I got my lazy bum out today for a recovery run. I had probably strained my hamstring when I contacted several rocks on Friday and yesterday's ride did not aid its recovery =P The pain subsided as adrenaline kicked in.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Urban Assault...kind of...
Alrasvee and I set off from Woodlands at 9am for Clementi MRT but we never made it there. Halfway through, I attempted to pump Alrasvee's half inflated rear wheel, only to find a broken and missing Presta valve when I removed the pump. With a hiss, all the air escaped. He didn't have an extra tube and my spare Schrader tube could not fit his rims. We were at a loss. Fortunately, Ian came to the rescue in the rain with a spare tube! We owe him for that.
All drenched and cold, we headed to a cheese prata shop at the end of Clementi Road. I was glad that the sun was out as our wet clothes could then be dried. After a drink and meeting up with Vijay and Phyllis, we set off for Kent Ridge and the park connector network through the Southern Ridges. Ian, aka Xingg, showed us why he deserved to finish third for the recent downhill competition at Kent Ridge by leading us through flights after flights of steps! Way to go man =)
I suddenly felt I was a little too old. All the bravado of the past couple of years had seemed to disappear and I hesitated at each deck of steps. At certain parts, I found the courage to ride down, at other sections, I just gave up and carried my bike down =P Nonetheless, we gave the bikes a good thrashing as well as "stress test". My suspension felt so plush after the final deck of steps down Mount Faber.
All drenched and cold, we headed to a cheese prata shop at the end of Clementi Road. I was glad that the sun was out as our wet clothes could then be dried. After a drink and meeting up with Vijay and Phyllis, we set off for Kent Ridge and the park connector network through the Southern Ridges. Ian, aka Xingg, showed us why he deserved to finish third for the recent downhill competition at Kent Ridge by leading us through flights after flights of steps! Way to go man =)
I suddenly felt I was a little too old. All the bravado of the past couple of years had seemed to disappear and I hesitated at each deck of steps. At certain parts, I found the courage to ride down, at other sections, I just gave up and carried my bike down =P Nonetheless, we gave the bikes a good thrashing as well as "stress test". My suspension felt so plush after the final deck of steps down Mount Faber.
We had lunch before making out way to the Marina Barrage. As all of us had not been to the Barrage before (less Phyllis who had been there once by car), we took awhile to find the place. And it was definitely worth our efforts. At such an isolated location, it was surprising to find so many people chilling out, having picnics or just taking a stroll.
My shoes were almost dried by then so it was great to just laze around and sun my socks. =P We were joined by another rider (sorry, I can't remember your name) but we had to leave for home shortly after. Alrasvee had to get home by 6pm and I am sure we "enjoyed" the ride back via the "rolling" terrain of Upper Thomson.
Damn, I think I took a knock too many yesterday and my muscles are acting up again.
Total distance: 80km
Money spent: $5.50
Participants: LSH, Alrasvee, Ian Yeng, Phyllis Tan, Vijay
Damn, I think I took a knock too many yesterday and my muscles are acting up again.
Total distance: 80km
Money spent: $5.50
Participants: LSH, Alrasvee, Ian Yeng, Phyllis Tan, Vijay
Friday, May 29, 2009
Mountain Biking at Tampines MTB Park
There was no biking involved yesterday. I helped Mum collect her medicine at SGH and since I had about 2 hours to spare till 6pm (meeting Jing Kai at Bugis MRT), I decided to walk over to Bugis through the CBD area. I took a couple of pictures along the way and realised, in the shoes of a tourist, that our country can be very attractive and in some sense, unique. Our CBD boasts the tallest buildings you can find on this island, and in fact, from here to KL (you find some tall buildings in JB but but until you hit KL, you are unlikely to find any building taller than a typical HDB block). Yet in our CBD, co-existing among skyscrapers, are relics, or rather, refurbished relics. Raffles Hotel, a building full of heritage, is a fine example. It is of little wonder that foreigners find Singapore intriguing.
I cycled to Tampines MTB Park in the afternoon. It has been months since I last visited the trail, and it was a good opportunity to test out my SPD shoes. It turned out to be a rather eventful ride, thanks to a few falls.
