For Sale - Oakley Radar

Authentic and genuine Oakley Radar for sale.


Model: Oakley Radar.
Frame colour: Carbon Fibre.
Lens customisation: Choose one between Black Iridium or Positive Red Iridium or G40 Special.
Lens style: Path.
Price: 580.00.

Call/SMS me at 012-7037575 or drop me an email.

Epic Ouchh...

KLMBH Epic hash… this becomes a yearly affair to me. KLMBH organises hash (mountain biking event) every last Sunday of the month. Usually, the hash distance is between 20-30km for long rides. For scenic rides, the distance is usually half the distance and nearly suitable for everyone.

This year KLMBH's epic is about 52km (officially)! Although it is not more than 100km, like typical epic ride around the world, hey... this is not a race! It is a fun ride.

Date : Sunday, 27 June 2010.

Time : Very early morning.

Venue : Ulu Yam and Ulu Tamu areas.


Statistics from my Cateye:

Distance : 53.34 km.

Max speed : 51.3 km/h.

Average speed: 11.3 km/h.

Overall ride time : 5 hrs 33:57 minutes.

Calories burned : 6210 calories.


Statistics from my memory:

Start to CP1:
This was one tough sections with lots of uphills, steep and long. I was just barely to keep up with the FRBs.

This was where the FRBs were separated to several groups, and eventually they were on their own due to different pace and terrain difficulties. There were 2 sections that were seriously steep and even the top national riders and FRBs could not rode them, and of course I was pushing my bike as well.

Rest – None.
Food – 2 McDonalds grape jam packs and one PowerGel.

CP1 to CP2:
If you think that from Start to CP1 was tough, this was tougher. This section really separated the men from the boys. The trails were mainly facing the sky and they felt like an elongated sections, but the good news was that they were ridable. I was on my granny chainring, 24T, and biggest cog, 34T, at most of the time. It was easy to just gave up and pushed the bike, but I did not want to content with the status quo and kept telling myself to keep cycling up to the top. The reward was an awesome downhill towards CP2.

When I arrived at CP2, I was informed that I was at top 15, within 10 minutes from the first FRB group. Hmm..not bad at all.

The CP2 was well equipped with lots of water stations, technical foods supplies courtesy of Hammer Nutritions and of course they were lots of bananas. Well done hares and sponsors.

Rest – ~5 minutes at CP2.
Food – One banana, two hydration pills, 2 McDonalds grape jam pack and two HammerGels.

CP2 to CP3:
Undulating terrains. A typical type of hash route.

It was definitely easier that the sections before, but I crashed thrice. One when my front tyre gave way on a hidden and large tree stump, but this was a no issue fall. The other one was on easy doubletrack section, where I lost my concentration. I braked too much and my rear tyre skidded and I felt on my left arm. Shaken…I rested for more than 5 minutes to compose myself.

Then, another crash…! Big time! Again I lost my concentration. This time was on an easy cemented downhill trail section. I saw myself sliding for about 30 meters, with my right arm on the cement… ouch! Really ouchhh…! Really shaken… this time I took more than 30 minutes to rest and to re-compose myself.

Then, as I was pushing myself to catch up with the other FRB, my right tight caught cramp. This must be from the effect of the big crash just now. Another rest for about 15 minutes just to allow the muscle to recover. Hahaha… instead I was catching up with the FRBs, the other FRBs were catching up with me, including Zuhairi and the strong Kenny Kwan.

As for now, it was a good time to know when to push and when to back off, although my legs, lungs, heartbeats and adrenalin were still at all time high. This was an endurance ride. So, from this point onwards, I just rode at comfortable pace just to avoid more complications. I just wanted to get home and see my love one.

Rest – ~60 minutes at crash and cramp points.
Food – Three hydration pills, two McDonalds jam pack, one PowerGel and two HammerGels.

CP3 to CP4:
Another undulating terrains, but this time the uphills were short but quite steep. They were several technical downhill sections which I don’t enjoyed very much in the muddy conditions… just imagine if the trails were dry… it could be a different story after all.

