weekly newsletter – 21 january 2009 / issue number: 426-05-2009

8/14/2019 Weekly Newsletter 21 January 2009 / Issue Number: 426-05-2009

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Weekly Newsletter 21 January 2009 / Issue Number: 426-05-2009

PCC, Your Perfect Cycling Companion

This issue

Note from the Editor P1

View From The Saddle P2

The week ahead M+D P3

The week ahead T+G P4

The week that was P5

Upcoming Events P7

Spare wheels project P8

Club membership P8

Pedal to Crank: The Interviews P9

Contributions this weekArticles

TWTW M+D Lena / TWTW T+G - Teik the Addictor

Photos/Images

TS Bok

A Note from the Editor

Firstly, thanks to the VP cum Sub Editor for taking care of the

last 2 newsletters, or was it more? In any regards, Im back

after not only celebrating the end and beginning of the new

Gregorian Calender Year, but now also the Chinese Lunar

Calender year. Wow...so many endings and beginnings near

each other.

I guess that pretty much describes the rides (well, that I were

on) during the festive season. Laziness, thoughts of food,

Mahjong sessions, and basically the calling of doing absolutelynothing was too hard of a draw to take on any epics over this

long break. Trust all of you had a great one, enjoying the

holiday and the company that you keep.

Last week saw a bunch of Muddies heading out to the every

scenic but leech ridden Batu Dam and the Roadies taking on

75kms of burn in preparation of IS2009. Perhaps us Muddies

need to stop stuffing our faces with food on all the stops.

Should be interesting doing the IS with fatties.

See you on the trails,

Ed


2/9

Weekly Newsletter 4 February 2009 / Issue Number: 426-05-200

View From The Saddle Yellow Manta

A Cranking Chinese New Year

Just a few decades ago, the hills around my hometown of Sg

Siput (U) in Perak were infested with communist terrorists

(CTs). As a matter of fact, the Emergency (a communist

insurgency which lasted from 1948 1960) was triggered by

the murder of a couple British planters by CTs in a rubber

plantation in Sg Siput. My uncle used to run the only bar &

caf there which was a popular hangout for British officers

and on more than a couple of occasions it had CTs lobbing

grenades into the place. A book was actually written by a

British author about the Emergency titled War of the Running

Dogs, which makes interesting reading about that period inthe history of our country.

For the 19 years that I was growing up in Sg Siput, I never took

notice of the beautiful hills (harbouring at least 3 waterfalls)

that sort of surround the town. Maybe it was because they

were constantly out of bounds, always under curfew because

of the insurgency which officially ended only in the late 1980s

when the CTs laid down their arms. Or perhaps because I

always took them for granted? You know, like when

something is always there, you kind of fail to notice it. Indeed

the only times when I took notice of the hills was when I had

problems tuning the radio back then. Till today, because of

the hills, both TV and radio reception remains pretty poor in

Sg Siput.

Now what has all this to do with biking?

Seems mountain biking is thriving in Sg Siput and theres now

a sizeable group of riders that converges at my nephews

sparepart shop for rides every Sunday. So when I returned to

my hometown for the CNY recently, I was told to bring along

my bike to join them exploring the hills, some of which are

uniquely shaped. A very popular one which is also a landmark

for Sg Siput is the Lion Hill, a karst outcrop shaped like a

Chinese lion when viewed from a certain angle and which

looks like a perfectly symmetrical inverted cone viewed as

you enter the town from direction of Ipoh. Not far from it is

what some locals call the Lingku Sanor crudely Breast Hill!

You can imagine how that looks like.

The beauty about riding in my hometown is that the hills and

trails are just at our backyard. No driving near or far to the

trailheads. You just hop onto your bike at your doorstep and

within minutes you are at the trailhead! And Im not talking

about just one trail but many, most within a few minutes ride

away. Envy, envy.