Teletubby land was the usual narrow, twisting singletrack. Erosion had made things a little more tricky but it didn't pose much of a problem. When I encountered the rocky climbs, I realised that the once bare slopes were overflowing with the greens. More rocks had been compacted into the trail, but the bad news was that many large pieces on the climbs were loose, making it a lot more tricky than it looked.
I got the first taste of this death trap when I chose the wrong path up a very tight and steep corner. My misjudgement had placed me right in the middle of the steepest part with big loose rocks. As I tried to power the bike up the turn, I felt my tyres slip. Shifting my weight back, I had lost too much momentum to push through and that was it. In the split second which I failed to unclip, I fell sideways, breaking the fall with my left palm. I realised a sharp rock had ripped a hole in the palm of my left glove and obviously the rocks presented my left leg with bloody kisses.
Call that a morale booster! Spirits dampened, I carried on. Down the slopes, across a wooden ramp and into the forest. The huge mud pool (it was green!) caught me by surprise. I took a gamble and cycled right into it, expecting to move through. For the first time ever on a Singapore trail, my front wheel sank till the level of my v-brakes! Of course, I didn't manage to unclip in time and toppled to the left again =P
My bike emerged a mess. The front tyre, rim, spokes, hub, fork and suspension were totally encrusted in mud. I think it's the first time I had gotten so much mud that I had to strip off the front wheel to get rid of all the crap when I reached home! But it was cool.
The jungle portion was a mess. A lousy trackstand sent me toppling when I was too undecided on which path to take. In the end, I took the longer path and found the platform obstacles to be in very poor conditions. My heart leapt every time I encountered a missing plank or two and I prayed for my wheel to clear the gap and not stall and send me flying off the platform. As the plaforms got higher and narrower, my worries increased when I saw the gaps. Thankfully, I got through just fine, with a couple of close shaves here are there.
Out of the forest, I explored a new path but it was crazily steep, twisting and almost impossible to manoeuvre before disppearing altogether. Turning back, I took the usual route back to the start point and cycled to the highest point to catch the view.
The skies threatened to pour but no rain fell as I headed for East Coast Park. After a more leisure pace at ECP, I took the Lavender, Thomson and Sembawang Rd route home.
Total distance: 76.3km (on-road); 10km (off-road)
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH
I cycled to Tampines MTB Park in the afternoon. It has been months since I last visited the trail, and it was a good opportunity to test out my SPD shoes. It turned out to be a rather eventful ride, thanks to a few falls.
Teletubby land was the usual narrow, twisting singletrack. Erosion had made things a little more tricky but it didn't pose much of a problem. When I encountered the rocky climbs, I realised that the once bare slopes were overflowing with the greens. More rocks had been compacted into the trail, but the bad news was that many large pieces on the climbs were loose, making it a lot more tricky than it looked.
I got the first taste of this death trap when I chose the wrong path up a very tight and steep corner. My misjudgement had placed me right in the middle of the steepest part with big loose rocks. As I tried to power the bike up the turn, I felt my tyres slip. Shifting my weight back, I had lost too much momentum to push through and that was it. In the split second which I failed to unclip, I fell sideways, breaking the fall with my left palm. I realised a sharp rock had ripped a hole in the palm of my left glove and obviously the rocks presented my left leg with bloody kisses.
Call that a morale booster! Spirits dampened, I carried on. Down the slopes, across a wooden ramp and into the forest. The huge mud pool (it was green!) caught me by surprise. I took a gamble and cycled right into it, expecting to move through. For the first time ever on a Singapore trail, my front wheel sank till the level of my v-brakes! Of course, I didn't manage to unclip in time and toppled to the left again =P
My bike emerged a mess. The front tyre, rim, spokes, hub, fork and suspension were totally encrusted in mud. I think it's the first time I had gotten so much mud that I had to strip off the front wheel to get rid of all the crap when I reached home! But it was cool.
