The Man Who Rode Around Borneo - 9 Beautiful Kuching

I left the shade and continue westward after the old lady at about 2 scorching pm. She needed to move on and get to her village (the longhouse she live in is her village) to sell her wild vegetable. I remember Heather bought some of those before we enter Niah National Park and get the cafe owner to cook it for us and it taste just like ‘Kangkong sambal belacan’. To be very honest, it was very nice.  I know the roads ahead going to be hilly and my next destination Betong was about 50km away. If I am lucky, I‘ll be in Betong tonight. I was actually aiming for Sri Aman when I left Sarikei this morning but the heat slowed me down. It was ok as it means I have more time to rest and hang out with the locals. I know this is not a big deal but I found out during this early stage of Ride Around Borneo was that the distance marker placed along the roads aren’t consistent or rather inaccurate. One time I saw the road marker showing 74km to Bintulu and a kilometre down the road later; it jumps back up to 75km to Bintulu. That was not it; there were few others which I hope Jabatan Kerja Raya Sarawak (Public Work Department) will do something about it. Good thing I have my maps and with the technology these days, we can measure our distances, terrains and more pre ride online. (*Please also note, during my ride in Borneo, I didn’t get most parts of the distances and other information via Google maps. I am not sure why)

I rode away from the shade starting it slow to get back in the zone. It was actually a drag after an hour of rest. I put on the music on the high from my mp3 and hoping I can drown my loneliness on this quiet stretch. There wasn’t anything on my left and right. Not even a single soul and that includes motor vehicles. Just abandon oil palm and emptiness. The heat by now was horrible, I can feel the burning sensation on my face and it’s like I am now pedalling in a frying pan. I needed to endure and going if I want to be in Betong before dark. 10km past slightly after 3pm and I was already frying, especially my face. I stop to slap more sunscreen and continue to cover the next 40km. By now I was hungry as I haven’t had lunch; I gave mine away earlier today. And I had forgotten ordering the chicken wing back at the shade! And now I am on the road to ‘Blardy Nothingness’. No shade, no tress on my and right and not even anything resembling a decent rest point. I have 40km more to go and I can’t do it with empty tummy; I have no food to speak of. I have reserved water on my rear rack and that was it. By now, the going is like forever. I broke the last 40 km into 4 parts just to make it easy for me mentally. The next 10km came on top of a long climb and that was it, I had to stop. “Fark, I can’t go on anymore!” I heard myself saying. I just can’t. I have burnt everything in me. I pushed my bike under a small shade, grabbed my spare water behind, gulp a long one down my throat and used some to pour over my head. Maybe a ten minutes break will help. Ten minutes later, I mount the bike and that was all I could do, the pedalling didn’t come. After only 5 metres, I dismount. I am not that weak that I can’t handle such heat or distances. I did 135km a few days ago from Niah to Bintulu and on the same level of terrains and heat. Was it because I didn’t have lunch today? What am I going to do? I felt like I just hit the wall. I have nothing left; I should at least keep some food in my rack bag. Then I remembered a small Ziploc bag that I stashed in my front pannier. It was from Gracie and in it, all sort of energy gel. I was jubilant and felt like I was rescued by some angel. I took one banana flavoured out and suck it like a starving man. I took another gel out and repeat. Next, I popped down one electrolyte in the water bottle and drank half down. Well, if you think that I am suddenly invigorated and flew down into Betong, you’re not wrong.

