As every year's event, Century Ride is common to all cyclists in Malaysia..the awaited event that challenge the riders' endurance and strength in 160km route..me, Kepet and Panglima participated in this event as one of our main agenda for this year besides triathlon and running..since Ipin and Kicuk just came back from alpine technical course in New Zealand, they couldn't join us there..
The fee was RM100 including event cycling jersey and medal for finishers..this was the first time to Kuantan as the host of the ride and organizing team is also a fresh one..before this century ride is held in Ipoh annually and Kuantan just want to become another spot for this kind of cycling event..we took off from Kuala Lumpur to Kuantan on Saturday morning and reached there by 6pm..we stayed in D'Sireh Homestay somewhere in Kg. Isap Perdana 3, three kilometers away from starting point at Padang Kemunting (Padang MPK1).
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| the route |
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| official event jersey sponsored by KotaSAS |
The night before the race, we enjoyed eating seafood at Ana Ikan Bakar Petai at Tanjung Lumpur as other riders were carbo-loading at welcoming dinner held by the organizers near the MB house..the food are awesome and went back to the house to prepare for tomorrow race..race started at 7.30am and we arrived at the starting point 10 minutes before the flag off..we were at the back since we were late and rode easy to KM5..when the intensity became higher we tried to chase the crowd and manage to be in the middle group..King of Mountain (KOM) stage is at KM32 and the climb was not easy but in one shot attack..
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| Starting point - muka happy je... |
We reached our very first water station and had bananas+red bulls..then we continued the ride till we met a group called Arza Team from Singapore..they rode in very intensive pace and i decided to follow the group..most of them are British but stayed in Singapore..very organized and strong somehow..they allowed me to join them and we tried to work together..i couldn't imagine how i could follow them with 40kph speed for about 20 to 30 kms..following their back is like riding the roller coaster..enjoyed but not tiring..their main target was to chase the peloton and lead the way to finish line..but because we started a bit too late, peloton was out of reach..so they just want to maintain the speed and finish as fast as we can..we stopped at a few water station to refresh the energy..with the cute and beauty volunteers were waiting for us at the station it boosted the energy even higher..
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| somewhere at KM40 (picture by Shahrul Azman) |
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| first water station at KM50 (picture by Shahrul Azman) |
After pulling the group alternately, i was shocked that we've reached 110km mark and another 50km to go..we passed by Pekan and the suffer started at KM130..since many riders have pulled out from the group, only 7 of us left to do the pull..the energy was drained out along with hot weather made the pace became slower and slower..during the ride at Tanjung Sepat, 20km from finishing line, the wind was strong we had to pull harder in order to maintain 30kph pace..but it wouldn't last so long and the team stopped at the last water station, at KM145..since the day was so hot, so i decided to continue paddling on my own..cycling along was a lot harder than in group..when i saw the Tanjung Lumpur's bridge then i was highly motivated because i knew it was not far away..i paddled faster till my calf got cramped but i just ignored it..it was too close to line..finally i reached the line and clocked 5 hours 27 minutes for 160km..very happy with my performance but not enough..Alhamdulillah
Panglima arrived an hour later and Kepet few minutes later..overall, the route was harder than Ipoh and when u ask about wind at Tanjung Sepat, everybody will tell, HELL..hehehe indeed Kuantan gave us a good memory to be remembered and congratulation to the organizers for KCR160 even this is the their first time organizing such a big event..looking forward for next year and Ipoh Century Ride 2012 will be our next destination..
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| the finisher medal |
Before heading back to KL, we stopped at Gerai Pak Soh somewhere in Tanjung Lumpur to have the delicious 'sata' and Murtabak Mengkasar nearby UiTM Kuantan campus..KCR160, till we meet again!!
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| Sata Pak Soh |
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| Murtabak Mengkasar |
P/S: pictures can be viewed at http://www.flickr.com/photos/2121studio/7023555275/in/pool-1884107@N24/ - i'm crossing the finishing line
BIG THANX to KCR160 photography team for the best shots!!
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