More Pain on Bukit Timah

I was surprised to see the condition the Bukit Timah trail was in. The first half was very muddy, certain sections almost too slippery to clear. Most of our energy went into plowing through the muddy resistance – I am sure mud lovers will savor every moment of it!

I was happy to be out riding but the mess was a real pain to clean up. Moreover, my shifters had jammed and the rear derailleur cable was not responding the way it should. I took hours to resolve the issues, at the expense of my lunch, but my bike is not working as well as it was when I pedaled out this morning. I will clock some mileage tomorrow, then see if I have the time to do a more proper clean-up.

Showering was not a pleasant experience. Two crashes certainly gave me more valuable lessons on mountain biking, along with a sprained wrist and abrasions in several places. Well, I was asking for it when I lined my bike for the drop-off and took off rather confidently but the landing was bad. Poor weight positioning (restricted by the saddle height) proved to be the main cause as I went down. It was a good lesson in crash recovery too. As a cyclist, it’s important to take your mind away from the crash and focus on the riding to be done. A lack of focus often means another crash will be headed your way.

Track 15 – Home (via Ulu Sembawang): 8.2km

Total distance: 23km (off-road), 18.5km (on-road)
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH, Lawrence