AhPek Biker - Old Dog Rides Again

Sunday, April 6, 2014

Penang : Big Foot Mountain Ride

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AhPek Biker - Riding Adventures

Penang : Big Foot Mountain Ride

Bukit Mertajam, Penang : 15th March 2014

Medium Group Ride - Bukit Mertajam>Bukit Minyak>Auto-City & back
Distance covered : approx 12.3 km.
Time Start : 8:30 pm Time End : 10:15 pm (inclg. stops for regrouping, photos at Auto-City, etc.)
Duration : approx 1 hr. 45 mins.

Route Recommendations :
1. There is heavy traffic along the route and many motorists are impatient, so do ride with care.
2. Bukit Mertajam has many good eats, don't miss out the Mee Kuah Ketam.
3. Auto-City is like a mini trade fair, if time permits go in and do some shopping.

PRELUDE

The Villa Tanjung Permai Homestay at Batu Kawan, where we stayed a night prior to the 2nd Penang Bridge Ride.

We are up in Penang for the 2nd Penang Bridge Ride, a ride that will be historical for us. But that ride won't be starting from Penang Island and will instead start at Batu Kawan on the mainland. As such, most of us will be staying on the mainland. Being at a "virgin territory" (i.e. where cycling is concerned) we were keen for a pre-ride around here. We thought of riding from Batu Kawan over to the Bukit Mertajam (affectionately know as BM by the locals), but then most of us will be reaching Batu Kawan in the late afternoon and any pre-ride would be a night ride.

Chin did some homework with his BM friends. Riding to BM via the kampong roads in the evening light would be ok, but returning at night would be a bit hazardous as there are many pot-holes and the kampong streets are not lighted. Riding along the highway was also a no-no; traffic is just too heavy there.

As the pre-ride will be a fairly large group of 26 of us including two children, we decided to drive over to meet BM to meet our Penang friends, have dinner there and then have a quick ride. En route we stopped at the Pulau Aman Jetty where there was a nice view of Penang Island. Many sea fish farms can be seen floating in the sea with the Komtar Tower in the background on the far right.

Here we are waiting for dinner to be served at the coffee-shop in BM that has the cute name of Kha Khi Nang Coffee Shop, which means "Close Relatives Coffee Shop". It can't get more friendlier than this.

You must be wondering why this blog is titled the Big Foot Mountain Ride. Okay, there are no Big Foot here. It's just a play on the Hokkien name for BM which is "Tua Sua Kah" meaning "Big Mountain Foot", you get the meaning right?

And I was in for a pleasant surprise! Here too I met Gary; it's been a while since I rode with him & his family (i.e. at the Penang Laksa Hunt Ride). If I am an AhPek, then Gary is even an older one. I salute you Gary, it's great to meet you & you family again!

THE RIDE

View Bukit Mertajam Night Ride Route Map in a larger map

Ride route - Bukit Mertajam>Bukit Minyak>Auto-City & back.
As the following day will be the important 2nd Penang Bridge Ride, our hosts decided decided to make the ride a short one riding from BM along some of the main roads to Auto-City and then back. It's not a long ride but at least some of us can now say we have rode in BM before.

With dinner over, Gary led us of on the ride. Gary is an active member of the group called the BM Night Rider; they ride regularly every Thursday night.

Gary's son, Timothy will be the sweeper and Larry will be marshalling. Together they will keep us safe during our ride.

We started of at the residential roads around the Kota Permai area...

... then ventured forth to the main trunk roads. Traffic in BM is heavy and sometimes slow, because of this drivers get very impatient so we had to ride with extra care.

Cute T-shirts; one of a sniggling crocodile and another of an smiling orangutan.

All too soon, we were at Auto-City, and fortunately too as it had started to drizzle.

Auto-City is like a permanent mini trade fare. Inside there are stalls selling all sorts of things and outside there are large individual specialty shops. It's the happening place on the mainland of Penang. While most of us waited outside, s few of us went in to do some light shopping...

