Pedaling Around Penang (Part 1)

In the second quarter of 2016, I had some business to attend to in Penang for about 3 weeks. I took this opportunity to bring along my bicycle with me as I had never cycled in Penang before and had always wanted to try out their cycling lanes.

For those of you who don't know, Penang is located on the northwest coast of Malaysia and is a thriving tourist destination. Geographically speaking, the state consists of two parts, the island and the mainland half, both separated by the Strait of Malacca and connected by 2 bridges, the Penang Bridge (also know as the first Penang Bridge) as well as the relatively new Sultan Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah Bridge (a.k.a the second bridge), which has a length of 24 km (15 miles) and holds the title of the longest bridge in South East Asia which was previously held by the first bridge with it's length of 13.5 km (8.4 miles).

Over the years, the cycling community has grown steadily in Penang due to a growing interest in the sport as well as an alternate means of transport on the ever-congested island. The state government poured millions into the construction of the present cycling lane which connects Komtar at it's northern end to Queensbay Mall at it's southern end with extension works currently on-going. Following the soon-to-be-completed extension, cyclists will able to potentially go as far as the new bridge and Penangites in the southern parts of the island will be able to access the central and northern parts via the cycling lane.

As far as I know, this is the most ambitious endeavor yet in Malaysian history with regards to making cycling a practical and safe means of day to day commuting. However, my time in Penang wasn't spent completely restricted to the cycling lane alone as certain points of interest required pedal on regular roads. So, here is a rough guide to cycling in Penang as seen through my eyes as well as a few points of interest.

Starting from the northern most part of my adventure, the Teluk Bahang Dam is located in Teluk Bahang, less than a kilometer down the road from the Penang Butterfly Farm and a little further from the Penang Escape outdoor theme park. The dam was completed in 1999, has a height of 58.5 meters and a length of 685 meters. It is frequently used as a venue for international dragon boat races. Unfortunately none were going on at the time I visited.

Picture taken from Google Maps

A few kilometers down south from the dam in Batu Feringghi is the iconic Hard Rock Hotel of Penang. This wasn't my first time at the hotel but I only stopped to take a couple of pictures of the outside and never went in as there was no where to properly park my bicycle and I didn't want to risk leaving my bicycle unattended. The lobby and beach areas of the hotel are open to the public and there are parking spots allocated to the public so all are welcome.

Picture taken from the Hard Rock Hotel website

Picture taken from the Hard Rock Hotel website

Picture taken from Google Maps

As you continue your ride southbound from the Hard Rock Hotel, you'll come upon a small stretch of beach called Pantai Miami (Miami Beach). Now, from all the internet research I've done, the name for the beach was apparently coined from the fact that, for a great number of years, the beach went unnamed and was relatively unknown. So, to remedy this, the state government decided to spice up the beach and named it after the world-famous Miami Beach in Florida. Following the rename, a high-end gated community was developed across the road from the beach and was aptly named Miami Bay to further establish the name.

Picture taken from Google Maps

There were no water-sport businesses operating along the beach at the time I rode by unlike the other more popular beaches along Feringghi, however the quiet and tranquil nature of the beach itself is an attraction of its own, making it quite an ideal spot to stop by and snap a picture or two.

Just beside the stretch of beach is a cafe, the Miami Beachfront Cafe, that was still under construction in April of 2016 and I'm not sure if it's completed yet. Need to check it out the next time I go cycling in Penang.

Beautiful ocean view from just outside the under-construction cafe

The outside of the aforementioned cafe

The same cafe

As you head further south, after about 5 kilometers or so, you will eventually stumble upon a beautiful mosque on the left side of the road. Masjid Terapung (The Floating Mosque) supported by stilts, sits on the bay of Tanjung Bungah and was the first mosque in Malaysia to have been built in the sea. Ever since its conception, numerous other 'floating mosques' have sprouted up across the country, most noteable ones being in Terengganu, Perlis and Kota Kinabalu.

