Le Tour De KLR650 Part Deux

Checked in at the Royale Bintang Hotel resort and Spa in Seremban. Today is my Wife's birthday and i thought if surprising her here.

From Shah Alam yesterday i followed Le Tour De Langkawi Route 7 , from Banting till Tampin. This route follows the coastal roads till Port Dickson and then to Tamppin . Transfer to hotel at Seremban. It was a nice ride from Shah Alam to Banting, and the coastal roads in Morib was fantastic. As soon as i reach Port Dickson, things are starting to get gloomy and wet. It rained heavily right up to Tampin.

From Tampin i headed to Seremban town. Quickly brought flowers and waited for her to arrive at the Hotel.

I wanted to leave to KL that night but the rain wouldn't stop till the next morning. So decided to leave on Sunday Morning and taking the old Kuala Kelawang,Titi , Bukit hantu and Hulu Langat/Ampang.

The place was colder that Genting and i was drenched from neck to toe. i think there is some point where the still air itself was at 14 Deg C. What more riding on a bike that goes an average of 80 KMpH. I did a few pit stops to enjoy the scenery and to freshen up. One of the place is Hutan Lipur Jeram Toi. Had lunch there. Burger and Teh Tarik and had a long chat with the Abang that owns one of the stalls there. Interesting guy as he was once a bomb expert in the Army. Retired but with alot of stories to tell.

I then head towards Titi and found my way to up the mountain pass where i stopped to take a fresh shower in a nearby waterfall, Soaking wet by the rain i just jumped full gear in the waterfall. Surprisingly, the water was not freezing cold but more like lukewarm.

From there i went home and dried myself. a shower and the best nap i had ever had.

So, there will be another adventure just around the corner but hopefully this time i will not be alone.

Le Tour de KLR

Trip from Genting following the back road to Ulu Yam . Downhill twisties with a lot of forgiving bends. .....a nice ride if you are not pushing the bike. Slippery when wet and heaven when dry.

I need to have an on-board cam next time. Maybe this will be the next prjoect. I slipped my mobile on my thigh bag while its recording. hahahaha... just a test to see how good it will look.

So far i have been doing short trips down a forgotten trail and just getting the use of the speed and handling of this bike. All i can say is the riding position makes you just want to take a longer detour and go further. Tires is almost wearing our and i just clocked it a t 2000 KM. Thinking of getting rod tyres since i seldom go out on trails or off road. But then, would love to have both option available. Soon we will see. was thinking of Metzeler Sahara Enduro 3

of the Pirelli Scorpion M/T. but budget will tell.

Ok So now i'm off to follow the Le Tour de Langkawi route. Going to Shah Alam and tomorrow will be Nilai to Jasin adn the back to Melaka for a short stop before heading back to KL before the weekend ends. Im trying to do all this on one full tank which is RM 35 ringgit. So this will be the challenge for now. Wish me luck. Adios and enjoy your weekends.

Going on a mini mini convoy

Tomorrow i will be riding with my buddy to Sungai Buloh. just a short ride about 30km . Will post the pictures later... good night.

Up up and away...... Genting escapade

Today is the first day of the year 2011. I’m going out for a ride with my wife, an impromptu decision to go up Genting Highlands and enjoy the cold air. Imagine sipping a hot coffee after a long ride up, carving through the switchbacks of Genting. That was the plan and what a plan it is to start the year.

And so we were off without much except for our Mountain Hardware Rain Jackets, Helmets and a small backpack. I was considering getting the panniers and top box, but i just got the bike for 1 day and the whole Malaysia was on holiday, so no shops were opened. I will get some quotes on different type on panniers in a week or so.

From home we set course towards the Karak Highway, stoping for lunch at McD in Ampang Petronas to refuel both the riders and the Bike. It is said that a full tank will get me 400KM and more if i were to use the reserve tank. Quite a substantial score as the capacity of the tank is 16.1 Litres. I opted for Ron97 fuel just to test the difference. Note that i was using Ron 95 yesterday; it should not be a problem as I’m using a carburettor. Checked the water level for the radiator and making sure the chain is well lubricated, we set off to our first trip to Genting.

From the Gombak toll, the air was already cold and we enjoyed the ride right up to Genting Sempah. From there we head up to Genting. Familiarizing with the bikes characteristics, the torque that the bike produces is high; changing gear is a minimum as the power band is available throughout any RPM. Carving up the road ahead and powering through every corner was superb. I was not pushing the bike fully as i had my precious cargo sitting at the back. Come to the Gohtong Jaya, my wife decides to take the cable car up and giving me the opportunity to fully feel the bike's setup. So off we go to the Cable car station and dropped her off, promising to see her when she reaches Genting. Took a small pit stop to refresh in one of the mamak stalls there, i head up Genting with the notion to try to push the bike to see what it’s capable of.

Turn after turn i tried to read the threshold of the bike. and it was running through my head what is needed for the bike. The first thing, and very importantly, is a riding glove. keeping your hands warm is a must. Although the bike comes with a massive wind deflector on the handle bars, but it is not enough to keep the riders hand from the elements.Before i could think of anything, i was already up, slowing down as the junction approaches, prompting to turn right towards Genting Resort where hot coffee awaits in Coffee Bean & Tea. ( They give 10% off for Bikers).

When i got there, there were already a few big bikes parked there. Two Kawasaki ER-6N and a Kawasaki Z 750. and so i slotted in between them and went straight to the drink counter ordering my coffee. While waiting in line, there were 4 big bikes that pulled up; a KAwasaki Versys, ER-6N, Suzuki SRAD and a BMW GS 1300. It didnt bother me much until they they came up to my bike and started discussing about. I took a picture :P. It seems to be that they were seasoned bikers with riding gears from top to toe. As for me on the other hand, a plain jeans, with hiking boots and a black t-shirt.

Looking at them i realize that when safety is concerned, big bikers will have more tricked out riding gears for safety. I soon will have to start gearing up if i want to have long trips in future. But that will be another story. We spent about 5 hours before going back home. It was raining and cold, we slowly decend to Gohtong Jaya where it was just starting to rain. Full throttle, we ran away from the rain and ended up back in Gombak. From there, we headed home for a nice hot shower and a warm bed.

Well tomorrow is another day, who knows what adventure awaits......