A jouleing success!

Biologic's new Joule III dynamo hub wins Eurobike 2012 Award
After months of preparation, the Joule III dynamo hub was finally launched by Biologic.
And to make it even more meaningful, the new bike gadget had won the coveted 2012 Eurobike Award yesterday.

Award-winner: the Biologic Joule 3

 The Joule III dynamo hub will hit the shelves in November with a retail price of USD$150 (RM470.00).
I had the privilege to test and evaluate the hub and I must say that if you are seriously thinking of doing some touring on your folding bike, this gadget is a 'must have' on your folding bike.

The hub, rigged on a 20" wheel

Biologic's Press Release on the Joule III

FRIEDRICHSHAFEN, GERMANY – August 29, 2012 – BioLogic, a specialist in urban cycling gear, today unveiled the Joule 3 dynamo hub, featuring a patented design that sets a new benchmark for weight, size, and efficiency. The Joule 3 was also awarded a prestigious 2012 Eurobike Award.

“To put it bluntly, most dynamo hubs on the market are a bit of a drag to ride, literally.” stated Kevin Chan, BioLogic product manager. 

"They add noticeable drag, and extra drag is the last thing you want to feel when you have five miles going into a stiff headwind. That’s why we’re so excited about the Joule 3 — it’s a benchmark design that is an incredible combination of low weight, compact design, high efficiency and high power output.

In controlled laboratory tests, the Joule 3 reaches 73% efficiency while most top-selling hubs on the market reach a maximum of 55%. The higher a hub’s efficiency, the lower the drag riders will experience. The lightest configuration of the Joule 3 weighs only 355 grams and can be built up into a 20" rim set weighing only 695 grams.

The Joule 3 comes in multiple variations — 100 mm OLD/32H/disc for traditional city/trekking/mountain bikes, and 74 mm OLD/20H for small-wheeled recumbents, trikes, and folding bicycles. The Joule 3 meets German StVZO standards.

In addition to the Joule 3, BioLogic also announced that the Joule HG On/Off dynamo hub is ready for the aftermarket. 

The Joule HG is a dynamo hub that can be switched on or off: in the “on” position, the Joule HG is one of the most efficient hubs on the market and in the “off” position, the magnets are pulled away from the core of the hub so that there’s zero extra drag. The Joule HG weighs 656 g with an output of 6V, 2.4W.

Total Eclipse!

The bike we've been waiting for has finally arrived!
I am a huge fan of Tern Bicycle's Eclipse-series folding bikes.
Having evaluated the Eclipses S11i sometime back, I am confident that Tern would be able to make a splash on the 24" folding bike scene.
The Eclipse S11i was last year's winner at the 2011 Eurobike awards for design.

This one's fast and furious!
Mobility Holding's honcho Joshua Hon (Tern Bicycles & Biologic accessories) made mention of the probability of producing an 'X-variant' of the Eclipse-series bike during an informal discussion I made with him through email.
I'd guessed that team Tern has been hard at work to develop a race-ready 24" bike and came up with the Eclipse X20.

Big Bike, Small Fold: the new Eclipse X-20

 Lots of cool stuff are thrown-in on this bike and with a weight of 10kgs, its a good start.
I can look forward to the SRAM Force groupset on this bike and the 20-speed transmission is enough to take on any terrain and road conditions.
Now, this is a tough choice between getting the Tern Eclipse P9 which I intend to pursue on my 24" project next year. 

The 2012 Eurobike award winner for best design

Worth the wait
Congratulations to Josh & team Tern for coming out with the Eclipse X-20 and we in Malaysia can surely look forward to taking a closer look at this awesome bike next year!

First impressions: Biologic Joule III

Green energy
I received a package from Taiwan in July.
It contained a rim complete with spokes and a beta-version of the new Biologic Joule III dynamo hub.
A similar rig was sent to Chicago in the US for testing. 
I've had some experience with the Joule II hub and we've cycled it through 3,000km with the Dahon Speed TR.

