Race Report (Sorta) : Kenyir Lake International Triathlon 2013

Well, this isn't gonna be a very thorough race report or maybe it doesn't qualify as one. But I'm just gonna briefly mention as my observation as a spectator and casual photographer. Well, I'm gonna kick in a bit of our "road trip" adventure too. ;)

The DR gang at Kenyir Tri 2013.
When all is done.

It all started a few months back when the DR gang were on the subject of triathlons. Kenny was aiming to do his soon and the others were still quite apprehensive of the idea. The idea came about when someone suggested of doing relays for the Kenyir International Tri 2013. Meaning a group of 3 participants doing each discipline of swim, bike and run respectively. This was just to get into the idea of what triathlons was all about and not to "kill" ourselves as we know we aren't ready to do individuals yet.

Team 1 was formed earlier on with Mark on swim, Kenny on bike and Yvonne on the run. There was supposedly a Team 2 with me in it. Unfortunately that didn't happen as I wasn't able to commit due to personal reasons that period of time and we couldn't get anyone else to commit.

With that, Team 1 went ahead for registration.

Closer to the date, Kenny invited me to tag along to Kenyir. I immediately said YES! Although I was disappointed that I wasn't able to take part but at least I get to support my buddies and to absorb the whole Tri atmosphere.

Our morning started early on a Saturday morning. Kenny, Von and myself headed to Ipoh to fetch Mark and we headed straight to Kenyir from there. Our road trip was a long one (combined of almost 8 hours driving) but we never felt short of topics to yak about throughout. From highways to challenging bumpy trunk roads, we finally reach our destination at the Kenyir Lake Resort.

Getting the race pack.

Arrived at Kenyir Lake Resort!

After registration and getting the race packs, we headed to our accommodation for the night. We stayed at a boat house called Bahtera. Unique, I would say. However it was a "cooking oven" at noon and freezing cold at night. But at least the beds were firm and nice to sleep on.

The Bahtera. Boat house we stayed on. 

The short nap...

I took a short nap while the guys did a short recee around the race route cum "warm up". By 7pm, we headed back to the resort for dinner and briefing by the organizers. We were surely entertained by Uncle Chan during the briefing with his hilarious one liners. He surely brought the house down.

Taken during carbo laoding dinner. 

Once briefing was over, we headed straight back to our accommodation and had a good night rest. I quickly knocked off in an instant.

By 6am, many were awake and I could hear loads of moving noises. Kenny was already up and prepping and so was Mark. However, Yvonne was still asleep! I tried to wake her up and her only reply was "My run is gonna be around 11am onwards. No need to wake up so early la...." I laughed my head off at her comment. She slowly made her way up as I slowly prepped my camera gears.

Kenny gazes to the horizon.
Added 10 secs to it?

The DR relay team.
Kenny , Yvonne & Mark.

We headed to the race site and it was really a sight to be behold. Many were already starting to warm up near the lake and getting their arms stamped. I started shooting away as I observed the whole event.

  

All I can say is this : I've seen many triathlon events on video and I'm always been inspired by them. But seeing this event right before my eyes is really an eye opening experience for me. I'm truly humbled by all of the preparation that is needed to do a triathlon and I salute every triathlete's hardwork and dedication. As a spectator, it was very daunting just to see one swim 1.6km, bike 45km & run 11km. Back to back; right under the hot sun and with a throw in of hills, hills and hills. I've found a new found respect to this sport.

And here are the full sets of photos taken during the event.

Misc shots : https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.300019303460274.1073741826.215755491886656&type=3

Swim : https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.300024763459728.1073741827.215755491886656&type=3

Bike : https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.300033053458899.1073741828.215755491886656&type=3

Run : https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.300040293458175.1073741829.215755491886656&type=3

All and all, I have to say it was an exciting event and I've learned much from it. I'm sure my buddies did too. So the next question is, when will it be my turn? I'm not lying when I say that I'm eager to do a tri. Many have shown their support and said I could do it. Well, one step at a time. It takes planning and it's definitely in one of my "to do list" in the future. In the mean time, I've still much to improve in my running techniques. Of course I still have to master my biking skills and my swimming techniques as well.

I'll skip the part when we were returning home. It was a long tiring journey home but we had loads of happy and positive memories of Kenyir Tri. Till the next round. ;)

Cycling round Janda Baik

Woohoo~! More cycling adventures!

Last week, Kenny and I were planning where we gonna cycle on our next cycling adventure. Mainly we want to destress from work and enjoy the long weekend as well. Janda Baik has been our mind for quite some time and we took the opportunity go venture there.

We started our journey pretty early. Kenny picked me up from my place at 6am and we quickly loaded our bikes on the back of his car.

