"you fall, you rise, you made mistakes, you live, you learn.
You're human, not perfect. You've been hurt, but you're alive.
Think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive - to breathe, to think,
to enjoy, and to chase the things you love.
Sometimes there is sadness in your journey, but there is also lots of beauty.We must keep putting one foot in front of the other even when we hurt,
for we will never know what is waiting for us just round the bend" - unknown
Speedy recovery, my friend. May God Bless You.
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| Mr Sharuddin giving me some hand with the load |
I gave my place a final once-over making sure everything was in place, everything that needed to be covered I already did. One thing I needed to do now was to lug 4 panniers, 1 rack pack and one handlebar bag down from my unit and wait for my friendly service pick-up by unofficial RAB ‘Transportation Manager’, Mr Sharuddin (Shas) who also happens to own and operates one awesome Nasi Padang stall along River Valley Road. Do give it a try if you’re in the area. The place is Eastern Cafe, 472 River Valley Road.
The bicycle that is going around Borneo with me was left at Song Seng Chan Bicycle Shop few days before for servicing and packing. Shas showed up right on time and we quickly loaded up and drove to our first stop, Song Seng Chan, to collect the bicycle and some spares. When we got there, a surprised news awaits me, Uncle Teck spoke to me about closing down the bicycle shop for good but assured me it would definitely after I am done with Ride Around Borneo (RAB). As much as I wanted to leave and start RAB, part of me wanted to stay. I learned a lot from both Uncle Teck and Uncle Chan (Uncle Teck elder brother) whom I look up to as my cycling mentor. When I started training to cycle long distance, I was introduced to the both of them and from them I learned ‘on-the-road bicycle repairs and servicing’. I was caught by surprised and didn’t say anything for a minute or two and since I have some time to spare, I stayed a while longer at the shop just to chat. I was actually holding on to my tears when I was told Uncle Chan was hospitalized battling cancer.
I still remember one time I got in to the shop to service my bicycle and replace my tires and was told by Uncle Chan to do it myself instead. “Soon, you’ll be on your own cycling and I am not going to be there. Now it’s the time for you to practice”.
From then onward, I got back in the
shop regularly in between work to learn the tricks of bicycle repairs with
nothing but with what I have during tours. Uncle Chan taught me
basically what I needed to know when I am out there. Being at the shop alone
observing them working is enough to learn something new every day. I cannot
imagine there will be no Song Seng Chan, a place where many fellow long
distance cyclists meet. I took my leave from Song Seng Chan Bicycle Shop after
about an hour and Uncle Teck parting advice to me, ‘Ride safe. If you feel you
can’t go on, stop and rest. Go slow and
enjoy the ride’. Wise words and I did just that. Later on during my mid stage
of cycling around Borneo, I got an email and FB message that my mentor had
passed away. I know Uncle Chan wants me to continue on. So I did
just that.
I was booked on Air Asia and there wasn’t any real problem at all during the check-in process. Air Asia to me is the best budget airline. No delays and boarding were all done so smoothly and surprisingly we depart on time too. In about 48 hours from now, I will be pedalling around Borneo and to just think of it is just insane and I am doing it for real. Though we are all assigned our seats on-board; I went to the back of the aircraft for easy access to the toilets and more space. Also for the convenience of moving around freely as there weren’t many people seated behind. Ok, also for easy access to foods. Good bye Singapore and a big hello Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.
Like hundreds or thousands others, I am just a regular cyclist who happen to enjoy cycling, seeing and going places (also to eat). I am not a professional cyclist, I don’t race and definitely someone not qualified to give any sort of cycling advice (You can actually find those advices dishing cycling expert easily in many FB Cycling group). I am an adventurer first a cyclist second. Also like thousands others, I started my cycling adventure since very little. Growing up most of my childhood in little known public housing estate, Depot Road, formerly an old British’s Army ammunition dump, I remember when my dad, a cyclist himself brought home a used bicycle from work and my sisters and brothers give it a go. They weren’t too keen on cycling and I gave it a go. I just rode it naturally. I got stuck with it. It was a decent bike for me to ride around after school hours and weekends. I was the only kids then cycling in my housing estate. Slowly, a neighbor and friend of mine bought a bike and another friend and another. From there, I moved on to a brand new ‘Kuwahara BMX’. That was after watching the movie E.T which was shown in the primary school which I attended. After a while, we sort of formed a crazy cycling group riding our BMX where ever it could take us. We go flying over stairs, race up slopes; jump over five, and later ten friends lying on the floor. We rode up and down Mount Faber and pretty much we did everything we can think off at that time. One thing we couldn’t do was to pick up girls with our bikes. I know what a shame eh. With this same young cycling group, we built our own BMX track behind our school- Hua Yi Secondary School, where it was then, now an expressway run on it, the Ayer Rajah Expressway. The track got demolished as fast as we build it as some dick in that school sees it as a bad influence to the rest of the students.
