The War against Thorns

It was unbelievable when my son came home late from school yesterday, pushing his bike with two flat tires. Yes, TWO flat tires. Talk about Murphy’s Law! He had a string of punctures lately no thanks to thorny twigs along the bike path he takes. But getting two punctures in one day must surely be the Hole-in-One for cycling.

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In the last few weeks, we have consumed no less than 6 tubes so much so that the blokes at George’s Bike Shop at Willetton said to me that the number of times I have been at their shop for tubes, I should be paying rent!

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It appears that the thorns are declaring war on us and war calls for serious counter-measures. I was recommended Tioga Thorn resistant tubes and the bike shop guy said, “If this doesn’t do the job, I don’t know what will!”


These tubes are different because they are thick and feel somewhat like pig’s intestines. They are nearly as stiff as a PVC pipe and mounting them on was quite a challenge. However, once fitted, it gives instant peace of mind, if you believe the marketing. Riding it though, the suppleness of the wide 32c tires seem to be compromised.

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We shall see if this new weapon works against those pesky thorns. Stay tune. Otherwise, I have to use secret weapon No 2 (recommended by CW) - Mr Tuffy!

Pedaling for Fettuccini in Bechamel Sauce

Spring is just a couple of weeks away and the sun came out beckoning me to go for a ride. I decided to pop over to Peta and Tommi’s home in Riverton some 10km away to learn the art of making a good French Bechamel (cream) sauce.

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Taking the XO5 along the scenic Shelley Foreshore bike path with its new French Michelin Dynamic tires was sheer joy. I have forgotten how nicely a 700c wheel spins so easily, and the fat and cushy rubbers glided through any irregularities like silk.

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The Bechamel sauce is unbelievably simple to make, equal portions of butter with equal portions of flour heated with milk. The skill however is ensuring it does not come out lumpy and this involves knowing how to use the heat appropriately and whisking consistently. Anyway, I was glad to have my Orb pannier as I could bring back the sauce, together with some food effortlessly. It had enough room too for a 2 litre milk container which I got on my way home from the supermarket.

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The 20km ride somehow got me feeling peckish and I immediately went about making lunch. Fettuccini in Bechamel sauce sprinkled with bacon, Swedish meat balls, Lennard’s chicken sausages and with mushrooms, cauliflower, broccoli, zucchini and lots of cheese made for a satisfying meal. Jem, my ever discerning foodie son, enjoyed it and gave me a 7.5/10 rating. Not bad for a first attempt!

It’s amazing how a bike can provide the much needed motivation to pedal far and long, for good food. Viva la Velo!

That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all this toil – this is the gift of God. Ecc 3:13

Brompton @ Kalbarri

My good friend Rod returned my Brompton tonight after his holiday up north in Kalbarri. It was his first time with a foldy and could not stop singing praises of its remarkable performance. Seems he took it out every morning for a 10km exercise ride along the beautiful coast. One thing he could not get use to was the attention the "little" bike drew.

He's going down south to Albany in Jan and has asked if he could take old Brompy again... I should start a Folding Bike rental business soon. What do you reckon?

Caught tubeless!

What was to be an easy and relaxing Sat morning ride today ended with a big bang literally. I took my son's XO5 out for the usual 12km ride with the aim of evaluating its running condition. Somehow, its hard to expect a teenage kid to maintain his school bike.

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After pumping the under-inflated tires to 70/75psi, the first few km went smoothly enough except I noticed the rear tire had a small lump which gave the bike an irritating ride. Upon reaching Mt Henry Bridge and with the beautiful view of the Perth city skyline in sight, a gunshot suddenly went off. Bang! The loud sound was amplified as I was under a bridge and just as I suspected, it was my rear tire that gave way.

Closer inspection revealed that the lump was caused by a broken tire beat, which in turn caused the tube to burst. All the extremity of the hot and cold weather must have taken its toll. Fine and well if I brought a spare tube, but I was unprepared and tubeless.

This resulted in a long morning walk back home which was pleasant enough, and an offer of help by a passing cyclist brought a smile to my face. I've since replaced the tire with a new Michelin Dynamic 700 x 32c which is a very cushy and comfy hybrid tire.

So much for going out riding and getting caught tubeless...

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Update - I have bought another Dynamic for the front as well and these are really fat 700c tires. At 32, they are still not as wide as the 34 original Ritchie tires. Talk about a plush ride on the XO5!

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http://www.sheldonbrown.com/bridgestone/1993/pages/35.htm

Mamachari -The perfect CPF (cycle, park & forget) bike

Pic fm mamachari.co.nz

While its always a pleasure to ride and own well-engineered bikes, there are times you simply need basic transport to get you from one point to another and most importantly be theft-proof. To be precise, the bike must not be worth stealing. I've been toying with the idea of getting a Chinese Flying Pigeon, but the double top-tube frame is simply too big for me.

I've rented a Japanese style Mamachari bike years ago in Chiang Rai, Thailand and always rememered how surprisingly well it rode. Smooth, reliable (no gears) and supremely practical with its front basket and centre-stand. It's outstanding user-friendliness just stayed with me till today. Tokyo by Bike spells out why the Mamachari is Japan's most popular bike.

While pottering through a traditional bike shop in Pontian last weekend, I spotted 3 used Japanese Mamachari looking for new owners.

