Start Ironing

Well, the most challenging deal of triathlon - the Ironman series will be happening in Langkawi this Saturday, February 28th. Unfortunately I can't go there to witness my friends from JB who's taking part as I have to shoot East for my brother in law's wedding on the same date.

With total cut-off time (i.e. time limit) of 17hours, each participants has to swim for 3.8km, and then cycle for 180km and finally run for 42km.

Now, let see how will I perform based on my current fitness level if I were to participate in Ironman Langkawi 2009:

3.8km Swim = Hmm, I never swam this far before. I would guess, I MAYBE can swim 1km in 30minutes. So, 3.8km would give me almost 2hours to spend inside the sea water. Hmmm, sempat buat kawan dengan ikan-ikan di lautan ni.

180km Cycle = I've done 140km with average speed of, let see... 28km/hr maybe. SO, it will be about 6.5hrs paddling activity (itu pun kalau non-stop cycling lah)

42km Run = I never imagined I could run this far yet. IF I can endure this distance without fainting, with my current capability I would be pounding the tarmac for 5hours non-stop. Mampus.

So, in total, that gives me 13.5 hours to complete an Ironman Triathlon.

What? 13.5 hours?

Wait, is my calculator malfunctioning? Hmm...

Impossible lah if I can finish an Ironman in less than 13.5hours. Mustahil, mustahil.

Oh yeah, now I know. I'm only day dreaming...

You see, I included lots of "dreaming" words like MAYBE, IF and SO at above paragraphs.

Anyway, basically it's not impossible to attempt, not even impossible to finish it within 17 hours. I just need to really start IRONING my triathlon skill from now on if I were to attempt it next year.

Gambarimashou...!!!

P/s: Aisey, tingginya angan-angan aku harini...

My Cube

This is where I spend 8 hours per day (or sometimes more), 5 days a week.

1) My bad-getting-worse hand writings. They look slightly better if I write in capital letters compared to the small letters version.

2) Yeah baby. I’m a big fan of sticky notes. (Oh ya, it reminds me that I promised to teach a colleague working in Miri on how to peel a sticky notes without causing the corners to curl. The way I peel them, they will come out flat)

3) HUD (Head-Up Display) – to place the always-need-to-look-at items, e.g. phone number list, SAP Transaction Codes, global support personnel list, frequently used specifications list, new product information papers, etc.

4) Monthly calendar with small sticky notes to indicate special events like presentation I need to give, meetings, seminars and audits. For March, there will be two sticky notes to indicate Trikidz and Kenyir Lake Triathlon events as well.

5) Company yearly calendar, where there are ONLY 13 public holidays trough out 2009. Ya ampun, migraine gua keje sini!

6) Monthly prayers timetable cilok-ed from internet.

7) The very comfy office chair I’ve ever sat my butt on so far.

8) Tikus tanpa ekor, i.e. wireless mouse with 4 directional scrolls (up, down, left, right). Marvelous!

9) Headphone – to listen to online radio or my music collection. It helps me to avoid listening to people gossiping in neighboring cubicles focus on my work while giving me some work-entertainment balance.

10) A tumbler size mug. Enough to provide me with morning tea which can last till lunch time.

11) This is my favorite. A powerful 17 inch engineering laptop that weighs nearly 3kg, with number keypad besides the keyboard. Magnificent when working on designs and looking at drawings. I can even put on my SAP view and Excel spreadsheet view side to side for better efficiency of data analysis.

12) Office phone la, apa lagi.

13) Business card holder case. Normal stuff.

14) My scientific calculator which I have used since university time, ermm.. since 1997 to be exact. It's a Made in China Casio fx-82TL model. I bet it's no more available on the market.

15) A souvenir nail-clipper from my colleague who went to Singapore last year.

16) Collection of stationeries I gathered which consists among others are free pens from hotels I visited. Some I get from vendors. Free stuff is good stuff, no? I make use the free Solidworks (3D design software) mug as the container. See, free stuff again.