The jungle portion was a mess. A lousy trackstand sent me toppling when I was too undecided on which path to take. In the end, I took the longer path and found the platform obstacles to be in very poor conditions. My heart leapt every time I encountered a missing plank or two and I prayed for my wheel to clear the gap and not stall and send me flying off the platform. As the plaforms got higher and narrower, my worries increased when I saw the gaps. Thankfully, I got through just fine, with a couple of close shaves here are there.
Out of the forest, I explored a new path but it was crazily steep, twisting and almost impossible to manoeuvre before disppearing altogether. Turning back, I took the usual route back to the start point and cycled to the highest point to catch the view.
The skies threatened to pour but no rain fell as I headed for East Coast Park. After a more leisure pace at ECP, I took the Lavender, Thomson and Sembawang Rd route home.
Total distance: 76.3km (on-road); 10km (off-road)
Money spent: $0
Participants: LSH
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Review: Mavic Alpine MTB Shoes
I have a confession to make.
Poison is hard to resist and within an hour at Chapter 2 Cycle, I was parting with $145. It was exciting to get new "toys" and the weather was brilliant in allowing me a short test ride.
I spent some time at the AMK NTUC Xtra outlet, before heading for Sembawang library to read up on some stuff. As usual, the Black Belt magazines caught my eye and I spent time browsing through before moving on to the newspaper section. Coincidentally, I bumped into Alfred Chua at the library. I finished off at the section of books on sporting matters and decided to borrow a seemingly interesting read on adventure tour-cycling.
Back home, I quickly fixed my PD-A530 SPD pedals (removed before Genting) on the Raleigh and started to screw the cleats (SM-SH 51) onto my newly acquired shoes. It was not difficult but the positioning of the cleats had to be adjusted correctly to facilitate efficient clipping and unclipping. It was hard to get the shoes on the pedals at first and equally difficult to twist it off. After a few tries and subsequent fine-tuning, I got it quite right and decided to take the bike out for a test ride.
The Mavic Alpine (2009) is a pair of all mountain MTB shoes designed for multi-purpose usage and comfort. At 435g (UK 8.5), it felt a little heavy to the touch but the weight was barely noticeable when I wore it. In comparison to the more competitive XC models, the Alpine weighed a good 80 - 100g more.
Rigidity wise, the sole was fairly stiff but I felt comfortable walking in it. As always, there is a trade-off. For efficient transmission of power, rigidity is favoured over flex but as an all-mountain style, the design has incorporated comfort and some flex in the sole to suit the purpose of walking on different terrain types. The cleats just touched (barely in some instances) the ground when walking on smooth surfaces but I could feel the contact when traversing uneven terrain on foot.
On the bike, it was simple to clip the shoes into the pedals and not too difficult to twist them out (tension of pedals set to the lowest). When clipped in, I noticed there was still some lateral movement but that is probably due to the design of the cleats and the clipping system on the pedal, rather than the shoe itself.
Instead of the usual three velcro straps found on the XC models, the laces on the Alpine provide a splendid solution to tightening up when cycling and loosening up when wearing the shoes casually. The laces also serve a secondary purpose of making the shoes look casual when wearing it on a non-cycling occasion. This is great as I can consider not bringing a second pair of casual shoes when on long cycling tours overseas. The presence of a top velcro strap tightens the fit, helps to keep the laces in and can be easily covered by long pants, if you deem the strap unsightly.
I did a short circuit around the Sembawang area, covering different terrain. Hitting the trails at high speeds, the shoes felt snug and firm against the pedals. When I hopped onto kerbs, the rear lifted easily. As expected.
I am dying to test the shoes out on the real off-roads. I hope I get the chance this Saturday.
Total distance: 7km test ride
Money spent: $145
Participants: LSH
Poison is hard to resist and within an hour at Chapter 2 Cycle, I was parting with $145. It was exciting to get new "toys" and the weather was brilliant in allowing me a short test ride.
I spent some time at the AMK NTUC Xtra outlet, before heading for Sembawang library to read up on some stuff. As usual, the Black Belt magazines caught my eye and I spent time browsing through before moving on to the newspaper section. Coincidentally, I bumped into Alfred Chua at the library. I finished off at the section of books on sporting matters and decided to borrow a seemingly interesting read on adventure tour-cycling.