The Biologic Joule II dynamo hub

 Testing
The first thing I did, was to retrofit my Dahon Speed P8 with the Joule III. 
This looked nothing like its predecessor and is kinda similar looking if you compare it with Schmidt's SON (Schmidt Original Nabendynamo) dynamo.
From what I was told, the SON has a 50,000km lifespan without servicing. And this is a preferred tool for lighting (6V headlamps) and charging for small devices for long distance cyclists such as touring riders (reference made from Peter White Cycles).
The 20" rim which I received from Joshua Hon of Mobility Holdings (Biologic and Tern Bicycles) came in black and was a perfect match for my 2009 Speed P8.
It didn't require much knowledge for assembly, but the Joule III came without a dynamo kit and a light.
Josh had quickly followed-up by sending a dynamo LED headlamp and a Biologic dynamo kit.
When I fitted the Joule III, the wiring was split to power up the headlamp which worked very well and the dynamo kit (with power spike protection).
The only problem I had was attaching the coupler to the dynamo.
I found out that the screws on my fender were too long and was getting in the way.
This was solved by loosening the nut which allows the coupling to fit snugly on the dynamo's power connector.

The Biologic Joule III (beta version)

The rig on my Dahon Speed P8

Final production version of the Joule III

 
On-going evaluation
I've cycled the Joule III for 1,000km.
So far so good. 
There's hardly any resistance and for devices, it needs a constant speed of 9km/h to power up.
On my Garmin EDGE800 GPS, the power from the Joule III hub came as an auxiliary source to keep the device going.
Even in rainy and wet conditions, the dynamo hub had no issues.
The only thing that I need to keep a lookout for, is the power coupling. I need to check this for corrosion from use in our hot and humid weather.

Eurobike 2012
Biologic will announce the Joule III today in Germany as a new product in their accessory line-up.
I think the new hub will also be introduced on Tern Bicycle's 2013 premium models.
That said, I can anticipate high-quality bikes like the Tern Eclipse S11i as well as other high-end touring and city bikes fitted with this awesome power source..

Some cool Ortlieb stuff and schwag

A long and overdue visit...
I've made prior arrangements to meet with Ed Foo of Atmosphere outfitters to view some cool Ortlieb 30th anniversary limited-edition panniers.
Foo is a quite hard to get hold of as he is perpetually busy taking care of his son and doing his sales rounds.
He told be that business has been stable after two years of setting up Atmosphere Outfitters.

Foo, showing off one of the limited-edition pannier

 The wow! factor as usual
I've got to say that the Ortlieb 30 years of waterproof pannier is nothing short of being impressive.
To commemorate their 30th anniversary, the German company had produced a limited-run of their famous Backroller classic.
Only one side is sold at RM295 a pop.
My favourite is the yellow-coloured Backroller featuring the Asian continent.

A rare find: The 30th anniversary backroller

Other cool schwag
I saw a pair of Ortlieb coffee mugs.
These are cool and are only issued to the regional distributor.
There was also a limited-edition small rack pack which was resting on the shelves.
Very cool to own, but Ed told me that only one was given to him for his loyal services.

The cool 30th anniversary mugs

The toxic green rackpack

The way forward
Its never cheap to own an Ortlieb product.
My first set was purchased from Fall Factor in Singapore and this was followed by another set of front and backrollers.
Recently, I've added a flight 27 backpack and a trunk bag to my arsenal.
These are never cheap, but they yield years of use under demanding situations.
Ed's stuff are now being sold at bicycle shops in the Klang Valley.
For a comprehensive range check out his showroom at level 3 in Subang Avenue mall in SS14, Subang Jaya.

Full-throttle!

Last set before the big event..
Two more weeks to go for the Penang round-island ride.
Michelle and I had been training for this on our weekends. We ride out at the Hulu Langat course to build our strength and stamina for the 82-km ride and we are pretty confident of completing the ride within the five-hour time limit.
So far, things are looking up. 
I am happy with my performance at the three courses set at distances covering 40km each loop.
The ride on last Sunday was different.
I had the day off and had set out on a non-stop ride to cover a distance of 53km.
The plan was to ride from Pekan Bt 18 > Genting Peras > Hulu Langat Dam > Pekan Bt 18.

Overtaken by the team

 Riding with the team
Our Starmetro cycling team captain Kevin Tan had sent out a message the night before.
He suggested for the team to meet up at Pekan Bt 18 at 7:30am and ride off towards the Kuala Kelawang/Semenyih junction.
Similarly, another group of cyclists were riding there too.
Most of them were folding bike cyclists led by an old-timer.
After setting up the bike, I wasted no time in riding out towards Sg Lui.
But I had forgotten to push the start button my Garmin EDGE800 GPS and lost about 25-minutes of ride data.
There were six other people in the training ride. Three from The Star and three other cyclists who were friends of our Assistant Chief photographer Glenn Guan.
Making a comeback after a month's break was our team rider Ehfan Shah.
Glenn and Ehfan were cycling the Polygon Helios 500 bikes, our official ride for team Starmetro.
Most of the riders overtook me at km7 on the route leading to 'Dead Man's Climb'. My buddy Billy Baharuddin named this long climb (7.5% gradient) after an elderly cyclist was found dead there a couple of months ago.