Now these guys start their rides early. CNYs eve I was up and

all geared up by 7.00am in front of our shop with my nephews

waiting for the regulars to turn up. By 7.30 we were off and

heading for the trails zig zagging up to the peak (almost) of

Lion Hill. More than 1000ft to climb, including 20 slopes but

the rewards are there. Along the way up you get amazing

views of the surrounding hills and the town below, a

landscape dotted by numerous lakes (ex-tin mining pools). At

the neck of one of the peaks, you get to ride around it on an

overgrown ledge, and get a 360 panoramic view of the

beautiful scenery below. Just dont crash on the wrong side

CNY Day, 5.00pm. Understandably the regulars didnt want to

ride. But my nephew volunteered to show me the trails in the

hills opposite the Lion. So off we went. Again we had to climb

a lot, including one last hill that reminded me of the Bitch Hill

of Loop 2 of the last Presidential. Like the day before, the

scenery was beautiful. We were back just in time for a

sumptuous dinner.

Day 2 of CNY. This time it was gonna be a road ride. But

through nicely tarred kampung and estate roads completelydevoid of traffic. Destination a hot spring next to a nice

rocky river at an orang asli village about 20km from Sg Siput.

Indeed it was part of the InterState route back in 2007. Nice

scenery all the way, including a great view of the Kledang

Range and Mt Korbu (if Im not mistaken). And the best nasi

lemak Ive ever tasted. And costing only 60 sen per packet!

Strange thing is the spring sprouting very hot water just a few

feet away from the bank of the cold rocky river. So you get a

choice of hot or cold water to soak in after a good ride which

takes you past a couple of rustic orang aslivillages! I thought I

saw a clearing that would make a perfect campsite

3 days 3 rides. I could say this was my most interesting CNY in

a long time. And I spied many trailheads during those rides. If

only the place was just 30 minutes drive from KL, we could go

exploring. Sighhhhh.


3/9


Mud + Dirt by The English Nose

We have a new location to check out this weekend. Its south of thr city at the edge of Puchong. Tamam Putra Prima!!

Story goes, its a 40km trail that is quite easy for fit riders, nothing technical. The link below should give you an idea of

what to expect.http://petebayang.blogspot.com/

The week ahead M + D Sunday rides 8 February 2009

Date: 8 February 2009

Location: Taman MAS Puchong

Ride distance: 40km to 50kms

Ride description: A 40+km cross country trail. The place is totally devoid of mosquitoes. - This line itself will get

a queue of mountain bikers a few kms long waiting to ride this trail.

It may be 40 km and is a new one for most of us but its is not so difficult, all wide and fast trails,

nothing technical and under canopy of palm trees. Non-technical with zero mosquitoes. All you

need is your stamina. Bring enough fluid to keep you hydrated (3litres) and food. It's a good

novice trail, so long as youre fit.

Well cycle tarmac to get to the palm plantation, then we enter the 1st Kampong Orang Asli and

on to the 2nd Kampong. Then to a small town call Cheeding for Kopi & Bread.

Meeting Place: TheRestoran Hills

Meeting Time: 730am

Directions: From PJ,head towards the LDP to Putrajaya/Puchong and pass the Puchong/Sunway toll. From

there, pass IOI Mall, Tesco and at Tractors Malaysia, turn unto the LEFT fork and follow

directions towards Putrajaya / Kajang.

Go straight until you come to a flyover that says Dengkil / Kg Baru Bt 14 Puchong / Putra Perdana

and go up the flyover and turn right go straight towards Dengkil/Putra Perdana. From here pass

by 2 Bukit Puchong traffic light until the 3nd traffic light turn Right before Petronas station. Go

straight 2.5km until you come to Tmn Putra Prima on your left (the Restoran Hills is at the shop

corner).

Contact: Alvin - 012 3070830 / Adrian 012 383 2618


4/9


Only 85 days left to go til IS09! Don't delay anymore! Hope to see you on Sunday.

The week ahead T + G Sunday rides 8 February 2009

Tar + Grime by The Don

The last weekend before CNY ends and as the food fest continues, Batu Arang promises to counter this by burning off at

least 2,000 calories. A good cardio workout. Concentrate on a highish cadence and work that heart rate at 75-85% of

max HR. Newbies & "those-who-last-rode-in- 08" should opt for Option A which is an easier & get-back-in-the-saddle

ride. Be cautious of cars when approaching Kota D'Sara junction from Kg Subang as there are on-going road works.