17) Decorative motorcycle plate which I bought as a souvenir for myself from Dallas, Texas.

18) Fridge magnet that I bought from Edinburgh, Scotland which says, “ATTITUDE. I don’t NEED your attitude, I already have one”. Besides it is another souvenir fridge magnet from a friend which says, “Never give up” (yeah, hopefully).

19) Safety glasses. Where I work, safety should always be number one on the priority list. It is compulsory for every employee to wear safety glasses when going inside the operation area.

20) Ini barang pinjam yang belum dipulangkan kepada empunya tuan.

21) A design/drawing which I’m reviewing and analyzing, i.e. my work space.

Effect of global economic crisis?

I just walked into the restroom at my office and immediately stepped out of it and went to my cubicle to grab my camera and took below picture.

Now, I can't help thinking why on earth do they (whoever they are) put a kitchen paper inside a toilet? Among other reasons I could think of are:

a) All toilet paper manufacturers and dealers already went broke due to the economic crisis that there are no more toilet papers available on the market di seluruh Johor, Singapura dan Batam?

b) Kitchen paper is much cheaper than toilet paper? Is the company I'm working now exercising cost down on general expenditures?

c) They expect us to cook in the toilet? Eeeuuuwww...

d) If this is a kind of joke, I'm very sure that today is not an April fool's day.

e) New revolution in self hygiene?

f) ..... ? (I'm already out of idea)

Ok, back to my busy working life.

The remaining 5…

Since there were some individuals who said it was unfair for me just to write up 20 random things when what was required were 25. If in work, would this count as an underperformance? Gosh, life can be hard sometimes, can't they?

So, here it goes again, the remaining 5 random things:

21) I could type with keyboard faster than I could write by pen/pencil. And my handwriting is, golly molly... I can't even read it again without trying to guess what I've written.

22) Truth be told, I don't like to listen to my own recorded voice. Don't worry, you won't see me on the TV auditing for Malaysian Idols. I won't make you suffer, I promise.

23) I would always go to watch movies at the cinema if I can control the volume of the speakers. I am grateful that Allah gave me good hearing capability and I'll try my best not to damage it. Hence, I just settle with watching DVDs where the volume level is at my fingertips.

24) No matter how interesting a book can be, 80% of the times I would fall asleep upon reading erm.. 5 pages. No, no. To be honest, 3 pages. Hahaha.

25) It’s not easy to think of 25 random things at one go you know. Tak percaya? Try it yourself. So, that’s it from me. Lepas ni jangan komplen-komplen lagi tau... hihihi

Ter-sprint (almost)

First, I just had the intention to do brick training at night during the weekly Wednesday night ride, at which after cycling 24km, I plan to run for roughly 2.5 or 3km.

At about 4pm or so, I received an SMS from an Ironman-to-be friend, "Petang ni nak swim tak? 6pm".

I took a brief look inside my sports bag which I brought to the office together with the cycling and running stuffs, and luck on my side I guess, my swimming attire and goggles were inside it too.

Quickly I replied him, "Boleh gak. C u at the pool later".

So, at about 6pm I started swimming. Not really sure for how far, but in total I swam for about 40~45 minutes or so, roughly speaking. It was a good work out though.

Since I've also packed my road bike inside the car since morning, I don't want to miss my brick training plan at night. Hence, after having light dinner (makan burger + air limau suam je) I drove to the cycling area.

Quite a lot of people turned up for the ride last night. I just followed the group whenever I could (remember, they are speed demons), and at times I would be doing my own pace just to complete the 4 loops, or roughly 24km.

Kaki dah sangat agak penat, yet I still insisted to do the short run. Set my stopwatch and off I went. 10 minutes later I was done with the run, to which I guestimate it to be around, ermm... 1.5~1.7km distance (based on my normal siput-khinzir speed lah).

