· Date : 26-jan-08
· Details: Kulim - Serdang - Selama - Mahang - Sungai Kob - Kulim
· KOTRT flag bearers: Rin, Chen
· Type: ROADIE
· Leading knights: Rin Honest eye witness account:
click here to see through the jinx's KOTRTpit ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| · Date : 26-jan-08
· Details: 0-168-Tiger Hell-Terrapin Trail-Hilton-AID
· Type: MOUNTIE
· Leading knights: Pang Honest eye witness account:
The sms came fast and furious from Pang, Azmi and Rin. Road or Mountain?? Lady Jane wants to test her climbing endurance up 168, and Pang wants to show Peter and Yascha (his 2 workmates) the trail. We have to complete the whole ride by 11am, which is the extent of Peter’s visa or it will be permanently revoked. Rin is tempting us with food at Pelita and a promise of a short (read fast and furious) roadride at Kulim. For me the choice was obvious. MTB at the best D/H trail in Penang, even though we had to pay the price of climbing 168. For Azmi, the choice was easy. Earlier back home and the chance to escort the Lady Jane. He tried to CONvince Malek to join in, but he ain’t no sucker and did not show up. So at 7.30am, a bunch of suckers gathered at the start of the Jeep track for an early morning torture session. The bunch took off with Peter taking the lead, chased by Azmi. Pang, Lady Jane and I took up the rear. The ride was uneventful, except that the pace was much faster than usual and we reached 168 before 9.00am. And then it was off to Tiger Hell. The D/H was exhilarating and fast, using the farmer trail. When we reached the valley, Azmi had a puncture, but we were asked to proceed as he will catch up with us. Peter again took off, with Pang and Yascha in hot pursuit, but before long, under pressure from the lady Jane, both had to give way to the unrelenting pressure from the Lady. Pang even tried to conceal the damage to his knee when he crashed under the lady’s pressure. As usual, I brought up the rear end till we reached IronX. Then it was D/H all the way. Terrapin Trail is arguably the best XC trail in Penang now. Single tracked and nicely shaded, with rolling twist and turns to make it interesting and yet not technically demanding. Sweet. As usual, due to the fast and furious pace, Azmi contributed some skin and bodily fluid when his shin met his chainring and Yascha tried to avoid an on-coming branch and landed on his knees. We exited Terrapin Trail at 10.45am, which by usual KOTRT standard is way ahead of time! Usually at this time, we would just be getting off our butts at Mdm Gee. Peter made it back in time to make bini happy and we all went for some drinks and TT at Asia Café at the foot of Hillrailway Road. Azmi even made it back in time to take bini for lunch which made many binis very happy............ST ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| · Date : 23-jan-08
· Details: Tai Seong Lo Koon-Pg Hill-Tiger Hill-Iron Cross-Terrapin Trail-AID-Air Itam Roundabout
· Type: MOUNTIE
· Leading knights: Azmi Honest eye witness account:
Today is my first officially ride with the KOTRTies and my first write-up contribution here. 8.00am SHARP at Tram Station! That was the sms Azmi sent to me. We were punctual but because of a technical problem with Pang’s bike (based on what I heard, don’t mean to put the blame on you ah?) we waited for him and we had to take another tram at 8.30am. However, the tram could not fit all our bikes, so Azmi, Halim and Adrian had to wait for the next tram. We got off at Middle Station and waited for the rest of the guys to arrive. We started our ride from Middle Station around 9.30am and we headed for the junction that joins up to K6 (Thai Siang Loh Kun trail) and eventually to the top of Penang Hill. As I rode up the single track tarmac trail, I couldn’t help but admire amidst catching my breath; the scenery of Georgetown, it was “breathtakingly” beautiful… Actually I was a bit apprehensive; I hoped I am fit enough for my first ride with the KOTRTies as they have this “teng kar” reputation I was told. I was almost out of breath huu-haa...huu-haa~… chasing them up K6 and I’m still feeling out of breath! Half way to the top of Penang Hill, I was feeling a bit hungry, so out came my Power Bar to fill up my hunger. Then something caught my eyes, they can’t stop blinking and staring…at Malik’s back pack! I saw a bread sticking out of the pouch in his back pack! So I gao-gao (thick) my face and mintak lah from him! I