Remember to use hand signals & to bring along a spare tube with an inflation device. Helmets are compulsory on PCC

rides! We wouldn't want to make a mess of the roads with gooey brain matter; it's hell to clean up!

Option A (42km)

CP-Kota D'Sara-Persiaran Sg Buloh-

Kg Subang- Guthrie Corridor- u-turn

at Sg Buloh exit- Guthrie Corridor- Kg

Subang-Persiaran Sg Buloh- KotaD'Sara-Tropicana- CP

Option B (95km)

CP-Kota D'Sara-Persiaran Sg Buloh-

Kg Subang- Guthrie Corridor-turn left

at Sg Buloh exit- Kuang- Desa

Kundang-Batu Arang-Gurthrie

Corridor-Kg Subang-Persiaran Sg

Buloh- Kota D'Sara-Tropicana- CP

Date: 8 February 2009

Location: Batu Arang

Ride distance: See Left

Time: 730am (Be ready by 715am)

Meeting place: Centre Point, Bandar UtamaContact person: No-1-Lance worshipper, Dennis and you can

contact him at 016-212 2696 if you have

queries.


5/9


The week that was (1 February 2009) M+D

Impromptu Saturday M + D rides

Purple Hippo Keith has been riding all by his lonesome and needs some company. Therefore, if you have time and don't

have to work on Saturday like him, drop him a line !! Ride details are generally decided upon on Friday evening. Call the

Purple Hippo on 1800 - I LOVE YOUR COMPANY (Just kidding. It's 012 383 1086). All levels and ride suggestions are

alwa s welcomed.

Weekday T + G rides

TUESDAY NIGHT SPECIAL TAMAN TUN (SUITABLE FOR ALL LEVELS)

Ride distance: 25km (TTDI Damansara Heights TTDI)

Time: 830pm (check in 15mins before)

Meeting place: In front of KSH (Taman Tun Dr Ismail)

Contact person: Kevin (012 354 7181)

THURSDAY NIGHT RIDE NEW (SUITABLE FOR ALL LEVELS)

Ride distance:

Time: 700pm (70km) / 830pm (35km)

Meeting place: Putrajaya Mosque Car park

Contact person: Vong 016 287 2066

Ride Guideline: Well maintained flat to undulating roads.

Objectives: Improving endurance,leg strength and road bike skills (eg.

Drafting technique, signalling, road safety)

COMPULSORY TAIL

LIGHTS FOR ALL

NIGHT RIDERS

NO HELMUT

NO RIDE

Location: Batu Dam

Ride distance: Not very many kms

Total riders: 22

Conditions: Wet and Leechy

Lena Yeow

Batu Dam is one of my favourite riding place as its scenery is simply

gorgeous and reminds us of what its like to be outdoors. Nothing

too technical, we first rode alongside the lake edge where several of

us echoed each other in unison with our wahhhs and wowws.

Like every rider, the main fear of riding Batu Dam is the fear of

those small but pesky-blood-hungry-slimy-creatures. The supposed

to be dry spell during CNY turned out to be the opposite, with rain

pouring down the previous nite, resulting in a kind of mushy trail at

some parts. It was only about 15minutes into the trail that I had my

MUD spa eeekkksss, bad bad bad, cause this is where those pesky

lil blood sucking creatures thrive in.

As we rode along, we did a few river crossings and rode into

secondary forest with some interesting climbs. A few of them being

long hard climbs, some sections of the trail had pretty big ruts and

thats where most of us did a hike a bike cum chit chat time. There

was also the other Batu dam attraction where we rode through the

bamboo canopy section, that was nice.

The finale of batu dam was the ride downhill through the grassy area

back to the car park, where one can blast through to just enjoy the

exhilaration of riding. Most of us came back with souvenirs from the

pesky creatures, but nevertheless all of us had a good ride.