Upon completing everything, I thought, "Eh, ni dah macam buat sprint triathlon ni, only that the distance is not exactly equivalent" (ni kes nak menyedapkan hati sendiri la ni).

Kena tag lagi!

Just came across Aini’s blog with her 25 random things which she got tagged to. It reminds me that I also got tagged by Makcik Power through my Facebook few weeks ago.

I need to write 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about my self. So, without any offence to anybody, here it goes.

1) Mae, Nihon go de hanasemasu node, ima wa mo wasurete shimai mashita. Zannen desu ne! (I used to be able to speak in Japanese language, but now I slowly forgetting them)

2) My true ambition until now which never get properly pursuit is to be a pilot. I always wanted to pilot a jet plane, or a helicopter. One of the best experiences I’ve ever had was to be inside the cockpit of a 747-400 Boeing while flying over Bangladesh air space on my way back from Manchester to Kuala Lumpur in the year 2000. I sat inside the cockpit for 15minutes. Best siak!!

3) The fastest speed I’ve ever driven a car was 200km/hr. It was when I was studying in the UK, and I was only 18 years old at that time. Taubat tak nak buat dah.

4) I like to eat chicken. I love it. I can eat chicken for sahur, breakfast, brunch, lunch, tea break, dinner, supper, everyday. Believe it or not, if I were being asked to go oversea for work or training, one of the many reasons that would make me feel contemplated whether to go or not is because I know it may be difficult to find Halal chicken at those places.

5) A motor-sport which I always look forward to watch is WRC (World Rally Championship). I like to see the cars sliding on the gravel, tarmac or snow, especially the views from inside the car, i.e. cockpit view.

6) I cannot really understand what fun about fishing is. Not that I hate it or have any offence against people who could spend hours upon hours waiting for fish to hit the bait, but maybe I just don’t have the patience to do it. Yeah, I can be impatience when it comes to the act of waiting.

7) Up to date, I’ve used only three Nokia cell phones, and one Sony Ericsson (bought in 1999). I can’t remember all the models of the Nokia phones I’ve used on top of my head except the currently used one now which is Nokia 6280 that I bought in 2003.

8) I really hate those drivers who stay on the middle lane of a three lane highway when there are no other vehicles on the most left lane, i.e. not overtaking anybody, and he/she is only driving nothing more than 100km/hr. Same deal goes to those who kept on driving on right lane of a dual lane highway when there are no vehicles on the left lane. Why? Lazy to change lane when overtaking is it? Do you think by being on the middle lane all the way is the best practice meh? No, you are wrong. Don’t be lazy lar.

9) And I hate those high speed drivers who give high beams repeatedly from a kilometer away at the back as if their cars do not have brake at all to slow down. Again, why? Do you think that you have the rights to chase me off from the right lane when I’m overtaking a lorry if you drive a Beemer or a Merc? Come on man, I don’t give a damn of what cars you are driving. Plus, you are the ones who are driving over the speed limit and I’m not that slow either. So, learn to behave, please! It’s the manner that matters, not the type of cars you drive.

10) I thought it’s easy to throw away 25 random things about myself. I’m running out of ideas now. So, I’m going to stop here, and hopefully (very low probability that is) I may continue with the remaining 15 random things next year, hahaha.

Only 10 out of 25? Hrmm, ok lah I guess. Better than nothing, right?

Whoops, hang on. New ideas just came in.

11) I can play (but not so good at it) some basic musical instruments like guitar, piano, drum, saxophone. But, I don’t know how to read musical notes.

12) My favorite drinks now is limau suam (warm lemon juice). Last time I was unable to resist the temptation of iced drinks, but now I slowly change my drinking habits for the sake of better health. It all depends on whether you want it or not, right?

13) I used to have a 32 inch waist line and up to 74 kg in weight. Rasa macam gemuk gile. Now, I think I measure 28~29 inch waist line, and ehem ehem… 68kg (and already having friends saying that I’m too thin. Pulak dah!).

