Simpang - Changlun

28th Wednesday, September 2011.


      Left the hotel at Simpang ( Taiping ) at 8.00 a.m and stopped for breakfast 5 kms later.The road is almost straight for most of the way from Simpang to Butterworth. As usual I find the road signs very confusing and on several occasions we took the wrong way, trying to avoid the highway and ending up going a longer route.
   
      I have travelled the route countless times and on reaching Kampung Kedah ( 2.5 km ) Parit Buntar I always stop at the 'Masjid Hijau' graveyard where my late mother, father, uncle and other family members are buried, to say some prayers.

       The plan was to reach Sg. Petani but as the hot sun sapped most of our energy, we had to stop for the night, some 8 km from Sg Petani. Alor Star is only about 60 km from here, so we will surely go beyond to Jitra or even Changlun.

    

SIMPANG - TAIPING

Tuesday 27th September 2011

Left B.G at 8.30 a.m, again with an overcast sky, by-passing Ipoh. The road through Menglembu to Jelapang and then Chemor is quite pleasant really, with a wide lane for cyclists, and the road after Sg. Siput has improved a great deal partly due to the KTMB's double tracking development. I made a stop at my old school ( Clifford School, Kuala Kangsar) which I left in 1960. I made a call to the school earlier informing the Head of my intention, and to my surpise, I was greeted by a group of students, who are cycling enthusiasts. I was also treated to some ' Raya ' goodies.

The school now has 1800 pupils as opposed to 600 during my time. After Kuala


Kangsar you need to tackle 'Bukit Berapit' before you get to Taiping. It would not be much of a problem on a road bike but with a heavy load on a touring bike you are stretched to the limits. On the positive side, once you reach the top, its a roller coaster ride for some kilometres down. Pray that the bike behaves or you'll go flying. We found a hotel at Simpang and decided to stay there instead of going into Taiping town. Tomorrow we'll continue our journey to Butterworth and maybe on to Sungai Petani.

FREE LODGING

Monday 26th Sept 2011

       Left Tg. Malim at 8.45 on an overcast morning, without breakfast, cycling on an old trunk road which is almost straight, right up to Slim River, but there is no lane for motorcyclist or bicyclist. The white line alongside the road is only about 6 inches from the grass verge. Vehicles coming from behind really get close to you and when heavy vehicles pass by at high speed, the resulting draft really shakes you violently . A small mistake can spell disaster. However, many stretches thereafter have a lane at least 5 feet or more for cyclist or pedestrians .
        
        We had breakfast just before reaching Slim River, after which the sun shone brightly. Din, my riding partner had a puncture, delaying us for half an hour. Six kilometres from Tapah it began to rain and we were further delayed . We finally reached Tapah around 3.30 p.m. The rain got heavy for another hour. We finally left Tapah in a light drizzle around 5.30 p.m.and reached Batu Gajah at around 8.30 p.m. We spent the night in Batu Gajah, in my brother-in-law's house. Thank you Kong and family, for putting us up.

MY JOURNEY BEGINS.

Sunday 25th September 2011


Location : Taman Jaya, PJ

Some 40 people comprising friends, supporters, family members and the media were present to bid farewell and wish me success in my latest pursuit - cycling to London.

Among those present were Datuk Johan Jaaffar, who's been supportive in all my 'crazy' attempts, Dato Gen.( rtd) L.C Soon, with whom, I share many interesting adventures over the last 15 years and whose passion for outdoor adventures have not diminish in spite of advancing age.

Especially meaningful were the presence of three of my


former students from RMC who came to ride for part of the way: Azly (the 'Bandit') who also rode with me at the start of my journey in 2008), Kam Kasturi who is a regular participant in multiple sports and Kamarul Azhar who at 43 has 4 children whose eldest son is already in University. It seems like yesterday when I last saw him in Form 5, in RMC, more than 20 years ago. Kamarul rode with me up to Rawang with Tajul, his friend Zul and my son Aedewan and of course Rezzuddin who is riding with me up to Bangkok. Azly and Kam rode up to Dataran Merdeka before going their own way.

It is impossible to mention all of you by name here, but thank you all very much for your presence and support. And to top it all, Tan Sri Musa Hassan recited the 'doa selamat'at the gathering. I am indeed greatly honoured. Thank you, Sir.

Here I must also thank the people who made this journey possible with their support in cash or kind, Datuk Johan Jaaffar(who also hosted a farewell buffet dinner for me at his residence),Mr Francis Yew, my former student from SM Sri Garing, Rawang, Dr Amir Lee, my former housemate in Brinsford lodge Tuan Hj Goh Eng Chye, my Japanese friend Mr Nishimura, my nephew Syed Rizal, my sister Datin Norlia and her husband Datuk Syed Abdul Rahman, my eldest sister Hajah Nor Aminah, my former housemate Oh Boo Seck, all my family members and all my friends from Kawasan Melayu, too many names to mention. God bless you all.

We had 3 punctures along the way and the rain in the afternoon hindered our progress. We had to put up in Tanjung Malim as it was already dark. I must apologize for not updating earlier as there was no internet connection where I had stayed for the last few days.

