West Malaysia loop ride

By now you would already know that I woke up early in the morning all excited about the ride ahead. After all, this was going to be a nice and easy ride to the historic town of Melaka and the route included a visit to the Sepang Formula One Circuit, go-karting in a specially constructed kart track, a refresher at the seaside town of Port Dickson, culminating with a delicious dinner in Melaka…and some well-earned beer! Yes…I was definitely looking forward to this ride!

Breakfast was the usual fare at the hotel because we wanted to…yup…maximize daylight! So for me it was my usual noodles or fried rice dish.I really dislike having breakfast in a hotel in Malaysia…not because of the food was bad…but because I felt there was much better food to be found outside. Well…you know that already. So anyway, I was wondering if Dan was feeling better…and eventually…I saw him in the dining room…yeah!!! However, he was there only to let me know that he had decided to head straight back to Singapore because of his food poisoning episode.

I can understand how he must have felt. It is no fun to be sick in a foreign place, even if it wasn’t very far from home. I have been sick on my travels before and have longed to be home with loved ones during those times. However, I felt it was important that he consulted with a doctor on his condition and get some medication to alleviate the symptoms. I was glad that he agreed to do that. While Dan was getting ready, Alex, Tony and I had a discussion on our options. We unanimously decided to stick together as a team and head back to Singapore. At the same time, we felt it might be better to ride to Melaka still and let Dan have the option of getting rest there if he wasn’t feeling well enough. Furthermore, with the added stops at Sepang and Port Dickson, it will give him the opportunity to use the toilet if needed…and to rest if necessary. I thought it was a good idea and mooted it to Dan on our walk to the clinic. He was worried he would be a burden to the gang…but after a little reasoning, he concurred.

We went to this place called Klinik Bakti at Jalan 14/20 in Petaling Jaya Section 14. Somebody told me this Indian doctor was really good so that was where we went. When I got up, there was an older lady behind the reception glass. I told her the story about needing to see a doctor…she asked a few questions, asked for Dan’s identity card…and then motioned us to get into the consultation room. Once inside, she sat on the doctor’s seat and started asking a ton of very good questions…she was the doctor!!! I thought it was so cute that she was a one woman show there…very cool. The final diagnosis was food poisoning…nothing some antibiotics and stomach medication will not solve. She also mentioned it was better to rest at least half a day before riding…but that Dan should decide since he would know if he was fit to ride. When we got back to the hotel, Dan made the decision to ride. I insisted we start as late as possible (which meant noon since that was check out time) so he could have some rest after taking his first dose. Everybody was briefed on the plan and the meet up time was fixed for noon at the lobby.

We were now experts at packing our bikes. Not only was the packing done faster, the positioning of items were a lot better as well. In fact, my own bike packing has changed quite dramatically and I now find that things are a lot easier to get to when I need them, and the bags stay in place and does not interfere with riding comfort at all. Yeah! There’s nothing like real life experience honed from necessity…seriously! Since it was now noon, we had to get some lunch…come to think of it…I didn’t see the lunch pictures in my collection. I wonder where they went!? Now that I did another search, I realized I didn’t take any pictures of the lunch place. Hahaha! Anyway, we had lunch at Subang Jaya…had some simple Malay food (self serve!) and it was very delicious…as usual! After that, we headed off to towards Sepang!

Since I had never been to Sepang…and I had only ridden on the motorcycle lanes for a day or so…I made a wrong turn which proved costly in terms of time. We got stuck behind a very big jam because some truck had dropped a huge piece cargo (looked like some machinery) onto the bridge blocking two lanes! It took us quite a few minutes to clear that jam…but we did…and the road became a lot clearer after that and we followed the signs and headed towards the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). Eventually, I spotted a sign that said Sepang F1 Circuit and it was a breeze to get there. I had wanted to take the opportunity to tour around the circuit…to see the sights. But since we now had the possibility of heading back to Singapore, I decided we would just stop for a brief photography session. We stopped at this knoll where we overlooked turn 11…in fact, we were standing to the left of section C1! The track was booked for a private event that day and it turned out to be for the Ferrari Club! There were many Ferrari’s going around the track…I felt like I was at the races. These two were casing each other. In fact, by the next lap, the yellow one was in front! I think some of these drivers are under instruction because one car spun out twice at this turn…it was quite a spectacle!

We stuck around for awhile watching the folks race around the track…and taking pictures of the cars…or the track…and of each other! Hahaha!