finished it in record time! Btw, thanks Malik…you saved me! We finally reached the top of Penang Hill off the Canopy Walk. We decided to take a break at the food court as most of the guys were hungry. We had a drink at the 888 Coffee Shop, Azmi recommended I try the Milo-Xi, really tasted good! After the refreshment, it was time to reward ourselves; we rode down hill to Tiger Hill (Azmi failed to mention this “small” climb some where in the middle though) – Iron Cross – Terrapin Trail (we did the reverse of the 2007 Jamboree Trail) – Air Itam Dam. It was a rewarding ride! Shiok (excuse me) lah because the trail was excellent and well maintained. I was informed by Azmi, there’s a group of local cyclists; Lim Chuan and his fellow mountain bikers who took over the responsibility of taking care of this wonderful trail here. Thanks guys! Pictures? click here One thing I noticed about the KOTRTies; they really can tahan teasing each other, honestly I respect (plus a bit of sympathy) Pang. Pang, if my friends always tease me like this, I’m sure I will quit! Ha-ha-ha…you better think about this, I will support you! Just kidding only ah. The guys were full of jokes, funny antics, teasing (the most interesting and important part) and good company. What an enjoyable ride! I can’t wait to go for the next ride with them…Azmi mentioned something about the Pg ECO Challenge trail, I wonder when will they take me there? I think I’m here to stay guys, is that ok with you? But no teasing ah! So, can you all please put your hands together to welcome…The new “Princess of KOTRT”? That’s me, Jane! Sarawak kia's version ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| · Date : 20-jan-08
· Details: MKH ride in Kulim. Meet 7.30am at Jabatan Hutan in Kulim
· KOTRT flag bearers: Azmi, Rin, Chen
· Type: ROADIE
· Leading knights: Rin Honest eye witness account:
Azmi has this to say. click here ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| · Date : 19-jan-08
· Details: Makan angin road ride from Azmi’s house to Tropical fruit farm and back.
· Type: ROADIE
· Leading knights: Rin Honest eye witness account:
Got an SMS from Azmi the evening before, inviting KOTRTIES for an easy roadride on Sat morning. Adriand & Rin had already signed up. I was in Balik Pulau, so I responded that I will meet up with them at Teluk Bahang roundabout. See you at 9:15am, came the SMS back from Azmi. Since this was my routine newspaper route, I decided to take it easy and started off from my house in BP at 8:20am, taking it easy all the way to Teluk Bahang. Met lots of roadies on their routine Sat morning rides including a large group from “The Duh” in their white and blue uniform. Hmmm, very impressive and they were all riding hand in hand up the gentle incline along the Teluk Bahang-Balik Pulau road, something the KOTRTIES have yet to achieve, not from lack of trying though! Thnee, thnee, rang my handphone as I near the tropical fruitfarm. It was an SMS from Azmi saying that Adrian just arrived at 8:46am and they were just leaving. Late as usual. I figured if I took it easy, I would meet them at Teluk Bahang, but when I reached there, tadak orang, so I took a very slow ride heading towards Batu Ferringhi. When I reached the Spice Garden, still no KOTRTIE, so I turned back very slowly towards Teluk Bahang, hoping for the gang to catch up with me. No luck. Waited by the roadside near the Penang Cultural Center. At 9:34am, saw Adrian all alone coming down the slope to Jubilee Beach. “Where’s the rest?” “Behind”. We waited a full 8 minutes before the rest turn up, with Malek in tow. Stopped at the Teluk Bahang mamak shop for refreshment and TT for a while. Saw Raymond and his GF having their morning cuppa and was informed that he had a torn ACL and was going for reconstructive knee surgery soon,. Will be out for 3 months. Good luck to him and swift recovery!. Took off again towards Tropical Fruit farm, and as we passed the Taman Rimba Rekreasi dimple heading towards the TB Dam, Adrian took off, pursued by Azmi. I stayed back to keep Malek company, while Rin was in between. That order was maintained till we reached the top of the hill. Hmmm, seems the only proven way to stay ahead of the pack is to go watch the sunset at Tun Sardon lookout point or go test bike every evening. Go buy newspaper helps a bit. All other fancy training methods have yet to show any long lasting positive results. KOTRTIES, take note!................St.
