A big surprise indeed! What was supposed to be a 'cancelled - no ride' for the day turned out with 13 (thirteen) riders instead! These are the ones who just refuse to accept the fact that the possibility of the terrible haze would still be around to prevent everyone from riding today. They were indeed very right - the haze was minimal and so the ride just had to go on!

No 'Long Winded' or 'Frustrating' hill climbs, just a nice and easy ride - that's what it is
today. We only had the 'Steroid Hill' to tackle but then again, on a self-voluntary basis. No one to push you, only yourself to push!

The trail is the usual ride from the Sungai Buluh Hospital car park grounds. Cycling through the many pottery and nice flowers for sale, we were soon dashing up the first hill slope.

Matthew Hans must be commended for his daring feat up the 'Steroid Hill'. This is his very first off-road mountain biking experience and here he was, fighting with all his determination to conquer this terribly steep hill. The original plan was to have him wait at the base while we do the cycling up this hill but no ....; he just had to come along!

It was incredible the way he managed to complete the climb. The only words out of him after he had come back down was; "I thought you guys were only cycling up a short distance and turning left!

And again, we just cannot forget our sweet darling 'Coke'! Once again she has proven her ever improving ability and commitment to mountain biking! She managed to cycle up this 'Steroid Hill' with no problem but of course with plenty of sweat! What a sight to see when her face was lifted up and brightened when she finally reached everyone else who were already waiting at the top!

Sadly, on the downhill ride, there is still plenty to learn for her! And did she freak out when I tried to catch a photo of her coming downhill! Had to respect her wish and so sorry folks; no picts' of our fearful 'Coke' coming downhill!

Last but not least, Jason our newly married man gave an incredible feat too! While everyone
was busy tackling Steroid Hill, a camel bag was left behind on the ground. Fearing that it might be taken away by some passer-by, and being a responsible person, he picked up the camel bag and started cycling up the hill, going after the rest of the riders! It is amazing how he managed to cycle all the way when the camel bag was so filled up with water and obviously very heavy! To make matters worse, the buckle was tightly cellophaned - thus he could not open it up to carry over his back! Using only one hand to carry the bag and the other to balance on his mountain bike - he did it! Great show Jason! That's the way to go man!

While the rest of the riders continued on with the ride down to FRIM, together with 2 (two)
riders, I made my way back to the car park. Had to since I was needed urgently to be at the KLIA (Kuala Lumpur International Airport) by 01:00pm

Well, before I left, Jason and Matthew was already asking, next week where to ride, huh? Now do I sense another new rider getting bitten by the MTB bug?