Plentong Epic Ride 15/11/2009

Its been a week since the ride...I just couldn’t find the time to write the ride coverage..was too tired after the ride....was on MC last Monday due to fever and sore muscles and joints...was busy the whole week...finally had the chance to write down everything today...kinda late...but I need to deliver my promises, right?...=p

note the CP stickers!

Arrival

Reached the Petronas Plentong a few minutes before 7am. Eddie, Ai, Faizal and some of the Tamago’s were already there, waiting for the boss, Ali to arrive....even Hafiz was late that morning....I had no choice but to wait as my riding pass was with Ali.....after getting myself 2 bottles of 100 plus, Eddie told me that they’re gonna wait for Ali and Hafiz at the parking lot at Neo’s.

Moments later , I reached the parking lot, starts unloading , preparing my gears and went to the mamak for a quick bite...the other Tamago’s were already set for the ride...only waiting for Ali, BK and Hafiz to arrive...

Few minutes to 8am, the committee members began directing the riders to the starting point, at a basketball court some 300 meters away... I was getting a bit restless...Ali still not there yet...with my riding pass...

Ali arrived just in a nick of time....took my riding pass, tied it to my handle bar and rushed to the starting point....

power eggs...Tamago's finest...Ai and Faizal

car park at Neo's

Bro Panjang as official for the ride

 

Starting

Imagine 450 riders standing by in one basketball court.....waiting for the flag off...the place was jammed packed...everybody’s was anxious to start the ride...I had mixed feelings....nervous....thrilled....ecstatic...excited...all rolled into one....it’s indescribable....

Watching everybody’s with their rides were already a bliss....especially the ones with the bikes that I could only dreamt owning one....hehehe.....already had me dreaming of winning the grand prize for the day’s lucky draw, a complete bike...though I’m not sure what brand it was....=p

Finally, the ride was flagged off around 8.15am...I didn’t immediately join the large crowd dispersing from the court....instead I parked my bike at the road side and took some pictures and admiring the atmosphere.....I started at the back of the pack....as usual...riding slowly towards the first stage of the ride...the beginning of a torturous journey.....

gettin' ready...

 

flag off

 

and off you go..

heading towards...

a torturous ride....

1st stage

It wasn’t long before we start entering the off road section ....as expected...the route was totally different from the week earlier....instead of turning right like last week, we had to turn left instead...

The route was relatively easy....a mixture of off road and some tarmac ride...until we reached to a section where we need to turn into a rubber plantation.....there were a lot of riders...some inexperienced....causing massive jams...and unnecessary waste of time and energy....enjoyed some part of the single trail downhill though....passing a shack, over a small crossing and then had to queue up to cross a stream....then took a wrong route...double back and enjoyed the sweet single trail with two foreigners hot on my tail....the single track was sweet and long....and fun....me and the two mat saleh’s enjoyed it very much that we made silly sounds....wooohooo!!!...hehehe...

first casualty of the day...

traffic congestion?

abg azhar

where's the traffic police when we needs em?

the cause....stream crossing...

The trail leads to a main road...riding on tarmac again...for a short while before Sham directing us to another off road trail....I didn’t go in straight though...waited for a while to catch my breath....Basir was there too...taking a breather.....I had to cut short my resting time to catch up with the other riders...

I was riding alone...trying to catch up with Uncle Johan whom I saw earlier....aww mann!!...that old man was really fast....and he’s 65 years old I tell ya....managed to catch up with him at CP1.....

After getting the CP1 sticker, I didn’t stick around for long....had a drink provided by the marshal’s and continued riding heading to water check point 2 a few kilometres away....

 CP1

2nd stage

The distance between CP 1 and CP2 was about 7km....and the water check point located in between the two....I’ve to go thru some rubber plantation and woods before I could reach it...the terrain was slippery due to the rain previous day and not to mention all the obstacles that I have to go thru...finally I reached the water check point and stopped for a breather...I had 2 bottles of water plus one I took as a reserve and a couple of bananas. Moments later, Riza, Laban , Wan and another Tamago guy reached the CP. We chatted for a short while before I left them to proceed to CP2, some 4-5 km away.

riza, laban and wan Tamago

I joined several riders and we were riding really tight at a considerably fast tempo...the trail was quite difficult as we need to navigates thru narrow passages which filled with slippery roots, puddles, branches and tree trunks...

