Jack 'n' Jill Went Up The Hill

I finally join a cycling group, here in Jitra. They had been pestering me to join them for quite some times. Not that I wasn't interested, its just that I would be the only female in the group. Its not really the 'in' thing here in this small town to find a girl/lady/woman in a company of a group of men.

But after some thoughts, I said "Why not ?" as long as I know the boundaries ....

Actually they are MTB group. That's one of the reasons I decided to join them rather than the "roadies" . With my speed limit at 27km/h I think I wouldn't be left alone behind the pack because for MTBs even at 27km/h it is considered above average speed, I think.

The group has their cycling session at nite, taking the hilly route behind and around Jitra along the road of Tanah Merah to Bukit Wang and and sometimes the Guar Napai route, of which will only be around 30km. They would ride every other night without fail, subject to the weather, but still there are times when rain just cant stop them.

Ok. I m not really a strong cyclist and hills are not my usual playground. But with the group ,I have been introduced officially with this one steep hill. It was not really a proper introduction but rather more like a surprise encounter. That first night, I was cycling with only four of the group. The road was not that bad and since it was at night I couldn't really see whats in store at the front. I was coming down from a small hill and was really enjoying the descend when I started to feel some struggling pedalling. It was suddenly getting harder to push the pedal. I pushed and pushed but it was really difficult ... the boys told me to go slow, but I was not slowing, I was struggling to actually move because I had come to a halt.

"Bukit gila apa hampa bawa nih...?"

I had no choice but to unclip the pedal and get down from the bike. I had to push the bike and surrender the climbing.

The next day, out of curiousity I drove to that site of the hill to have a look and see what it was actually like.

Even the cars have to use first gear and motorbikes too have a hard time climbing this

"Masya Allah bukit ni depa nak suruh aku kayuh semalam !
Had it been daytime I wouldnt have climbed in the first place
I would have got down and walk !"

But still the look of the hill didn't scare me to try the climbing during my second session with the group. Tentulah tak boleh juga kan ... Aku bukan Aini.

During the third session, I was already praying "Ya Qawwiy, Ya Qawwiy" right from the corner before the road to the hill. And when I reached the hill, I could see the boys were already climbing. One of them stayed with me and was helping me on how to do it. I pushed and pushed with some encouragement from him

"Tekan lagi Ann, tekan kuat lagi ..."

..... I pushed and I could feel the heat building up inside my thigh and I pushed and tried to push, left and right, left and right ... and ... suddenly

eaokkkk ....eerrkkkkkk eahhhhhh ...

... BOOM ...

I fell down
(dengan penuh manja dan sopan gitu...)

together with my mentor behind who was following me closely .. We apparently had no time to unclip ! Alhamdulillah we didn't tumble down like Jack 'n' Jill.


So u see... I told you, hills are not my playground.

But secretly I hope to conquer that hill one day. Insya Allah.

Jangan Jawab Macam Tu Kat M@rtha Stewart Adik Oi

Tension dengan Emak Kepada Segala Pilihanraya, aku memilih untuk membuat kapkek. Mengikut resepi aku perlukan "1/2 Cup of Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chip". Jadi, aku dengan itu telah pergi ke satu "Kedai Keperluan Kek" yang ada di Jitra ini.

Aku ambil satu bungkus kecil semi-sweet chocolate chip dan ketika hendak membuat bayaran, aku bertanya kepada juruwang.

"Adik, kalau satu bungkus kecik ni, boleh dapat berapa "cup" ?
Setengah "cup" ka atau satu "cup"?"

Tanpa rasa bersalah kepada undang-undang peradaban masakan, M@rtha Stew@rt dan juga Chef W@n, beliau telah berkata:-

"Tengoklah ... jenis cawan apa kakak pakai"

I rest my case, My Lord.

On The Run

I dont know how much more should I thank HIM for placing me in such a wonderful place like my new home now. The best thing that I enjoy most is the spacious road and the fresh air I get during my morning run. Yes, I m getting back on my feet again after almost a month of all the nity gritty of moving and getting accustomed to the new place. But I did start my cycling much earlier though.

I just hope I will get to meet other slow female runners like me around the area. Not that I dont like to run alone, but sometimes I think its nice to have a company who has more, if not the same, passion than me so that we could push each other. I heard theres a Jitra Running Club somewhere around; think I ll just ask around for more info on that . But on a second thought maybe I m still too slow to join a club. Let my feet get accustomed to a faster pace than the hare first.

In the meantime I'll just have to hang on to my iPod for a good and loyal company.

Pabila Bas Meninggalkan Aku

Kejadian seumpama ini sudah lama tidak terjadi pada aku.