... and some had fun with the Predator statues at the entrance.

Then entrance arch into the is uniquely designed to look like the Penang Bridge; this is more apparent if one stands at the side and look upwards.

The route back was the same one that we took on the way here.

Of course like most of rides, it ended with an eats session!

Related Blogs :

2nd Penang Bridge Merdeka Ride 16th March 2014

A momentous moment for many of us, taking part in a historical cycling event
- riding over the new 2nd Penang Bridge.

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Perak : Taiping Heritage Fun Ride

You are at - Jotaro's Blog / AhPek Biker / Cycling Malaysia / Perak / Taiping Heritage Fun Ride

AhPek Biker - Riding Adventures

Perak : Taiping Heritage Fun Ride

Taiping & Kuala Sepetang, Perak : 30th March 2014

Public Ride Event : Taiping Zoo>Matang Museum>Kuala Sepetang>Matang Mangrove Forest>Aulong>Taiping City Hall>Taiping Zoo (Taiping Lake Gardens).

Distance: 40 km. | Level: Medium
Time : 7:50 am - 10:50 am
Time Taken : 3:00 hrs. (inclg. stops at checkpoint, refreshments & photos)

Route Recommendations :
1. The Taiping Lake Gardens is the oldest & one of the most beautiful parks in Malaysia with centuries old Rain Trees having their sweeping branches arching across the roads.
2. If time permits spend more time at Kuala Sepetang - a town unfettered by the passage of time.
3. Pop in for a short visit at the Matang Mangrove Forest Reserve, it is one of the largest of it's kind.
4. The Khay Hor Charcoal Factory at Kuala Sepetang is a must! See how charcoal is manufactured from mangrove wood the old traditional way that have been passed down from centuries ago.
5. Try out the prawn noodles at Mee Udang Mak Jah, these are good and relatively cheap.

PRELUDE

Cooling it on a Rain Tree at the Kinta Riverside.

I have not rode that many times in the Silver State of Perak. But of late it seems to be drawing me to enjoy it's quiet charms. On the way up to Penang for the 2nd Bridge Ride, Sin (of the hApPy HaPpY blogs) & me stopped by Ipoh for good riding stint with Kookkeong who was back there as it was his hometown.

Now I am going up again to take part in the Taiping "Heritage Town" Fun Ride. The name is quite long, so I will just call it the Taiping Heritage Ride.

This was the ride that had to be postponed as a last minute confirmation of the 2nd Penang Bridge Ride date meant that the two rides clashed. The Taiping ride organisers graciously changed their dates. So here we are, two weeks later, ready to enjoy what Taiping has to offer us - and WE DID REALLY ENJOY THE PLACE!

Personally, I had two pleasant encounters.

The first was James from Sydney. He had contacted me through my blogs and was in Malaysia. A nice and easy going person, he joined us for a couple of rides including this one.

The second one was meeting up with Khee & his family. He follows my blogs closely.

I am most thankful to people like him and James; they are an inspiration for me to continue writing as best as possible.

THE RIDE

Ride Route: Taiping Zoo>Matang Museum>Kuala Sepetang>Matang Mangrove Forest>Aulong>Taiping City Hall>Taiping Zoo (Taiping Lake Gardens)

It was a fairly long fun ride that took us forty kilometres from the Taiping Zoo to Kuala Sepetang (formerly known as Port Weld). The route was interesting in it's diversity of the large Rain Trees of the Taiping Lake Gardens to the mangrove trees of the Matang Mangrove Forest Reserve; from the warm town of Taiping to the fishing village of Kuala Sepetang and then through the narrow roads around the Aulong new village.

Distance: 40 km. | Level: Medium

Kicking off from the zoo, we rode through the beautiful Lake Gardens. I just cannot get enough of the beauty of this park. It is the oldest public park in Malaysia, that has huge old Rain Trees with overhanging branches arching over the roads. I will have to come again another day and just cycle at this park and to explore it's interesting corners.

