Ipoh Foldies' Open Day - Part 4

Time out with the course trainers...

After freshening up and a little rest, we rode into town for a quick meal. 
In the town area, I led Johnny and Des to a chicken rice shop and split up in search of Halal food for Mohd Radzi.
The first thing that came in mind was Mee Kari Daud Mat Jasak.
This makan place is located in the middle of town just a row after the chicken rice area.
It wasn't hard to locate and in the evening, there was a slight drizzle.
We arrived first and found a table to have our meal, but a family and their young kids sat there without even bothering to ask if the seats were taken.
Seeing the look of hopelessness and desperation on the man's face, we offered our table to him and took a smaller table next to it... 
After the meal, we rode off to the KBS complex to catch up with the Ipoh Foldies for their night barbecue session.
It was there where I had a real fruitful discussion with Zairil, one of the senior guys who is into long-distance exploration rides.
I told Zairil that The Malaysian Foldie's main criteria now, is to provide support to small groups that are starting up.
We are more keen in providing skills training and sharing of experience rather than organizing social rides.
There are plenty of peer groups of such in the Klang Valley now, so, our focus is more on establishing contacts around the country and promote responsible bike habits and ownership.
After spending some time socialising with the Ipoh folks, I can see that the guys were tired and with that, it was our cue to say good-bye to our hosts as we parted ways...

Zairil (left) an experienced cyclist from Ipoh and his new found friend from KL working on the grill

Azam: Our outstanding host

Saddle up, lock and load!

Back at the hotel, I had a little crisis on hand.
My Ortlieb Flight 27 bag's front panel had delaminated. A large tear can be seen across the panel just below the waterproof zippers.
I tried to mend it with a temporary solution by taping it with some bandage adhesive. That didn't work.
What's majorly disappointing was the fact that if failed during a crucial time. I made a note by bringing along some duct tape and bond adhesives in future trips. But seeing the poor quality of the RM650 bag, I might as well retire it for good. I've had the same problem with my Ortlieb hip pack in Indonesia in which I fixed it with an adhesive bond. The pack is now permanently retired.
My biggest worry about the Flight 27 was having it fall apart on me when I ride. Spewing all my personal belongings on the road won't be a pleasant experience.

This pack is robust, but at the same time: fragile. I was major disappointed..

My bikepacking rig: Ortlieb Flight 27, Bell Muni helmet and Tern Eclipse X20

A quick-spin around Ipoh..

We rolled out from the hotel towards the Medan Selera Stadium nearby where we had breakfast.
Johnny wanted to shop for egg-tarts at Simee village. I told him that I don't know the way and that going all out to find egg-tarts is a waste of time.
As a trade-off, I led him into town to get some salt-baked chicken. This is a specialty dish in Ipoh.
At the medan selera, we had a good fill and rolled out towards the town area.
There, we had fruit rojak and ice-cream soda at Loke Wooi Kee coffee shop. 
Later, the guys bought their supply of baked chicken as we proceeded towards the mural area near old town..

At the town murals

The ride-along

At concubine's lane

Coffee break

All aboard!

It's a wrap...

All the baked chicken packed, we were ready to roll.
This time, a whirlwind tour of the Ipoh Old Town.
Uncle John Cheong, a cycling buddy of mine who resides in Ipoh said the Old Town area is merely a tourist trap.
I led the guys around Old Town and found a place for coffee.
We chilled out there for a while till it was time to head to the train station.
By 11:30am the crowd was building up in the departure area.
It took me less than 10-minutes to pack-up the bike and other gear and by the time we assembled at the gate, the KL Foldies arrived and some of the guys were seen hurrying with packing their bicycles.
The least I can say is this: though new to cycling, the guys took great effort to wear head protection and pack their bicycles. This is commendable and very thoughtful to the welfare of other passengers.
When it was time to leave, a member of the Ipoh Foldies came by to send us off. He had even shot a video of us entering the platform.
On the coach, I plugged into my ipod and listened to some music to kill time.
By the time I knew it, we were entering Rawang. 
Johnny and Mohd Radzi got off at Kepong Sentral while Des and I continued our journey to KL Sentral.
We were joined by two other members of the KL Foldie group and parted ways after setting up the bikes.
By the time I loaded the bikes onto the car, it was already mid-day and I looked forward to getting some rest at home.
On the whole, the Ipoh Foldie Open Day experience was awesome. We made friends and shared experiences and hope to keep up with such events in the future.