I didn’t get moving until 10 to 15 minutes later. Betong was 30km westward and the winds coming from my back now. I make sure everything was properly secured before I flew down the slope and back up again this went on until 22km mark when I saw the sign ‘Betong 8KM. Turn Left’. I pulled my brakes and slowed down before stopping to a full stop underneath the next signpost in the front before the turn off into Betong.  I did a quick cross check on my map and it shown two entrances to Betong. Obviously the one I am at now was the ‘short cut’ (This thought of every early turns was a short cut cost me dearly later on in Kalimantan). I felt like heaven taking the old road to Betong. Though it was blardy hilly, it was no less shady. I was in Betong in less than 20 minutes and what I saw immediately in Betong was so unreal? Insane? Mind blowing or simply politicians at their best to show how powerful they are when the elections are around the corner. Two blardy helicopters landed one after another in the public sporting ground. The area was buzzing with the election activities. Government labelled station wagons were everywhere and I was so dirty, and probably smelt too that I felt out of place, just being there. And to have a little bit of fun, I approached one of the officers standing outside what looks like an official election compound, asking if I can camp on the compound ground and use their shower facility. Well, my luck wasn’t that good; I was asked to wait as he went inside and came back with a young chap. Perhaps his minion, I can’t tell.


“This gentleman will help you with the hotel direction”. His officialdom making me laughs. Come on, how serious can you get with a dude on a bike?
“Thank you”. I replied. “After you” I said to the young man and smile. He was on his motorbike riding so slowly and I followed. He wasn’t to please I think.

His first stop was a corner Malay coffeeshop about 10 minutes away from where we were earlier and I was introduced to all his friends, apparently mountain bikers. I was hungry, dirty and the last thing I wanted to do was to sit around people. I apologised for my indecent appearance and asked if I can sit at the next table. They understood my request but the question kept coming fast. Where I am from, where I am going, is the bike heavy, how fast can I go? But I need to eat first. I ordered one fried rice and an ice-lemon tea, recommended by one of the guy. It was good with just a small portion of chicken. I am not sure when I say very “good”, was it because I was hungry or it was really that good. I ordered one more set after the first. I was tempted for the third, believe me I am. Suddenly a strong wind blew and down goes my bike and the rain came. Feeling pissed, I excuse myself from the group, brought my bike back up, checked for damages before making payment and off across the road for the cheap hotel recommended. I shouldn’t have reacted in such manner but then, I just couldn’t control my feeling and emotion. I was dead tired; everything about the journey so far has been nothing but pure endurance. It was either I gritted my teeth, stop bitching and move forward or I throw everything in the bin and declares riding around Borneo was history. It was that hard. Just when I needed some quiet moment, the wind and rain came and about to turn my mood upside down.

Disappointment followed after as the hotel was filled with election officers (Police, same as many other hotel I stayed in). I was shown to another, this time cheaper but also full. The only one available was at RM55.00. My mind race for alternative and I know the fire station wasn’t far from where I was and I also know fire station love receiving strange people like me. Before I could leave, the hotel owner showed up and asked if I am a cyclist with lots of barang- barang (referring to my luggage’s) on my bike?. I told him yes and that was it, I got one room that was RSVP and for RM30.00, on the highest blardy floor! But his generosity appreciated. I did my laundry, went back down for another round of meal, my third within two hour.  I wanted to do some bike maintenance after showering but the eyes and body just couldn’t hold up anymore. I fell to sleep at 9pm and didn’t get up until early next morning.

It was so rough the ride from yesterday that I have a hard time getting ready for day 13. I woke up at 4am but the toughest was to get moving. My whole body was aching. I have about 200km to cover if I wanted to be in Serian. The farthest and longest I did was cycling around Singapore twice 180km and on a flat terrain. We are talking about Sarawak, blardy slopes, hilly and the heat. Well, I can slow down, take my time and take it easy and spend a night somewhere but my bicycle needed attention. “We’ll see how it goes”. I got to convinced myself. I am still on the bed and the thought of staying another day here played in my head. It’s all in the mind. Easier say then done, I tell you. Finally I was out of the bed at 5am, showered, pack everything in and get everything down from the third floor down one by one. It’s blardy tedious. First the front two panniers and the rack bag (tent, inflatable matt and whatever else needed to be assessable) and second my rear two panniers. I was sweating bucket already and lastly the bike from the reception on the second floor. (Ground floor to the Malaysian) Phew! I should have just camp in the town square!

