The hills are alive...

Its always great to meet new friends on the saddle. Tony, a very seasoned MTB and World Tourer, took us to Kelmscott to do his favourite Brookton Highway loop, with 8km of climbing awaiting us. This is where the famous Araluen Botanic Park is, renowned for its beautiful tulips in August. Tony mentioned that this part of Perth reminded him of Europe so that got me sold to give it a go.

We caught the train to Kelmscott which was painless enough and being a Saturday morning, we had the whole train and the stations all to our three selves plus bikes.

After my trip to Laos, I have grown to appreciate hills and climbs, as it rewards often with magnificent scenery. The Brookton Loop did not disappoint.

Tony enjoys eating wild fruit and introduced us at the beginning of the ride to juicy, sweet, black Mulberries. It was a great novelty for Chris and I to be able to eat fruit plucked from the roadside without paying. Typical city folks we are! Just ten minutes after the first fruit stop, Tony pulled over again to feast this time on golden loquats. I enjoyed this better as its yellow flesh was really refreshing and its sweetness gave us the necessary boost to start out climb.

Chris’ Surly LHT tackled the climb effortless and my Speed Pro did very well too with a low 27" gear range, with Tony in the lead on his Giant MTB. I found the long climb to the top manageable despite being warned that at some stages, we may "die". The challenge laid in it being almost continuously uphill with some granny gear stages. I supposed when we have survived many mothers of all hills in Indonesia and Laos, we don't "die" that easily.

Halfway up the climb though, my steering started to feel very unresponsive. Closer inspection revealed a possible headset problem which could not be resolved. At the top of the climb, we borrowed some tools at a local garage but still could not overcome the stiff steering.

This was most unfortunate as I could not enjoy hammering downhill on the return leg as the bike had a very unpredictable weave. This proved harrowing when tackling long sweepers at 40+kmh with cars passing close by. I knew I should go slower but alas, the need for speed prevailed. Needless to say, both Chris (56kmh) and Tony left me behind in their wake.

We enjoyed a nice lunch break of ham sandwiches, hard boil eggs with fruit and swop bike stories (what else?). Tony explained his new found passion of recycling used bicycles. He has about 10 in this house awaiting his attention.

I was very pleased and grateful to Tony for showing me this new bike route. It is a welcome change indeed from the flattish rides of Perth.

To use the famous words of Julie Andrew’s song in the 1965 musical production, “The hills come alive, with the sound of music (from bicycles cranking uphill and flying down)”.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPnMNLyOTks&feature=related

Update 2 Nov: I'm delighted to report that the Speed Pro had a new ball bearing head set replaced by George's Bike Shop at Willetton and running like new again. Great service! Thanks Ellis.

Unlikely bedfellows

Chris' world renown touring bike, the Surly LHT had the opportunity to sample the beautiful bike paths along the Swan River yesterday with my Dahon Speed Pro 24 speed folding bike, all the way to Heathcote and Applecross Jetty.

These two bikes are designed for different purposes. The LHT for long distance, kick-ass, heavy duty, round the world touring which in car speak would be more SUV/Jeep type. Whereas the MR2 foldie is for fast road riding with the convenient option of collapsing into a small package, enabling it to jump onto trains, buses whenever the occasion calls for it.

Yet, the unlikely bedfellows had lots of fun riding together and enjoyed a priceless morning.

Get us to the church on time!

Its a joy to have my buddy Chris and his missus here with me on their holidays. Needless to say, they are ardent cyclists and it was a natural thing to do for all 4 of us to cycle to church yesterday. The only person who didn't seem too happy was my son Jem as he cycles to school everyday, and had to cycle again, on Sunday. Well, certainly not a case of "like father like son" here.

Taking the excellent bike path straight to church, we made it in 20 mins even though we did it leisurely, 5 mins before service. I was surprised to see so many bicycles parked at church and attribute it to the nice sunny Spring days we are enjoying at the moment.

We return via the scenic route at Canning River along the Shelly Foreshore and both Mr and Mrs Chris really enjoyed the breathtaking views. As I write this post on Monday morning, they are out to explore the city, by bicycles of course.

Bicycles a great way to go, says the local paper!

Glancing through the local community newspapers Melville Times today, I was delighted to read about the use of bicycles by the Police here for their operations. The article entitled, "Bicycles a great way to go", touched also about safety aspects of cycling including wearing high visibility clothings, footwear and a proper helmet as well as learning "roadcraft" skills and a sense of courtesy.

It was also encouraging to see the local Primary Schools conducting cycling clinics as part of their PE courses. The article concluded by affirming cycling as a means to deepen the relationship ties between parents and children.

As a cyclist, I can only be very grateful to live in this beautiful part of the world which appreciates and affirms the benefits the simple bicycle can add to the wider community and our lives.

Moonlighting with Brommie

Though its Spring, the afternoons are getting hot here in Perth and I took the opportunity to enjoy a night ride for the first time. A cool 16c, zero UV, having the bike paths all to yourself and just sheer solitude made for a most enjoyable ride. Sometimes its important to have quietness to reflect and take stock of life.