Out of the Lake Gardens and into main street Taiping, i.e. Jalan Kota. Except for a few new high-rise buildings, the old town centre seems unchanged. Life here is at a slower pace here; less hectic, no rush.

The Siang-Malam ("Day-Night") food court, as it's name implies it's a place where one can get to eat 24/7!

Further behind this is the Old Market which has it's own story to tell. Taiping is the wettest town in Malaysian; it rains so often that some locals bet on the time that the rain starts! This is where the Old Market comes in - from one particular corner valley of it's roof, rain water drips down onto a paper laid onto a table. The moment the water spot reaches six inches in diameter, that's the time the rain has officially started; no arguments there.

The first climb, just at the fringe of the old town. The town centre may seem unchanged but the outskirts of Taiping have definitely grown. The last time I was here was like ten years ago; now I can hardly recognise the place.

At Simpang, a small town that used to be an important cross-road of the old trunk road, i.e. Federal Route 1. Here, long distance buses used to stop for passengers to stretch their legs and eat. Of course, back then this junction was a much narrower one.

8:30 am - At the first check-point at the Kota Ngah Ibrahim, now converted into the Matang Museum. My friends posing here for a group photo. Some of them are from Penang and a few from Kuala Lumpur, all coming here for a rare public ride event in Taiping.

The thing about fun rides are that most of us are here for the... er... fun! Like this family on a tandem bicycle. The unseen mother was keeping a watchful eye on another bicycle at the back.

A cute bunny cyclist.

Friends taking a selfie. There was no hurry to quickly complete the ride; it was just fun!

Unicyclist Dirk & his friends.

9:00 am - We are into Kuala Sepetang, cycling along the streets of this quaint old town that time seems to have passed by.

A little further on, the 2nd checkpoint at the Matang Mangrove Forest Reserve. Mangrove trees are used to make charcoal, one of the supporting industries in this area. It takes almost thirty years for the mangrove trees to reach a suitable size for making charcoal.

En route back to Taiping, for some the distance was taking its toll, a helping hand was indeed helpful.

This father and his young son seems to be taking it well in their strides.

The route took us over the North-South Higway...

... onto plantation roads besides the highway ...

... and even under the highway!

A fair part of the route took us onto the narrow roads of oil palm plantations.....

..... where at one point the ride marshals had to stop a herd of cows to let us pass through.

Hah! This is a first. Cows stopping for cyclists!

This brought back memories of my cycling along the Oudong Trail in Cambodia where we just bulldozed our way through a herd of on-rushing cows.

With a short stint at Aulong New Village, we were back at roads lined by giant Rain Trees again. Yes! We must be at the vicinity of Taiping Old Town.

This is Jalan Muzium Hulu, where the three renown old schools (St. George's Institution, King Edward VII and the Taiping Convent) of Taiping are located.

The third and final check-point, the Taiping Town Council Building.

With a short detour to the foot hills of Bukit Larut and we are almost at the Finish line.

Bukit Larut (formerly known as Maxwell Hill) is know by the local Cantonese as "Kopi San" meaning Coffee Mountain. I wonder, were coffee ever grown there?

And we are at the FINISH Line.

Well done everyone!

POST RIDE

After the finish, at the stage area of the Taiping Zoo entrance, there was a lucky draw.
In between, we were treated to a performance of Classical Chinese music by three cute young ladies; one of them playing the Pipa, another the Ruan (Chinese lute) and a third the Erhu (Chinese violin).

And three zesty girls gave a lively Classical Indian Dance performance.

Later we drove back to Kuala Sepetang where we had this delicious prawn noodles at Mee Udang Mak Jah.

And popped in for a visit of the Khay Hor Charcoal Factory. This is an interesting place that shows how charcoal are made from the surrounding mangrove trees in an ancient traditional way. Do go there for a visit, it's surprisingly educational.

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