Tora! Tora!! Tora!!! 08 July 2001
How should I put it? What a day is the best way to put, I think. Never in my rational mind could I think of riding my Zobop in the Tiger Hill. Worst of all, I still had the terrible cold during the ride! But I did it. And I must say it was a hell of the ride.
The actual reason why I decided to ride in the Tiger Hill was because I wanted to my get myself ready for the Janda Baik, which is organized by the PCC of KL. Having read so many horrible stories about this trail, I decided to soup me up before the ride. That made me decided to get my hand on the red VooDoo Zobop frame, which has been hanging in Gary's shop for more than 2 years!
We gathered at the tram car station at 8am. Nuikar69-ers, led by Richard and Andy decided to join the fun as well. But they would be turning back to the Air Itam Dam once we came out from Tiger Hill. Well, it doesn't matter though. Everyone's welcome! It took two trams to load the bikes and the riders. I was in the first tram with Azmi, Sup, Faz and the Nuikars. The rest decided to take the second tram, which would take off half an hour later. After all riders had been encountered for at the 168 hawker center, we proceeded to the trail head of Tiger Hill!
This is a downhill incline trail with some moderate in the middle of the ride. I was one of the last riders who went into the trail. Since I was still having problem to handle the bike and with my fear, I decided to take it easy. And the situation required me to take the ride easy! The trail had been damaged in many parts. I saw lots of deep grooves on the trail. It is sad to see the trail in such a bad condition. There would be no problem for motorized vehicles to go through but not for bicycles. Often time, I had to disengage to walk the bike through the grooves, which was a kind of annoying. This is mountainbiking for god sake, not mountainwalking! One thing though, I found myself able to climb the slopes that I usually had to push up as long as I sat on the tip of the saddle.
Time was already closed to 1030 hours by the time we were clear from the Tiger Hill trail. As planned, the Nuikars turned back to the Dam. Doc and his friend had also decided to cut the ride short since he had diving lesson to conduct in the afternoon. We continued the ride to Titi Kerawang after we bit goodbye to both Nuikars and Doc.
The descent from the junction to Titi Kerawang was a welcoming relief for some of us. I could hear Faz cheered from behind when he was riding close to me. I did not really go all out but to control to my speed. Just a moment only, the rear pack could not keep up with me and I was fully alone. ST and two other riders were way in front. Next time maybe, next time! I found out that if I spin the crank in circle, the Zobop does not bop at all. It did not take us long to reach Titi Kerawang since we only took short pit stop to regroup. I think we cleared the trail in less than 20 minutes. It was 20 minutes of fun and thrill. We should do it again!
We decided to stop at Balik Pulau for refreshment and food after an almost an hour of battle with the strong cross wind on road. Man was the wind strong. I was virtually fighting with the wind after the sweet tarmac downhill from Titi Kerawang to Sungai Pinang. I did not feel anything at first since the momentum of the downhill helped me to pedal through the gusting wind. But as the momentum wore out, I started to feel the wind was trying push me backward. A glance at the back, no one was with me. I was alone on the road! I started changing to lighter gear as I realized I could not keep up with the speed. The rest was still far from behind. I was hoping that one of them would catch up with me so that I could draft behind them. Tough luck for me. By the time they caught with me, I did not have any energy left to tail them. Maybe I have used wrong gear, or I would be able to catch up with them!
After half an hour of rest at Balik Pulau, we continued our journey back to Air Itam Dam via the Sacred Heart trail. Don't be fooled by the name I put on this narrow tarmac trail. It is one of the toughest climbs I have ever experience. If anyone thinks five hill climbs are scary, he should try the Sacred Heart! It seems unending. I was pedaling slow and steady. I still had to stop for three times to catch my breath. The heavier full suspension bike and the bobbing of the rear suspension(due to uneven padeling) really wore me out! Still I managed to reach the Hilton hut in 45 minutes!
It was one hell of the ride. I think if I ride Diamondback instead of the full suspension Zobop, I could have made it. I want to do it again, and I am going to ride my Zobop! But wait, I still have only Sunday left before the Janda Baik ride, oh shit!
Stay tuned!