I was enjoying the ride so much that before I knew it, I’ve reached CP2. I was greeted by Fazlon and Panjang who was manning the CP....Anuar and a couple of his friends were there as well....after a few minutes rest, we started riding again....heading to “the lake”....

anuar at CP2

taking a breather at "the lake"

The mixture of trail & single trail was enjoyable...we were going fast....I was leading and I missed a marker and we had to double back and re-trace the marker...found it, turned and continued thru a single track heading downhill towards the lake...

We stopped by the lake and took a 15 minutes break...after a long ride, a lengthy break like that was most welcomed...I went on to wash my face as my eyes were getting itchy due to sweat...I cleared the mineral water I took from CP2 and a banana flavoured cake given by the organizers....

We were lucky that it was cloudy at that time.....coupled with some cool breeze blowing our way...the rest stop was a bliss....

After done recharging our lost energy...we started riding again, heading towards CP3.

3rd stage

My body has already taken a toll from the long ride....by now...I’ve already travelled some 25km from the starting point....I was getting really tired from the long hours on saddles...the difficulty level has also increased, the path is much narrower, with roots, branches and trunks...not to mention a lot of puddles and muddy terrain at the open trails....there were also several crossings where you really have to get your feet wet...tiresome hill climbs and really exhausting paddling thru a rubber plantation. We had to take a 10 minutes stop before entering the rubber plantation. Opened up the Nescafe Mocca given by Eddie this morning....we were discussing about the ride and what Panjang told us earlier...it seems that out of 450 participants....only 200++ has made it to CP2....we don’t see much riders behind us...and we assumed that we were in the last batch...meaning that about half of the field has chickened out at CP1 and CP2...tough trail I guess....

It was already 12.45 when we started rolling again....going thru the torturous hill climb....it was really..really....exhausting and frustrating....why?...because last week I could climb the same hill with little difficulties...I could keep up with the other guys at that time...now....hahaha....I couldn’t even making it to the top...have to MTB~ed my bike uphill...hehehe..

We continued riding going downhill and headed straight for water check point 2 located somewhere near Flora Heights I assumed....when passing the construction site....I signalled Anuar as we’ve planned to stop to replenished our water reserves but he kept on cycling....perhaps he wants to get to our destination soonest possible.....it was getting really late.....the BP guys that was with us earlier has long gone...so does the group of Singaporeans which we met during our stop earlier.....

We met several riders somewhere before the hill climb at Flora Heights...Anuar and Azizi paddled their way up hill...while me...with no more strength had to push my bike up....I was extremely tired and had the thought of abandoning the ride....but I had already passed the point of no return...no more chicken loop...it’s all the way home from there onwards..... I reckon that I’ve another 19km to go....if I paddled slowly....I guess I’ll reached the finish line by 5pm or so....hehehe...

Reaching the top...Anuar and Azizi has long gone...no trace of them...some riders passed me....I want to catch up with them but I was really exhausted from pushing the bike...so I put down my bike at an open area and lay down on the dirt...stayed there for about 4-5 minutes to gather some energy for me to carry on riding. Once I felt I’m ready, I picked up my bike and starts paddling thru the open air construction site....it was sooo hot....Gerekers nicknamed the place as “the desert”....probably due to the barren condition with no shades whatsoever....I had to agree.....I took off my helmet due to the unbearable heat....and rode on....

At that point, I was craving for some shades and some ice cool drinks...I kept on telling myself that I could do it (completing the ride)....and that the heat was nothing....if you were there with me...you probably thought that I was a nut case or something...talking to myself...I was actually trying to lift my own spirits up....since I was alone....and no one to share the sufferings with me...=p

My prayers were soon answered when I catch a glimpse of a group of riders resting near a lorry...there were a tent set up next to it...it was the 2nd water check point!!...hurrayy!!...Anuar and Azizi were there, enjoying their Nasi Lemak under the shades....yup...you heard it right!...Nasi Lemak!....in the middle of nowhere?....it was truly a blessing!...

Lay down my bike near the lorry...okay...I admit that I was too tired that I practically threw my bike to the ground and rushed to get the food and drinks...haha....poor bike...=p

After munching down a pack of Nasi Lemak and a couple of bananas...and gulping down two bottles of iced water...I lay down on the dirt and rested for a while. Then after feeling that I’ve fully recharged, I replenished my water reserves and even took with me a banana and an additional bottle of water and stashed it in my backpack...

Another group of riders reached the checkpoint moments before we left...it was the Tamago’s: Riza, Laban, Wan and 2 more guys.....Panjang was there too...he offered me a ride home (on the lorry of course) but I declined thinking that I could actually made it home myself....