Then I got diverted into a false trail (although the KLMBH committee said that there was no false trail..!!) together with Jeremy and a few others. I lost about 15 minutes of time.

Rest – ~5 minutes at CP4.
Food – Four hydration pills, two PowerGels and three HammerGels.

CP4 to End:
Relatively easy undulating terrains compared with the others. I was on my front 36T chainring most of the time.

Other interesting statistics:

Water – More than 6 liters (with refill at the CPs).

Fall – 3 times!

Cramp – Once at right thigh muscles! But not as bad as the last PCC Presidential Ride.

Stream crossings – Too many. But one that was about 200 meters of stream with pristine and clear water was quite memorably beautiful scenery.

Bridges – Some steel bridges, two very large wood bridges and too many small bridges to remember...

Best uphill – Between Start and CP2. Steep and long.

Best downhill – None, because most of them are just too muddy to enjoy. I spent time controling and balancing the bike rather than enjoying the downhill sections.

Best flat section – Between CP4 and CP5. All in big ring (36T).

Love & hate section – At the easy cement section, where I fall.

Worst sections – See best uphill!

Brake problem – None.

Shifting problem – None.

Suspension problem – None.

Puncture – None.

Traction – Poor.

Comfort problem – None, because this time I got the saddle angle right and the saddle is designed with ergonomic love channel.

Pre-ride dinner – Telur bistik and plain rice. Lots of water and one glass of hydration salt drink. These were not enough.

Pre-ride breakfast – Yoghurt, one slice of roti chanai with an egg, water & a glass of sweet nescafe.

Post-ride lunch – Maggi goreng with fried chicken at the mamak near the Start point. Barely ate it because of lack of taste and too tired to eat.

Post-ride dinner – A very late home delivery McDonalds i.e. Big Mac, apple pie, some porridge and a large ice milo.

Photos:

Of course, there are more exciting photos of the Epic hash available at Facebook and other sites, but these four photos are just mine... hahaha...

Wasted Skinnies

On Sunday, 13 June 2010, me and usual cycling buddies were riding the beautiful trail of Wasteland at Bukit Kiara. Before that, Wasteland trail is divided in two sections, one is tight singletrack cutting along the ridges and matured rubber trees and one is an excellent series of switchbacks. These sections were divided by a stream, and the sections are (now were..) connected by a bridge which we called it skinnies.

Due to the force of nature (of course under God's decrees), the demure skinnies gave up, and to reach our destiny we had to cross the stream (more of a riverbed..) manually.

Time to flex the muscle again to rebuild the bridge, connecting the two sections that we, MTBers, love so much. Lets do it...

[Old picture, as at Feb 2009, where the skinnies acting as a bridge to connect one section to another]

[As at 13 June 2010, a broken destiny]

[My riding friends are still smiling, but look at the skinnies's log that gave way at the bottom of the picture]

Integrated Joint Alloys

Normally, every saturday mornings were one of the best periods of the week. Its either I spent time with my love ones, or riding gloriously at excellent singletracks at Bukit Kiara / Taman Cabaran Putrajaya / Ulu Yam. Further, I was crossing my finger in high hope that year 2010 would be one of the best year for me.


Not today! And probably not this year!
For 37 years, this is my saddest, miserable & gloomy moment.

Before this I felt like an integrated joint alloys, but at the moment I'm feeling disintegrated and just plain singular mineral i.e. in term of emotion, feeling disorientated and lonely.

God must be testing me, and this time the test is very tough, tricky and grueling difficult. I like to move on, but in an integrated and associated way like the integrated joint alloys.

A reminder to myself and others in despair (in Malay) "Janganlah kamu bersikap lemah, dan janganlah pula kamu bersedih hati, padahal kamulah orang-orang yang paling tinggi darjatnya, jika kamu orang-orang yang beriman." - Al-Quran, Surah Al-Imran, Ayat 139.

Edit: Grammar (15 June 2009).

2010 Le Tour De Langkawi

The biggest road cycling event in Malaysia, Le Tour De Langkawi (LTDL), is in her 15th edition since its inception. The idea was mooted by our previous Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamed. Bravo...!

