With only a few days left in 2016, here's a brief summary of what I've prepared up until now and what I've yet to do.
Bought the following equipment:
2 spare tubes (was initailly 3 but I'll get to that later) RM54 (RM18 per tube)
2 Continental Gatorskin 23mm tyres - they're known for their high degree of puncture-resistance. RM320 for both tyres. The outgoing pair was riddled with holes, cuts and tiny pieces of metal stuck in them. Quite surprised they were in such shape. I'll be hanging on to them though, to use as potential spares on the ride should I need them.
New Gatorskin tyres, will probably do a review of them soon
Couple of holes on the old treads
Didn't notice this sliver of steel in the old tyre
Amazed it didn't pierce the inner tube
1 spare 10 speed chain - the current chain on my bike is already worn out but my shifts are still crisp and the chain has yet to jump under load so I'll keep the old chain on first. In the event it snaps along the ride, I'll switch to the new one. RM100
Loaned/sponsored equipment:
Sony HDR AS300 Action Camera - I've gotta thank Mr Timothy Gan from Sony Malaysia and Carmen Cheong for mentioning me to him. Would never have gotten such a cool camera without either or you.
Bicycle lights - Front and rear lights sponsored by my aunt, thank you Aunty Peng!
Already owned items:
A mini pump
1 spare inner tube
Multitool with a chain tool
Tyre levers
Chain quick links X 2
Saddle bag
Ruck sack
Bicycle lock
Helmet
Sent bike for servicing - I normally do my own servicing but I thought that I had best let the professionals have a look at my bike at least this one time. Just in case I missed anything. So I brought it over to the Specialized Concept Store in Petaling Jaya to let the guys over there have a look. Plus, it came with a wash and wheel truing all for RM50, pretty good deal considering they normally charge RM45 per wheel, excluding other services like the wash. Although if I'm being fair, they did accidentally puncture my inner tube and replaced it with a tube I purchased as a spare....so I guess that sorta makes up for the price.
Booked my flight ticket (Air Asia) along with check-in baggage (RM67- No sponsorship from Uncle Tony) - Good thing bikes are relatively light. And I managed to find a bicycle box that was going to be thrown away to store it in so it doesn't get too roughed up during the flight. Pedalsport Taipan (check out my shop tour of the store here) was cool enough to just give it to me. So in return, I bought an extra inner tube from them since I always planned to have 4 in total anyway. Thanks guys!
One big empty box - check!
Things yet to be done:
I've yet to make hotel reservations.
Check all the equipment
Wash my bike prior to leaving
Pack my bag
So, up until now, I've spent approximately RM591 on gear and travel expenses. That's a big bite out of the almost RM1000 (RM985) I received from very generous sponsors. So in no particular order, I'd like to thank the following swell human beings for their generosity and kind-heartedness in helping me out in this little endeavor of mine. You've all helped so incredibly much and I'll never forget your kindness. Thank you all so much! :
Mr Edmund Lim
Mr Siew and family
Ms Elizabeth Loke - all the way from the Land Down Under
2 more donors who wish to remain anonymous.
And that's about it for now. I think there'll be 1 more update post after this one and then the ride begins! I'd like to extend my gratitude to everyone who's given me support and encouragement up until now. As Day 1 draws closer, I must admit that I'm getting a little more nervous day by day. But maybe that's my body's way of telling me I'm ready. Only time will tell.
To all my readers, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy 2017!
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 websiteand theirlocation 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!