There was a full moon which lighted up the dark paths and just cruising through the night air with the sound of spinning wheels is absolutely therapeutic. I did my usual 12km loop round the Canning Bridge and did it anti-clockwise. It was a bit weird to be the only one cycling through Mt Henry Bridge bike path at 930pm and I was happy to spot one lone cyclist making his way home from work. We exchanged greetings briefly and I came across just one more lone cyclist with no lights on my entire ride.

Took the opportunity to experiment with night photography and I loved playing around with the lighting. There was not a soul around in most places so I could take my time with the dimunitive Canon Ixus. The only place that seemed alive was the Raffles Hotel (yes, Perth has one too but not associated with The Raffles Hotel of Singapore) whose pub was half-filled with merry-makers.

At the jetty, my only "friend" was a huge white rat who stared at me for a while, wondering who this walking "Christmas tree" was and decided to wisely scamper away. All in, it was a delightful moment moonlighting with Brommie and relishing some alone time.

Be still, and know that I am God Psalm 46:10

PAP 1200km Audax Ride

Nuclear Heng and I, on one of our Speed Pro rides in 2007.

My friend "Nuclear" Heng shocked me when he told me of his plans a few months ago to take part in this crazy bicycle race from Perth to Albany and back. 1200km in 4 days! The least I could do is offer him my house as his base and Heng actually rode the whole distance. Although he did not make the timing in the 2nd half of the race due to inexperience, he did very well indeed as a first timer. Heng also remarked how impressed he was with the organisation and the helpful and friendly folks there.

He chose to ride a Dahon Tournado, a full-size touring bike that can pack into a smaller case. It proved to be an excellent choice as it was very comfortable and fast. I cannot imagine spending over 12 hours each day on a saddle for 4 days. Remarkably, Heng only suffered swollen ankles due to water retention despite the extreme torture.

I was very touched and honoured when he gave me the Audax PAP 2010 race jersey. It is a beautifully designed piece of art but I would feel embarrassed to wear it as although I do tour, 300km per day is certainly way beyond my capabilities. Nevertheless, it must be the best gift any cyclist can ever hope to get! And to think its a collector's item already as only 2 cyclists from Singapore have it :)

Thank you very much Heng and congratulations to you and all your buddies for taking part in the Audax PAP ride.

Carry me around Putrajaya and KL

It has become a bad habit for me to bring along a foldie when I travel and the destination this time is Putrajaya, the government city of Malaysia 40km south of KL. The missus' purpose was a World Health Organisation meeting while mine was equally important - exploring the marvel of modern Islamic architecture and its surroundings. My foldie of choice was the stick Carry Me, which rode snugly in my hatchback for the 320km drive up from Singapore.


The luxurious Marriott Putrajaya was our base for 2 nights and it turned out that the hotel was flooded with police and security personnel due to the presence of many Health Ministers from all over the world staying there as well. Outside the hotel, around 30-40 motorcycle outriders were parked neatly ready to escort the VIPs for their meetings.


It must have been a strange sight for them to see me, this "Minister" of folding bikes there unfurling my CM in the posh lobby ready to do my morning ride. Unfortunately, the area where I was isn't exactly bike friendly as it was surrounded by superhighways so it was to be a very brief morning ride, disappointingly, around the hotel. This was confirmed earlier by the concierge who said, "Here, very hard to ride la. All highways!"

Nevertheless, I took a 30min courtesy shuttle bus to KLCC, where the famous Petronas Twin Towers is. This used to be the tallest structure in the world a few years ago and still commands an impressive sight. It was great to catch up on my shopping and to show my Japanese friends T & R around.


Lunch was at Little Penang Cafe, which never fails to draw a long queue at noon. But the wait was worth it. We had signature Penang dishes - Hokkien Prawn Mee, Lobak, Kuey Pie Tee and finished off with Chendol. Delicious!

Training back to Putrajaya was a 2 step process on the very efficient metro. KLCC to KL Sentral, 5 stops away, for a fare of US50 cents and the KLIA Express Train to Putrajaya at US$3 only. Amazing! I was especially impressed with the latter train as it was fast, spacious (can take regular bikes easy), clean and supremely comfortable. Highly recommended indeed in light of the massive traffic jams everywhere.


What blew me away however was the courtesy night tour of Putrajaya where the Marriott arranged for us. Putrajaya is the Canberra equivalent of Australia. Where it differs are the many glitzy and huge buildings of Islamic-Mogul architecture,




strategically located around various parts of the man-made Putrajaya Lake all connected together by wide boulevards and 5 distinctly designed bridges.

It was really a sight to behold as we marvel at the impressiveness of this metropolis. Just the Prime Minister's Office Building, Perdana Putra, would be more than adequate for any King and anyone who has the privilege to be invited there would be left gaping at its opulence.

I suppose cycling around Putrajaya itself would be possible and quite fun if you can get yourself there by getting dropped off somehow but the lack of trees and shade would make it most unsuitable and uncomfortable in the scorching heat of the mid-day sun.

Perhaps if I come by here again, it would be a great night ride destination that deserves a more detailed exploration, preferably on a foldie.