The 2010 edition will start on Monday, 1 March 2010 in Kota Bahru, Kelantan.

It will end at Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur on 7 March 2010.

The highlight of the race will be, of course, the grueling climb to the peak of Genting, on 6 March 2010.

To find out more, click here.

2010 Firsh Hash @ Semenyih

The first KLMBH hash for 2010 was near Semenyih town. The parking place was right in front of the Semenyih 132kV substation... since I work with TNB... hehehe... :)

The place is actually around the old Kampung Sungai Lalang.

The route was slightly less than 30km of the usual mixed of palm oil estates, secondary forest trails, rubber plantations, short tarmac sections and long fire roads towards the end.

Honestly, I cannot remember much about the hash, but it was one of the best hashes I ever participated. It was that good, me and my cycling buddies will go again this weekends.

Here are some GPS screenshots info:

[The hash is near to the existing Sungai Pening-Pening trails]

[The elevation profile]

Check out the pre-hash details here.

For after-hash report, click here.

Bike Fitting

I thought that this article from singletracks.com is useful for fitting yourself on a mountain bike. Enjoy...:)

[The graphic of chart-size below is taken from the above wesite]

Nevegal vs Dred Tread

I used many models of tyres from various manufacturers, and these are the listing:
> Continental Explorer 2.1”
> Continental Mountain King 2.2” (both the normal version & Chilli version)
> Geax Saguaro 2.1”
> Kenda Nevegal 1.95”
> WTB Wierwolf 2.1”
> Specialized Roll-X 2.2”
> Maxxis High Roller 2.1”
> Kenda Dred Tread 1.8”

Due to limited availability of others tyres and also the above tyres, I have been using either Continental Mountain King (Chilli version) 2.2” or Kenda Nevegal 1.95” or Kenda Dred Tread 1.8”.

I use the Continental Mountain King (Chilli version) 2.2” only for racing due to its low weight. The rest are for trail riding.

So, I was called to make a comparison between the Kenda Nevegal 1.95” and Kenda Dred Tread 1.8”. The comparison (or review) is based on the rear tyre application only, for XC (slightly to the XC extreme side) trail riding application.

I use the following rating system to evaluate the tyres:
5 – Exceed expectation.
4 – Meet expectation.
3 – Meet expectation but can do better.
2 – Below expection.
1 – Does not meet expectation.

Climbing Traction:
Kenda Nevegal 1.95”.
Damp soil – 3/5.
Dry – 4/5.
Loose – 2/5.
Dry roots – 3/5.
Wet roots – 1/5.
Rock – 2/5
Slight sandy condition – 2/5.
Sub-Total: 17/35.

Kenda Dred Tread 1.8”.
Damp soil – 4/5.
Dry – 5/5.
Loose – 3/5.
Dry roots – 4/5.
Wet roots – 2/5.
Rock – 3/5.
Slight sandy condition – 3/5.
Sub-Total: 24/35.

Pedalling Rolling resistance (Higher number represent lower rolling resistance and better traction):
Kenda Nevegal 1.95”.
Damp soil – 3/5.
Dry – 3/5.
Rock – 4/5.
Sub-Total: 10/15.

Kenda Dred Tread 1.8”.
Damp soil – 4/5.
Dry – 4/5.
Rock – 3/5.
Sub-Total: 11/15.

Braking:
Kenda Nevegal 1.95”.
Damp soil – 4/5.
Dry – 4/5.
Loose – 4/5.
Sub-Total: 12/15.

Kenda Dred Tread 1.8”.
Damp soil – 4/5.
Dry – 4/5.
Loose – 3/5.
Sub-Total: 11/15.

Off-camber:
Kenda Nevegal 1.95”.
Damp soil – 5/5.
Dry – 4/5.
Sub-Total: 9/10.

Kenda Dred Tread 1.8”.
Damp soil – 3/5.
Dry – 4/5.
Sub-Total: 7/10.

