Rogue Rider - projek Bagan Lalang, part 1

Is it possible?

Commuting guru and Brompton God Ng Chor Guan told me that he had done a 200km ride..

I'm not sure whether his attempt was a one-way ride or a return trip.

I've done 150km, it wasn't easy.

Seeing that it was feasible, I gave it a shot.

It was a cool morning, I started late (which proved to be a grave mistake) and headed out towards my planned route.

I was to ride from my home in USJ 26 to Bagan Lalang and back.

When I plotted the route on Google maps, it was a clean 100km single-journey ride.

If you have a GPS log to track your ride, then its verifiable.

I am not sure if Guan had logged his on a cyclometer, which is inaccurate at most times. But I would never doubt his sincerity on this.

Ride hard, Ride far, or Die..

This was to be my second solo ride.

I did it the first time from my home to Jugra Lama. It was enjoyable.

The road to Banting was paved with danger.

There are inconsiderate drivers on the road, trailers that could sweep you up and make a pile of minced meat out of you.

So, its either you, or the trailer.

I set out at 9am in the morning. The sky was gloomy. It was a good day to ride.

Half-way reaching Kota Kemuning, I noticed that my Ashima PCB disk brake was dragging.

Even after bleeding it, the problem was apparent.

In our weather, the Ashimas are useless.

The road to Banting

A detour

I had a decision to be made.

Either scrap the journey, or head to Bandar Botanic to get the bike fixed.

The option was clear. 

Even with the brake drag, I can't get home without losing lots of energy.

So, I picked the option of getting the bike fixed.

I knew the store supervisor EK at Rodalink Klang. He's good.

So, to get the bike on the road, I had to first remedy the brake problem.

I am not sure if the guys at Rodalink are capable of doing it, but hey, no risk, no gain...

While the boys were tending to my bike, I had the chance to fill up my tummy.

Its the wantan mee at a corner coffee shop behind Rodalink that made my day! 

Wantan mee for the soul...

Catching up...

I utilised the down-time in Klang to chat up with EK.

He told me that since the Tern bicycles were launched at the Rodalink in Bandar Botanic, they have been receiving plenty of requests for the Verge P18.

Seems that my 'first impression' preview had generated some interest.

Its a shame that Le Run or K2 Asia depends solely on their customers to do their work.

If the marketing people there have half the brains, they would be aggressively selling their Tern bicycles instead of using the local cycling magazines...

I hope that they will deliver when the Terns arrive in March this year.
Yeah, I am still sore about being used, abused and conned into helping these buggers!

We talked a bit, and I wished EK all the best..