8 May 2010: Singapore – Melaka

I expected a tough first day and there was never going to be any doubt of the challenges we would face on the first day. I was a little apprehensive in fact, as it would be the first time I would ride this route and such a long distance on a full suspension bike. Recalling the agony nearly 2 years ago when I cycled the similar route home from Melaka on a hard-tail, I was wondering if I would survive! Waking up at 2.30am, we had a light breakfast and were ready to roll by 3am.

Crossing the border was pretty much a smooth affair and we took Federal Route 5 (Lebuhraya Skudai) out of town (Pusat Bandaraya, JB). This time round, I decided to go up to Kulai and subsequently Ayer Hitam, before making a left turn to Batu Pahat. Other than the sheer darkness to contend with, it was smooth going. The weather became terribly hot just before we hit Batu Pahat, in time for lunch.

I gave the Pusat Bandar (city centre) of Batu Pahat a miss since it was a little off our route. In the end, we had an Extra Value Meal (McDonald’s) each at the Summit Parade where a boy approached us to have a photo taken together. It was nearly 12.45pm when we left to cover the final 98km to Melaka. That was when things started to go downhill.

The intense afternoon heat was wearing us down. Dad was extremely tired and hungry and we started to slow. We stopped for several breaks too long – I failed to enforce time discipline – and the last 50km seemed to take hours to cover. We could have reached Melaka by 5pm but at 5.30pm, we were still 50km away! In fact, we probably covered only 20km in hours! Worse still, Dad’s frustration increased when he encountered a puncture. He rested while I went about fixing the problem but it was the dusk by the time we were ready to roll.

 

By nightfall, we were still on the highway to Melaka. I increased speed, distracted myself from the intense pain caused by the many hours in the saddle with music and rode on. For some reason or another, the song “Chasing Cars” stuck in my head as we pedaled down the never-ending road.

I told myself that the lights in the distance meant we were near town. I told Dad that to encourage him. When we drew closer, I realized the lights marked a junction and soon after, we plunged into darkness once more. I was pretty disheartened but I knew the torture would end. Just a matter of time.

A sense of relief washed over me when we pulled into town, 240km away from home. We had dinner but Dad was way too exhausted to make a further 3km into the heart of Melaka where accommodation was cheaper. In the end, we settled for Hotel Accordian, which at RM100 per night, wasn’t exactly the cheapest place to stay. Water was scarce – the grocer and petrol kiosks marketed mineral water at exorbitant prices – we had to settle on a 5.5l “bottle” from the 7 Eleven nearby. We were dehydrated and the water was a welcome relief.

Total distance: 240km
Money spent: RM160
Participants: LSH, Dad