A Short Epic Trip

Epic Jam - 3hours

Epic Kiara MTB Rides - Short one on Fri, Long one on Saturday, Explorer mode on Sun

Epic Chicken Overload - KFC on Fri, Nand0's on Sat (I had Ramly's Special Chicken Cheese Burger on Friday too)

The whole idea for the first of many (to come) epic Kiara weekend started out with our new NiteRider Buddy, Kiara Boy. I've heard so much about Kiara from those who went there, and was raring to go ride at least once there. And so, with the long weekend coming up, why not? So, with bikes in the tow, WL and I was out in KL on the long 3-day weekend to conquer Kiara.

We started out on Friday morning, and got into our first Epic event = the Epic 3 hour jam at the SecondLink. We were moving at about 1km/hr but luckily we had a 2 movies to keep us entertained (Red Bull Rampage and RED). After the customs, things were moving great and we had a short stopover at Ayer Keroh for the A&W there.

Arrived in KL about 2 hours later than initially expected. With the GPS (bike unit), navigate to the hotel, checked in, prepped up and finally met up with Kiara Boy, for our first ride in Kiara. haha... so onz to get on the bike after the long journey down.. and no... we would not wait any longer...

Kiara, was.. just... awesome :). I've not been riding long, but the place is just FUN. OK, a bit of killer upslopes (actually, a lot of killer upslopes), but the course was just technical enough to make the ride every bit exciting. Most of the downslopes were manageable (even for me), but there were some (like triple trenches) which were still out of my league. It was really amazing to see the guys zip down those slopes, though :)

We went through some of the routes, 2k, magic carpet, a bit of lungbuster (in reverse), mission, and some more that I can't remember, before calling it a day when night came about. First intro to Kiara, and I'm smitten. Here's the next awesome thing about Kiara: there's free toilet, shower and bike washing facilities at the carpark. Apparently, the facilities were built using money pulled together by the community. I 'heart' this place.

Kiara Boy had family dinner that night, so it was up to me and WL to look for food ourselves. We ended up at TTDI nearby, and were elated when we saw a Ramly burger stall. But hey, Ramly is for supper right... hehe.. there was KFC opposite Ramly's, and to prove that the Msia KFC is different from the SG one, we had KFC for dinner. After tt, we tapau-ed Ramly and headed back for rest and movie.

The next morning started at 7am. We met up with Kiara Boy and his bunch of regular rider friends in Kiara for the ride. This was going to be the long one. The first stretch itself was a upslope ride on the tarmac into Magic Carpet. After Magic Carpet, we would meet up with another 2 friends of Kiara Boy. My memory here is fuzzy as we zipped from one trail to another. I still couldn't manage all the upslopes and had to push for most of them. The guys were really good and I liked to see the way they ride, and the lines they take. A few crashes here and there, and I endo-ed once on a drop. No biggie injuries though, will live to ride again.

After about 4 hours, we've finished. I was exhausted. My whole body was aching, but the adrenaline was still running high. We cleaned up (bikes and self) and headed over to the mamak for lunch. With our stomachs filled, we made a short stop at the KSH bike shop nearby, and then back to the hotel to rest a bit.

That evening was reserved for climbing at Camp5. After about a week of not hitting the walls, it was good to climb again. We met some Singaporeans there too, who were down for the holidays. Dinner was at Nando's... the home of Peri Peri chicken.. extra hot and spicy is always good. I bought an emergency light (comes with a whistle) from Allsports KL, and after that it was back to the hotel for another movie and rest.

Sunday started later at about 8+. Had a bit to eat in the morning, and off to the trails again for our last ride. This time, we went exploring on our own as the local guys were not riding. We got lost a lot of times, went on reverse only to turn back after a while a few times, but we did managed to find the 'sungai' trail. I can fully understand after riding and pushing through it, why Kiara Boy said that trail was... well.. require balls of steel. Wilson rode most of it ('xcept for the first drop) and as usual.. *clap clap clap* :). We finished about 12, washed up, and headed back to the hotel to clean up and check out.

We had local fare for lunch at TTDI before heading back to SG. A short stopover at A&W again and we finally reached SG at 7+pm in the evening. Twas the short epic trip had ended, but truly an epic trip it was. Kiara was really enjoyable, and the company I had made it even more memorable. Now... I just can't wait to get out riding again.. getting better and better, so that when I am at Kiara again, I'll walk less, and ride more.

Trudge on...

PS : will upload the vids later, when I've successfully converted it.