Lock and load!

 While driving up, a heavy thunderstorm hit us. Oh dear, we thought what next. We've already reached Janda Baik but we helplessly drove around waiting for the rain to stop. We hung out at the Cheringin Hills Resort for a while but the rain just got heavier. In the end, we just decided to just head for an early breakfast at Andak's Place.

Yummy fresh Nasi Lemak. 

Andak's Place was just opening for business and their piping hot food was just leaving the kitchen. The aroma of Nasi Lemak is so mouth watering; especially eating during a cool, rainy weather. It was just so yummy. Having a nice breakfast as we waited for the rain to stop was just plain amazing.

Hi Gary, Where is Spongebob?

Amazing scenery after the rain.

Breakfast at Andak's Place.

The rain stopped about 8.15am and we quickly finished our food and drinks. We quickly set up our bikes and we officially started our journey by 8.45am.

The weather was pretty gloomy and the roads are still wet. But at least the wind is cooling making our ride enjoyable. Cycling around Janda Baik is filled serenity, peace and quiet.

We cycled around one of the inner loops (around 12-13km) of Janda Baik and also branched out to smaller roads to check out some spectacular views and recee some of the homestays and resorts that are available there.

Silly me. I got so excited fiddling around my camera and my newly D-I-Y monopod to capture some video that I've forgotten to get some info of the places that we went to. Anyway, enjoy the pictures of the resorts we visited but I can't tell you the name! (Shame me...)

Kenny wanted to jump in. A private pool at one of the resorts visited.

A Balinese concept Resort. Breathtaking.

Another resort with a "boat". Actually it's just a premium room for another resort. The boat aka room is actually standstill. And I'm just the additional garden deco statue wannabe. 

Passing Lorong Datok Panglima. 

As we are cycling along, we ventured into many small roads blindly to see where it would lead to. We came across this river bend and took the opportunity for some shots. Since it rained so heavily before, the river water is flowing quite rapidly that we couldn't cross over. No choice but to back track to somewhere else...

The usual faux paus picture with Kenny.

Of course I need one too!

 We continued on and headed to one of our intended locations. Saufiville Boutique Resort is located quite high above a hill and it takes about 2km to cycle up from their first signboard.

The first signboard.

Kenny and I made a bet and see how much can we cycle up hill until we have to get down and push our bikes. The hill is notoriously steep; averaging around 30-45 degrees. To us runners running uphill is quite daunting and we thought cycling up should be easier. How wrong we were!

Out of the 2km, we got off our bikes after 50M! How embarrassing but we had a good laugh. The hill was really steep.

Push our bikes into the clouds.

Amazing breathtaking views on the way up to Saufiville.

 I think it took us a good 30 minutes to push our bikes all the way up. The air is thin and breathing is hard. Not helping much as I was recording myself giving loads of gibberish commentary about going up the hill. But alas, the view on the top is rewarding.

Saufiville Boutique Resort is beautiful and extremely quiet. The resort only has 6 rooms available for guests to stay and the price range starts from RM260 onwards per night. Apparently there is an attached dorm available but I didn't check it out. Still out of breath.

One of the main highlights of the resort is the spectacular view from the terrace to see an amazing infinity pool against a mountain backdrop. It feels like heaven!

We had our short break of snacks and we headed straight down to "University of Life".

The infinity pool with a view; jawdropping!

 The "University of Life" is actually the home of political writer S.H. Alattas. We were actually fortunate enough to meet the man himself and helped ourselves to some food and drinks served. The compound of his house is huge and one can easily get lost. Mr. Alattas was busy with some matters but asked us freely walk around the compound.

Hi you lazy Kitty.

A short break and chat with Mr. Alattas himself. 

Walking round. This is just a tiny portion of his property!

A photo before we head off. 

 It was close to noon when we left the premises. Kenny and I decided we just need to clock in some mileage and cycle back into the inner loop before heading for lunch at Andak's again.

One of the many places we passed.

Done! Can't believe we cycled to all this places. Mostly just passed.

 It was fairly still an easy ride but at a faster pace. We passed many spots but only stop momentarily a few times for some photos and enjoy the view. We wanted to continue on but since we had a late start, we decided we shall leave it for next time.

Obligatory shot. :P

 We were back at Andak's by 1pm or so and had a quick lunch. But first, we need to wash our bikes clean. It was a tiring day of cycling. Although time went by fast, we surely enjoyed ourselves on those few hours. Sure was a good "de-stress" moment for the both of us.

Cleaning time!