Official send off pictures



With my Ex-RMC boys



Hill climb near Selayang



Having lunch at  Rawang commuter station



Last picture before the convoy splits up

My appearance on MHI

Sojourn At an Orang Asli Village (Kampung Perjek)

Last weekend I took a trip to the interior of Perak to visit an orang asli village,Kuala Mu, which I have been making regular visits over the last 20 years. The village is at the foot of the Main Range ( Banjaran Titiwangsa ) some 50 kilometers from Lasah near Sungai Siput.

8, 4x4 vehicles with 28 people left KL in the morning heading north to Sg.Siput where we had an early lunch and after checking to make sure that all is in order we left for Lasah and then on to the off-road trail leading to Kuala Mu.

We passed several villages along the way notably Kg Santes, Kg Perjek and Pos Legap. From here on the trail became tougher due to erosion and. usage by heavy vehicles. It had rained earlier in the day that made the trail very muddy and slippery.As only two out of the eight vehicles were fitted with off-road accessories like winches, mud tyres shackles and snatch straps, the other vehicles had a tough time negotiating the rough patches.After several attempts at the difficult that took too long to clear and not knowing the trail conditions ahead we decided to abort the trip to Kuala Mu. It was also getting late and Kuala Mu is still some 15 kilometers away.That distance can take 2 hours or more if you manage to get through at all and as daylight was fast fading we decided to go back the same way we came.

We reached Kg Perjek which we had passed earlier and as it was getting dark we decided to camp the night there, with the permission of the Penghulu (Tok Batin) of course.
Dinner was quickly prepared by the efficient ladies and it was shared with most of the villagers.

The night ended with the Sewang , the orang asli traditional song and dance. Everyone participated and enjoyed in the merrymaking especially the two French couples that came along. It was almost midnight before we got to sleep.We slept at the the community hall where the'Sewang' was held.It was indeed a unique experience for the French couples.

The next morning breakfast was prepared and again it was shared with the villagers. After breakfast Dr Lee gave free medical examination and consultation to those in need and dispensed the necessary medication required. It is normal for Dr Lee to provide such services whenever he visits the orang asli villages in the interior. Well done Doc.

At the same time we also distributed food and clothes that we brought along that was originally intended for Kuala Mu. For some it was entirely a new experience that will be remembered for a long time.

As for me I shall continue with my visits to these charming places whenever possible.

Sewang

Dr Lee serving dinner to the villagers

Sleeping quarters for travellers

The French Connection

Dr Lee distributing goodies to the kids

Dr Lee providing free medical examination/consultation and dispensing medicine

Thank you Tok Batin for providing accomodation

The unkempt surau

The cleanest and neatest place in the village, the kindergarten

Puan Rosnah bt Busu, the hardworking assistant teacher

Distributing food stuff

Symbolic Flag Off at Sri Pentas

I appeared on the MHI this morning interviewed by a beautiful hostess and a dashing young man and I must say that Media Prima do have a dynamic young set of personalities. No wonder it is the No 1 TV station, and they even have a cycling club to go with it. After the interview I was officially flagged off by En Shariman, a GM in Media Prima accompanied by some 20 cyclists. My actual departure date is on the 25th Sept. The details of which will be made known when the final decision is made. At least one cyclist will be riding with me up to Hatyai or even Bangkok to keep me company. Along the way, anyone interested to join is welcome. That's all for now. Take care.

Training in progress

Getting used to the weight which is around 30kg.

Ready to ride

On Thursday the 8th there was a press conference at UFL(Universal Fitness & Leisure) attended by members from Malaysia Aids Foundation represented by Datuk Maznah Jalil, the treasurer of MAF, Datuk Hj Naim the Deputy president of the Malaysian Cycling Federation, Dato Radha Krishnan, Managing Director of UFL and Datuk Malik Noor, Executive Director of UFL, me and members of the print media. During the function Dato Radha Krishnan presented a donation to the MAF. Coleman, Deuter and Suunto products were presented to me. It is indeed commendable for UFL to come forward to the aid of HIV positive sufferers and to support me in my attempt. A big thank you to UFL . Dato Krishnan also made a personal cash contribution on top of the company's products. At the same function, Datuk Naim also offered me tickets to the Olympic cycling events. That is indeed greatly appreciated. Thank You Datuk. Many are still asking when is my actual date of departure. It is on the 25th of September. I expect at least one person to ride along with me right up to the Thai border. I welcome other cyclist/s to join me even for just a few kilometers. That's all for now.

The countdown begins

Hi,
Selamat Hari Raya, Maaf Zahir dan Batin to all my muslim friends and to the others I hope you also joined in the festivities and enjoyed the long break - just don't over indulge with the lemang , rendang and the cookies served. The open houses will go on till the end of the month ,so don't pile on the kilos. The Merdeka celebrations are also under way and let's hope the country will continue to enjoy peace and prosperity.
I have less than 20 days before starting my ride and i am quite excited about it. Preparation wise I am about ready except for a few items that need to be sorted out. There's going to be a Press Conference at UFL on Thursday 8th and there's to be cheque and product presentations by UFL to me and also to Malaysian Aids Foundation. It is indeed admirable for UFL to support my effort and at the same time contribute much needed funds to MAF. I hope more companies and individuals would come forward to do the same.