Dan sudah hampir 10 tahun aku tidak menaiki kenderaan awam paling popular di negeri ini. Kali terakhir aku berulang alik naik bas ialah sewaktu aku mula bekerja dulu. Pun begitu bas itu sering menghampakan aku yang mana membuatkan aku terpaksa berjalan 4km ke bus stop di jalan besar...... dengan baju kebaya dan kasut tumit tinggi.... (ya aku kadang2 sangat feminine walaupun tidak suka memakai lipstick) kerana bas yang aku tunggu tidak muncul-muncul.

Pernah juga berlaku apabila bas tidak sampai-sampai dan oleh kerana aku sudah sangat-sangat terlewat, aku telah menahan satu kereta polis yang sedang lalu memintanya menghantar aku ke tempat kerja. Polis yang baik hati itu, walaupun agak terkejut, telah sudi menghantar aku pada pagi itu. Sebab itu walaupun ramai orang yang marah dan kata macam-macam pada Polis Malaysia, aku diamkan saja.

Dua kejadian itu (dimana yang pertama sangat kerap berlaku walaupun tanpa baju kebaya) tidaklah boleh dikira sebagai ketinggalan kerana taman yang aku duduk itu selalu dianggap oleh pemandu bas sebagai tempat orang yang berduit yang tak perlukan khidmat bas. Atas anggapan itu, pemandu bas selalu menipu syarikatnya dengan tidak mahu lalu di taman aku. Dia tidak tahu bahawa atas ketidak-prihatinannya itu, aku lah yang menjadi mangsa. Dia tidak tahu bahawa ada hamba Allah yang tidak berduit untuk beli kereta lagi waktu itu.

Ok. Balik kepada tajuk. Aku benar-benar ketinggalan bas pagi tadi bila aku "ter"bangun lewat dan sebaik sahaja aku sampai ke tempat menunggu bas, aku hanya sempat melihat punggung bas tersebut. Dengan pandangan sayu dan mata terkelip-kelip, aku terus juga memparkir kereta dan mengambil keputusan bahawa walau apa pun berlaku aku tidak akan membawa kereta. Aku bertekad untuk menunggu dengan harapan masih ada bas yang akan datang membawa aku ke tempat kerja.

Alhamdulillah, tidak sampai pun 15 minit, sebiji bas tiba dan aku sangat gembira kerana bas itu berhawa dingin.. yeahhh.... tidak seperti bas yang aku hanya sempat lihat punggungnya tadi yang seperti bas zaman P.Ramlee... bas yang baru tiba sangat selesa dengan tempat duduk yang empuk dan lapang. Kaki aku tidak lagi tersepit dengan tempat duduk depan.

Jika beginilah keadaan bas yang aku 'discover' pada hari ini pada pukul 8.15, aku rasa kalau aku 'ter'bangun lewat lagi sekali esok pun tak pa nih.......

Oh ya perjalanan hanya mengambil masa lebih kurang 30 minit .

Memang bas aku bas lama, tapi tidaklah seburuk ini

Ini bukan gambar kejadian sebenar antara aku dan bas

aku pakai kebaya ok !

bukan sari

:-P

Its Not That Bad

Ya... memang bukanlah sesuatu yang teruk jika naik bas ke tempat kerja. Saya tahu kalau yang tinggal di KL, naik bas atau LRT atau tren, semuanya itu bukanlah sesuatu yang asing lagi. Tapi, bila tinggal di bandar kecil, atau negeri kecil seperti di utara ini, menaiki kenderaan awam bukanlah sesuatu yang ditunggu-tunggu atau disukai. Kenderaan awam yang paling utama pula hanyalah bas.

Bas kat sini pula bukanlah bas yang macam Intrakota ka Rapid ka... yang di KL sana. Di sini bas yang ada biasanya yang macam kamu semua tengok dalam cerita P Ramlee tu, yang macam dalam cerita "Masam-masam Manis"; hah macam tu lah bas yang saya naik pagi tadi..... Cuma yang bezanya saya dengan "Cikgu Murni", tak adalah lelaki hensem yang mengorat saya .

Few Adjustments

There are some things which I find that need a few adjustments to my new life now in Jitra. For instance:-

1. The Distance

Its now a 23 km drive from the new house to my office when it used to be only 7 km drive all these years. So, everyday its now more than a 40km drive. Hmmmm....

2. The Tolls

If I am late (which I find almost every other day) I can just use the highway which cost me RM4 to and fro; RM1.60 for the the first toll and another RM0.40 for the second one. And for one month I d have to spend close to RM120 on toll alone. Even if I dont use the first toll (by taking another route to go out through the second toll) I still have to spend almost RM32 monthly.