I decided to give the unknown MVR Racing brand a try. The Louis Garneau pair I am using is way more expensive but has barely lasted 8 months. It's full of holes now.
Back home, I quickly fixed my PD-A530 SPD pedals (removed before Genting) on the Raleigh and started to screw the cleats (SM-SH 51) onto my newly acquired shoes. It was not difficult but the positioning of the cleats had to be adjusted correctly to facilitate efficient clipping and unclipping. It was hard to get the shoes on the pedals at first and equally difficult to twist it off. After a few tries and subsequent fine-tuning, I got it quite right and decided to take the bike out for a test ride.
Mavic Alpine All-Mountain MTB shoes
The Mavic Alpine (2009) is a pair of all mountain MTB shoes designed for multi-purpose usage and comfort. At 435g (UK 8.5), it felt a little heavy to the touch but the weight was barely noticeable when I wore it. In comparison to the more competitive XC models, the Alpine weighed a good 80 - 100g more.
Rigidity wise, the sole was fairly stiff but I felt comfortable walking in it. As always, there is a trade-off. For efficient transmission of power, rigidity is favoured over flex but as an all-mountain style, the design has incorporated comfort and some flex in the sole to suit the purpose of walking on different terrain types. The cleats just touched (barely in some instances) the ground when walking on smooth surfaces but I could feel the contact when traversing uneven terrain on foot.
On the bike, it was simple to clip the shoes into the pedals and not too difficult to twist them out (tension of pedals set to the lowest). When clipped in, I noticed there was still some lateral movement but that is probably due to the design of the cleats and the clipping system on the pedal, rather than the shoe itself.
Instead of the usual three velcro straps found on the XC models, the laces on the Alpine provide a splendid solution to tightening up when cycling and loosening up when wearing the shoes casually. The laces also serve a secondary purpose of making the shoes look casual when wearing it on a non-cycling occasion. This is great as I can consider not bringing a second pair of casual shoes when on long cycling tours overseas. The presence of a top velcro strap tightens the fit, helps to keep the laces in and can be easily covered by long pants, if you deem the strap unsightly.
I did a short circuit around the Sembawang area, covering different terrain. Hitting the trails at high speeds, the shoes felt snug and firm against the pedals. When I hopped onto kerbs, the rear lifted easily. As expected.
I am dying to test the shoes out on the real off-roads. I hope I get the chance this Saturday.
Total distance: 7km test ride
Money spent: $145
Participants: LSH
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Sembawang Circuit: 6.3km run
When you have more time on hand, you do weird things. Running was never my hobby, but I find myself pounding the pavement way more regularly than I ever did. For the last couple of years, I rode, rode and rode. My cycling mileage per week has not decreased since, instead, it has increased; and now running has become a form of cross training. Without passion, interest will not last and only time will tell. In fact, when university starts, I will probably be too tired cycling to and fro from school to run regularly.
My mind tends to wander and I see parts of my life flashback in my head. It is funny when I recall my unrealized childhood dreams and how much I have deviated from the goals I set many years back. I thought I had finally plotted out a path in life when I hit JC but a few years on, I am still at square one, as clueless as ever.
When I imagine myself ten years down the road, I can see a couple of possibilities. The first, I go where the wind blows. My parents were horrified when I said I may consider taking a few years off my prime to circum-navigate the world. They pointed out that such a lifestyle may not be fulfilling and I may regret it in my later years. Well, no one will really know until then, right? Then again, I guess I understand how they feel when I am away from home courting danger in some "ulu" place.
There are times that I yearn to find that guiding compass to show me the way and stabilise my "exciting" life. Perhaps I have strayed way off the path that God intends his children to take. The idea of a settled lifestyle seems comforting.
My mind tends to wander and I see parts of my life flashback in my head. It is funny when I recall my unrealized childhood dreams and how much I have deviated from the goals I set many years back. I thought I had finally plotted out a path in life when I hit JC but a few years on, I am still at square one, as clueless as ever.