After thinking about it for 2 days, I made a trip to buy one. Its hard to justify another bicycle sometimes and the vehement objections from the fairer sex can get scary. I wanted the model with the 3 speed Nexus IGH but unfortunately, it was a bit faulty and settled for a single speed. Less troublesome I reckon in the long run.

It came with a traditional dynamo front lighting system, build in frame lock with 2 keys, full fenders and rear rack. I added a front basket and changed to new tubes with Schrader valve. The original ones were Dunlop valves which can be very troublesome to pump.

The total damage was only US$68 and I was happy as Larry. There is a shop in NZ selling used Mamachari at US$250 upwards so I can't complain! I have a dentist appointment tomorrow in a HDB heartland and will ride my Mamachari there. My search for my CPF bike is finally over!


Ps 1: Grateful thanks to Ben and Pru for helping me bring back my 9th child all the way from Pontain. You guys are the best.

Ps 2: Pics courtesy of CW.

An old town on the move

My last visit to Pontian Kechil must have been in 2002 where I cycled back from Malacca and spend my last night here. Things have changed a lot with the obvious development of the reclaimed land area. Our Hotel Pontian is situated there with many new shop houses, a new bus terminal and even an upcoming harbour for boats.

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People too seemed more affluent especially when we had our hotel breakfast - more than half of the guests there were "plus" size. Fortunately, we noticed the culture of cycling around town is still alive and vibrant. We took the opportunity to shop at one of the many traditional bike shops. I was tickled pink to find that in a baby rocker, the "baby" put there by the shop owner was that of a bike seat. That speaks volumes of where his passion is.

CW and I bought old fashion bicycle bells - and I fitted mine immediately on the BF Expedition. The sound was really very loud and rich as you can hear from the video here. Was also fun to ride around and chat with the local bikers. One of them had a 20" Durian coloured cream bike with a modern dynamo hub plastered proudly with badges of Johor. He purported that his unique colour really glowed at night and we were happy to take him at his word.

I also visited the 40 year old crumbling Princess Hotel (stayed there 2002) and its still in operation. US$10 for a room but be warned, very basic with aircon. Maybe.


It was great to walk around the old part of town and explore the rickerty fishing jetties.

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As dark clouds loomed, we decided to take a bus back to Johor Bahru. Somehow, cycling in a monsoon was not so appealing. Upon seeing our bikes, the bus cowboys got all excited as this was their chance to earn some pocket money.


Although the bus fare was a mere US$1.80, we paid US$10 for 2 of our bikes after some serious haggling. What clinched the deal was the bikes could fit into the huge cargo bay without any dismantling. If I brought my foldie bag, my Expedition would probably have travelled free.

All in, a most interesting cycling weekend destination. I just hope in the midst of modern development, they will somehow allow the charm of the old town of Pontian Kechil to linger on.
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Pontian Expedition

Map from Jan Boonstra Spore Cycling

BF Expedition at its best - touring!

It rained so much on Saturday early morning that flash floods occurred in Singapore. Even in late morning, the rain continued, though easing. Great for sleeping in, not for riding. I was prepared to cancel the trip but this would be the first time coming back to this region that I would not have done a ride. The determination of CW to go and stretch the legs of his Surly gave me the needed push, even to ride through wet weather.

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Fitted the fenders on my BF Expedition, threw a few things into the water-proof Orb and off we went at 1pm only to realise that I brought the wrong size spare tube. O well, we had a patch kit. The ride to the causeway was easy enough with the rain graciously on hold.

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Clearing customs in the Singapore side was no worries but the new immigration system in Johor, Malaysia led us on through a long maze of flyovers and spitted us out a good distance from the causeway. Fortunately, all of custom officers we met were very polite and friendly. One of them kept commenting, "Friday, Friday!" not that he knew anything about foldies but that got all of us smiling.

The ride through Johor Baru was a bit hairy as there are no bike lanes and at most parts, we had to ride on the highway. Though cars, motorbikes and trucks were zooming past, they seemed to give us a wide berth.

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We decided to get off the main road and take the quieter road to Gelang Patah, a small town near Pontian. Development has gone on full steam in this area as part of the Iskandar Region and everywhere, there were new housing estates replacing the jungles much to CW's disappointment. He used to MTB there in the good ole days. Thus, we ended up a bit lost but arrived at Gelang Patah 5pm in time for afternoon tea. The good thing about Malaysia is the numerous coffee shops around providing great snacks and drinks.

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As it was getting dark and with 38km to go, we picked up the pace. I realised how unfit I was as I struggled to draft behind Chris Surly LHT at 25-28kmh. All those cold Australian winter weeks have taken its toll on me legs.


Just at the shire of Pekan Nanas, we nearly fell off our bikes in excitement when we spotted the Shimano factory. This is where they build the wheels that set the bicycle world in motion. The security guard must have thought he met 2 cyclists just out of a mental institution as we snapped pics and behaved with so much awe and "reverence".

We pulled into Pontian at 735pm feeling quite tired (at least I was) and checked into the Pontian Hotel, supposedly the best one there for US$38. A good feed of Chinese food with rice just by the breezy seaside followed by a nice massage was the perfect end for our expedition.

I was out like a light when I hit the comfortable bed oblivious to anything and anyone. I reckon a 100km ride is the best sleeping pill, rain or no rain.