2019 Ride - Prologue

So after a 2 year hiatus - I was too busy in 2018, or so I kept telling myself - I decided to do it again.

Right up to the Friday before departure, I was still undecided on whether I was going to do it. I had great memories and experiences from the last one, but I also remembered getting lost repeatedly, long hours in the saddle, my painful coccyx  (tailbone, for those of you who've never fractured one and never had the need for the medical term) at the end of every day, the 21-traffic-light gauntlet - all in all, it sounded like a very tiring venture.

I’d also not done many long rides. Aside from the occasional work trip to KL, most of the last two years was made up of 50km warm-up rides on the weekend .

On the plus side, I  enjoyed the peace. And the focus. And the loneliness. A good time for catching up on myself, appreciating what I missed and working on other pursuits for which I always didn’t have the time. Worth doing it again? I wasn’t sure. So I decided that if the bike started on the Saturday before the departure date (it had been sitting idle for 2 weeks due to work travel), I’d do it.

Meanwhile, to keep my options open, I planned. I put in for leave. I looked at route options. I picked hotels to stay at (although I didn’t intend to book them until after the bike started on Saturday). I contemplated which was worse; pushing through an 8 hour ride or spending a night in Kelantan?

I’d also purchased miscellaneous gear, having learnt many lessons along the way. Harley luggage rack, so I didn’t have to carry the backpack while riding. Waterproof backpack. Saddlebag (the 883 only fits a small one, and one of them) for the odds and ends, like a bottle of water. Tank bag for phone navigation and to stick my cigarettes and money in when it rains. Handlebar-mounted camera, in the event of monkeys or a hornbill. In-helmet Bluetooth headset, for music and navigation. Baggy riding jeans, a lot cooler-looking than my previous glam-rocker-tight denims.

The jeans, tank bag and headset all came off Amazon, and I have to say I am pleased with my first foray into online shopping.

So Saturday came. And with a small cough, the engine turned over. Riding in the cool morning with the breeze blowing through my perforated jacket and the euphoric roar of the 883, I came to a decision.

Let's do this, mo' fo’. 

handlebar-mounted cam

Harley saddlebag, purchased at Gasket Alley

Harley rack (bought from the Singapore showroom) with Taichi waterproof backpack

Tank bag