Total points:
Kenda Nevegal 1.95” – 48/75 (3.2 - Meet expectation but can do better)
Kenda Dred Tread 1.8” – 53/75 (3.6 – Meet expectation)

[Dred Tread's profile]

[Dred Tread's sidewall & label]

[Nevegal's profile - Photos from old archive showing front tyre application]

[Nevegal's sidewall & label]

General comments:
For me, the Dred Tread is a better tyre than Nevegal by a small margin. But that small margin is at the most important part of trail riding especially in Malaysia i.e. climbing over roots.

Some comments on the tyre constructions:
For the Nevegal 1.95”, I wish the knobs are not ramp and this hopefully gives more traction. As clearing mud, Nevegal is far better than the Dred Tread.

For the Dred Tread 1.8”, I wish that the casing is wider at least to 1.95”, and this should give more volume for more supple ride. I also like the tiny knobs running across the middle section, and I wish these tiny knobs are extended towards its side. The side knobs are too close together, hence the mud clearance is just OK; and I believe spacing the side knobs a little bit more won’t affect the traction much.

Body Geometry Gloves

My riding buddy, Jimmy Kok, went to Taiwan for a holiday, and got me this nice Specialized Body Geometry riding gloves. He got it from Taiwan's Specialized Concept Store.

It fit so well. Thanks a lot bro!

Here is some info about the Body Geometry gloves from Specialized:

To learn more about Body Geometry, click here.

Trail Maintenance: Pure Quill & TNT

Hi guys, lets do some trail maintenance works on Pure Quill (and probably TNT) this Sunday, 24 January 2010.

Meeting place:
Taman Rimba Kiara at 8:00 - 8:15 a.m. Then I will lead you guy for a short drive to the Kg. Penchala's dead end (very near to Flinstone trail),
or
Kg. Penchala's dead end (very near to Flinstone trail) at 8:30 a.m.

Primary tools & accessories:
1. Cangkul.
2. Full finger gloves.
3. Rake.
4. Parang.
5. Some food & water for yourself till midday.
6. Some good sense of humours.
7. Mosquito repellent.

Other tools that of great help:
1. Shovel.
2. Long garden shear (preferably)
3. Whatever you want to bring..

Spread the words to others, the more that show up the merrier.

My wife will make a small barbeque with some juicy watermelon, but the end-of-work party will be at Taman Rimba Kiara.

See you guys there.

From South Africa

I was given an honour to lead our Sunday riding group with our new friend from South Africa.

Welcome to Malaysia, Alan.

The ride routes were as follows:

Taman Rimba Kiara >> Uphill tarmac >> 4K (entrance at water tank) >> 2K (halfway entrance) >> Twin Peaks >> Janie's Addiction (horse trail & old Janie's singletrack) >> Boner >> Penchala Lama >> Kampung & tarmac >> Plan C >> Wasteland >> Bar-a-kuda >> Tarmac >> Mission >> 2K (half loop) >> Tarmac >> Shiner's (entrace at halfway) >> Rock Garden (Carnival).

Time : 8:45 a.m till 12:15 p.m

Distance : ~ 17 kilometers.

Quote from Alan "The trails are excellent. They are technical. It's a very good place to learn to ride on roots."

Epic, I'm Specialized

For MTB, I'm sticking to Horst-Link designed suspension. All by suspension bikes were and are using Horst-Link design. So, does my new Specialized Epic.



Here are some reviews on my new steed:

Technical Fact Sheet (with some comments):

Frame and suspension:
Frame (new) : Specialized Epic, M5 Manipulated Alloy, M-size.
Rear shock (new) : Specialized AFR shock, BRAIN inertia valve with BRAIN fade and rebound adjustable, 100mm rear travel.
Fork (new) : Fox F100 FIT RLC, 100mm front travel (blink, blink..)

Side notes: All photos are with my old Rockshox Reba TEAM.