Now since there's a price hike on the fuel, I am seriously thinking of other alternatives to commute to work; yes, Jamis does come to my mind ... but to cycle 46 km everyday .. oh come on, even a pro will give it a second thought.. (kan Aini kan kan kan). Going is ok.. but the coming back time would be a dread, especially after all hard (?) day at work. I might have to take the taxi for me and Jamis to go back to Jitra which will defeat the purpose since the taxi price wont be RM15 anymore (before the hike).

The other choice is the BUS. Hmm.. I can park my car near the bus station in Jitra and take the bus straight to my workplace.

The price of the "I Love Jitra" thing

Oh ya, since I have to start early to work, I cant cycle and run in the morning anymore except during the weekend. So I have now started my cycling at night; quite safe actually. I dont know about my running yet.. but I'll figure it out when I buy the spot light to attach to my body during the running.......

I Love Jitra

So, I'm getting into the third week of staying in the new house now. Actually its not exactly new in the true sense, its a second hand house which I bought from an old couple who made the house as their vacation/transit house. A semi detached house just like I always wanted, not so small and not so big. I dont think I can handle a bigger house. My priority is the windows, for the wind to go in and out; good ventilation is a must. I cant stand a house with no windows or just one or two.

I couldnt thank HIM more for making my dreams and my wishes come true. The surrounding is just nice too; fresh air, good neighbours who are not so nosy but still keeping their eyes on my every moves (haha..who wouldnt when a single lady with a racing bike moves in). Well at least they dont come around and start asking questions.

My house is not very far from the Jitra small town. You can find almost everything within a 5 - 7 minutes drive, the small mall with its own cineplex and bowling alley, Old Town cafe, Pizza Hut, KFC, and the rows of food stalls and some other small shops with reasonable price goods. And if you need to go to Alor Star, you can take the highway which is about 1km away from my place. What more could I ask...?

Alhamdulillah

And of course Jitra is nice for my cycling and running too. Like I ve said before, its quite hilly and the road's condition is not bad.

Soon a makcik with tudunng on a road bike would be normal sight here in Jitra.

Saturday Ride

I had a good ride yesterday even though at the last 10km I was really gasping for air ..

I started out quite early from the house, right after Subuh prayer. At first I was planning to go out as early as 5.45 am and stop by at Nora's house for the prayer before proceeding to Changloon, but then I thought I might as well start from the house rather than knocking on Nora's door when shes still in Dream Wonderland. I had done all the packing that night and so its only a matter of dressing up and putting on the make up ( kidding..make up hapanya nak kayuh basikal) and sped off to Changloon in a matter of 25 mins. I took the highway.

Alor Star is a very flat land, you wont find any hills around and we dont have that many flyovers here to try climbing. Thats why I always love cycling in Jitra because of the few small hills here and there. This time around anyways, I had Changloon in mind, thinking of climbing that hill again on the way to UUM and make a turning to go to Perlis through Pauh and go down to Kodiang before coming back to Changloon. The ride should be around 56km.

I only had one bottle of plain drinking water and a power bar. What a mistake, I should have put Gatorade instead, as I learned later in the ride.

Its only after the 5th km when I met with THAT HILL, and since I'm quite new, the climb was really a test. When I started to climb I was pedaling at almost 60rpm and when I was about to reach the top my HRM was shouting at more than 160 and the speed was at about 10-13km/h. I had to stop to at the top to make sure the heart dropped at 131 before coming down. But the climb was worth it because what a descend I had. I was going down at 51.6km/h !!! Yeehaaaaa.... Last week I only managed to get 44km/h doing the same hill.

I had to face a few small hills afterwards and more climbing before coming to the round-about in front of UUM for the turn. The returning trip from UUM was not as bad as it was now a matter of going down and I could try the big gears for a speed. Again I had to face the HILL and tortured my heart, my feet and all of my body for the second time. I was climbing at the last few meters to the top at 5-6km/h !!

I took the Changloon-Kuala Perlis highway which was about 13km from the UUM-Changloon junction and took a turn to Pauh. The ride on the highway was smooth. I was pedaling at the rate of 25-30km/h which to me is quite fast as my usual average is about 21km/h. Maybe this time around I was trying pedaling with the big gear. Pauh was nice and the road was not as bad as I had expected. I was cycling under shades of trees and it was quite refreshing, especially after coming from the scorching hot sun at the high way. It was cool and relaxing from Pauh to Kodiang but when I reached the latter the road was apparently under construction *sigh* . I did not have to suffer that much as after about 400m I then made a left turn at the famous junction of Kodiang towards Changloon again.