Everybody looked well rested and happy at this point so it was a good idea to move to the next stop…Port Dickson! I have to confess that I did not study the route very well for today’s ride…but hey…this is what an adventure is all about, isn’t it?? So push on we did! I had intended to stick to Route 5 as we head south…but since I wan’t a hundred percent positive about the name of the towns we needed to pass through, I decided to use a more tried and tested route. So I had the team headed towards Seremban and from there pushed onto E1 (better known as the North-South Highway) towards exit 219 which took us onto Route 53…and onto E29 (the Seremban-Port Dickson Highway)…and eventually to Route N8 which led us all the way to Port Dickson. So what should have been a short hop turned out to be longer in terms of distance (since we headed east into Seremban from Sepang)…but we saved time as we were on faster roads…and skipped the main part of Port Dickson town…instead…luck put us at the south of the town which was where we would take a pit stop anyway. So here’s a tip: Study your route and be clear about the towns that you will be passing through to save on time and energy…because your luck may not play out the same way…hahaha!

I don’t know about you but oceans have always been special for me. I love it when I can spot the ocean while journeying on a long road. There’s something about the ocean that appeals to me…I can’t put my finger on it exactly…but I know that my heart skips a beat every time I see the ocean. We were riding along the roads from Seremban to Port Dickson and it was dry land all the way. I was thrilled when I made the last turn on Route N8 because all of a suddenly…I could see the beautiful azure of the ocean! I had spotted an outcrop somewhere down the road where two houses were built…it looked like the perfect spot for a pit stop. Unfortunately, it turned out to be private ground and we were advised to move somewhere further down south where there were some other public but quiet beaches. However, Alex spotted a place up the road with a beach-side restaurant and suggested we go there instead…so that was where we went.

The Regency at Port Dickson was a nice looking resort hotel located directly on Route 5. We parked our bikes inside and proceeded straight for the Coconut Grove…even the name sounded relaxing to me! I really liked what I saw when I got there…

…we quickly got down to the business of studying the menu for a refreshing drink. I was craving for an ice cold beer…who wouldn’t? Unfortunately, we still had some distance to ride to Melaka…and very like to Singapore. Good thing the menu was packed with options! I eventually settled on a drink that reminded me of the ocean…a Gunner…a beautiful mix of ginger ale and ginger beer with a dash of Angostura Bitters. Yeah, I know I said many times before that people who drink ginger beer or ginger ale are old…but dang…those two really mix well together and the bitters made it a PERFECT mix for relaxation alongside the water!

I decided that I would take some photographs of the place while we were waiting for the drinks to be prepared…I simply had to get onto the sand…I had wanted to come back to Port Dickson for so long. You see…I used to come to Port Dickson when I was a young boy…we used to put up in one of the bungalows by the sea…and when it was low tide, we used to walk on the dry sea bed across to an island about 500m away. I remembered the sand to be powdery white…soft sand that swallowed up the feet as I walked on them…warming them up and providing a fantastic cushioning effect. The sand here was almost the same…and yes…my MX boots did sink in slightly. But the highlight was definitely the view!

Eventually, the drinks arrived…we downed them quickly…and then ordered a second round…plus fried chicken wings and French fries to share. It was super yummy…especially using the fingers!!

So can anyone tell me if the Ginger Ale or the Ginger Beer was on top?

It was soon time to go…and believe me…we all wanted to just stay here for a little bit longer. However, the sky looked a little threatening as it was getting dark to the north-east…so I thought it was best we moved along. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect as it started to rain just as we left the Coconut Grove. So we put on our rain gear (at least I did) and we continued on our journey along Route 5 towards Melaka. I had made a dinner reservation just before we left the Coconut Grove for a simple restaurant dinner in Melaka so we now had a time constraint for the journey an hour and a half to be exact to cover the 80km or so along Route 5. The rain and the rush hour traffic (which wasn’t taken into account in my time estimate) certainly did not help the situation. We found that we had 40km to cover with just 15 minutes if we wanted to make it on time…that was impossible. So I made a stop here in order to push the reservation out and give us some additional time. Dan parked just behind me while Tony and Alex parked further up along the road. Unfortunately, Alex’s Steed fell while he was adjusting his tank bag! Good thing Tony could help him lift it up! There were a bunch of kids from the kampung who came up to check out my bike while I was on the phone so I spoke with them a little…and gave them the packs of raisins that I had brought along. All kids love raisins…I sure did! Too bad I had packed up my camera because of the rain…or I could have taken pictures of the boys. I love seeing kids on my travels…always reminded me that life can be pure and simple…and that you can find joy in the smallest…most insignificant things!

