5.30am, we set off for Kota Tinggi in the semi-darkness. We pulled into town at a pretty good pace, more than ready for breakfast, but not before Matthew's front tire ran a flat - nothing too surprising.

Kah Kiong preferred prata hence we visited my "favourite" coffee-shop, "favourite" defined as my most frequented prata haunt in the area, given my very limited knowledge. We spent a pretty long time there chilling and getting our feet to continue our journey proved difficult.

The sun was midway up as we pushed on to Bandar Penawar. The rolling hills appeared more daunting as our fatigue increased and I willed myself to push on, employing the most efficient climbing techniques in my arsenal to get the most out of my mountain bike.

This time round, I had pumped up the pressure of my rear RP2 to 200psi and left the rear link active (lock-out off). It was also my first long ride overseas with a fully active rear suspension and I was pretty apprehensive of the energy I would waste through pedal bob. Interestingly, at certain smooth cadences, pedal feedback was a minimum and from the ache in my butt, the bike was definitely feeling more like a hard-tail. However, beyond a certain cadence, the bike tended to bob more at high speed. I couldn't feel the power transmission from my legs to the drivetrain - something so typical in full suspension models.

In short, without the presence of a lock-out, the energy forfeited through pedal feedback still proved the biggest limitation to using a full suspension mountain bike for long road rides.

The sight of the all-too-familiar Petronas at Bandar Penawar was a welcome relief and we took the opportunity to inject ourselves with the fuel for cyclists - isotonic drinks. There were a few cyclists from Singapore and we had a friendly chat, especially with one of them who was acting as a safety vehicle for his convoy. We would run into him at the Desaru roundabout later. We decided to take the longer but more scenic and flatter route to Sungei Rengit via Batu Layar. it was a great route with few vehicles but this time round, the headwind was incredibly strong. Coupled with the intense heat from the afternoon sun, I think our pedalling efficiency decreased terribly.

The going got real tough after our scenic detour into the Batu Layar beach and village. Back on the main road, our progress was severely hampered by headwind and we were down to about 15km/h. I also lost sight of Kah Kiong and Matthew on my tail as they made several stops. It was past 1pm and I was feeling terribly hungry and weak. My fingers were trembling.

We finally reached Sungei Rengit at 2pm and lunch was the only thing I needed to keep me alive. We spent almost an hour at the restaurant - any food tastes great when you are on the brink of losing it - before heading for the jetty at a decent pace. In fact, we reached Tanjung Pengelih before 4pm but were told there were no more boats to Changi. Amazing. We were told to book a boat (RM110) or take the ferry (RM35 per pax one way excluding the cost of shipping the bikes). A group of Singaporeans had booked a boat but there wasn't sufficient space for us. Eventually, a boat "happened" to deposit passengers at Tanjung Pengelih and was returning home. We hopped on. The bumboat operator tried to get more from us but we couldn't pay him more than the exact cost (with all our S$ pooled together!). I wonder if it's a ploy the operators use to get their passengers to cough out more cash.

Back on familiar ground, we had a snack at the Changi Village hawker centre before heading home. Dusk fell swiftly and the batteries in my front lamp failed on me. We reached home much later than I had expected; nonetheless, it was another great ride to the countryside very much absent in the Singaporean landscape.

Total distance: 185km
Expenditure: RM47; S$13
Participants: LSH, Matthew, Kah Kiong

Restless Saturday Night

I couldn’t sit still and since I was pretty confident of clearing my work before the new week, I decided that a round island ride wouldn’t hurt. Dad was in serious need of some cycling anyway. We ended the 5.5hr ride at the Jalan Kayu branch of Selegie Beancurd.

Total distance: 95.7km
Expenditure: $4.60
Participants: LSH, Dad

NTU Sunday Leisure: The Prata Place

Today marks my 4th straight day of cycling and I think I shall take a break tomorrow. Out of the four rides, three were to NTU. We did Track 15 yesterday though and it was a very muddy but fairly short ride. Washing down the bike was a real chore but what made matters worse was the colony of ants that took my bike as their new home.

Bro found the trail of ants in the wee hours yesterday and by the time I cleaned up the living room, I was running pretty late for the off-road ride. And I had to forget Desmond’s shirt – in the end, I returned to grab the shirt. I guess the colony of ants got a nasty wake-up call when we went off-road and they were crawling all over my bike. I had to fumigate the frame =(

We had quite a bit of fun on our way to school this morning, though by the time we reached school, I was feeling a bit spent. Nonetheless, it was great training and a good social ride to The Prata Place.

Total distance: 63.8km (Sun); 28km (Sat); 58km (Fri); 57km (Thu)
Expenditure: $3
Participants: LSH, Kah Kiong, Jeffrey, Scott, Steven