Cameron Highlands Again

Went on a trip to Cameron Highlands again. This is my third trip to the Highlands within two months!! Man, I must really love the place. Who would'nt? at 15 degrees on the night that I was there it sure beats the 32 degrees at home!

I finally got to see the pasa malam this time round as its a weekend. The sweet corn as usual was excellent!!

Unfortunately we only stayed one night at the Rainbow hotel as it was fully booked. The next day we moved to a hotel across the road which was smaller and noisy at night. The facilities was horrible too. Luckily it was only for a night. I brought Hakim and Chaidir to the BOH tea plantation and Gunung Brinchang Peak and they were very impressed

with the view.

Did'nt get to enjoy the excellent Chinese restaurant this time round as Hakim and Chaidir had to dine at Halal joints. Next time round would probably go with my mother to visit my old neighbours farm.

My Urata Folding bike 20th April

Finally got my Urata folding bike last Tuesday. The lady who backed out on the deal last minute last time round finally willing to let go of the bike.I paid $200 for it.

The parts are pretty run of the mill at this price point($320 for a New bike).

The frame is aluminium with a rear elevated chainstay swingarm. Suspension is provided by a 2" thick elastomer. As the bike has been riden by previous owner for about a year, the elastomer has already soften a lot and when I went for my test ride, it was bobbing like mad!

Definitely have to find a replacement for the elastomer. Maybe a hard coil spring or stiffer elastomer. Drivetrain is low end. Rear D is a super low end Shimano make that needs upgrading. 6 speed cogset, brandless V-brakes and levers, Short black brandless headstem(mountain bike compatible), seat post is a crude maxbonded post on post fixture. Steel crankset with plastic chainguard. Lorc 20" Aluminium rims with steel spokes and rusty nipples. Seat, don't even bother just look at the picture.

Looking forward to upgrading the parts as I think this frame got potential.

The ride was very laid back due to the slack angles, its definitely design to be more of a cruiser for slower relaxing rides than what I am going to turn it into. The tires were these pair of ugly China brand rubber, they were quite soft and tracked ok for PCN riding but they won't be staying for long.

I think i am going to enjoy moding this frame, as I write, its already got new handle bars and a Truvativ road crankset, hehe.

Cycling to Seletar by PCN 5th April 09

Last weekend, I went on another cycling trip by PCN.

This time to Seletar reservoir.

A group of old folks in their Fifties cycling.

My 1st Folding Bike trip on MRT

Last Friday 3rd April I took my folding bike for its first ride on the MRT.

I took the train at around 2pm which was well within the off peak period.

No SMRT staff bothered me throughout the whole ride.

I attracted quite a number of stares from passengers though.

As I suspected before making the trip from home to my office in Changi, I actually end up sweating more than if I walked to the station.

But the time it took to travel to the station was really short and enjoyable.

The time saved was quite significant.

The bike: V-Tec 12inch $240, felt "small" and "underpowered". It also felt a bit "short" as in the wheelbase was tight. When I skipped up a curb, I nearly fell off the bike as the rear end was too close to my center of gravity. I end up bending the seat post because of that "move" and now the seat post can't slide all the way down. Looks like I got some bending to do. Weight wise its around 9.5kgs so it was pretty easy to move it around in the station. A 16 or 20 inch foldy would probably be better to travel for longer rides from the station to the designated point.

Overall, it was quite a good experience travelling with a bike on the MRT. I see the potential in travelling on weekends to places that I want to explore. As sometimes I like to roam around old estates, like boon lay or Tiong Bahru to explore the architecture and old original shops.