Dead Man's climb

No stopping
The last 800metres was a slow and long climb with 8% gradient.
This is where it gets really technical and if you are not experienced, chances are, you might tire yourself out on the last 100 metres.
For me, I was just getting warmed-up.
The plan was to make a hard left and start climbing for a further 10km to Genting Peras.
While climbing, I spotted the team near the signboard. I managed to capture a few shots before turning towards the climb.
My plan was simple: ride towards Genting Peras, set the lap on the course and turn back towards the Hulu Langat Dam.
I told the team Captain about this. But he must have forgotten about it.

Reaching the junction

The team and their friends

Ten kilometres of pain
Using the lowest gear, I slowly crunched my way up to Genting Peras.
Its a constant climb with gradients ranging from 2.5 - 8% and while working my way on the long slope, I saw an old friend rolling down.
Then, one by one came in plain sight. They were from a folding bike group.
Its funny how people change when they choose to ride with their preferred group.
I waved at one of the lead riders on China-made Dahon whom I knew and met a year ago. This guy just rode on and went about his business. Well, fuck him! 
My priority lies with the team, not making friends and rekindling old contacts on the course.
Slowly, as I reached the Genting Peras signboard and border marker in Negeri Sembilan, I made a quick turn to roll back towards the Hulu Langat Dam.
I was feeling good about this and had burned off my simple breakfast.

Turning back from the Dam

 I rode solo towards the Dam and before reaching the signboard at Bukit Hantu, I saw the same guys from the folding bike group. 
As courtesty, I waved at them and greeted their leader.
An old buddy who rode with me from Rawang to Sekinchan was among the group. Seems kind of strange that the same people he ran down is now his riding partners. Must had 'jumped ship' or he needed to widen his social circle..
I knew I had to get back to Pekan Bt18 before noon to re-group with the team. They rode back instead of taking the full course.

The ride map

 Completing the ride
The Dam is what most people would dread.
Long slope with a constant steep gradient.
But this is really good in building up the upper and lower leg muscles.
I didn't feel any strain and as a matter of fact, the good night's sleep did help.
Just a week earlier in Bentong, I was completely bonked.
With another 4km to go, Ehfan and Kevin and set out on their car to locate me.
I encountered them and reminded Kevin that I had told him earlier about riding the full 53km loop.
I did this non-stop with a timing of 3hours 11minutes and was amazed that I could still stand up straight despite a strain on my butt.
Penang is just around the corner and we couldn't afford to get picked up by the lorries for failing to complete the ride. 
At least the ride in Hulu Langat gave me some assurance that I could do it.
This was the last training ride before the event on Sept 9. 
We will resume training in October for OCBC Cycle Malaysia in January.

Putrajaya Newbie Ride

March of the newbies
Folding bikes are growing in popularity. 
There is no doubt about it as more and more peer groups are sprouting like mushrooms in social media networks like Facebook.
Taking the cue, newcomer Andrew Ng had organised a ride for beginners.
The plan was to meet up at Precinct 1 in Putrajaya and ride for 20km around the lakeside.
It was as simple as it sounded.
This attracted more than 60 people who gathered at the Dataran Putra.
An early shower didn't dampen the spirits of the cyclists as they waited for another hour before cycling.
A couple of 'seasoned' riders left the scene, but this didn't stop the rest from continuing with the ride.
At least one beginner was grumbling and showed her displeasure. But hey, you can't please everybody.
The rain stopped at 8.15am and as soon as the shower died down, the ride leader began his briefing.
While he was at it, I reminded him of the slippery pavements and told the rest to proceed with caution.
The group was split in two with the more experienced riders taking another route.
Michelle and I decided to ride with the newbies.