To me, Batu Dam will always remain the place where I had a really

cool biking video clip done (courtesy of the Fakawi guys in 2007, its a

fantastic video, showing the best bits of Batu Dam). And this is the

video I show to many non-biking frens on what mountain biking is all

about and the joys of biking in hopes of encouraging more to join in

the fun of MTB. Here is the link to the video clip,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CrxMnWQcJc


6/9


New Years Resolution

Well, well, well... it's that time of the year again. New Year Resolutions have come at you thick and fast and while some of us try

to push them back till after CNY (the "other new year"), like a plodding ox they'll eventually come around and poke you in the

butt. With that in mind, we got a huge turnout (42 riders!) for last Sunday's Puncak Alam climb-fest. Mingled among the many

must have been most of us who have vowed on the hair of our loved ones that we will and must lose the "...beer belly, 10 pounds

etc..." (fill in your resolution!) for the 2009 year. Ride started out uneventfully, although we had a nice couple at the start

thinking of braving the ride with folding bikes. Wisely, they decided against it and off we went. I pulled in late, so Don had to

wait for me with Yu Kit in tow acting as my domestiques. Meanwhile, the weight of the peloton must have gone up against the

backdrop of the usual CNY food and drink as we had flats after flats. As always, Colnago Mike needs to be a news item so he

picked up two before we even got to the hills of Puncak Alam. While the rest of us struggled to haul mass over the hills, Don put

in his usual digs on the rollers to see if anyone could keep up with him (no Don, we can't...). Meanwhile, Razali and Wai Lam's

lead-out sprint was so far ahead that when the rest of us got to the pit stop, their slow twitch muscles must have been stone cold.

So over the hills the PCC throng came and went and despite a few threatening rain drops at the start of the ride, the skies werecloudy but not wet. All in all, a great workout post the CNY break. Some of us might mutter that the distance

was too short at 70km's but am sure that others were thankful given the CNY excesses. In any case

we all wait with bated breath as the PCC mileage picks up as we get ever closer to the

May Grand Departe of the Inter-State.

The week that was (11th

January 2009) T+G


7/9


Upcoming Events

Yes, Tar & Grimes biggest event is drawing near! The Interstate 09 : Seremban- Gemas- Gunung Ledang-

Melaka. Its gonna be different. Its gonna be challenging. Its gonna have something for everyone.

And its only 83 days left to go..

IMPORTANT POINTS

1. FULL PAYMENT OF RM 350.00 is required, regardless of whos friend you are or whether you showmore leg than the other guy.

2. Return bus ride on Monday 4th of May 2009, please ADD RM 50.00 extra to your payment. No extramoney, no seat.

3. Latest registration date is the 31st of March 2009, or when we have reached our MAX participants.HOW TO REGISTER AND PAY

1. I only deal with 0s and 1s. I download everything. Weve uploaded it to 2 servers for yourconvenience.

- http://www.pcc-cycling.freeservers.com/IS2009_Form.pdf- http://www.goforth.com.my/IS2009_From.pdf

2. I havent bought the Internet, so I need a hardcopy (you can submit your filled forms and $ to theseguys too)

- Bike Pro in Taman Megah (+603 7805 1989) Tan Boon Foo- KSH in Taman Tun, KL (+603 7727 5173) Leong

3. I only own a fax machine, live too far away and havent bought the Internet, plus I dont like BoonFoo or Leong.- Go to the bank, and bank the money into the account stated on the form.- Fax the deposit slip (write your name on it) AND the fully filled out form to +603 9221 1899

If you have any queries, please forward them to Dennis Soh(016-212 2696), Ivan Chan(012-379 2979) or Don

Chan(017-883 0538). There will be limited places due to hotel constraints, so we do encourage you to

confirm your saddle time with us ASAP.


8/9


PLEASE DO NOT CALL US AT THE 11th HOUR ASKING FOR A BIKE. ALLOW 2 DAYS NOTICE MIN

Spare Wheels Project

Your friends have heard you rant about the drops and

the endos and have seen the breathtaking scenery

from your flickr, Facebook and not to forget the fridge

door photos.

