PEDALGEAR

Friday May 2, 2008


A PASSION for speed is the factor that made biker Mohd Fadzlee clinch the fastest rider title at the Kiara Downhill Domination 2008 competition held recently. Despite the exhaustion from his Kenyir race the day before, the 27-year-old was fully guided by the adrenaline rush from racing down the challenging hill trails.
“It feels absolutely great to be in the 'hot seat' today since I didn't do so well in Kenyir. To be on top, I had to keep pulling myself to greater heights so the other riders out there won’t beat me,” Fadzlee said, adding that he was aiming to be selected to represent the country in the coming Mountain Bike Championship in Nepal. Fadzlee who works for Petronas rode down the 2.5km trail in 3.48 minutes and also bagged the Elite category championship that had seen him racing against experienced riders from a variety of countries including Singapore and Indonesia.
In the second race out of five organised this year by Freeride Malaysia, an online mountain bike riding community, there were five categories competed with 80 participants in all.
The winners for each category are Muhamad Fareez, 17, (Junior) Ahmad Johari (Open), Mohd Syarid Mohd Yunus (Hardtail) and Greg Larsen (Master A).
“There are a lot of riders in the country. The online community boasts of 300 members right now and there is just not enough places or competitions locally for them to participate in,” Freeride founding member Amirul Khair said, adding that members of the community built the current trails by hand voluntarily.
As for organising committee member and fellow racer Ridzuan Ahmad, he was proud of what they'd achieved with the trail he said was one of the best in the region.
“The trail is made for speed and there are a lot of challenging jumps to overcome. Every now and then we'd come up with new sections to add to the trail and no one will grow bored of it,” Ridzuan said.
22-year-old Audi Fareza from Indonesia was among the competitors in the Open category and the sole female competitor.
“Racing against men is exhilarating and I find myself pushing my limits that makes me the race fulfilling,” Audi, who is still studying in Jakarta, said, adding that she's been racing on a mountain bike since she was nine.
She opined that the Bukit Kiara trail was really good with plenty of mounds, drops and edgier roads making it really challenging for the racers.
For more information on the upcoming races and tracks available locally visit www.freeridemalaysia.com.



100 bikers expected to compete in second leg of Freeride competition
By NG WEI LOON

THE demanding terrains at the lush Lembah Kiara Recreation Park in Taman Tun Dr Ismail has its unique appeal to captivate the hearts of downhill mountain biking community based in the Klang Valley.
And it has been a favourite playground for the extreme mountain bike cyclists as they negotiate the challenging course and seek adrenalin rush action.
Recently, the Freeride Malaysia with approximately 300 members embarked on their inaugural Freeride Kiara Downhill Domination comprising five legs to share the adventurous riding experience with a wider audience.
Founding member Amirul Khair said they form the group in 2004 to explore mountain bike trails around the country.
“We want mountain bikers to enjoy riding at their own pace and savour the extreme thrills as a leisure pursuit. Foreigners are checking out our website (www.freeridemalaysia.com) to gather information on the tracks available here. The park in Lembah Kiara is a great spot because it is the longest course covering a total distance of 18km,” added Amir.
In February, the opening leg of Freeride Kiara Downhill Domination drew almost 90 participants including 16 entries from Singapore.
One of the organising committee members Ridzuan Ahmad said the first race went well with good crowd support.
“Normally, downhill races will attract a field of 60 riders. The response from the first race was beyond our expectations with expatriates from Germany, United Kingdom and Australia joining the occasion. Even a seven years old boy also competed in the event,” Ridzuan added.
Come April 27 , the organisers are expecting more than 100 competitors to take part in the second leg.
Another organising committee member Cougar Lee explained the 2.5km downhill route has seven sections.
“They are twin peak, shaolin, angel, bunis, middle stone, gardens and dirt drop. The two high speed sectors are the shaolin with a five feet jump and middle stone,” added Lee.
Angel situated at the midway is regarded one of the technical sections offering a combination of between two to seven feet drop, a humpy section, a 90° turn and an apex turn.
In addition, a wall ramp on the left corner was set up last year for riders to gain more momentum getting out from a right corner.
“It might sound very difficult. But, it is safe course for riders with good basic riding techniques to handle the tricky situations. We have created more obstacles with the approval from Kuala Lumpur City Council (DBKL). The ‘penghulu’ of the trail Pat Brunson, who is originally from Canada has been assisting us to ensure that we preserve the surroundings,” said Amir, adding water flow has always been a main concern when they construct new challenges on the trail.
For the upcoming event, the riders will feature in five categories - elite, open, master A (above 30 years), junior (Under-17) and hard tail.
“Each rider will be required to go through a practice ride starting from 9am before the proper race starts at 11am,” said Amir.
Entry fee is RM45 each. Those interested in taking part can registration at the venue’s park starting at 3pm on the eve of the race .
Besides giving away products to the top five finishers in each category, the top three winners in all categories will share a total cash purse of RM2,500.
The next two meets are scheduled on June 29 on August 24 followed by the final leg in December.
sponsors to support our cause in making the series an established event,” said Ridzuan.
For details, contact 017-332 7537 (Amir) or 016-412 1303 (Rizal).