When I imagine myself ten years down the road, I can see a couple of possibilities. The first, I go where the wind blows. My parents were horrified when I said I may consider taking a few years off my prime to circum-navigate the world. They pointed out that such a lifestyle may not be fulfilling and I may regret it in my later years. Well, no one will really know until then, right? Then again, I guess I understand how they feel when I am away from home courting danger in some "ulu" place.
There are times that I yearn to find that guiding compass to show me the way and stabilise my "exciting" life. Perhaps I have strayed way off the path that God intends his children to take. The idea of a settled lifestyle seems comforting.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
X-Physique 2009
One word. Fun. Thanks to my three other companions on this adventure race.
All thanks to their brilliance, we never failed to solve the puzzles quickly! Silly me led them on a longer route to the first station but at least we were not the last team to reach that station.
Kayaking, being the first station, was not really what we had hoped for (as this meant we would get our shoes wet), but it turned out to be quite a funny experience. Our kayak kept moving too much to the left and we wasted time and effort correcting course. And our coordination was problematic =P (confirm will clash every 50m). Haha...I think I am super rusty. Zi Kai and Deborah were speeding ahead.
Biking came after kayaking and I think it was rather short and uneventful. Last year's mountain biking section at Tampines mountain biking trail was probably a far more exciting experience. The "Ninja Warrior" style net climb was more interesting.
After that station, we had to decipher a puzzle and the speed at which Deborah and Kezia solved it was just amazing. After a rather long trek to Kampong Glam Park, we were greeted by one of the more challenging obstacles. It took me and Zi Kai quite many tries to finally get through (beneath a rope and above another while standing on a pipe that we had to "roll" towards a finish). I think that left the girls with less time but they nearly completed it.
We then proceeded at our comfortable pace to Mount Emily Park where we spent some time playing with swings, see-saws and a golf ball =P I must admit I didn't know one can build momentum on a swing! Anyway, back to the task at hand, we had to lift a pail out of a restricted zone with a pair of ropes. We took the maximum time to complete it!
Then, it was another long walk to Upper Cross Street so we got some snacks and drinks while the other serious competitors whizzed past us! The last station was abseiling which I thought would be nicer with a higher "drop-off" point. 4 storeys was a little short but it was still fun =) We should have brought a camera to capture facial expressions of people about to jump off!
That done, it was time to return to Square 1. Deborah took us on a scenic tour at the Esplanade Park. We even took some pictures there before returning to the start point some 7.5hrs from our start time. We were the last team in from the Mixed/Open category and Zi Kai's face lit up when told some teams didn't even complete. He asked how many and when told just one or two, had a total change in facial expression. That was funny. =)
I was glad to have "lunch" as my energy was almost running out. Then, the moment came when I had to pick my bike and head for home. Somehow, I chose to travel by Upper Thomson Road! I must have gone crazy, in fact, I was probably quite tired and dreaming half the time when I hit the numerous climbs. My mind probably wandered to a different universe and many a time, I threaded my bike through the small gaps between two moving vehicles without much thought.
Then again, being in a dream was good, in no time, I was home.
Total distance: 24.5km (of running, canoeing, biking, abseiling, other obstacles and I must add, strolling! =P); 23.1km (ride home)
Money spent: $9+ for food on race day
Participants: LSH, Zi Kai, Deborah, Kezia
All thanks to their brilliance, we never failed to solve the puzzles quickly! Silly me led them on a longer route to the first station but at least we were not the last team to reach that station.
Kayaking, being the first station, was not really what we had hoped for (as this meant we would get our shoes wet), but it turned out to be quite a funny experience. Our kayak kept moving too much to the left and we wasted time and effort correcting course. And our coordination was problematic =P (confirm will clash every 50m). Haha...I think I am super rusty. Zi Kai and Deborah were speeding ahead.
Biking came after kayaking and I think it was rather short and uneventful. Last year's mountain biking section at Tampines mountain biking trail was probably a far more exciting experience. The "Ninja Warrior" style net climb was more interesting.
