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Monday, October 11 @ 5:39 PM

Back from Cameron Highlands and I am extremely satisfied with a 37th place finish in K.O.M Ipoh.
My initial target was to aim for the top 100 because the 1st 100 were given rankings. But after hearing Joyce say the night before that there are 400 participants, the realist in me took over, and I changed my targets be the first Joyrider to finish, and most importantly to gain experience and enjoy the race, which is my first and foremost objective.

Well, at the finish, I was really really surprised I was 37th when they passed me the medal because I was pretty sure there were a big group up ahead and I would finish outside the top 100. Target 1 accomplished.

But I was the 4th Joyrider to finish. Adrian was 5th!(super climbing!) and then there were Dr Siong & Christine whom I both caught up with but later lost contact again as I faltered away slowly in the final 10k.
I cant really complain about this though, this is my very first mountain and I have absolutely no idea what to expect AT ALL; Do I try to follow the leaders? Or do I go my own pace and ride my own race? But in the end it was a case of 船到桥头自然直. The first 3-4km I amateurly followed Johnson who was going a tad faster than I'm comfortable with, so I followed this group who was riding very steady and amazingly we rode all the way up together!
Climbing is seriously a case of slow and steady, or fast and steady if you're Alberto Contador.

Finally, what can I say? Prior to this I was wondering what type of rider I am. I always thought Im more of a climber because of my smaller frame, and I soon discovered that I am one! A climber-type cyclist who loves it when the road heads north! I truly enjoyed the climb, all the mind- and -butt-numbing pain, the weather and, the pleasure of passing & dropping weaker opponents.

What happened over the weekend:

6am left Lavender street > 7am left msia tuas checkpoint > 1145 lunch at village park restaurant in PJ > 3pm reach house > 4pm recon ride

Sunday: 0730 race start > 10 reach finish > 1130 descend down > 1300 reach house > 1515 leave house for sg > 0430 home sweet home (more than 10 hours to get back! This is one epic journey)

Lunch and dinner at this restaurant. This place is very familiar because my cousin brought us there to eat dimsum 3 shops away. Should have called my cousins down.

The house we stayed in Simpang Pulai, a small town that is one of 2 gateways to Cameron Highland, the other being Tanah Rata.

Our hired coach, Sri Maju. Luckily we didnt take Delima. LOL.

Just look at that! You have a mountain as a neighbour. Amazing scenery this place has.

More mountains.

The jam that we were caught in for 3 full hours! Turned out 12 people were killed, including one who was decapitated, in a major accident involving a Delima express bus. Read it here: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/10/11/nation/7201269&sec=nation.

For 3 hours the jam was barely moving at all. This is what I observed last night during the jam that was rather interesting. In the first hour of stagnation, people will open their car doors and check. Some will send their passengers to check the cause and report back. During the 2nd hour, they will all start getting out of their cars and walk about. In the 3rd hour, they'll start hanging around together(crisis brings people of the same boat together), eating chips, drinking canned drinks, smoking and the best part of all, marshalling ambulances to come thru the dense pileup.

Delima bus becomes Deadlima bus. I bet my hair this bus was speeding like hell

Source: The Star.

Race photos to come when they upload it.

Labels: cameron highlands K.O.M Ipoh

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