14) My favorite actor is Jackie Chan. He’s a cool guy.

15) I’ve been to all states within the peninsular of Malaysia, but never have been do Sarawak and Sabah.

16) I’m very particular about time. There were cases where I would time how fast I walk from my house to the bus station, or from one lecture room to another when I was studying at university. I even timed how long do I need to eat a standard lunch meal, or taking shower, or preparing a basic meal of nasi goreng. Wanna be efficient la ni kononnya.

17) The common joke I heard about teasing a guy/girl for their cooking skill is, “Alaaa, kau tu setakat masak air boleh la.”. But, the best joke so far I heard is, “Alaa, kau tu bukan setakat tak tau rebus telur. Kalau kau rebus air pun boleh hangus tau.”

18) I give up. I can only think of 18 random things at this moment.

19) Ah, just one more thing. I appreciate you guys, all readers who constantly visit this blog for whatever reason you have, and especially for those who put in their comments. Really appreciate it. And I hope you end up smiling upon reading any entry from this blog.

20) Ok, that’s it. Only 20 random things.

Training on trainer

Well, looks like I have to give it a miss to the Ayer Baloi 131km ride report. Not that I don't want to share it over, but more because of not having such a time to spend for it (making up the story). Perhaps, some other rides ya!

On different perspective, the triathlon series in Malaysia for 2009 will start with the one in Kenyir Lake (apart from Ironman Langkawi end of February), at the end of March. I have the thoughts of participating in this event, which they say is the toughest. Friends who have done this event agreed to that statement too, especially on the biking and running route up the hills. Ayoyoyo...

For such a tough event, one would need to do tough training too. Right? At least, this is what I have in mind. I guess I need to do more mileage training on the biking and running during weekends. Swimming could be fixed during weekdays evenings.

But wait, there's a school holiday coming up in March too. With school holidays, high probability wedding invitations will come too. Particularly this March, I have two close family members who are going to end their single-is-simple life, going towards the double-is-troubleBETTER life. Both weddings will happen on the first and second weekends of next month respectively.

Then, there will also be a weekend of the first Trikidz series of 2009, on March 21st & 22nd at UM sports center. I'm thinking of volunteering again. It would be fun seeing the kidz racing in their own little race, and as a bonus, I may get to know more local triathlete celebrities. Come join me!

The last week of March would be the Kenyir Lake Triathlon. Looking at above, I won't have any weekend at all during March to put in tough training on the tarmac. Alahai, camano ni?

Few friends advised me to get a trainer so that I can replace and break the long mileage cycling on weekends into short repetitive paddling on daily basis, indoor that is. Fortunately, Kamal agreed to lend me his bike trainer which he seldom use. Thanks again Kamal.

Last night I tried it for the first time. It was awkward at first to be that static on road bike. After a few adjustments and half an hour later, Gosh, I never imagined I could burst out that much of sweat from my body. Basah lantai beb!

However, it was very boring. Half an hour on it felt like half a day. Seriously boring. No nice sceneries, no fresh morning air and no motion sensation which I enjoy the most when doing the weekend long mileage cyclings. Hooking up MP3 earphones helped a little bit, just a little. Other than that, only motivation would keep me paddling. Discipline... discipline.

With that amount of sweat, I hope this trainer would do me good deal. And I'm secretly hoping I would be able to afford my own, one day.

Tour de Pendas 79km

Somehow, it turned out not to be so easy to recall what had happened during my ride to Pendas last Saturday morning after being busy with work for three days. Bringing my camera during that ride at least has helped me a little in the effort to share with you all how my ride went on.

OK. Normally I would be doing long ride only once every weekend, either on Saturday or Sunday. NEVER on both days! Somehow, there were a few bunch of people who gave the idea of riding out from JB to Pendas and back, which would cover the distance of around 80km.

