Just a piece of my mind

Again, a rider died and another one lost his arm while on a convoy going north,that was the information that was posted on my FB wall. I'm not trying to be an expert or to be an analyst on what had happened. I just want to share a piece of my mind as a fellow rider who has quite many years of fulltime riding experience,more than 30 years to be exact. I rode varieties of bikes from 125 to 1100 cc but now contented with 650 which produces same amount of HP as a 1100 cc from 20 years ago.
Throughout my riding years I have not seen such a big number of new big capacity bike riders on the road until lately. Many big and powerful bike are being registered everyday. It is not so critical if the bikes are bought by experienced riders as upgrades but some of those are bought by new riders. Do they have licence for those big bikes?even if they do,training by driving school to pass test is not sufficient for them to be safe on the road.
Riding big capacity bikes requires special training to ensure safety of the operator and the bikes. What one reads in magazines and watch on internet are not what it really is, so dont learn via these mediums or by trial and error. All these mediums originate from the west and the riders are totally different in size and weight from us Malaysian. A Yamaha  R1 is more powerful with 160 pounds rider compare to 220 pounds one,it is all about power to weight ratio,just to name a few.
Why do they buy these bikes? is it just to join convoys or want to be with the crowd?. Most big capacity bike riders I know are just weekend riders and when they want to sell their bikes,they will proudly advertise as such,weekend bikes. How do they gain experience if they ride once a week and on weekends?there are less traffic on weekends too.
Riding is about passion, come rain or shine. It is also about continous learning of your bikes character and overcoming elements you face on every ride. How can you do that if you keep upgrading or change bikes?.
Correct attitude is another subject which is very lacking. Doing 160kmh on the fast lane and flashing every car in front is totally annoying and zig zagging in between traffic is adding insult to injury. Hey, we are bound to follow the law too you know!. We are no greater than any other vehicle on the road,we are just another road user and a more risky one at that. Convoys do not make us rule the road and over acting  so called marshalls are a pain in the ass.
If accident happen can marhalls be sued?
Get you riding objectives and priorities right. Learn from experience riders not only riding techniques but in riding attitude too.
I will just stick to my trail rides on weekends to sharpen my bike handling skill and to be a daredevil once in a while since it is a much safer environment. I can afford to joke on my mistakes offroad. My road rides are only for errands and touring........solo.
Ride safe.

All Mountain Moto ride

We had a blast last weekend riding our All Mountain Motocycles on variety of trails nearby. We started with four riders and another friend joined the ride halfway to Ramlees Peak. A friend on a KSR had to leave early prior to the final climb and four of us continued on. The trail for the day included open climbs,singletrack,plantation,rocks and jungles. It was chosen for varieties and an opportunity to observe nature within suburban environment. The ride started at 9am in Sec 9 and ended at the cafe on Bukit Ramlee at 1 pm. The return ride was taken on a different route to complete a loop. We arrived back to Sec 9 safely at around 3 pm.

The whole idea of All Mountain Moto/mtn bike ride is to have maximum fun and minimum risk for every rider and bikes on the ride. Trails are chosen  as such that escape routes are available for the not so skilled  and for those who are can test their skills on the more difficult lines. There is also an opportunity for nature lovers to appreciate and blend in with the environment. There are plenty of line choices to suit everyone. There are elements of MX,enduro and trials thrown in and make up all Mountain Moto style of riding with a suitable choice of trails.

It should be fun and that is what All Mountain Moto riding is all about. It is also about learning from the better rider in a safe and controlled environment. You can be fast like in MX, have good stamina like in Enduro and have good balance like in Trials, you can learn all these in All Mountain Moto riding and become good rider overall . It is helpful to become a safe rider on your everyday commute if you are a full time rider unless you want to compete......thats a different story.

Technical trail riding - mtb and dirt bike

Technical trail or singletrack riding is my obsession, from now on Im going to term it as All Mountain Riding. It will refer to both Mtn bike and trail bike since Im going to ride both. Im always a sucker for slow speed and very technical trail and I hope more riders will appreciate this kind of riding be it on pedal powered or motorised.. It will be good for the environment and less damaging too.
To be able to conquer obstacles and beat them flat is a very satisfying self accomplishement which are difficult to explain. Singletracks and the environment is my playground, the closer it is to my backdoor the better.
It is ideal if we can do it on trials bike but not neccessary. Singletracks can be ridden on  almost any suitably set up mountain bikes and trailbikes which are readily available and custom tailored to your riding style. It does not need to have miles of suspension travel or festooned with designer parts which definetely cost lots of money and about ten or twelve rearwheel horsepower will do just fine........or two strong legs!!!
Its not what you ride but how you ride and where you ride so I shall enjoy every minute of it while I still can.

All Mountain Trials

Time does change and so is priority. After slowing down on my MTB activities and switching to dirt riding, the urge to go back to mountain biking is growing stronger each day. My involvement with outdoor activities started with cycling when I was very young and eventually graduated to dirt biking and motorcycling in general. Life is a cycle and Im going back to mountain biking again.
There is no denying that MTB is the best outdoor activity. It blends with nature and cheaper on the pockets too. I can be on my own for hours on the trails with minimal disturbance and enjoy every minute of it.