Time was 6 o'clock when I got everything loaded on the bike and a Chinese uncle approached me to ask about the bicycle. Where it is from, how much, where am I going and if I wanted to have coffee. Sure, coffee then. I pushed the bike while we walked across the street to get to a Malay coffeeshop. Betong looks completely like a typical Malaysian small town in Peninsular Malaysia. There are equal spreads of Chinese, Malay and for the minority in the small town Betong, it was the Iban. While waiting for the coffee shop to set up, I rode around the small town and survey a shorter route out of Betong recommended by the Chinese uncle. From the information I gathered, there was one shorter way out and one other to the river and a boat out to Sri Aman. Is this for real? I would love to boat out of Betong and river cruising in Sarawak sound adventurous and the legend “Bujang Senang “  the Sarawak killer crocodiles comes to mind.  I’ve heard about this crocodile since I was very little. This man eating crocodile was huge and terrorised the Lupar River in Sarawak.  The name, Bujang Senang means Happy Bachelor (direct translation). The story goes Bujang Senang was once a much feared warrior who had never been defeated in battle. His wife betrayed him to his foes that ambushed and beheaded him. His spirit became a huge crocodile that haunted the Lupar River. Believe it or not, but the story of giant man-eating crocodile in Sarawak was real. The thought of Bujang Senang sent shivers into my spine. I have got to remember not to jump in the river!

On my way back to the coffeeshop, I stop to look at my map. Yes, the long boat will take me pass Maludam National Park, Kampung Trisho and into Batang River into Sri Aman. That was what I am seeing on the map. Again, the time factor doesn’t allowed me to do it. I need to get the bike fix soonest. If the shop in Betong or Sri Aman can’t do it, the next I hope was in Kuching but that was 260km away. I rode back to the coffee shop happy with the route out of Betong. Hilly but I like it because of the shade it provided.

I got myself 5 pisang goreng (banana fritters) and a cup of coffee. Answer to all sorts of question from the senior citizens sitting the same table with me. I send Simon Sandi a text message and true to his style, I got an immediate response. “Yes, there might be a bike shop in Sri Aman”. That was all I need. I will race to Sri Aman about 60-70km away, be there by lunch, get the bike fix while I have lunch and race another 60-70km or nearer to Serian with a hope of a place to stay or camp. My first 20km was fast. I must admit, the load today got blardy heavier. I don’t know why, maybe the ache all over my body. Still, I rode like Sri Aman was only 50km away. I didn’t stop at the next rest point either until the 50km mark when the sound, “clack, clack, clack” came from under. I know I am screwed. I stop when I saw the only shady place near a road construction site. I saw the bottom bracket seal leakage and my heart sank. That was the last thing I wanted to see. There are two possibilities. The first was the bike shop in Sibu didn’t do a good job. The second was the fall from yesterday. I don’t know which cause it but it looked bad. I can still cycle but the sound just so heart breaking and bothered me. I have got to learn to shut that and just focus on pedalling. I noted that and I stayed focus.

What choice do I have? Call Simon? Definitely I will but not if it not an emergency. Like RAB Base Camp Manager put it, “One pedal at a time. Push, ride, doesn’t matter mate as long as you move forward”.

“Blardy hell, keep going I will.” I jump back on the bike and pedal on, I’ll stop if the bike breakdown. Not very far from Sri Aman, there was a gradual long slope that almost killed me and the bike. We were lucky to get through that and cruise down with me smiling from cheek to cheek. It was the battle between human and nature. In the end the heat and those slopes got me.  I can only race so far. There is something wrong with the road design in Sarawak. Must they have slope one after another for 1,000km? I mean seriously, like the heat wasn’t enough, they must design and laid those roads on those slopes to make it harder slash tougher (Perhaps the roads weren’t intended for cyclists). I say build a flat coastal road like the one in East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia hugging beautiful coast with a great view of South China Sea.