“Pendas eh?” Hmm, it’s a new place for me. For sure I won’t miss the chance to cycle to another place which I’ve never been before, not even by car. Knowing that few of them wanted to ride with their MTB, I would guess that this time I could ride slightly slower.

We started off our ride as late early as 7.35am. This time, there were 4 MTB riders and 5 road riders. Weather was fine. Realizing that I will also be doing another long ride the next day, I took this ride easily. A very santai ride.

I rode very santai-ly by just following the MTB riders. Though for them, cycling with average speed of 25~28km/hr were already tough, but with road bike you can pretty easily cruise along with them. The other 4 roadies were already far in front. Speed demons, normal lah.

At one point, we were regrouped with the roadies as one fellow rider had a puncture. Everybody stopped and gave him a helping hand drank water. One guy helped him out with his puncture. I helped a bit to continue pumping air into his replaced tire.

Anybody wants to buy this brand new design of road bike stand? Belom ada dijual kat mana-mana lagi tau, not even at bicyclebuysell.

There were a few rolling hills, one after another. But they were not as tough as the climbs we had to do when going to Tanjung Sedili. Not long after that, we reached Gelang Patah.

Kalau ada gelang yang patah, jangan di buang ke tong sampah,
Kalau nak cari gelang yang patah, pegilah cari kat Gelang Patah… keh keh keh

The journey onwards from Gelang Patah to Pendas brought us to a very peaceful village area. The scenery was wonderful, with fresh morning air serving our lungs.

We then came across an area where we saw lots of cars and motorcycles besides the road. I thought they were going for morning market, but in actual fact there was a school there and they were having kind of sports day. But, somehow I found the name of the school to be kind of weird.

Sekolah Kebangsaan MORNIPOK

Un-invited spectators.

Not so long after passing that school, we at last reached the u-turn point, Pendas. There is a jetty at Pendas, where fishermen would park their boats. We could see Singapore from there too. Before we headed for our breakfast, time for more snappy-snappy.

“Alamak, budak-budak basikal ni dah datang. Kejap lagi mesti diorang nak melantak macam orang tak makan seminggu nih… confirm.”

“Lihatlah gigiku kulit wajahku yang semakin hitam legam berkilat”

”Haa, kan betul. Macam seminggu tak makan roti canai”

I had one roti canai kosong + one roti canai telur SAHAJA.

The journey back was as pleasant as before, except for the heat which started to give us some challenge. I’m not sure whether it was because of them eating too much of roti canai or was it because of the heat, but most of them were cycling slightly slower. Good for me as I need so save up some of my energy for the longer ride the next day.

Riding on the rolling hills in the heat with their MTB proved not to be so easy for some of the guys. One guy got dropped very far, so we all had to stop for a while at a bus stop while waiting for him to arrive. That have always be our practice, to wait for the slow ones to arrive at certain check points, so that we could make sure everybody is safe.

The MTB champion is playing-playing on the off-road while waiting for the rest to arrive.

When the last guy arrived, he said he had a cramp at his right thigh. We let him rest a bit before proceeded our ride home. Not so far, perhaps another 25km to go I would guess. As soon as we arrived at the gathering point (Petronas station), pssstttttt my back tire got punctured.

Aduhai, dah penat-penat kayuh ni la pulak nak kena tukar tayar pancit. (nampak macam real tak gaya lakonan orang tengah pulun pam tayar ni?)

After settling my punctured tire, I headed to a friend’s house where I parked my car. Weather was already scorching hot, and the two guys decided to stop by to refresh ourselves with some fresh cut cold fruits.

“Eh, apesal buah ni makcik tu tak potong lagi? Aku gigit karangggg….”

I then ended my 79km long ride at a friend’s house, followed with a nice cold shower and a wonderful and free lunch. Thanks a lot Kamal!

The route taken.

P/s: Eish, for a 79km ride pun report dah panjang berjela. Lepas ni nak kena karang report untuk ride 131km la pulaaaakkk…. Ya ampuuunnn. …

Weekend tours - 79km + 131km

Kerja gila? No, no, no..