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| · Date : 13-jan-08
· Details: Start ride at 7.30am at Jabatan Perhutanan in Kulim.
· KOTRT flag bearers: Rin, Chen
· Type: ROADIE
· Leading knights: Rin Honest eye witness account:
"Mak C*#@i, bila lu orang mau jalan, sudah pukui 7.40 tau ka? Tak tau tepat masa ka, K#@&* K@#, kayuh L&%$@% la lu orang banyak tadak displin punya" was the voice of Kulim Lee breaking the morning silence in the sleepy Jabatan Perhutanan area. Everybody was like stunned for a while before regaining composure. That was typical of Kulim Lee. Then I recalled his earlier SMS informing the ride ; "Makan Ikan Ride, 13/01/2008, 7.30 am, please be punctual. MKH from now on will stress on punctuality, Baru boleh MAJU KE HADAPAN" That squash ed Rin's earlier theory on the japanese flag being raised by Kulim Lee's wife, tak dapat semalam which explained he's so moody that morning. It was 7.45 am the ride started. We were heading towards HIGH TECH area. The speed was gentle , about 10 minutes into the ride the speed picked up. Suddenly I realized my speedo meter was SCREMING ! Then came the consolation, the altimeter on the GPS Rin fixed on my bike before the ride was showing a figure smaller than the one sho wn earlier. It meant we were going downhill. The speed maintain around 32km/h to 35km/h. The speed was too great for me and I decided not to kill myself. I was dropped and I was riding alone for about 10 minutes, see, why wasn't I worrried? I've got GPS. That's called preparation. Ok, 10 minutes riding alone after being dropped, I came to the Bertam junction where everybody was waiting for me. That's the beauty of the MKH crew, they would stop and wait at critical junction, if you don't see them, just ignore the junction. After resting for a while, the group moved toward s Pantai Merdeka. The speed was very nice until we hit the junction that would lead us to Kuala Muda. All of the sudden the speed was in the region of 43km/h. "Damn" that was the only word that help ed me to stay calm and focused in the group. The GPS on my bike was telling me, distance: 55km, Average: 29km/h. Time: 1hr 45 minutes and altitude was 10 metre. I was like, S^*t, I can't hold on to the speed already, but my mind was telling me that I must hit 60km in 2 hours in order to maintain the 30km/h average. I was sure I could do it ! I hung on to it. 2 minutes into the 2 hour time line I set for myself , I was dropped again . I tried very hard to maintain at 35km/h riding alone and the distance was showing 59km. That left me no choice but to maintain the region of 35km/h in order to achieve my 30km/h average target. I reckon if I travelled at 60km/h, it would take me a minute to hit a kilometre and I've got 2 minutes left, so the best was to ride at that speed region and it was not an option to me. I looked at the GPS, the altimeter was showing that there was a surge in reading, meaning there was a uptrend in the road surface. I persisted, at the end of 2 hours, the GPS was laughing at me by telling me that the distance that I managed was on 59.8km. "damn there goes my average" I said