I started April 2016 ticking off my bucket list: join a Roadtrip Convoy…. MAJOR CHECKED!
It was the first experience and the kind of adrenaline adventure that one would always be proud of (I probably am a bit exaggerating here, but I swear it was the 2nd coolest stuffs I have done in my life, after went for Bungee Jumping at Himalayan Mountain Hills – 12 KM Away from Tibetan Border!). I met the riders who came from different backgrounds with different bikes from a network called Internations – a global expatriate network & forum which established its presence in most of countries worldwide.
The gathering is called “Brunch in Cameron Highlands” where we got to meet as early as 6.30 AM. There were seven (7) riders, not to mention one of them was a female rider! Badass, indeed!
I got the privilege to sit in the pillion seat with the BMW bike where we hit 200kmph when we cruised to Pahang Highway. However, I did my test-ride with Ducati StreetFighter S and KTM Sport 640 in 2 consecutive weeks before. The riders were more than just being friendly to explain me with things related with big bike.
It was a great Saturday, 2nd day of the month. Here is the rough timeline to summarize our Convoy Roadtrip:
05.30 AM – David picked me up with his Ducati StreetFighter S 1098 at my apartment, in Bukit Jalil. It was a breezy dawn but we both were glad that we could skipped the typical traffic jam KL usually offers in the morning.
06.00 AM – Arrived at Meeting Point: BHP Petrol Station (Gombak Toll) where Jonas and Poul have arrived. I then met all of the riders for the first time within 20 minutes of wait (except for Mike and Dave).
06.45 AM – Seven (7) Riders assembled together, off to Raub (1st Check Point). I went along with Christos accompanied by his BMW R1200GS Adventure which, to my surprise, was a skillful rider! He cruised through all the riders from the start making us to be in front of the convoy line, and Dave raced together with us. 30 minutes of adrenaline!
07.15 AM – Stopped by at Bentong Toll (2nd Check Point) for 15-minutes to decide where to eat as well as checking up with things so far.
08.15 AM – Arrived at a local food place between Bentong and Raub for Breakfast (3rd Check Point). The place served delicately meal of bread and coffee. We were eating for 15-minutes to realize that Poul went missing! Apparently he went passed without realizing he missed the place.
09.15 AM – Arrived at Petron Gas Station in Raub, finally met Poul. Fueled up before continuing the journey (4th Check Point).
10.00 AM – Arrived at Pahang Highways, enjoying the Hill Scenery (5th Check Point). It was fascinating and captivating especially when you’re surrounded with sexy motorbikes 😉
11.15 AM – Arrived at Cameron Highlands, Brunch in Barracks Cafe (6th Check Point). I got to admit that I went to vomit at this point. This was my first time after living here in KL for 6 years (I know, such a shame) to visit Cameron Highlands. Not to mention, with a motorbike at 110kmph for a normal speed. I just found out (in a hard way) that Cameron Highlands had sets of annoyingly twisty highroad. I felt much much better after the vomit incident (which took me around 20-mins to pull myself back together), and I did eat my food to refuel my energy. On the other side of note, Barracks Cafe has a great selection of food! 4 out of 5.
01.00 PM – Off to Kuala Lumpur, using Ipoh Lane. The riders agreed to use this way for a less twisty road concerning with what happened to me. I felt bad to them for causing trouble but they told me it was all alright for them, since I am not a rider and this to be my 1st experience.
02.00 PM – Fueled up at Tapah Petrol Station (7th Check Point). It located along the North-South Highway, South-Bound, heading towards KL. We did take several badass individual pictures with the bike here since it had quite a nice outdoor space.
03.15 PM – Arrived at Ipoh Toll, where 3 riders dismissed into separated ways (8th Check Point). 20-minutes after we continued with our ride to KL, we were blasted by the rain! We stopped somewhere in the middle of the highways where there was a shelter but the rain continued pouring and we decided to just go for it. All I had with me was a leather jacket that I prayed hard to adequate me enough from the cold. It turned out that after 15-minutes of a tough ride cruising through, rain stopped on the following side. The long straight highway to KL charmed us with a sunset scenery. 120 kmph, good company, and a sunset! Nothing can be better for a weekend 🙂
[VIDEO] Quick Short Vid I took with SJ Base Cam when the rain hit on us:
SJ Base Cam Testing on BMW Adventure from Leii DM on Vimeo.
05.00 PM – Arrived at KL and went to Bangsar for a quick beer (fun fact: the riders have a WhatsApp Group called “Bikes and Beers”) in Sid’s Pub (Last Check Point). I didn’t order the beer because I don’t know how to drink one, but I ordered this tiger prawn snack meal wrapped up with bacon. Delicately tasty! Sid’s Pub also known for a bar where most riders meetup together for drinks.
05.30 PM – All riders dismissed, Dave took me back home cruising through KL Highways against the traffic! I’ll miss the Ducati because Dave decided to sell it out in order for him to get a new BMW Adventure Bike (yay for David!).
–
Once I saw my bed, I realized how tiring it was for the whole long-trip day. I knew exactly that it would be a rough morning tomorrow after a sleep, so I decided to go for a 2-hour body massage in Sri Petaling to release the tension from my drained body.
Living in one of the busiest cities in South East Asia with a 9-to-5 fulfilling stable job, surrounded by advanced technologies and innovations – there’s a period in life where I found myself doing the same things over and over, one day after another. This road-trip definitely is a self-reflective encounter with life, and to connect more towards openness and generosity (in my case, with the new friends I made, the riders). What a priceless experience, and I’ll quote again the caption that I wrote on my Instagram from the first post of the adventure, “Life is indeed an adventure one needs to be grateful to explore.”
[VIDEO] Quick Snaps of the Whole Adventure:
Road Trip Convoy – April 2k16 from Leii DM on Vimeo.