Photoshoot at the square

Ride leader Andrew Ng and the newbies

A simple route
We did a loop around the lakeside.
Michelle had tagged along with Hui Min, Andrew's wife who took the task of sweeper.
Later, she praised the couple for being so patient with the newbies.
We rode towards Precinct 2 and turned back to complete a 20km loop.
And just as I had expected, a cyclist fell and grazed her knee.
What surprised me was the fact that her riding buddy had just stood there to watch.
To rub salt into the wound, he continued taking photographs of the woman with his cellphone camera.
I went to assist the lady by cleaning her wound and later, dressing it.
"Ah! Next time, I follow you on your rides ah!," she said.
I wasn't amused with her reaction and was pretty disgusted with the fact that her partner actually made some sarcastic remarks about her fall.

The Samos

The lunch plan..
I was game about having lunch in Dengkil.
Never been there and never knew there were good food at this little town.
The ride was over by noon, so, we packed our bikes and took off to Dengkil for lunch as planned earlier by the ride leader.

The makan place

The food at Sinki restaurant was pretty good.
Later, Michelle and I had spent the remaining day with Mr Fong Kook Keong and his son.
We had some beers and talked about the riding scene.
Fong said he is very keen to do some bicycle touring and that he wanted to follow us to Cambodia next year.
Well, much is left to be said as this is still just a talk.

Summary
Andrew Ng did a great job in bringing together the beginners and some experienced riders. But, in my humble opinion, the group should not be separated. 
There is nothing wrong with older guys riding with the new ones.
As I see it, it would be a great chance for the newbies to learn from the old hands.
If the concern is on whether the experienced riders would get bored or fall asleep cycling on a slower pace, then, they should stay at home..

First impressions: Ortlieb Trunk Bag

Now, for something really cool on your bike rack...
The Ortlieb trunk bag is a solution for folks who want to carry their personal stuff without having packs or courier bags strapped on their body.
I found out that this is the best way to move when you have a bike rack which can be rigged to carry panniers.

The Ortlieb solution
So, that said, I jumped at the first chance to review the trunk bag which arrived a week ago from Germany via Atmosphere Outfitters.
The unit comes with a rack mount and the Ortlieb system comes complete with all the bells and whistles that you'll need to assemble the plastic base for the trunk bag.
What's interesting there, is the locking latch. 
This means, you can bolt on the bag without worrying about it being 'flicked' by some thief.
But if you lose your bike, you lose everything.
The trunk bag has enough real estate to carry your first aid kit, tools, emergency food ration, water and a comm set.

The locking base

 Assembly
This bag comes with two sets of instructions.
Its meant to be used with different kinds of racks and a bag of plastic adapters including a metal base is included with the set.
But the only relevant instruction was the one for the trunk bag.
I found out that I could mount the base plate directly onto my Dahon traveler's rack without any need for using the pannier adapter.
In fact, it integrated very well with the panniers.
Took me about 30 minutes to rig up the plate on my Dahon Speed P8 and to attach the bag, there is a matching bottom plate on the back.
With a 'click', the bag sits securely on the base.
On regular usage, Ortlieb recommends tightening of the mount every 100km or more.

The trunk bag mounted on the Dahon Speed P8

Integration with Ortlieb's frontroller panniers
The base plate took up some space on the top of the rack. 
But, there is enough room to bolt on the left and right frontroller panniers.
Together, the trunk bag integrates very well with the panniers.
This means I could use it for daytrips without the need of carrying a backpack.
More stuff can be packed in the trunk bag in this case.

With the frontrollers fitted

Practical application
I can use this bag without the need of panniers on short trips.
Ideally, the base of the cargo area could use some light padding. 
This can be easily fixed.
With its storage room, I can put a rain jacket and also use it to keep my camera in case of wet weather.
100% waterproof means less worry on my electronics getting wet.

The fully-rigged Dahon Speed P8 with the bags

 The only down-side
Ortlieb's trunk bag is not cheap.
I don't forsee much of it being sold here due to its price. 
At RM650 a pop (retail price inclusive of freight charges and tax) only those who are very interested would be keen on engaging the trunk bag.
So, that said, this becomes a premium-priced item which you won't find in average bicycle shops. 
But what I like about it is the fact that its made entirely in Germany, 100% waterproof and is built solid.
 

Slow-shutter shots @ Sg Tua

ND8 filter tryout
I purchased a Marumi ND8 filter recently.
The plan was to use it with my Canon EF17-40mm F4.0L wide-angle zoom lens.
I think this is the most under utilised glass in my inventory and having a full-frame body serves it just right.
With the EOS5DmkIII, I get a true 17mm fish eye focal length which enables me to capture landscape photographs more efficiently.