Cockpit:
Headset (transfer) : Chris King 1-1/8”.
Stem (salvaged from my store) : Tioga 60mm, 25.4mm clamp (this is heavy.. 200 grams!).
Handlebars (transfer): Syntace Carbon XC Low Riser, 25.4mm.
Grips : Some cheap but rubbery lock-on grips, really grippy (I replace it every 6 months due to its fast wear).
Saddle (new) : Selle Italia Shiver Gel-Flow (slightly heavy, but super comfortable)
Seatpost (new) : OTA 30.9mm, grey (look exactly like Thompson’s seatpost, yet lighter).
Seat clamp (new): Specialized QR, 34.9mm, black.

Brakes:
Front brake (transfer): Shimano XT, with Servo Wave & Free Stroke features.
Rear brake (transfer): Shimano XT, with Servo Wave & Free Stroke features.
Front rotor (transfer) : Hayes 6”.
Rear rotor (new) : Quad 6”.

Drive-train:
Front derailleur (new): Shimano XT, DMD, top swing, dual pull (I work with 2x9 only).
Rear derailleur (transfer): 2007 SRAM X-9, long cage (I need to change these soon…).
Front shifters (transfer) : 2007 SRAM X-9, 3-speed trigger (But, I work with 2x9 only).
Rear shifters (transfer) : 2007 SRAM X-9, 9-speed trigger.
Cassette (transfer): 2009 Shimano XTR, 9-speed (11-34T).
Crankset (transfer): Truvativ Stylo, 175mm, with 2-chainring (36/24T).
Chain (transfer) : Shimano XTR, with KMC bra-link.
Pedals (transfer) : Crank Brothers Candy SL (will be Candy 4Ti in near future)

Wheelset:
Front rim (transfer) : Stan’s No Tubes ZTR Olympic.
Rear rim (transfer) : Stan’s No Tubes ZTR Olympic.
Front hub (transfer) : WTB LaserDisc Lite, 9mm.
Rear hub (transfer) : WTB Laser Disc Lite, 9mm.
Spokes (transfer) : DT Swiss 2.0mm/1.8mm double-butted 1.8mm stainless, all black colour spokes except for and 2 silver colour spokes in between the air tube valve, with brass nipples.
Front QR (transfer) : OTA 9mm (Aluminium body, stainless steel shaft)
Rear QR (transfer) : OTA 9mm (Aluminium body, stainless steel shaft), with aluminium drop-out guard.

Side notes: All photos are with my old XC717 wheelset.

Ground contact:
Front Tire (transfer) : Kenda Nevegal, 1.95”, DTC.
Rear Tire (new) : Kenda Dred Tread, 1.8”, DTC (I love this tyre…!)
Front inner tubes (new) : Maxxis Flyweight 1.75”/2.15” (really light, less than 100 grams)
Rear inner tubes (transfer) : Cheng Shin 1.75”/2.25” (heavy at 175 grams, but never has problem with it for more than a year now & still counting)
Front rim tapes (new) : Maxxis Flyweight tape.
Rear rim tapes (transfer) : 17mm masking tape (wrapped twice).

Weight (with pedals, Cat Eye Wireless Meter, sensor & magnet, a bear bell & an old aluminium water bottle cage):
25.9 lbs (at Jimmy’s scale)
25.1 lbs (at Boon Foo’s scale)
25.2 lbs (at KSH Taman Tun’s scale)

My previous KHS XC904R weighted at 27 lbs.

Performance:

Cornering:
I’m talking about descending switchback first, and the Epic steers quickly but with good measure of predictability, so that I don’t go overboard.

On uphill switchback, the steering is mutually fast, so I need to step on the pedal as quick as I’m turning. This is where the BRAIN shines, as it resists pedal hammering to bring me forward; it just feels easier. On my other bike, even with Pro-Pedal is ON position, the rear suspension will be compressed first (little bit, but you can still feel it) before it carries you forward; so you lose time, distance and more importantly it feels harder.

On a singletrack, I’m very sure of the front fork and short stem tracking ability.

Side notes: I also chose the Medium size frame, to give me more knee-to-handle bar clearance during full cornering. Some people questioned my judgement, but it feels right during the tight cornering.