Picture taken from www.penang-traveltips.com

As you continue your journey eastwards along Jalan Tanjung Bungah (Tanjung Bungah Road), you'll find yourself on Jalan Tajung Tokong. Along this road, you will encounter a Tesco hypermarket on your left. Take a left turn at the most immediate junction after the Tesco and continue straight. Eventually, you will come across Straits Quay.

Picture taken from www.straits-quay.com

Marketed as Penang's first seafront retail marina, Straits Quay is a wonderful place to visit just to unwind and get away from the hustle and bustle of Penang traffic and just take in the sights and sounds of the sea. There is a boradwalk that stretches for about half a kilometer along the coast, reminiscent of the Avenue of Stars in Hong Kong with the city skyscrapers in the background across the pond, just lacking a Bruce Lee statue or two.

Eventually, as you continue your journey down south along the coast line, you'll come across the northern end of Gurney Drive. It is a popular seafront promenade among both tourists and locals and named after Sir Henry Gurney, the then British High Commissioner of Malaya in 1952 following his assassination at the hands of the Malayan Communist Party during the Malayan Emergency.

A stroll down the sidewalk at night will treat one to the sound of waves crashing upon the seafront with a cooling sea breeze keeping you company. Gurney Drive hosts some of the more higher end condominiums on the island, various hotels as well as 2 very popular shopping malls, the Gurney Plaza mall and the Paragon mall. It is also famous for the collection of hawker stalls located at it's northern end, just next to the roundabout with the fountain.

The aforementioned hawker stalls.

There is currently land reclamation works underway along Gurney Drive to, in the future, construct what is currently being dubbed Gurney Wharf 'Park on the Sea' project by the state government. Gurney Wharf will potentially be a massive recreational waterfront front project with various food stalls, gardens and coastal groves akin to that of the Sydney Waterfront in Australia. The overall cost of the project will be borne by both the state government as well as the Eastern and Oriental Bhd group and is expected to be around RM 1billion (approximately $250 million). Vehicular and pedestrian activities will not be interrupted by ongoing construction, so no reason not to pay Gurney Drive a visit the next time you're in town.

The ever bustling traffic along Gurney Drive

And that's about it for part 1. This post has taken me quite awhile to write due to distractions, commitments as well as work on other posts. In fact, this has been a draft for close to 2 months now. Which is why I thought it would be best to publish this 'Penang ride' of mine in 3 parts instead of one long post. Stay tuned for parts 2 and 3!

Things no one tells you before you start cycling

Congratulations! You've finally got yourself a bike along with some decent kit. That's probably the biggest hurdle you'll encounter when becoming a cyclists right? Getting the bike? Well, this article might, unfortunately, crush any dreams you may have of riding down the Champs Ellise in that yellow jersey one day. Here is my list of top 5 things people don't tell you before you start cycling.

It's hard
In most sports, professionals always make everything seem way easier than they actually are. Cycling is, unfotunately, no exception. From climbing a mountain to going on the attack, 100+ kilometer Tour de France stages to the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix, it always seems so effortless on the TV. That is, until you actually try it out for yourself. Chances are, if you're getting into cycling without a decent background in some other physical sport, you're thighs and back will be killing you within 5km from home. Plus, if you've never ridden a bike before, you'll most probably be unfamiliar with bicycle gears or how to use them, causing you to be shifting late and stalling up a long climb.

Not only that, once you've built up a little more stamina, figured out how your gears work and generally feel a little better about yourself, enter group rides. The challenge of balancing your composure so as to ride predictably in the group while still pedaling your heart out and cursing under your breath to keep up with the wheel in front of you is perhaps a quirk exclusively found in cycling. And depsite all that effort and suffering, it'll be all the more disheartening when you get dropped, a.k.a the group is just too fast for you and you get left behind.