The setttings
Slow-shutter shots can result in blown highlights if you don't cut down the amount of light going into your camera.
With a Neutral-Density (ND) filter, you are able to control it with superb results.
This means, you can expose the frame with a large aperture using slow-shutter speed.
I set the 17mm at 4 seconds with an aperture of F22.
And the results were stunning.

Gallery

 

The Sac Spider

First encounter
The Ramadan month is a period where its usually quiet at the state forest parks.
I took advantage of this to utilise my time to capture some macro shots with my new rig on a Canon EOS 5DmkIII.
For starters, shooting full-frame is simply amazing.
Now, having walked up and down on a 2km trail, I found a couple of subjects to capture. 
Nothing really interesting until I came face to face with an ant.
Underneath it, the bug was being gripped by the jaws of a Sac spider.
This was my first encounter with the species and after making reference with a field guide, its confirmed.

Looks can be deceiving: the ant paralyzed by the spider's venom

A slow death 
The Sac spider is an ambush predator and it kills by injecting a lethal venom on its prey.
Slowly, the spider's digestive enzyme will slowly turn its victim's internal organs and flesh into a goo soup where its consumed by the spider.
I didn't notice the Sac Spider until I turned the fern leaf that it was under up-side down.
The creature was so still, I managed to change the flash power output to capture some shots under 3:1 and 4:1 magnification.
For this, the Canon MPE-65 is the only lens capable of landing such shots.
Thanks to the guidance of Macro Master Kurtis Guek, who is also an amateur entomologist, I was able use the settings correctly with great results.
Its not easy to maintain focus on a spider that measures about 10mm.
And under high magnification, the flash exposure compensation has to be set to two stops over.

Face to face with a deadly micro predator: the Sac Spider

The details
Using controlled lighting with the right amount of diffusion, I was able to capture the Sac Spider.
And since it has a rather dull and dark coloured exoskeleton, I was glad that the image had turned out allright.
With some minor tweaks on my Adobe Lightroom 4 photo finishing software, I was able to bring out the details and I am pretty happy with the end-results.

Mission: Karak

The world is out there..
It was a long weekend and there has been a couple of inquiries about leading rides to routes outside the Klang Valley.
Initially, I suggested a ride from USJ 2 - Morib.
But I wasn't that keen as its been done before.
This is mainly to induct new folding bike cyclists to try out long-distance rides.
Based on experience, baby-sitting is no easy chore. So, I left it as it is.
A couple of more experienced ride leaders had offered rides outside KL, so, that's where most of the newcomers were headed.

A path less-traveled 
I've done a couple of rides in Bentong, Pahang.
And Karak has still remained at large: unexplored with a folding bike.
My plan was ride towards Kg Cinta Manis and cycle to Kg Sertik and Felda Mempaga.
This is a 50km detour from a straight-forward ride from Karak to Bentong.
It takes only 20km to and 20km fro to this town.

Scenic: The route towards Bentong from Kg Sertik

Into the unknown...
Well, the truth to be told, I have never cycled to Kg Cinta Manis.
So, to sum it up, Kg Sertik and Kg Mempaga remained much as an unknown destination.
When we set out, much of the route was pure guess work.
I lifted a map of Google and plotted a route.
To get things going, I made mention of this on the Malaysian Foldies Forums and its Facebook page.
It drew some attention and a friend actually questioned my decision on not taking any newbies for the ride.
I simply told him that its going to be tough and riders without experience would pose as a liability.
To sum it up, this ride is not for beginners. However, I did have plans to conduct an easier ride to cater for cyclists of all levels of experience.
So, I made it very clear on Facebook and it didn't bother me if some folks are pissed off with the conditions stated.
My intention is not to conduct this exploration ride wholesale, but rather, with a group of reliable people.

Old is gold! Ah Pan and his heavily modified Dahon Dash P18

The small team
On the ride day, I made arrangements with CK Toh to car pool towards Karak and meet Sin Tai Lim, a senior citizen who had been cycling his Dahon Speed P8. 
We left Subang Jaya rather early and experienced the Raya rush on the Karak Highway.
My plan is to meet up with Ah Pan, my old buddy who is now residing in Sin Poh farm in Mukim Sertik. 
We made it to town just 10 minutes late. The initial plan was to meet at 07:00am. Ah Pan brought along his employer's son Ah Wei and his buddy. This 10-year-old had grown so much, he is also pretty fast on the road.
After breakfast, we set out towards Kg Cinta Manis on the Karak Highway. This is roughly about 5km away.