Aku gila? No, no, no.. of course not.

But, I actually did something which long long time ago I could only wonder how would there be people who can cycle long distance for two days in a row.

Now, not only that I know it is something do-able (provided you had enough physical training and mental preparation - compulsary!), but I also know how it feels after cycling 79km on Saturday morning, which was then followed by a 131km cycling on Sunday morning.

Tour de Pendas - 79km.

Tour de Ayer Baloi (re-visited) - 131k.

Ini bukan kerja gila, dan aku bukan orang gila. Tapi ini memang menggilakan.

As usual, full reports coming up soon. Stay in touch!

P/s: 220km is already in the book. I wonder how much further can I go...

I like to brick-it, brick-it..

Nah, I don't like doing brick training. It hurts!

For those who are new with triathlon terms, brick training is where you combine two or more discipline into one training. Like swim + bike, or bike + run, of do all the tree swim + bike + run. You know, things like that. Doing one right after another.

As much as I don't like doing brick training, looks like I have to start liking it from now onwards.

A first attempt was put yesterday during the weekly night ride to add in some running right after the cycling. Normally, I would be cycing about 30km and then call it a day. But last night, I cycled for 18km and then I switched to my running shoes and off I went, running 3km. At first, it was kind of painful. But to my surprise, I did not get any cramp in the legs.

A very baby-ish effort at this moment, yes I know. Not wanting to shock my body with excessive brick training yet as I don't want to get injured while training. I know I should increase the intensity of this brick training in the future, if I were to race in triathlon again. Maybe I'll try cycling 30km and then run 6km by next month.

We'll see how it goes. You'll know it when you hear me singging:

I like to brick-it, brick-it,
I like to brick-it, brick-it,
I like to brick-it, brick-it,
I like to... BRICK-IT!!!!

Yeah right...

Tour de Ayer Baloi 125km – The Report

Ouch, ouch, ouchhh…, Adoi, adoi…

That were among the first things I shouted when I started the 125km ride as early as 6.45am on last Sunday morning when I felt the pain in my legs. I started to have doubts whether I could finish the distance planned as soon as I started to paddle. At that point, I’m not sure whether running 2 hours non-stop almost 24 hours earlier has made my legs stronger for the ride, or has it became a killing factor.

I parked my car at a friend’s place, and started cycling with him to the meeting point where another 10 cyclists “should” be gathering there by 7am. Nothing was surprising. I mean, some were late as usual. Well, they have their own reasons I guess.

Being active cyclists and triathletes who love to have fun, I would say we do not really know how to just sit down and wait for people to arrive. Having had two people with digital cameras (me included), we all started to “have fun” in our own ways. Well, people say pictures tell thousand words right? You judge it yourself.

Patung Petronas tepi jalan pun jadi mangsa.

My trustworthy machine.

Hiroko-san, very powerful Japanese tri-mom who has won few prizes in triathlon and duathlon events here in Malaysia. Watch out!

By 7.50am when the last person arrived, we immediately shoot off. Altogether 11 roadies and one “berani-mati” mounties (bawak MTB lah tu maksudnya). The true fun begin.

For me, its always fun to be riding on a new route, to a new place. Once again this time, I’m riding to a place where I’ve never even been yet, not even with my car. Though the distance can be considered as a bit far, but having friends around will ease off the pain in the legs that you may have.

After the first 20km or so, some of the speed demons have blasted their ways ahead. Me? No, I was not one of them. Knowing that I’m cycling with partially fatigue pair of legs and the distance to cover was in three digits, I maintained a mere speed of about 30~33km/hr almost all the way through (on the flat road, masa panjat bukit lain cerita lah).