to myself. I took a glance at the average speed, it was showing 29.8km/h. "Ok I 've failed my own target. Switch that GPS off you fool" I was scolding myself because of my failure. Then I changed the display of the GPS to the direction page. That's the problem when you ride with too much information. But again information is an advantage, why? because when I reached the shop in Kota Kuala Muda to Makan Ikan the altimeter was showing 0 metre. That told me it was a gradual climb back as the earlier reading at 55km was 10 metre. " keep this to yourself, don't tell them and let them suffer !" That was the devil speaking inside me . So for me, after makan ikan it would be a very slow long ride back. After makan ikan, we were ready to move again then suddenly "woi! kayuh pelan-pelan balik ah, lu jangan hantam laju sangat ah" then I heard Kulim Lee responded "Saya mana ada laju? Saya tarik 34km/h saja, mana ada laju?" by hearing that my immediate reaction was "lu ada baca ka tadak? Lu tak tau baca meter ka, itu 43km/h tau bukan 34km/h" That was the end of the whole episode. The ride back to Kulim was easy without any action. I decided to stay at the back with Nizam and Lan BMC. It was a slow recovery ride back. Nothing much to reveal as I missed all the action because I was not staying in front.....................chen ; ) ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| · Date : 13-jan-08
· Details: 8.00am - Tram ride(or ride up)to middle station-Penang Hill-Tiger Hill-Terrapin Trail-AID.
· Type: MOUNTIE
· Leading knights: Pang, ST Honest eye witness account:
The tram ride up to the middle station is really interesting. First of all, it only cost RM2.50 each instead of the usual RM4.00. Then, the ride up from middle station using the K6 trail is very doable, cos we skipped the killer part and was able to ride up all the way without pushing. We exited at the Canopy walkway and went straight to Tiger Hill, from where the LONGEST D/H in Penang Island stretches from Tiger Hill-Terrapin Trail-Hilton-Scared Heart in Balik Pulau. Trail condition was excellent and weather was kind. Pity only Jascha, Sue and I got to enjoy this trail. Better do it soon before the rains come and mother nature reclaims the trail. Looks like KOTRTIES are made up of 2 types of cyclists. In the first category are the Homo-cyclist like Chen who prefers road only and Chew who prefers mountain only and the rest of us Bi-cyclists who are oriented both ways…..hmmm. interesting.......ST ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| · Date : 6-jan-08
· Details: Killer hill climb road ride. Simpang Pulai-Tapah-Cameron Highlands-Simpang Pulai
· KOTRT flag bearers: Rin, Chen, Adrian, Pang
· Type: Road Ride
· Leading knights: Beh and Halim Honest eye witness account:
In the end, only 4 KOTRTIE made it - Rin, Chen, Adrian & Pang. KOM=Our KOTRT#1. Top KOTRT=Mr Scotty. Start time: 730am. Finish: 4.45pm. Distance:182km. Bravo to those who went and Syabas to all who completed ride…..ST
more... ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| · Date : 1-jan-08
· Details: 2008 kickoff road ride. 7.30am at Kulim.