With my heart filled with the smiles of the kids…and with an additional 45 minutes on to cover the remaining distance, we pushed on. I could not resist stopping here for a few minutes though…I am a sucker for the countryside…

And thanks to the fantastic range of my trusty Marley, we had to make a fuel stop not long after…

…by this time, my phone battery had run out…so we simply had to make it to the restaurant and hope that we would have a table. You see, this was a really small place with only six tables or so. I would bet that most people who go to Melaka…even those who go there frequently…and those who love the Jonker Walk area may not know of this place. It was a small, inconspicuous little shop that offered deliciously home cooked Teochew cuisine, all cooked with good quality fresh ingredients right out front! Yes, in order to eat, you gotta walk through the kitchen! Incredibly…for such a well-hidden place, it was almost always full! I really wanted to make sure we got there by 7:30pm…but we were half an hour late!

The good news was that they just had a group vacate as we got there so we had a table! Yeah! I am sure you are wondering how anyone could put a kitchen on the outside of the restaurant…I was wondering the first time I was told about this place as well. Fortunately…I had my camera with me…

…there are a few dishes that are must haves whenever I dine here…I ordered up the house specials of oyster fried noodles and steamed fish. I did not order the yam dessert which was also a house special because the rest of the guys wasn’t up for it. While I could attempt to describe how the dishes tasted…I think it is best that I let the pictures do the talking here…

…there is a proper way to have two of these dishes. The oyster fried noodles goes with chopped garlic, chili paste and black vinegar. The steamed fish goes with the sliced chilies marinaded with fermented soy bean paste. All the condiments are home made…in fact…the chili paste has the small anchovies in them…YUMMY!

Melaka was a checkpoint for this day because it was originally a venue for a sleep over. It was about half past nine by the time we were done with dinner. The idea of the checkpoint was to check if Dan was feeling good enough to push all the way back to Singapore since he was recovering from food poisoning, or if we should stay the night and push forward the following morning. Since Dan felt good enough to push on, that was what we did. We did stop by Tangkak as I had to refuel…coincidentally, Tony’s grandmother was at Tangkak…so we stopped by for a short visit. I enjoyed the visit very much…and it sure was great to see his little nephew…especially how he loved the bikes!

The rest of the way back to Singapore was via the E1…we rode as quickly as we could. However, speeds had to be lower in the rain because it was difficult to see with water on the visor. Some people say that it is easier and safer to ride on the E1 because you can ride on the shoulder. I completely disagree with this for small bikes that max out at 80-100kph because the cars, buses and trucks all go at speeds above 110kph…some are WAY above 110kph. On top of that, some people stop at the shoulder for a rest…or a breakdown…or whatever reason…and if you don’t spot them early enough…well…let’s just say I hope your emergency braking from 80-90kph technique is solid!

I was getting really tired since it was after 10pm when we left Tangkak and we had close to 200km to go before hitting Gelang Patah. I stopped the gang at every rest stop purely because I was getting sleepy as well. To make a long story short…we did eventually get to the GP petrol station at three in the morning…where there was a group of big sports bikes from Singapore doing their usual refueling run. We also met a rider who is a member of the Singapore Bikes Forum (ozpass, if I remember correctly). He was riding his AfricaTwin…and it looked VERY big next to my Marley…hahaha! It was nice to chat and he helped to take my favourite picture of the gang.

The official reading of my odometer was 67997 at Johor Bahru. This meant we traveled a total of 1322 miles…making it 2127.55km! Yeah!!!

I made the following fuel stops for this leg:

• Petaling Jaya
• Seremban (60 miles or 97km)
• Somewhere near Lubok China (phone battery dead…so no record of distance from here)
• Tangkak
• Machap
• Gelang Patah

We headed off towards the checkpoints…a breeze in the Malaysia side…then it was the Singapore side. No problem with immigration…but really tough at customs…both because of the timing (it was past 3am!!) and because I had SO MANY boxes and bags to open…that were netted down. The young lady officer was friendly and we had a good chat while I opened my side boxes…then my tripod case…it took quite awhile because of the straps I had put on them to keep them secure. She did not see every box I guess because it was going to be more of the same. Alex and I made it through relatively quickly. Unfortunately, Tony and Dan had to go to the office. I waved goodbye to Alex and he left for home. I waited at the side of the expressway because Tony would be traveling on the same route as me for quite a distance more. He came out about 25minutes later…Dan was at the office for a longer time before he could leave for home. We all got back around the same time at around 4am because of the different distances from the Tuas checkpoint. I found out later they had to go fill up some forms because of the walkie talkies. Oh well…next time we have to remember to bring along the certification papers for those!

All in all, I enjoyed the loop ride tremendously. I got to travel on the roads I had always wanted to go on…and share it with three riding buddies. I would do it all over again in a heartbeat…and I hope that you too will go on your own loop ride!