Descending:
Remember, this is a cross-country machine. So riding in series of trails in Bukit Kiara, with some serious drops (rock drops, tree trunk drops and technical downhills), I need to slow down before I approach them. I then let go of the brake as soon as the descending starts, and just feather the front brake or rear brake when necessary. Somehow, this cross-country machine gobble up rocks, roots and surface chatter with confidence. The small bump sensitivity of the AFR shock and Fox FIT RLC keep the bike on the trail surface nearly all the time. When the wheels take off the ground, the shock and fork open up responsively to ensure controlled landing. I also feel that this is the time that BRAIN is working full time to respond to the bumps.

Additionally, this is also the time that I’m satisfied with the choice of Medium-size frame, as the top-tube length is very inviting for technical descents.

Climbing:
The suspension works so well on reasonably smooth surface uphill climb because the Brain ensures that there is no bob. I really feel like riding a hardtail and it is a joy to crank-up the gear & standing up.

On technical climb (rocky, rooty, sketchy soil or undulating surface), the suspension also gives a lot of traction and opens up nicely. However, it also depends on how I setup the BRAIN Fade. If I set it up between zero to 2 clicks (from FIRM), it will behave like a hardtail, so you need that extra effort to go over obstacles and it can be harsh. From 3 clicks to 5 clicks (from FIRM), it will react to obstacles, but you need to go at certain speed from Brain to open up. So after 15 rides at various places, finally I settled at 2 settings. One for Bukit Kiara trail riding (which is super technical) at 8 clicks (from FIRM), and the other one at hash (which is more like hammering i.e. racing) at 3 clicks (from FIRM).

The BRAIN is the critical factor that isolated my KHS XC604 (with Fox RP3) in terms of climbing ability. The BRAIN makes every pedal uphill easier and more efficient than before.

Another important thing is geometry. The Epic has the same geometry as my previous KHS XC904R or my current KHS XC604. The head angle is 70 degrees and the seat angle is 73 degrees. Both my KHSes are agile climbers; the Epic with BRAIN exceeded my expectations.

Pedalling:
From my testing, the Epic equipped with AFR BRAIN shock, resists all pedal feedbacks up to 6 clicks (from FIRM setting) either during sitting or standing. As described earlier, I have 2 settings; one at 3 clicks and the other at 8 clicks.

At 3 clicks, the pedalling feel is super firm and it only equates to my old, old GIANT XTC (with carbon rear ends) pedalling feeling, either sitting or standing. Do I have to describe more?

At 8 clicks, it depends on two distinct situations. If I pedal hard during sitting, there is no bob and I feel the suspension is as hard as at 3 clicks. However, if I’m standing, the suspension will move very slightly.

Side notes: I tried the BRAIN setting to full open, and it behaves the same as my RP3 (on full open) on my KHS XC604. At RP3 (on Pro-Pedal ON) my KHS XC604 will move either I pedal hard during sitting or during standing. It is even worse during standing.

Since the cockpit is generous, the transition between sitting and standing positions is easy and very inviting. It makes pedalling feel snappy when I need to put the power down. As a result, I’m very happy with my 36/24T front chainrings combination with 11-34T cassette. I’m thinking of 38/24T front chainrings now.

The good stuffs:
I’m extremely happy with my choice of Medium-size frame as I can reap the benefits especially during switchbacks and downhill sections.

In short, the BRAIN AFR shock works!

The bad stuffs:
Specialized draws the cables under the down tube (front triangle), thus in soft soil or muddy conditions it suffers from soil/mud sticking easily to the under carriage. Dear Specialized, not matter what are your excuses, it just plain bad design.

[View from the back, with my previous XC717 wheelset]

[The cockpit]

[Syntace Vector Carbon handlebar]

[Downtube...]

[M5 Specialized's alloy & DMD Shimano XT front derailler]

[Horst-Link pivot & my trusted and old X9 rear derailler]

[The tiny swing link]

[Foreground - The Specialized AFR shock. Background - Old Nevegal was replaced by Dred Tread]

[The BRAIN]

[The BRAIN Fade adjustment dial (trail tune) & Shimano XT caliper]

2010 - New Year Ride

Happy New Year 2010 everyone!

Me and my usual riding buddies rode our favourite Bukit Kiara trails today. Fun!