· KOTRT flag bearers: Rin, Azmi, Adrian
· Type: Road Ride
· Leading knights: Azmi Honest eye witness account:
Only 3 KOTRTIES made it, Chief, Rin and Adrian. It was only about 100k. Ride was fairly slow by the Kulim standards. Took new route to Pantai Merdeka, this way had much better scenery with slight climbs along some really nice views of rice fields. Everyone was quite "obedient" maybe because it was the New Year or because the group was pretty big (about 20+), so just to keep everyone Lee made sure that the "head" rider didn't break the sound barrier... The highlight of the ride was supposed to have late breakfast at a stall serving fresh fish near Pantai Merdeka but we were all disappointed because it was closed for the new year, proprietor was probably out the night before in the countdown for the new year.... So it was miserable roti canai and some fried chicken, which apparently taste glorious according to Chief, maybe because he was hungry. The way back was equally as visually pleasing as the way there and we even stopped to have some photos sessions along a road that snaked between some rice fields. It's very rare that the Kulim team actually stops for photos, most of the time they just out to outrace everyone. Even the Khaw brothers were quite decent. Of course there was a point where Danny couldn't take my tailing and decided to speed up until he was drafting behind a motorbike, that was when I decided I'd better let him have his "glory". Some people just can't take having someone "sitting" on their behind.... But the sweetest spot is still behind Optimus Prime (Kulim Lee). This guy has the most consistent pedaling and he doesn't swerve around, so you can just close your eyes, pedal and get dragged along behind him. Once the nasi campur and roti canai burnt off, it was time to do some real riding... The peloton decided to pick up the pace and before you know it we were "cruising" along at 40s. Of course it didn't help that there was very strong head wind to battle. When it was my turn to pull, I could only managed abt 30+km, it was just impossible to pedal faster, maybe I'm not that fit but I did my duty for quite a fair distance, if the Chief were to say "burst at 40", I've would've smacked him.... Then when I decided to hand over the trailer head duty to someone else, we hit a kampung and there was just no more wind. Smart! Then the speed picked up again and hitting the high speeds wasn't that much of a task anymore but my stint at the front took its toll me already and I decided to stick to the back. Overall it was a pretty good ride for me since I haven't been for the mainland ride quite awhile and it was the maiden ride for my Scott. Lunch was at Pelita and we (particularly Rin) were pleasantly surprised by Ms. Tarzan who joined us. We also had George later, who happened to be there and also showed us some really cool full face motorbike helmets bound to hit the market soon..............ADRIAN
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· Date : 30-dec-07
· Details: KOTRT Year End family makan-makan. 6.00pm at ST house in Blk Pulau
· Type: PARTIE
· Leading knights: ST, Azmi
Honest eye witness account:
A nice BBQ cum potluck party to round up the year 2007. Good time for the KOTRT binis and kids to get together and hang out. Venue was at ST's house in BP, and menu hi-lite was the grilled lamb shoulders and Paki burgers, and DIY pizzas for the kids. Pang brought along his wet market orange cooler box to hydrate everyone. Durian serawa by Malek was gone in a jiffy and I only got to have a whiff, but no tasting. Gotta be faster next time. Paki burger (beef and chicken), was grilled, suicide bomber style over very hot flame, directed personally by the chef himself. Sssssshhhh, Wanna know who is the Tarzan who brought Jane to the party?? More on this in the next episode. How about a WELCOME ride for the new "Princess of KOTRT", provided she is not another flavor of the month for our Tarzan! Dinner ended after much planning for KOTRT riding activities for the 1st qtr of 2008..........St.
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| · Date : 30-dec-07
· Details: 2007 Year End round island road ride. Esplanade-Tlk Bahang-Pulau Betong-Reverse start 7.30am
· Type: Road ride
· Leading knights: Shaharin Honest eye witness account:
140 riders started the road ride to bring 2007 to a close. Riding groups from Kulim Lee, Peng Soon, Blk Pulau, KOTRT, Mavericks and Ah Oon's triathletes group joined in. KOTRT flag bearers were Rin, Derek, Chen, Moon, Azmi, Pang & ST. Adrian was out for the count after a heavy nite of boozing and DNS. The pace was very leisurely as a fellowship ride should be, but the pace picked up after the regroup at Tlk Bahang dam, and got dispersed by the time we stopped at the Pulau Betong rest stop for recovery and refueling. The MTB groups took a short cut, and the triathletes decided to go back via Tun Sardon. So it was left to a motley group of ~40 riders retracing the ride back to Esplanade. Hi-Lite of the ride was the sms received from Pang, declaring himself as KOTRT #1 rider, first to the Pulau Betong rest stop and again beating Azmi on the way back. Way to go, Pang!! Chen, looks like you have to hand over the yellow jersey to our Mr. Cutie and see how long he can hold on to it, with all the hounds breathing down his ass...................St.
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