And now the "silly" video I made with my so called DIY monopod attached to my handle bars. Don't mind me talking gibberish. I think the lack of oxygen had me rambling nonsense. :P

My cycle journey from Batu Caves to Dataran Merdeka

And so it begins. My first bicycle ride (out of my comfort zone) out of my housing area to town. To a serious cyclist, this sounds like such a kacang putih ride, but to me its an adventure and an experience. Kenny and I have been talking for weeks about cycling together since I got my bike about a month back. We've been making plans about where to go but I suggested that I should start with something simple just for me to get the hang of it. We got pretty excited especially since we watched Premium Rush the night before with Vons and we couldn't stop talking about cycling around town (like bike messengers).

Our journey started on a gloomy but cooling Sunday morning from my house. Kenny came by with his road bike (a very light carbon fiber one nonetheless). I had to keep stressing to Kenny to please jaga me cause MTB is heavier and slower; plus I'm not really a fast rider. We started moving around 7.30am and headed straight to Batu Caves as a first point. 

Its mandatory to at least get a shot right in front of the Batu Caves steps to officiate our cycling adventure. 

I have been staying around Batu Caves for years but I hardly ventured into the temple area. Both of us riding our bikes in made us seemed like tourist!

After the quick shot, we quickly started our journey and took the inner roads of Sentul through some industrial and housing area. It was a slow and easy ride, going through some of the more serene parts of Sentul. Modern houses blended in with wooden ones amongst the peaceful environment. Since development is at a rapid rate, the former seems more abundantly seen. Kenny headed with me tailing behind. I can see  Kenny is going at a very easy pace, judging from his gears. Where else I'm pedaling more (like a hooligan) trying to catch up. Not complaining though. More leg muscle workout for me.

Before you know it, we reached out somewhere heading towards Bulatan Pahang and headed straight towards Balai Seni Lukis (National Art Gallery) and Istana Budaya.

Kenny at the Balai Seni Lukis; just next to the entrance.

I preferred the more unconventional shot of doing the Gangam Style pose. I seemed not impressed as I seemed half awake.

I was telling Kenny it has been years that I've been to Balai Seni Lukis. I used to frequent this place a lot as an Art student. Life in college has always been a relaxing one. I used to walk around the facility and admiring the artworks for hours! It was a good place to do my research work and they used to serve the best coffee around at the cafeteria. Unfortunately that was closed down some time back. I think I should make another visit again soon to see what exhibition they have installed.

Next up was Istana Budaya where major performance arts are usually held. Since I've never had the chance to actually catch a show (basically because of ticket prices/ timing issues) I decided to do my own silly performance right in front of their doorstep. I dub thy play "AC jumps around Bike". Dumb play name! I amused myself easily.

My dance around my bike threatened the clouds to burst into tears. One round enough! 

Next we head on to nearby Tasik Titiwangsa. It was still pretty gloomy but the weather was fine. My earlier rain dance did not come into fruition but blessed with cooling winds instead. Perfect! It was a joyful sight with runners/ joggers/ roller bladders / aunties and uncles doing tai chi around. Not many cyclist but there were few. We hanged out a bit to take in the scenery.

A time to chill and ponder. Soooo relaxing!

Kenny and his carbon fiber road bike. Put it side by side with mine, I feel like a small fly.

This was supposedly where our journey is supposed to end and head off for breakfast. Kenny just looked at me and said "Enough ka? Wanna go Dataran?". "Are you kidding me? Don't tell me this is the end. Let's go!", I exclaimed with a glee on my face. Since it was still pretty early and the traffic was smooth, we headed down Dataran via Chow Kit.

When I say smooth, it was UNBELIEVABLY smooth. There were hardly any cars around, making our journey easy. It was quite an unusual sight. How come traffic in KL can't be this smooth during weekdays? As we were cycling along, we were talking about the routes we were travelling on. "Hey, this looks bloody familiar. Dammit SCKLM route! Imagined the distance we ran!" I said. We laughed and reminiance our training together with our Dutamas Runners group. Imagine all the hard work we put into this one marathon!

As we slowly approached Dataran, there were some road barriers. Got me wondering what was going on. When we arrived, it was the rehearsals for the upcoming Merdeka celebrations.

School kids instead of the usual civil servants. Cut cost ka?

We watched as school kids rehearse for their performances. It was quite a sight as the kids rehearse but I kinda pity them that the sun is about to come up as well.

Kenny right in front of Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad. 

We were hanging around freely in front of Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad. This was where we started for SCKLM (Standard Chartered KL Marathon) and memories were still fresh even after 2 months. Being goofy as I always am, I asked Kenny to take a shot of me with my "patriotic" pose. Just a normal standard salute. Fortunately, there were no Janji Capati banners hanging around. Malaysia flag sudah cukup enough.

