Desaru Loop on Fixed Gear Power!

- April 18, 2010

Completed one of my Fixed Gear goals for the year!

Kicked off at my block at around 6am. Veit and KL was already waiting downstairs. Veit took my Colnago. So, 2 road bikes and one fixed. Total expected ride distance : 136km. Took a leisurely ride to CVFT. We were quite happy to see that there were not many people around so we managed to get ourselves on the 2nd boat which left at 7.15am. Rather uneventful boat ride and we reached PFT (Pegerang Ferry Terminal) at 8am.

Weather was great (it always is at that time of the day!) but as we reached Sg. Rengit, the sun was coming out of sleep and we knew we were in for some hot weather! We stocked up a little at Sg. Rengit on 100-plus and went on our way. The 25km route to Petronas was the very familiar undulating rolling hills and I managed that in good speed with no issues. Felt rather strong in fact, going into Petronas. The last 35km loop back into Sg. Rengit via the coastal road was different. The sun was at its maximum hotness (35 degrees C!) and 10-15km in, I was struggling to keep up with Veit. KL was doing his own pace....meaning he was dropped! At one point Veit chased a pair of MTBs and I followed, I think it was that particular chase that got me into some trouble later on in the ride. KL also did well as when we U-Turned for him, he led a good long way at 30+km/h. I was just hanging on man.....legs spinning non-stop.

By the time we reached Sg. Rengit (about 12pm, we also stopped for Air Tebu along the way), both my calves and my right quads were starting to feel crampy...the problem with the bike was 2 things, 1) I can't coast nor stand up to stretch AT ALL, the only way to alleviate the calves were by pedaling heel down to stretch the muscle. 2) The Regal Saddle was bollocks on this ride: after about 60-70km, it felt like hell on the butt and giving me royal numbness at the nether-regions. Imagine having ass-pain + crampy legs, and the same time trying to stand up and pedal just so that the ass can get a rest. Everytime I stood up, the cramps starts to kick in.

After a short lunch at Sg. Rengit, we took a slow ride back to PFT and the usual feeling of gladness as we reached! Back in Singapore, still had a good 18km to go and I was really very grumpy by now, shouting at cyclists along ECP. I really hate going that route at 'peak hour', had a near brush with some cyclist not keeping left.

All in all, great ride! Veit, despite being 59yrs old was super strong. He loved the weather and had absolutely nothing negative to say about anything. He's the man of the day. KL did well for himself too, led a couple of times and fought off major cramps on his 3rd outing to Desaru.

As for me, I've completed one of my goals for the year! The bike punished me hard but I took and swallowed all it had to give me! A Century Ride should be another goal for the year on fixed, but for that I'll decide after the TOUR OF PAIN, planned for end-June.

Ride Stats