We made our first break stop after cycling about 45km if I’m not mistaken. As soon as I took out my camera and said “haa, lekas lekas.. nak ambik gambar masuk dalam blog/facebook ni”, below is what you’ll get. Hahaha…

Not only cycling was fun, taking break stops too can make your gum juicy (tak kering gusi lah)

The “berani-mati” guy with his MTB which we called – PAJERO of the day (because of the sound made by its huge tyres).

After about 15minutes break, we made our way towards Ayer Baloi. It was flat all the way, long stretch road with pineapple farms on the sides of it. I’ve never seen such a huge pineapple farm. Bak kata pepatah, saujana mata memandang.

Hmm, nak pegi Ayer Baloi ke nak pegi KL?

My silhouette.

Long stretch road with pineapple farms on the right and left sides. Maybe this is the reason why there’s such a place with the name of Pekan Nenas here.

Some of the guys in action.

Once again, the speed demons couldn’t resist the temptation to break away and burst their way through. Later that I heard they were doing 40~43km/hr on this flat road. Gilakkk!!

We soon arrived at the next T-junction and it’s time for the speed demons to stop and wait for the siput-speed people like me to arrive. What else to do while taking break other than taking more photos?

The speedometer was already showing the distance of about 65km. I forgot what time it was exactly, but roughly about 10am-ish. Perut dah lapar gile.

Aiyaarkkk.. another 75km to go meh? Adoila…

15minutes break time was over. It felt so fast. They were saying that next stop would be the breakfast stop.

”Where’s the breakfast stop? Jauh lagi ke?”, I asked the guys.

”Tak jauh lah, kat depan tu sikit je”, one guy replied.

PENIPU!!!

It was not after another 20 minutes of cycling or so that we reached the warung tepi jalan. It was like cycling to a place hundreds of miles away. Perut dah lapar gile, matahari dah makin tinggi. Rasa nak belasah je kat orang yang cakap “tak jauh lah” tadi.

Once arrived at the mostly-desired break point for some food intake, all of us twelve cyclists occupied half of the sitting area at the warung. Gegak gempita.

Waiting for food to arrive.

Some guys had mihun soto. I had this – nasi soto. Yummylicious!

Eh, aku silap order ke, atau makcik tu yang salah dengar?

The aftermath. Average of 2 glasses of drinks per person.

We had a blast during the breakfast break. It was great fun. This guy kutuk that guy, the other guy kutuk another guy. Everybody was laughing. Luckily there was no food fight.

We then continued our ride back in a very windy condition. Head wind was pretty strong at times that for me, riding at 25km/hr was the only thing I can manage. The ride back also led us to some ugly climbs. Ugly enough that it had me looking down at my speedometer while cranking up the hills which showed the speed or 14km/hr.

Tak kisah lah kan, janji aku tak turun tolak basikal.

Few people got dropped behind (again, me included) due to the climbs we had to do. The strong guys were already out of sight. Being good cyclists, they waited for the rest at an interception before we continued the remaining 20km back to the meeting point.

Drebar PAJERO dah terbaring dan terduduk, kepenatan.

I do have to salute this “breani-mati” guy who had the courage to cycle with us using his MTB, while we all are using road bikes. If you ever ride on a MTB, you’ll know how hard it is to maintain 30km/hr and above speed, even on flat road. Though we all never stop kutuk-ing him since the beginning till the end of the rides, he did not really bother about them all. “It’s a good training”, he said.

Whether he regretted following us with his PAJERO, I’m not sure. That’s totally a different issue for him, and I leave it to him to keep it inside his heart.

Not long after that, we all reached our own destinations – home. Some guys get back to their cars at the meeting point, some went straight back home. I rested for a while, and had a delicious lunch at friend’s place. Chit chat some more until it’s time for me to get home, leave the bike, grab my swimming accessories, and headed to the swimming pool for recovery swim in the evening.

Rambut pun dah jadi macam trojan daaaa..

That was how I spent my Sunday.

P/s: Maybe, I’ll do long ride again this weekend. Maybe…