It was hot and I need to be as far as I could from my last destination. I have no other choice but to battle on until I have nothing left in me. Until the juice in me are all sucked out. I was in the brink of just leans my bike to a lamppost and lay flat anywhere until the next morning. I was fortunate I didn’t find any lamppost! Day 13 end late. I was picked up in the dark 10km outside Serian and the one and only bike shop was already closed. I was hungry, dirty and need some food. Went over to the night market and got myself a whole chicken, a plate of fried rice, 5 banana fritters, 5 curry puffs and 2 ice lemon teas. Yes, it was over budget but I needed to eat. Everyday reaching the destination was an achievement here in Borneo but day 13 felt like the destination getting farther, harder and hotter. I check myself in to a small motel filled with government official (mostly overweight plain cloth police officers), got all my electronic equipments on a charging mode, replied to few messages and went straight to sleep without even doing anything else.

It was Saturday and day 14 of my ride around Borneo. It got tougher as my whole body was aching so badly and both my leg were killing me. I learned today that the force of gravity while I am on any bed was greater than gravity on earth; I just couldn’t get up. I wanted to continue sleeping and just do nothing. Time was 5 am when I finally got up. It was way too early. Next on my mind was to message the people I was supposed to meet asking them if it possible if I can meet them the day after, Sunday. If I did that, stay and rest for a day, there will be another day that I will ask the same. I pushed myself to get up and start packing. The first step was always a challenge. I got up, took out my stove and get the boiling water going for my coffee and start to pack. I am very meticulous when come to packing gear. Everything has got to be at the exact place in the bag, sealed and dirty stuffs were place in a separate pack. Now with little juice left in me, I am still concerned on the way my pack being pack, everything went into the exact same spot. The theory behind was that if I need anything urgently, I just know where it would be, even in the dark. That is organising discipline I learn in the army and I live by it. My aimed that morning was to wait for the bicycle shop to open and try to get it service before getting into Kuching if my body is able too, else I’ll stay for a day more to rest.

Before coming to Borneo, I did manage to train regularly up until the last two months where my schedule suddenly got hectic. I still get to ride but the distances was too short and mostly without my load. I wasn’t worried as the plan for Ride Around Borneo was to start easy and short with recovery ride in between. But 14 days into Ride Around Borneo, even the recovery wasn’t easy. The endless slopes, the heat and the fast moving traffic were enough to stress me out physically and mentally. Here I am struggling to get moving on day 14.  What a dragged, really. I was ready by 7am, did a little bit of cleaning and check the bike and forgo the idea of waiting for the bicycle shop to open. If I move on slowly, I might just be able to cover distances and get into Kuching which is about 60km away by noon.

With only 1 mug of coffee as my fuel, I set off at 7.30am, pedalling out as quietly as I came in. My first check point will be Siburan 27km away to meet Reo, a friend from Kuching and Ride Around Borneo supporter. I was told by Reo the night before that the route out to Kuching will be flat and I joke about how Simon Sandi told me the same thing when we were in Sabah, “Flat”.

I should write a little bit about Simon Sandi since I kept mentioning him in my writing. Simon is like a brother to me. We can get along really well and we have so many things in common except the choice of our bicycle in Borneo. He did and completed cycling Tip-to-tip from Kudat, Sabah to Kampung Pueh, Sematan in Sarawak. Total distance covered, 1674km. A very respectable achievement considering his age, the terrain the weather and the bike he rode on. I would love to cycle with him one of these days.
*At the point of writing this, I invited Simon and Alex to cycle in some section of my Arctic – Asia Solo Adventure Cycling. I am happy to have the both of them riding next to me.