We left the check point after resting more than half an hour....supposedly...by then I surely had fully recharged myself.... but I guess the long hours on road has made me worn out.... convinced myself that I need to complete the ride....I tried to keep paced with Anuar and Azizi...going in the oil palm plantation...thru some thick bushes....going thru some narrow passages....some nice single tracks before reaching the horse ranch near “bukit 9G”...met Panjang again....and he offered me again...a ride home on a lorry but again...I declined...maybe the signs of fatigue show clearly on my face....but I guess my determination was stronger....doesn’t matter what time I finished the ride....I determined to complete it none the less...

anuar and azizi at the badminton court

There’s still about 9km to CP3...and I was really worn out....at a point...I even threw my bike a side out of total exhaustion..and practically lying on my back on the dirt in the middle of nowhere....Anuar and Azizi was kind enough to keep me company. We took a few minutes rest before Anuar suggesting us to move forward and look for a better place for a breather. We rode on till we reached the ‘badminton court”, an Indonesian worker shelter...we took a long break over there, about 15 minutes....before starts paddling again heading to CP3..

hiking up hill..enroute to CP3

There were a long uphill climb....we had to push our bikes uphill....reaching the top..there were several riders resting....moments later....the Tamago’s reaches the place...there were Wan, Mr Ong and another rider...the rest has abandoned the ride at water check point 2...taking the ride home on the lorry.

After 15 minutes break...we continued riding...there were about 9 of us...including Panjang....and we ride on to CP3...

By this time....Anuar and Azizi has made some distance between me and the other guys...upon reaching CP3, Wan, Mr Ong and the other Tamago rider made a sudden stop due to cramps...leaving me paddling alone....

I reached CP3 at 3.30pm...Najib and Atuk was manning the CP....told me the water check point was less than a kilometre away....I rode on...reaching the water check point few minutes later...Ah Chai showed me the direction and told me that Anuar and Azizi had recently left the check point...I didn’t stop as my water reserves still sufficient for the rest of the ride..

Finishing

I tried to called up to Anuar and Azizi..but I guess I was too far for them to hear me...I ended up riding alone...trying to catch up with them...then there were this hill....they were riding uphill...I was extremely tired...so I got off my bike and pushed my bike up and gave up the chase....there were another 9km to go....I was tired...quite de-motivated...and lonesome....riding alone in the woods was kinda creepy...

I finally reached a main road....kind of a relief for me....so I rode on straight...not knowing that I missed a marker and overshot few hundred meters from the re-entry point.....I rode on till I reached a TNB power station...with no markings and riders in sight...I figured that I was lost....so I called the emergency contact number stated on my riding pass....Azam answered and I told him that I was lost...he asked on my whereabouts and I told him my location...he advised me to turn back and retrace back the markings....and so I did and finally re-enters the plantation....and follows the markers heading home...

About a kilometre after entering the plantation, I met the Tamago guys again...so we rode on together heading to the finish line....


Finally after riding 55 kilometres off road...in more than 8 hours...the ride finally came to its end...we were greeted by Panjang and Sham at the exit point...Ali, BK and a patrol car was waiting for us at the main road....Ali congratulated us for completing the ride despite being the last riders to complete it....we were tired..but completely satisfied... we went on to Neo’s to clean our bikes as everybody has gone back...the lucky draws was held at 2pm...even the food has finished....we were contented enough for being able to complete the ride safely...

 

goin' home

As we were cleaning our bikes at Neo’s...it suddenly rained heavily...I decided not to bring my bike home instead I placed my bike in Eddie’s lorry with the rest of the Tamago’s guys bikes...and shipped back to Ali’s for cleanup and probably servicing...

I hanged out with Ali and his gang at the mamak and even took shower in the open with Mr Ong and Wan...it’s been a while since the last time I took a shower in the rain...hehehe...drenching wet, we all sat and had teh tarik session at the mamak...=p

I went back after having a quick shower at Neo’s..it was 5pm...a memorable day indeed....

 

again...note the CP stickers!

TT session with the Tamago's

Overall

It was a great ride...long, exhausting, really a physical and mental torturing....but also really..really satisfying...the kinda ride I’ve been yearning for....it was fun...and exciting...I had cramps several times...but it just keeps me going for more....

The trail was excellent..with lots of fabulous single tracks and downhill sections..I’ve no complaints about that...the organizers had done their jobs well...kudos to them...

I’m looking forward to return to this trail in near future...perhaps in early December? Will have to discuss further with Najib on this...anybody interested to join? =)