Bonked
I didn't sleep well the night before.
And it took a toll on my ride. Every stroke on the pedal was punishing and as we moved along the undulating and hilly terrain, I told Toh that we were lucky to have excluded the beginners from the ride.
Slowly, we cruised towards the Lurah Bilut junction and made a climb.
It was a 12km of torture as the gradient was between 3.5 - 7%.
On two occasions, my heart was thumping so hard, I had to get off the bike to catch my breath.
After the climb, it was a smooth roll towards Bentong town and the team re-group at Kedai Basikal Bentong.
We took a break there and rode towards Kow Po coffee shop where we had their air batu campur with their homemade ice-cream.

The road to Bentong

 

An unforgettable treat: The ais kacang

 Completing the ride
We were done with dessert and was told that Farmer Wong is already in Karak town and will be hosting lunch at Yik Kee restaurant.
There's another 20km to complete and as we rode out to the Karak Highway, the weather became very hot.
Earlier, the sky was gloomy. But we were lucky enough to be out of the rain.
While cycling I saw a familiar car driving past. It was farmer Wong. He asked about Ah Wei who overtook us in his Polygon Helios 800.
We arrived in Karak town and proceeded to Yik Kee for a feast. Farmer Wong had thrown in a generous lunch for us and we were grateful.
Later, we drove to Sin Poh farm and chilled out with Wong and Ah Pan before heading back to KL.
The 70km ride was an eye opener. There's plenty of potential when it comes to planning cycling routes in this part of Pahang.
Next up, we will try out the Sertik - Lanchang route...
 

Mission accomplished

Lunch, hosted by the generous farmer Wong

 

Nikon's new high-end compact camera

The G1X slayer? 
 Nikon had announced its high-end compact camera: the P7700 to address the growing enthusiast market.
This new camera comes with a 12MP CMOS sensor to offer some clear shots in demanding situations.
Its also comparatively faster with its 6-48mm zoom lens with an aperture of F2.0 - 4.0.

The 'retro' look on Nikon's P7700 compact camera

The camera's neat dials and controls

 Other bells and whistles includes the ability to record full HD videos and an 8fps continuous burst for action shot.
The camera is also capable of being integrated with a GPS module for geo-tagging purposes.
Let's see how it performs against the G1X.

Some titanium goodness..

A small reward
I've been busting my chops for half a year.
The only motivation that kept me going, is a little pat on the shoulder and a new toy to remind me of all the hard work.
Having scouted around a bit, I concluded that the best gift I could ever afford: is a Casio Protrek PRG-550t.
I've had a series of Casio triple-sensor watches and have been keeping close watch on the PRG-550, which is one of Casio's Protrek series flagship watches.
For starters, its inexpensive and also unpretentious.
My earlier intention was to get a 'toxic green" PRG-550.
This was overpriced and the only place that sold it was the KLCC Suria Casio concept shop in Isetan Departmental store.
But what prevented me to pursue this was the fact that the sales assistants at this store really sucked.

My protreks: the PRG150, PRG550t and PRG250

 Everybody loves Pertama Complex
There is a shop in Pertama Complex in Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman that sells watches at 'cheaper than dirt' prices.
You can get original wristwatches at 30% lower than what most retailers can offer.
Their prices are unbeatable.
And to top it all, Pertama Complex has the reputation of being the 'Mos Eisley' of the city centre.
You have to be extra careful when it comes to dealing with the traders.
As for the Casio watch, the shop that sells it is located on the first floor. 
Its in the middle-row just next to a shop selling photographic equipment.
This should not be mistaken by a retailer facing the escalator.
The PRG550t was offered at a price which I cannot refuse.
So, I took the dive.
Its also my second titanium bracelet watch.

A titaniac's dream: The PRG550t and my Dog Paw CRK Sebenza

 Summary
I love everything that Casio had thrown into the PRG-550t.
Its titanium bracelet is one of the most comfortable and lightest around.
As far as functionality is concerned, its feature-packed.
Rather than giving my money to some stupid-assed sales guy in KLCC, I'd say that the hard earned Ringgit and Sen was well-spent on this awesome multi-sensor watch.