Summary Of Mersing (Air Papan) Ride On 8th Aug 09 (Sat)~9th Aug 09 (Sun)

Total Distance: 320km [Woodlands 888-Mersing (Air Papan)-Woodlands 888]
Average Speed: 20~25km/h

Riders:
1. CK (Polygon)
2. Abg Ali (Colnago)
3. Mann (Ridley)
4. George (Scott)
5. Simon (Planet X)
6. Guanster (Token)
7. Lawrence (Orbea)
8. Abg Sani (Colnago)
9. Suresh (Token)
10. Denise (Viner)
11. Uncle Yang (Pinarello)
12. David Jr (Louis Garneu)
13. Abg Mat (Polygon)
14. Nasir (Scott)
15. Adam (Basso)
16. Omar (Schwinn) - (S'pore~Mersing)
17. Amir (Moser) - (S'pore~Mersing)
18. Noor (Wheeler) - (Accompany Till Ulu Tiram)
19. Paul (WF-1) - (Accompany Till Kota Tinggi)
20. Leman (Support Vehicle - S'pore~Mersing)

Day 1 - 8th Aug 09 (Sat)
4.30am - Meet-up at Woodlands 888 for breakfast.
5.30am - Ride kick-off after route & safety briefing by Mann & headed to S'pore & Johore checkpoint for immigration clearance.
6am - Riders had currency conversion at Money Changer opposite Plangi Plaza. 6.30am - Journey commenced to Mersing with the 1st pitstop bout 40km away in Kota Tinggi. We maintained speed at 25km/hr with some riders shoot off at 30km/hr. Noor detour when we reached Ulu Tiram.
8am - Reached Kota Tinggi for 20min break. Most of us were 1st timer to Mersing & very excited with the impending journey. Paul detour at Kota Tinggi.
8.20am - Ride proceed. These is where the fun begins... with rolling hills stretched over 60km to Tenggaroh, our lunch point. Along these stretch, we had 10min of pitstops every 20km. The weather was kind to us & the ride to Tenggaroh was a breeze. About 10km before we reached the destination, one of our rider, Guanster had 2 mishaps befall on him... 1st his rear wheel damaged beyond repair after hitting an object on the road. Luckily we had a spare wheelset in the support vehicle. After changing the rear wheelset he proceed the ride, only to have the 2nd mishap... while cycling, Guanster was stung by an unknown insect on his left thigh.
11.30am - Reached Tenggaroh for lunch. Sadly Guanster condition worsen due to the sting... his whole body swell with rashes. All of us was very worried for Guanster. Mann consulted a policeman who happened to be there, for the nearest clinic & Leman fetched Guanster to the clinic by support vehicle. We had a long lunch break while waiting for Leman & Guanster back from the clinic.
1.30pm - Leman & Guanster rejoined the group. Guanster was given a jab at the clinic to prevent fit & was referred to a Hospital in Jemaluang about 20km away. We proceed the ride while Guanster in support vehicle with Leman, headed to the hospital for further treatment. At the pitstop, we were treated with a sumptuous makan of Rambutans... courtesy of Abg Sani. The terrain at this stretch is not as bad as the previous one... with 2 very steep downhill (we're not aware that these 2 downhills will be an uphill task on home run). At this stage we were quite weary but happy coz Mersing was within sight. At the same time we were also sad for Guanster.
2.30pm - We reached the hospital in Jemaluang to meet Guanster & Leman. Guanster was given 2 jabs there. Guanster was feeling unwell so Leman fetched him straight to our Chalet at Air Papan to check-in 1st & rest. We proceed our ride in very relax pace to Mersing about 20km away.
3.30pm - Reached Mersing town. We decided to have makan here & do a bit of sight seeing in the town. Makan was cheap & good especially the cold Chendol. It's like heaven sent, after about 150km ride. The whole journey towards Mersing, Lawrence, George & Guanster (before he was stung) took turn to lead the pack while Abg Ali remained as sweeper.
5pm - Ride proceed to Air Papan about 12km from Mersing town. We ride with average speed of 15km/h, enjoying the sight of the town & the route leading to Air Papan. The scenery toward Air Papan was very picturesque with padi field, fruit plantations, streams & kampong houses along the way.
6pm - Reached our final destination... Teluk Godek Beach Resort. We booked 3 chalets with 5 riders to a room while Leman, Amir & Omar (Leman's sons), booked a bigger chalet to accommodate his other family members who came along by the support vehicle. Guanster was resting in the chalet when we reached. We were very pleased to see the swell on Guanster's body had subsided. He felt better & decided to ride on home run the next day.
8pm - The group had a buffet dinner & TC session, discussing & changing experience about the day's ride. Apart from Guanster's mishaps, the ride was smooth, pleasant & enjoyable one.
10pm - Most of us already knock-off in bed, recuperating for next day home run. But some still having TC session while David Jr & Uncle Yang having their private "Happy Hour"... drinking session.