After that station, we had to decipher a puzzle and the speed at which Deborah and Kezia solved it was just amazing. After a rather long trek to Kampong Glam Park, we were greeted by one of the more challenging obstacles. It took me and Zi Kai quite many tries to finally get through (beneath a rope and above another while standing on a pipe that we had to "roll" towards a finish). I think that left the girls with less time but they nearly completed it.
We then proceeded at our comfortable pace to Mount Emily Park where we spent some time playing with swings, see-saws and a golf ball =P I must admit I didn't know one can build momentum on a swing! Anyway, back to the task at hand, we had to lift a pail out of a restricted zone with a pair of ropes. We took the maximum time to complete it!
Then, it was another long walk to Upper Cross Street so we got some snacks and drinks while the other serious competitors whizzed past us! The last station was abseiling which I thought would be nicer with a higher "drop-off" point. 4 storeys was a little short but it was still fun =) We should have brought a camera to capture facial expressions of people about to jump off!
That done, it was time to return to Square 1. Deborah took us on a scenic tour at the Esplanade Park. We even took some pictures there before returning to the start point some 7.5hrs from our start time. We were the last team in from the Mixed/Open category and Zi Kai's face lit up when told some teams didn't even complete. He asked how many and when told just one or two, had a total change in facial expression. That was funny. =)
I was glad to have "lunch" as my energy was almost running out. Then, the moment came when I had to pick my bike and head for home. Somehow, I chose to travel by Upper Thomson Road! I must have gone crazy, in fact, I was probably quite tired and dreaming half the time when I hit the numerous climbs. My mind probably wandered to a different universe and many a time, I threaded my bike through the small gaps between two moving vehicles without much thought.
Then again, being in a dream was good, in no time, I was home.
At the start(left) and at the end(right).
Money spent: $9+ for food on race day
Participants: LSH, Zi Kai, Deborah, Kezia
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Wear a helmet; it may SAVE your life
It felt good to get my bike dirty after so many weeks of riding on the road. The feeling of getting my face and shades splattered by mud was a welcome relief. Even after a rather thorough wash-down, there are visible streaks of mud on my tyres and frame. It may seem rather gross to keep the bike in my room, but never mind, it's clean enough for an off-road machine. So when are we going to hit the trails again?
I reached home around noon, washed up (both equipment and myself), had lunch and headed out again to Marina Square on the Polygon. I took about an hour to get there on a more relaxed pace, deposited the bike and looked around the mall before taking the train home.
I had one close shave this morning when we did Scorpion after T15. As I approached the sign-post, I misjudged the height of the board and did not duck low enough when I threaded the bike between the two metal posts. My helmet took the impact with a loud thud. I could feel the entire force dissipated throughout the helmet. Pain shot through my head. At that moment, I thought the helmet had cracked. In the end, it was only a scratch and a teenie-weenie dent.
Imagine the consequences if I had not worn the helmet. The edge of the board would have left a few nice scars on my scalp. I could be lucky enough to escape with just a minor concussion, but the worse case scenario would be a visit to the hospital. =P
Total distance: 18km (off-road); 50.3km (on-road)
Money spent: $3.30
Participants: LSH, Ben, Faizul, Faizul's wife
I reached home around noon, washed up (both equipment and myself), had lunch and headed out again to Marina Square on the Polygon. I took about an hour to get there on a more relaxed pace, deposited the bike and looked around the mall before taking the train home.
I had one close shave this morning when we did Scorpion after T15. As I approached the sign-post, I misjudged the height of the board and did not duck low enough when I threaded the bike between the two metal posts. My helmet took the impact with a loud thud. I could feel the entire force dissipated throughout the helmet. Pain shot through my head. At that moment, I thought the helmet had cracked. In the end, it was only a scratch and a teenie-weenie dent.
Imagine the consequences if I had not worn the helmet. The edge of the board would have left a few nice scars on my scalp. I could be lucky enough to escape with just a minor concussion, but the worse case scenario would be a visit to the hospital. =P
Total distance: 18km (off-road); 50.3km (on-road)
Money spent: $3.30
Participants: LSH, Ben, Faizul, Faizul's wife
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