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.