It's pricey
I've met my fair share of riders who've forked out bigs sums of cash or have taken out loans to pay for their high-end road stallions so as to own the latest and greatest the bicycle market has to offer. Unfortunately, in all that haste, they didn't stop to consider the long-term financial commitments that come with cycling. Owning a bike is, in many ways, similar to owning a car; you can suffer from punctures, it gets damaged in crashes, it requires regular sevicing, wear-and-tear affects the drive-train (gears and chain) and it can get stolen. And of course, as with a car, the pricier your bike is, the higher the cost to maintain it.

In my post on how to buy your first bike, I touched briefly on the different kinds of bicycle frames and groupsets out there. A groupset consists of the parts on your bike other than the frame, wheels, seat and seat post, handle bar and the handle bar stem. In other words, the gears, shifters, brakes, deraileurs and cranks. And as with a high-performance car engine, the higher end your groupset is, the more it's going to cost you to replace those parts once they've worn out. Not only that, most pro-team mechanics recommend changing your chain more frequently if you run a higher end groupset as it's far cheaper to change a chain than it is to change sprockets or the entire cassette once it's worn out. More frequent chain changes will allow your cassette to last longer, sometimes up through 5 chains. The frequency by which you should replace your chain with a new one has been widely debated by many in the cycling community. A consensus that comes up frequently on the internet is after 2000 miles (3200 kilometers) or so, even sooner if you're a little on the heavy side or if you do a lot of climbs. 

Apart from that, those who choose to go down the carbon route had best try to avoid crashes as best as they can. I mean sure, it goes without saying that no one wants to crash. But in the event lady luck took the day off and you do end up eating asphault, chances are you'll probably fare far better than your carbon companion. Carbon bikes are infamously known for their low levels of durability in the event of a major crash. Even if your frame doesn't snap in half, any cracks that form may result in your bike being too dangerous to ride. So, assuming all your groupset components are fine (less than likely), you'll have to get a completely new frame.

There's a lot to learn

Up until this point in the article, if you're even a little bit overwhelmed by the all information, don't worry, most beginners usually are. Wait until you realise what else you don't yet know. 

As with the components that make up a bicycle, from the ball bearings in your head tube down to the rubber that grips the road, there are so many things to learn about cycling. Regardless of how deep your pockets are, not all the problems you encounter can be solved by dropping by your local bike store and handing your bike over to the mechanic who'll be all too happy to see you. A road side mechanical will creep up on you and pounce one day, maybe not today, probably not tomorrow, but one day. And when that day comes, you had best hope you how how to solve your little conundrum, especially if you forgot to bring a phone and are miles away from home. (FYI, here's a list of things I recommend every cyclist carry with him/her when on a long ride). Being able to remedy a flat tyre and fix a broken chain are 2 skills every cyclist should have in his or her repertoir. 

Apart from emergencies, knowing how to perform a basic bike service ( ie replacing a worn out chain, regreasing your head tube and bottom bracket, degreasing and relubing your chain, indexing your gears, etc) will greatly help your wallet out in the long run and is a mark of a seasoned cyclist.

It's not going to get you a 'superhero' body

Unlike most other sports, professional cyclists aren't too well known for having Henry Cavill's Superman-esque body. Instead, our bodies are more akin to that of a T-Rex, big girthy thighs with toned calves while having little going on in the upper limbs. And trust me when I say, after awhile, you'll start to find your favourite pair of jeans or shorts just not fitting you right.

There are of course, exceptions to this law of cycling nature. Track cyclists like 6 time Olympic gold medalist Sir Chris Hoy and our very own Bronze medalist Azizul Awang for instance, both have quite muscular builds, full of the fast white-twitch muscle fibers needed to put out all those watts. But such bodies weren't built on bikes alone, track cyclist spend almost as many hours in the gym as they do out on the track. And before you ask, yes, professional road cyclists do spend some time in the gym as well, but the exercises they do aren't so much to turn them into sprinters but to complement the levels of fitness they achieve on their bikes. In fact, most amateur level riders are capable of putting out the same amount of maximum power of that of a professional. What sets the pros apart is their ability to sustain a higher than normal average power for a longer than normal period of time. So, in the event you think cycling's going to get you a spot in the next Avengers movie, it'd be best to consider a different sport altogether. Plus, our tan lines aren't exactly swimsuit magazine cover material.