Doubt

Bogus? The Samos

A sound advice..
Chris Ho, a friend of mine who is an accomplished underwater photographer and diver once told me: "Eh Sam, never look down on people.."
Ho, who is probably in his 70s now, lives in Singapore and is a man who worked his way up the ranks.
This brought me to a conversation with a fellow cyclist.
I had coffee with her recently and caught up with what she has been doing.
While we were chatting, she told me that a Folding Bike Guru made mention about my attempts to cycle long-distance which he said was utter 'bogus'.
"Aiyaaa.. That guy cannot cycle so far la.. He probably drove to a signboard, unfolded his bicycle and took photos.."
She said she didn't know what compelled the guy to say such a thing and only a person who had done it would actually come up with such a thought... Hahahaha!
And for a 'guru' to fling such wild accusations, I pity his followers.

Statistics never lie..

My profile on Garminconnect.com

 I don't do things to impress other people. And GPS track logs can never be doctored.
So far, after using my Garmin EDGE800 bicycle GPS, I have recorded 73 activities and officially logged-in 3,701.78km.
This is my personal achievement. And if the 'guru' thinks that I am not up to his mark, well, that's just too fucking bad.
Right from the start, we joined the group to learn things.
And when the motive became very clear that it was an 'elitist' ideal for everyone to get a British-made Brompton to do 'Gentlemen' cycling, now that's baloney!
I think its wrong to force your opinion on people when its a free-society where we can make up our own mind.
The choices were obvious.
And looking down on people who could only afford Dahons and lable them as bogus for their little achievements - well, that's really low. 
I mean, how much more lower can you go?

Moral of the story..
Never lie to yourself. Don't set out to do things you cannot do.
If you have a goal, set out to achieve it no matter what people say about you.
Things that won't hurt your reputation would make you stronger.
So, while this guru and his loyal band of follower basks in their glory, I will continue to take photos of me and my bike on signboards all over the country..
 

Durian Runtuh Ride

Getting back to the fold..
Michelle and I don't really join in any group rides.
We are doing pretty well on our own and are really enjoying the short, middle and long-distance rides.
Of late, more and more groups are coming up in social media domains like Facebook.
I can see that weekly rides are organized to some really cool places.
Two months ago, I met Andrew Ng, a fellow cyclist who lives in USJ8, Subang Jaya.
Ng and his wife Hui Min is a husband and wife time who had organised some rides for beginners and novice folding bike cyclists.

An opportunity
As a follow-up to their ride to Broga, Lenggeng and Mantin, Ng organised another event called "Durian Runtuh Ride". 
It covers the same route and distance and received a good response. Most of the cyclists were newcomers. Some, I came to know through Facebook, a few of them, I had led in a ride to Sungai Sendat, Selangor. 
As a participant, I don't have to worry much, but to join in the ride.
So, for this task, I rode my Dahon Speed P8.

The group

 The route was pretty interesting.
I get to see parts of the Selangor - Negeri Sembilan border villages that I never knew existed.
For me, the most interesting part was Lenggeng and Mantin in Negeri Sembilan.
The terrain is manageable as there was a short climb towards the Mantin junction.
As for Durians, the guys found a stall in Lenggeng that sells them.
I refrained from eating as the day grew hotter.

Mr Sin and the King of Fruit

At the Mantin junction

 We completed the ride under five hours and went to the Beer Garden in Hulu Langat for lunch.
I had the chance to catch up with the riders and have some beers before heading back.
To sum up it, Ng had done a good job in organizing the ride. I hope to join more of his rides in the future..

The beers!