They finally want to get off their bum and join you for

a ride but running behind you, sitting on your top tubeor dinking them are probably not the best ways for

them to experience it with you. Of course, he/she

could be shit hot, then no one would probably say

anything.

In any regards, PCC has the SPARE WHEELS PROJECT

underway. Currently made up of generous owner's

bikes, they are available for people to borrow and

ride. Some of them have been ridden more than the

villageernever mind. They've been ridden a lot.

Boon Foo has recently offered his assistance to puttogether a few hard tails, and together with what we

have now, we should be able to cater for height

ranging from Snow White's pals to the Yang Mings

who want to give this ago.

In all SERIOUSNESS, if you have someone who wants

to join us for a ride, please do not hesitate to drop us

a line and we WILL do our best to get them a bike for

the next suitable ride. Take note that there will be a

$15.00 charge to cover expenses such as ferrying the

bike around, washing it and of course its ongoing

maintenance.

Rob (012 6191 308) / Peter (012 227 4443) /Alvin (012 3070 830) / Adrian (012 383 2618)

CLUB MEMBERSHIP

Be a member of PCC. Sign up at our site at http://pcc-

cycling.freeservers.com by downloading the form and mail the

completed form to [email protected]. or sign up by

simply joining our yahoo groups site at

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/pcc_newsletter which also

automatically subscribes you to our weekly newsletter Spokes

n Nipples.

Membership is FOC, no subscription fee. All

that is required is your commitmentto Ride!!

(bicycles that is) Welcome onboard and

have fun.

The Spokes & Nipples is the official newsletter of the Pedalholics Cycling Club. Unofficially, its the medium by which members and regulars will kay

poh amongst themselves! Target is to publish it every Wednesday but do not be surprised if you receive it only on Thursday or, worse still, Friday. After

all, we got another job to tend to which unfortunately demands more priority from us.

We welcome ride stories and articles from every body as well as your feedback but do try to submit them to us at [email protected] before noon

each Wednesday; otherwise well pin the blame on you if the newsletter is delayed! And of course, like they always say, we may edit all articles

submitted for publication. Just to make sure you say nice things we like to hear! The Spokes & Nipples is distributed via the eGroups.com portal. If

this newsletter has come to you unsolicited and it irks you like heck, please unsubscribe through the address listed below. Otherwise, we welcome you

with open arms and legs to our little circle and, most of all; we look forward to riding with you!

Group URL: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/pcc_newsletter

Group Email Address: [email protected]

To subscribe: [email protected]

To unsubscribe: [email protected]

PCC Website: http://pcc-cycling.freeservers.com

PCC Forum: http://pcccycling.forumup.com

PCC on Facebook: PCC Malaysia Group


9/9


PEDAL TO CRANK Get to know your PCC Riders....

Chung Hsing Ling

After joining PCC as a newbie not long ago, Hsing Ling is

now a highly-efficient cadence machine. This pretty lass

loves climbing Puncak Alam and often leaves the men dead

in their tracks. Coming in at a slender 161cm package and a

great smile, we can understand why the men are left out of

breath on the slopes.

1. When did you start riding and who got you involved?

August. Kam Kasturie

2. Why did you start riding?

To join triathlons and cross train

3. Why do you continue to ride?

Cos of its non-impact nature on my knee

4. What (or who) do you ride now ? (i.e MTB / Road or both).

Give us the juicy details of your ride...

Abang Scott - a SCOTT SPEEDSTER S20

5. What and why (is it) your favourite trail?

Puncak Alam dragon's back. It makes me delirious

6. What type of rider would you consider yourself?

Newbie trying to improve

7. What is your dream bike?

KUOTA KOM, KREDO

8. What is your favourite ride food (include drink)

Oatmeal bar, Coke

9. Do you fantasize about riding when you are not?

Yes

10. Do you or did you sleep naked with your bike?

Yes

(Any girl that sleeps naked with her bike is great in my books ED)

weekly newsletter – 21 january 2009 / issue number: 426-05-2009

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