It's rewarding

Despite all the obstacles and challenges you'll face as a cyclist, both on and off the road, there's no denying the high that it rewards us with as well as the addiction we so lovingly suffer from. Riding an hour continuously for the first time, finishing that first century ride, conquering that once unconquerable hill, your first race, your first duathlon or triathlon even, a ride across the country or even the world! Some of the many milestones a cyclist goes through, each worthy of celebration in our own small ways as well as acting as a marker for what we've already achieved and a reminder of everything else that we've yet to do.

And then theres its effect on our bodies. Health is not something that can be stolen, created or bought, it has to be earned. Being able to shred up the side of a mountain without slowing down but instead going "I've got this, gimme another gear" or hold the line at the front of a peloton while your mates rest their worn out asses behind you. Being less than 10% body fat or having a resting heartrate under 60 beats per minute, are goals that money can't buy and are in fact status symbols that we as cyclists strive for.

Our tan lines are our badges of honor, signs that we are warriors of the road who have suffered and fought through poor road conditions, ass-hat drivers and the unforgiving heat and should not be hidden but instead displayed proudly, within the confines of our homes.

In short/TL;DR : It's harder than it looks, it's expensive, there's a lot you don't yet know, you're not gonna get buff through cycling and it'll all be worth it at the end.

Annnnnddddd that's about it for this post. Do you agree with all my points? Were there things I missed out? Please do let me know in the comment section down below and tell me what you think. As always, I appreciate any and all feedback, comments and questions and will try my best to get back to you. Until next time, thanks for reading!

Shop Tour - Specialized Concept Store (Petaling Jaya)

As the cycling culture in Malaysia continues to grow, one can only expect more and more bicycle shops to sprout up like mushrooms after the rain to cater to the ever growing demand for good hardware, equipment and service. Unfortunately, as a result of this rapid growth, there are parties out there looking to take advantage of the inexperienced among us solely to make some quick cash. In response to this, I thought it would be a good idea if I made posts on the various bicycle stores I visit, tell you a little bit about them, share pictures of gorgeous bicycles with you as well as my unbiased opinions on the store in general.

The first up is the Specialized Concept Store in Petaling Jaya. Here's a link to their Facebook page, Instagram page, their website and their location on Google Maps. Located in 10 Boulevard along Jalan PJU6A, along the SPRINT Highway, about 1-2 kilometers east of the Damansara Toll Plaza, the store sports a large array of some of the latest Specialized gears and bicycles. From the outside, there is a rather unassuming sign board in bold red with 'Specialized' on it but step inside, and you may lose yourself as your eyes are greeted by the rows of beautiful bicycles astride the entrance. 

The outside of the store

The store is very welcoming, greeting customers not only with it's wide array of bikes but also with a down-to-earth sort of feel thanks to it's furnishing.

Frames or trophies?

Frames galore

Beautiful row of Tarmacs

From the front > The latest 2017 Roubiax, a Tarmac and an S-Works Venge

Their wide range of road-specific apparel

Aero > Climbing > Endurance

Specialized Evade and Prevail 2.0 helmets.

Specialized is a giant as far as the global biking scene goes. They've had a hand in a good number of international race wins over the past decade and have sponsored the likes of Mark Cavendish, Peter Sagan and Alberto Contador. For the 2016 Olympics, they wanted something a little special, more eye-catching for their athletes as well as to commemorate the great games. As a result, the released their range of bikes and gear with heat-sensitive paint. In a relatively cold environment, say an air-conditioned room, the paint remains orange. Once heat is applied, say from the palm of a human hand, the paint changes to a smiley-face yellow.

I was fortunate enough to play around a little with the paint on one of their Tarmacs.