Day 2 - 9th Aug 09 (Sun)
5am - Most of us already awake from a good sleep. We chat outside the chalets before packing up. We decided to have our breakfast at Mersing town before the home run. Guanster felt much better & most of the swell had subsided. He was very confident to complete the home run... & we were very glad with his progress.
6am - Move off to Mersing town for breakfast minus Leman & family because they intend to head straight home by car. Rode at snail pace enjoying the cool air along the kampong road. Well, needless to say that some of us still felt sleepy & rode with eyes half opened.
6.45am - Reached Mersing town & took some group photos for remembrance. Then we headed straight to a makan place for breakfast. After breakfast, Guanster, Lawrence & CK decided to visit a temple to pray for the group safe journey home. Although the group consisted from different background, it's a sweet gesture from them to pray for all.
9am - Home run proceed. Once again, Lawrence & George took turn to lead the pack & Abg Ali as sweeper. We decided to have the 1st pitstop 40km away at Tenggaroh. But looking at the group condition from the previous day ride & with weariness still shown on some of the faces, it looks like a tough day ahead. Nevertheless, we stick to our initial plan. We reached Jemaluang after about 20km of ride, we decided to have a pitstop. Regardless of how tough the journey that lies ahead, mentally we set to complete the whole loop... encouraging & supporting one another. The stretch between Jemaluang & Tenggaroh is the worst... with 2 intimidating climbs. All of us managed to clear the stretch even though it was an uphill task considering the condition that some of us were in. With a very strong headwind along these stretch, made the ride even tougher.
11.30am - Reached a makan place at Tenggaroh. We had our lunch & lengthy rest here. Guanster's condition worsen with rashes appeared again all over his body... maybe due to the heat & perspiration. Denise suggested that he took the cab home. The group agreed with the decision & Guanster unwillingly heed our advice. Abg Mat agreed to accompany Guanster back to Singapore by cab.
1pm - Ride proceed to Kota Tinggi minus Guanster & Abg Mat. Mann took over the sweeper role from Abg Ali. The group decided to have a 10min pitstop every 10km along these 60km stretch of rolling hills. At 1 of the pitstop, we were treated with bunches of bananas courtesy of Suresh, bought from a street stall.
4.30pm - Reached Kota Tinggi junction but due to some miscommunication, the leading pack (Lawrence, George & David Jr) was separated from the group. Suresh suggested to go in Kota Tinggi town for makan while Simon voluntarily decided to look for the lost pack. Simon managed to find them & rejoined the group.
5.30pm - Ride proceed to Ulu Tiram. The traffic towards Ulu Tiram was unusually very heavy.
6.15pm - The group reached Ulu Tiram. It was later learnt that Uncle Yang was left behind with punctures on both tires about 1km away from the pitstop. Due to miscommunication & oversightedness among the sweeper (Mann) & the rear pack (Nasir, David Jr & Abg Sani), Uncle Yang's problem had gone unnoticed. Uncle Yang rejoined the group safely about 30min later.
7pm - Proceed the final stretch to Johore checkpoint. Although it was getting dark at this stretch & most of the riders' legs were getting loose, it was a very satisfying ride because the whole loop of our Mersing trip was almost complete & home is getting nearer.
8.15pm - Cleared both checkpoints... HOME SWEET HOME...!!!

Overall, it was a very challenging trip for the group as most of us were 1st timer to Mersing... a different experience altogether from our previous adventures on Malaysian road. Apart from Guanster's mishaps & few hiccups especially on the home run... the trip was very enjoyable one. We went home tired but full of satisfaction coz we had conquered MERSING...!!!

Next destination to be embarked... Malacca...???

EVERY RIDE TELLS A STORY...!!!

Had fun during the trip even though it was juz a short one.. Btw, i'll be out of action for quite some time to come. The same night u were all air papan i was admitted TTSH. The doc at TTSH diagnosed me as having mild bronchitis. So i cant really cycle as much as i want. Have to take it slowly.. n no more smoking... I'll be back soon....

yo bro Noor...... take ur time on the cycling thingy. Health comes 1st. Hope u recover soon. Take care.

It great that everybody back home safely.
I wanted to thank Mann, Ck, Ali, Guan etc planning this great Mersing trip, planing the route, booking of the chalet, food, drink.. thank Leman's and family for the vehicle support.. thank the sweeper.. It NOT a easy job to make this voluntary & non profit organize trip happen.. and a plus point for such a big group going together. I thankful and appreciated all these. I enjoy it and looking foward for another longer & challenging trip. It can be tough for us, but it make us tougher and becoming stronger after completed this. Cheer!

Sincerely,
Lawrence =)

Lawr3nc3 wrote:

It great that everybody back home safely.
I wanted to thank Mann, Ck, Ali, Guan etc planning this great Mersing trip, planing the route, booking of the chalet, food, drink.. thank Leman's and family for the vehicle support.. thank the sweeper.. It NOT a easy job to make this voluntary & non profit organize trip happen.. and a plus point for such a big group going together. I thankful and appreciated all these. I enjoy it and looking foward for another longer & challenging trip. It can be tough for us, but it make us tougher and becoming stronger after completed this. Cheer!

Sincerely,
Lawrence =)

Well said...and not to worried....next longer & challenging trip is on the pipeline

MALACCA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! hahahahaha

MALACCA??? Count me out... Im not ready yet... hahahaha.....