Personally, that was the best thing ever happened to us kids. We took out ‘extreme’ sports further away to then ‘Tuas Reclaimation lands’ in the western part of Singapore. It was one barren land then and no one gave a shat of what we going to do there. The police weren’t there either. The toughest part was to ride our bike there and ride home after jumping and flying on the instantly built track, that how it was done in those days, our little secret cycling adventure. If it isn’t there, we built it just for the fun of it. Besides cycling, we trekked the jungle behind our housing estates, Depot Road, Telok Blangah and Labrador Fort regularly. We set our camp in there too, climbing over the old ammunition depot to pull out tapioca's and cooked it in the camp fire and eat it with the sambal (chilli paste) we brought from home. When we got tired of camping, we rode over to Labrador and jump into the seas from the low hanging cliff and got back up and repeat until we are all exhausted. I remember during one camping outing over the school holidays, 3 police officers came up to our camp ground and instruct us to kill the fire and get back down. It caused a lot of commotions when words of the “raid” got around the estate and all our parents were down below wondering who was up there in the jungle setting up camp fire. My brother and I look at each other and we knew instantly there is no way for the both of us to go down directly to where my mom was waiting anxiously. We made a great escape from the police officers and our friends ran along with us towards our pre-arranged escape route in case of situation like this, the police found our secret camp ground. We didn’t do anything wrong up there and the police officers were there just because someone’s complaints had gone through the police radios and they had to act on it. They didn’t bother to run all the way after us but the feeling on shaking them off our tails was exhilarating.
Where all that happened is now a Central Manpower Procurement Base (CMPB), the jungle we used to trek and camp is now Telok Blangah Hills Park, where the Grand Alkaff Mansion stood and Labrador Park respectively. It was so much fun growing up then. No I-pad, no online gaming, for us the outdoors was our playground.
I had forgotten what cycling joy all about when I was enlisted in the army. I didn’t sit on the bike at all not until after I completed serving the army in 1990 when I started to ride my old rusty bike again with my old army buddy,Yunos. We rode recreationally once in a blue moon and nothing serious. Then bicycling wasn’t as popular and Park Connector was non existence, still we rode where ever we could. We rode into one of the biggest piece of reclamation land which was still work in progress. Slowly work, work related meeting, entertainment, friends and family took away times from cycling. And I stayed inactive for a while.
I guess the thought of going far with my bicycle did cross my mind naturally and it was just that, a thought. I didn’t have the guts or courage to even think of planning an overseas cycling trip not to mention going away for weeks. You know, work, work and work. Slowly things change when the urge to see the world kept coming playing in my mind. I bought a ‘dirt bike’ in 2006 just to give it a try on short distances trip. I rode into Malaysia regularly over the weekends just going anywhere possible, mostly plantation and in 2008, I upgraded my dirt bike with an old Suzuki 4x4 for the same purposes, getting away for an active weekend slash outdoor adventure fix. I drove into the jungle, camp a night or two and just venturing where ever I can. That life to me was awesome. Not a single day driving and camping in the jungle had bored me. I needed adventure fix like this every weekend! What if we were born to live like this, have fun and not a single care about everything else? Slowly I am getting used to the idea of getting back to basic, live life minimally and just have fun. I spoke to Sng Kang, who is also into 4x4 then about shipping our 4x4 to Medan Sumatra and drive it all the way down to Bali. Oh boy, the cost of the petrol alone cost us our arms and legs and we ditched that idea. It didn’t happen. Still, it would be cool to do it but it’s not realistic without any major sponsors.