Helmets and shoes (Evade and S-Works 6) in-keeping with the orange and yellow theme

The store organises a weekly group ride every Saturday morning at 7.15 am. There are no participation or registration fees whatsoever, just show up with your bicycle (preferably a road bike), bring a couple of spare tubes, tyre levers and a mini pump, bottles with water in them and last but by no means least, the most important piece of equipment you'll need, a helmet and you'll be good to go.

The route starts from their store, passes through Ara Damansara and eventually reaches the Subang Jaya Airport. From there, it's a few extra kilometers until the exit onto the Guthrie Corridor Expressway (GCE). Once on the GCE, we cycled northwards until just after the Lagong Toll Plaza where we made a U-turn to head back to the shop. All in, the route is just over 60 km.

I've had the opportunity of riding with them twice now. During both rides, I got to know a gentleman by the name of Jonathan who works at the store (name card at the bottom of the post). He manages the group and ensures nobody gets lost.

In the event you want to get a couple of extra miles done this week or would like to train yourself on how to cycle in a group, what better way than to join the party. Riders of all skill levels are welcomed.

Someone limited edition Peter Sagan S-Works Tarmac. What a beauty!

Gloves, handle bars, bar tape and other knick knacks

Muc-Off products and other bike cleaning equipment

Aero goodness

Overall my time spent in the store admiring the merchandise as well as talking to the staff was most favorable. They definitely know their stuff and are more than willing to help you out should you have any queries. This is definitely one of the better bike stores I've been to, especially in terms of customer service and PR.

The work station....

.....and the mini-fridge

Cabinet of Oakleys

They carry a wide range of Shimano groupsets for both road and mountain bikes

The current World Champion

Nobody climbs like Contador

More Sagan gear - Limited edition Peter Sagan S-Works 6

The following are a couple of pictures of the latest Roubaix and Venge (previous generation). 

The latest iteration of the Roubaix has a mini shock absorbers integrated into the stem. As the bike was designed to be an endurance bike, the shock absorber, in theory at least, should smoothen out the roads more and reduce the amount of fatigue experiences by the rider, especially in the wrists and shoulders. Shock absorbers have never been too popular on road bikes as they add extra weight and designs in the past have always hampered power transfer from the cyclist to the cranks as the absorbers of yesteryear were usually in integrated either into the front fork or the frame in some way and would compress upon regular to heavy pedalling, thus inhibiting optimal power transfer.

Specialized has claimed to have found a solution to that by integrating the shock into the stem. This keeps the frame stiff as well as maintains side-to-side stiffness for those race winning sprints while bestowing large amounts of comfort to the rider. Only time will tell if this is just another gimmick the bike industry is pitting out there or a pioneer design for future bikes.

Here we have the gorgeous S-Works Venge, which in my opinion, is the most beautiful bike in their entire line, trumped only by the soon to be released disc brake version. If you didn't know, Specialized gives the term 'S-Works' to all their top of the line models. So, in the event you're buying say a fully completed Venge that's an S-Works, it will come with a higher grade of carbon frame compared to the regular Venge, making it stiffer and lighter as well as groupsets (Dura-Ace) and wheels (usually Roval aero wheels) to match.

And that's about it. I hope you enjoyed the pictures, I know I enjoyed taking them. As the store deals exclusively with Specialized bicycles, they of course carry Specialized mounting bikes as well but those were located upstairs and at the time of my patronage, the store had just opened and the lights upstairs had not been switched on yet so I couldn't get any decent pictures. I'll update this post soon after I pay them a visit again with some more bicycles and gear. 

Here are a couple of business cards in the event you want to give them a call.

Jonathan, fixing a cup of coffee

Of course, what bicycle shop would be complete without a coffee machine. Specialized PJ was no exception. Did I mention it's free of charge? 

Pick your poison

My lovely cup of magic bean juice.

 I'll continue doing these small overviews of local bicycle shops as and when I'm fortunate enough to visit them. There are quite a number of them around where I stay so I don't think I'll be running out of shops to visit anytime soon. Stay tuned if you want more content.

Once again, thanks for reading. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them in the comment section down below and I'll be happy to respond. Until next time!