I cannot believe my eyes the moment I got out from Serian, the road was flat as a pancake and as far as I could see. 10km out, it was still flat. It was good for the bike and I do not think I need to stress the bottom bracket at all. Just when I thought it would be a breeze to cruise into Siburan about 17km away, the creaking sound came back. At 12km mark, I saw a row of shop houses and decided to check it out if I can find anything resembling a bicycle shop. Not lucky but saw a crowded Chinese coffee shop and I thought it would be a good idea to stop have my second morning coffee and check the bottom bracket. It seemed to be leaking. I could go on until the bottom bracket gave way or contact someone in Kuching for a pick up. Well, I need to replace the bottom bracket for sure so I decided to ride it until it gave way.
I give it a clean once more and making sure everything was tight, finished my coffee and get going again. The creaking sound was gone; it was still rough pedalling the bike. I go on slowly covering the next 15km into Siburan and saw Reo and wife driving passed me. I was so happy to meet someone that I can talk too, a friend and supporter of Ride Around Borneo. I had a big order of breakfast, chatted with Reo while scoffing my murtabak and thosai. It’s rare for me to have murtabak in the morning or rather it was my first! We said our goodbye after an hour. I am headed to Kuching while Reo southward to Sibu, his hometown to cast his vote the next day. I am excited as later on, I found out I will be part of that as an "observer"!

After such a heavy breakfast, the going getting slower and I have only 33km to go into Kuching and with almost a broken bottom bracket. At this point of time, I broke the 30 odd km into parts of 5km to make it less painful for me. I cancelled off one part each time I crossed 5km mark and that make it easier for me mentally. While cranking, I saw the sign ‘Panchor Hot Spring’, the same hot spring Simon had suggested Heather and I many months ago for our stopover into Kuching. Now that I am alone, with broken bottom bracket, I wasn’t at all enticed to make the stopover. I crank on slowly until 10km outside Kuching when I stop to take cover from the rain. “Thank God!” Here was where I saw missed call from Francis and Simon. Both had arranged a bicycle shop for me.  I felt good knowing both of them had thought of me. Since Simon is waiting for me 5km outside Kuching, I went straight to Simon cranking like there is no tomorrow and 15 minutes later, I saw him on his dirt bike park on the pavement. From there on, I chased him like I was on the road bike. I had totally forgotten how heavy my bike and how bad the bottom bracket was.

Simon and I arrived at W.G Cycle in Kuching 20 minutes after rendezvous and sat around talking to Michael from Sarawak Tourism Board as Collin the owner of W.G Cycle were busy. After an hour of wait, without getting the bike done, I contacted Francis and was directed to Moh Tak (Ah Siong) bike shop. Simon and I took off from W.G Cycle towards Moh Tak with a quick lunch stopover. This is my first time in Kuching and riding inside the city centre I found Kuching to be really a beautiful city. Kuching reminded me of Singapore in the early 80’s. A very quaint place and I love it already. I cannot wait for my bike to be ready and rode it around Kuching before I leave. It was also a bonus as I got on well with Ah Siong instantly and I have no doubt my bike will be taken off. Nice friendly chap and I like that.

From there on, everything else went quickly. Left the bike at Moh Tak, took a cab to Simon place as he was riding his dirt bike. Upon reaching Simon place, took out my dirty clothing for laundry work, clean up and took a short nap. At night, Greg (Reky Boss is his glamorous name in the red light district) came over and together with Simon, we headed to D11 Steamboat. The most awesome steamboat place I’ve ever been too. The foods there were awesome. I know I’ve been talking a lot about foods and it had become an obsession for me throughout my journey from Kota Kinabalu into Kuching. It’s my fuel that kept me going. I’ll eat anything along the way and if it tasted good, I’ll buy more. Simon brought back a tray of seafood to our table. Greg came back to our table with two plates of smaller seafood creatures. I ate everything that was on the hot plate and in the steaming bowl. I was that hungry and went back to the buffet table for a plate of fried rice and a tub of ice-cream. The only downside about this place was the ventilation and it was freaking hot that we left immediately after dinner and took a short walk by Sarawak River. Despite the fantastic time we had tonight, my biological clock was ticking as I am still on “riding mode”, go to sleep early and be ready early morning. I secretly planned to return for some daytime photo without my two awesome hosts, Greg and Simon.

When we got back to Simon place, my body had already switched off and I went to sleep quickly knowing it was going to be a long day on Sunday. Simon and Greg were going to bring me to the polling centre, long houses, water fall and more. And in two days time, I will be crossing into the unknown Kalimantan! It was a perfect night to end a story.