By
this time, I have already started cycling regularly; this is in view of my
health. I was slightly overweight, I was
diagnosed with high blood and that made kept me thinking. So here I am
experiencing the joy of cycling again. In 2010, I bought a ‘training bike’ from
a friend, a heavier bike to start my own cycling fitness program. I rode
basically everywhere. To meet friends, to run errands, to Johor Baru for lunch
(ok, then I didn’t know that was impossible with my level of fitness) and
sometime I don’t even know why I had brought the bicycle out, the same I still
rode them. And it was around this time I got some cycling friends together and rides every Wednesday night leisurely and with the aim to have supper and rode home after. The name ‘Slackriders’ stuck as most of us are just that, slackers. We don’t understand the concept of going fast on the bicycle? From riding together every Wednesday night, we organized a small overseas short touring trip. It was fun cycling, eating and camping. We go where ever there is good and friendly cycling route and of course food. You can find them at Wednesday Night Bike Ride Facebook Page. Cool bunch of people there.
I was jolted from my sleep when the plane bounced into turbulence and the captain made the announcement for ‘Kevin Khoo’ (I only found out later it was Cabin Crew, that the captain was instructing) to prepare for landing. We arrived in Kota Kinabalu without much problem except for that last 10 minutes of turbulence. On the way to collect my luggage’s and bicycle, I bumped into one friend, Colin whom heading out to one island in Sabah for some serious dive trip. They had more stuffs diving for a week than mine cycling for two months. And you asked why I don’t dive? We got to chat for a short time and parted ways after. I was received by the ever superb staff from Borneo Beachouse who is hosting my entire pre RAB and Post RAB. If you heading to Kota Kinabalu and wants to feel at home, Borneo Beachouse is the place to go. Give it a try! Richie Lee is the person to look for. If you mentioned my name, he might double the price. Just kidding, give it a try, this dude is one of the coolest guys in Sabah.
I was quickly ushered to a waiting van and 10 minutes later, I was in front of one huge bungalow with multiple rooms. After all the excitement and complementary, I realized there wasn’t dinner included in the welcome package! (Oh Richie, Richie, Richie..Why?) I was hungry, famished more like it and decided to take a walk for some fresh air and headed to find a place I know around Tanjung Aru for dinner, just about ten minutes walk from Borneo Beachouse. It was raining a little and if I am a Chinese, it was supposed to be a good luck. Right on, not exactly good luck but a blessing I guess. It was around 8 o’clock in the evening and the road was quite and no less than 2 km after I started walking, I sense one vehicle was following me at a crawling speed from behind. I made a quick turnaround over my shoulder to check what was up. The next thing I remember, the wagon went alongside me and gave a friendly honk. I stopped to check who was it and what he wanted. The driver lean towards the passenger side and asked, ‘Are you Ra?’ Ok, I was caught unaware. I am just a couple of hours in Kota Kinabalu and a stranger asking for me. Ok, Ok I freaked out a little. ‘Yea this is me. What’s up?’ I stepped closer towards the wagon and look into the wagon. ‘I am Alex! I came to look for you! Where are you going?’ I stood there for couple of second trying hard to recall. ‘Alex? How are you? I am going for food!’ I raised my voice a little as Alex was cupping his left ear indicating he cannot hear me.
‘Come in, I’ll drive you’. Alex screams back at me. He looks friendly and someone I thought I might know. So I jump in and we shook hand.
This good man Alex Voo hails from Kota Kinabalu. A
cycling enthusiast and he found and read about me in this blog and so decided
to try his luck to meet me at Borneo Beachouse. A true gentleman he is. Alex
drove me into Tanjung Aru small town for a bite and later on brought me into
the city centre to get myself a SIM card for the phone. Oh how I love Kota
Kinabalu, a city to me in her own ways special. I can feel people here are so
friendly and caring. What more could I ask for on my first night. It was really
a blessing to have met Alex Voo that night and I got myself a new friend in
Kota Kinabalu. I got back to Borneo Beachouse sometime before midnight to sort
up my room for the next two nights stay before the start of RAB. I am all geared up for the big ride and that thought alone was both intimidating and exciting, whichever way you look at it. I slept like a baby that night knowing I won’t be getting this sort of opportunity when my journey to cycle around Borneo starts.