This road should take about 13km but I was very close to bonking. I did take a few sips during the ride and I even stopped for a half of the powerbar at one point but my energy level was very low. I saw a shabby closed old shop hut with and old rattan chair with cushion outside and decided to take a break. I finished the other half of the powerbar and just sat there watching the kampung folks going up and down. After 5mins or more I continued the ride but I was having a tough time. The road greeted me with many ups and downs, and its all about "oh no..another climb" and "ahh yes...coming down" and "oh no..another climb again..".... It was not supposed to be that bad, all are very small climbs, but since I was close to worn-out, I was crying all the way..! And there were a few kids on the road who were trying to have fun with me by pulling some rope in the middle of the road (like coming to finishing line) that I had to shout out loud "Wehhhh Hoii..! Jangan ! Jangan !! Tak mau mainnnn.. Jatuh nanti...!!" Ya, I was cranky because I was tired.

I finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel, when I saw Changloon town again ! Alhamdulillah. Since I was dead beat, I didnt bother to use the proper lane, and since my car was not very far from the junction and all the cars were not speeding, I took the incoming car lane and carefully rode on the right side of the road. Yes, it was dangerous, but I took the chance.

I had never been happier to see my car again!


Dist: 58.8KM
Av : 21.7 km/h
Mx: 51.6 km/h

Heart Rate

Av: 148
Mx: 164

Nenek Tua Di Pizza Hut

Hari itu aku dan Nora ke Pizza Hut Jitra, menikmati hidangan dengan lahapnya, terutamanya ahli sukan (ehem ehem ehem) yang baru kayuh basikal Jitra-Changloon-UUM.

Sekali, kami berdua terlihat seorang nenek tua dengan baju lusuh kain batik berserta beg plastik di tangan masuk ke restoran itu. Aku dan Nora memang pernah lihat nenek itu berjalan seorang diri kadang di sekitar Jitra, dan bila melihat dia, tersentuh rasa kasihan memikirkan kenapa dia dibiarkan berjalan seorang diri. Tapi bila difikirkan semula, mungkin anak cucunya sudah tidak mampun membendung keinginan nenek tua untuk keluar berjalan. Mungkin sudah habis ikhtiar mereka untuk menghalangnya dari keluar rumah.

Ok. Kembali pada Pizza Hut. Nenek itu, kami lihat berjalan dari meja ke meja seperti berbual dan bertanya khabar. Tapi kata Nora nenek tua sedang meminta wang dari orang ramai.

Kaki nenek tua akhirnya sampai ke meja kami. Kami pun menyapanya, bertanyakan sama ada dia sudah makan atau belum. Kataku " Kalau nenek nak makan duduklah... nanti saya order kan makanan. "

"Nenek mahu Pizza?"tanyaku

Dia gelengkan kepalanya. "Nek tak lalu makan.."

"Nenek mahu cappuccino ..? Kita letak whip cream..nak?"

Hehe..Ok nenek tak mahu makan atau minum cappuccino. Aku dan Nora tahu dia mahukan wang. Sambil aku buka beg tangan (ahli sukan pun ada handbag tau..) dia bertanya pada kami:-

"Kerja kat mana cek berdua nih...?"

"Saya kerja kat Alor Star" kataku sambil menghulurkan RM5 padanya.

Sambil mengambil wang tersebut nenek tua masih sempat memberitahu kami orang lain memberinya "dua ketul merah" (ya dia benar-benar guna term itu).

Sambil aku dan Nora tersengih aku kata padanya "Ya lah..depa kaya duit banyak..."

Masih mengenggam not hijau RM5 itu dia bertanya lagi.

"Kerja apa ...?"

"Saya kerja kayuh basikal..."

Nora tergelak kecil.

Nenek merenung aku dan kemudian menyua kembali pada aku not hijau itu.

"Nahh lah.. ambik lah ....."

"Eh tak payahh.... saya bagi kat nenek.."

"Ambiklah balik..satgi tak cukup duit pulak..
dah kerja pun kecik dok kayuh basikal saja.."

Sudah tentu aku tak ambil RM5 tu. Buruk siku nanti.Tapi kami kemudiannya diberitahu budak-budak pizza kat situ bahawa nenek tu memang macam tu, kalau not merah dia ambikla, kalau biru dia tak ambik........ hehehe

Kata budak pizza lagi, dia selalu masuk Pizza Hut. Sejuk katanya ada aircond. Kat luar panas.

Waktu aku dan Nora melangkah keluar dari Pizza Hut kami nampak nenek tua sedang duduk atas kerusi di situ dengan gaya yang sungguh relaks dan santai dengan kaki di letakkan di atas kerusi sebelah lagi.

Aku rasa dia tengah tunggu order "Pepperoni Delight Stuffed Crust with Extra Cheese" kot..... maklum dia dah dapat dua ketul merah dan satu ketul hijau...

Aku doakan dia selamat di jalanan.