I stand salute!

My alang-alang vision of becoming a model. Sai miang!

 After having enough of photo shooting, we headed to St. John's Church for our final stop and to look for coffee. Took us less than 10 minutes but traffic at church was busy. A quick shot and we straight head to Jalan H.S.Lee.

Quick one at St. John's. 

Upon arriving at Syarikat Kopi LOKL, we were met with dissapointment. It's not open! KNS... But it's ok. I soon found out that it's only open during working hours and rumours have it that Cheryl Samad sometimes pop by to serve coffee. Wonder if it's true. It's located within a backpacker's lodge, BACKHOME. BACKHOME is one of my favourite places in KL. I usually stay here the night before SCKLM. They have such wonderful services and beautiful dorms (dorms doesn't even sound fitting. More like a high class lodge). It's no wonder they are rated 3rd in Asia by Backpacker's World. Perhaps one day I'll blog about this.

Syarikat Kopi LOKL signboard right outside.

No Kopi, then drink water lor....

Since there is no coffee and the heat is beginning to soar, we decided just to head back to Jalan Ipoh for Dim Sum. We quickly rode back via Chow Kit again. In our heads, we still had many thoughts from our Premium Rush movie the night before. How awesome it is when your daily job is just to cycle around town just to deliver packages. We berangan-angan for a while, later realizing that it will never happen in KL judging from crazy traffic.

Premium Rush ala KL style.
Please don't try this in real life and it's not even advisable.
Safety first. This was shot leaning against a static bus.

Our journey to Jalan Ipoh was a quick one. Guess we were extremely hungry. We parked our bikes near to our table and quickly ordered. Again the crazy looks from other people! I think they think we are crazy people. Oh well, we live our own life.

Yummy!

Yummy HK Chee Cheong Fun. Fat prawns!

As usual, I would have my HK Chee Cheong Fun. Out came this large plate of Cheong Fun with large prawns soaking in soy sauce and oil. I didn't care much for diet then. I was famished! We finished our food quickly as we made breakfast arrangements with Vons who is doing her LSD at FRIM. Yes, our dimsum were pre-breakfast. How sinful! Anyways, I claim it was "Cheat Day" anyhow.

Our journey back was pretty quick with no stops. We reached home before 12pm and immediately drove to Dutamas to meet up with Vons and surprisingly Capt Khoo decided to join in last minute. We had our usually "blow water" talk and our morning adventures. It was a great day and I can't wait for the next one. Although the whole journey was only about 40km , it was good enough experience for me to prep myself for future cycle rides. I've already been hinted for Frasers, Janda Baik and Genting Sempah. Well, I'm OK as long as someone leads me. Till then, I'll continue training and exploring my neighbourhood.

The feeling when you are new to biking

If you are new to biking or experiencing the same thing as a veteran, you know what I'm saying. ;)

Lately I have been doing loads of leisure rides myself and did I mentioned that I have the great "pleasure" of staying in a neighbourhood with loads of hill elevations? It's pretty exciting at the beginning but it starts to kill you 1/3 of the way.

But look at this way. Cycling up hills is a challenge; same like when we run uphills to train for speed. Your lungs are fully opened, you breathe in more as you slowly pace up and you get to enjoy a great view at the top. Or for some people, the thrill of speeding down the hill.

NOTE TO SELF: I got a lot of serious questionable stares from people thinking who is this lunatic huffing and puffing like a wounded dog. Try breathing in and out discreetly when cycling uphill.

Perhaps I'm new to this but I'm not really crazy about speeding downhill. Foremost, I'm a pussy when it comes to speeding down. Will my brakes able to stop in time? Will my weight create a lot of unnecessary momentum? Will a car suddenly swerve in? All these thoughts will flash before me eyes. Call me a whimp but I rather be safe.

NOTE TO SELF AGAIN : Don't come down the hill with one hand on the brakes and one hand drinking from a water bottle. I have to learn this the hard way. I had an embarrassing accident last week when I slammed the brakes suddenly when some kid surprised me with a loud firecracker bang! I had what I call a "SPECTACULAR" frontal swung forward landing over my bike handles but with the tail of the bike slamming onto my back. No prefect 10 for that. I'm just glad that it's not my face for the landing.

In the meantime, I'm still cycling around housing areas. Even that is a challenge in itself. Vehicles speeding in a housing community is plain crazy. SPEEDING, yes you read it correctly. Where every Proton car thinks they are Ferraris.

Whatever it is, be safe on the road and don't let ego overcome your judgement.
It's OK to be a "pussy" on the road sometimes; save the energy to be a Tiger in the *ahem*...