No Perfection

Some of the students that took part in the ride as part of Merdeka celebration at KPT, Putrajaya on the 30Aug2010.
If not for anything then it is just a start. Events like this have been organised often currently and in the past.  Even without knowing much about cycling or the machine that they ride, participants in such event do enjoy the short ride that the event entails.  But sadly, after the event those bikes that were used went back into storage.
All the students that took part in the abovementioned event were UPM students and yet amongst them only a few ride regularly despite the campus that offers the perfect setting for it.  More will have to be done to promote the idea.


And more will be done, hopefully, with aid from KPT to promote use of bicycles for commuting in campus.  Most campuses offers the right setting and potential take up volume presented by numbers of students that have to commute from colleges to faculties during term days.

How do I start?  


Bicycle is the most efficient human powered machine.  For many years it had given its services to millions but sadly in our relatively hot and humid tropical climate it is falling out of favour to motorised vehicles that can provide a climate controlled cocoon to its occupants.  At what cost?
Fuel prices are so low in this country (Malaysia) that many can afford and do choose to do their commuting by car or motorbikes.
There are very few commuter cyclists on our road today.


In more advanced countries like Europe where fuel prices are being dictated by the free market... hence the far higher prices they are paying, cycling is now an option for commuting.  It provides a safe eco-friendly option to move all those butts around instead of lugging tonnes of extra steel to do so by cars and fat SUVs.   The city of London is spending millions to provide 6000 bikes for hire.  Other cities have opted to do the same way before London with their various models and means.  Some are successfull, a few so so and they are a few downright failure...


Is cycling a feasible option in this country?


In certain setting, I think yes.

Season of Faith

This is blog the first.  What I am going to scribble about I am not sure yet... but scribble I will.  Mostly it is going to be about bikes and commuter cycling...  the practical side of things.


How to start I am not sure.  Lets just start with a question... How many have I converted so far?


Converted into what?


The average guy into commuter cyclist I suppose.


Lets see... the biggest of them all is Akmal, the bear... although he no longer fit in the category anymore because he just does less than 2km a day cycling to work...ha ha ha


Then the is the hi-miler one...Nasir the boatboy.  He averages 20-30km a day.  That is quite a lot for a campus boy.


Then there is Ikin the on and off girl.  she doesn't ride as much anymore, not staying in college anymore. Uses a four-wheel machine plus another for steering instead of a bar!  Used to be quite a girl racer...


Who else is there?  Yeah almost forgot.. the one that has been doing it for more than 4 years... Kwong.  A masters student with one of the best bike in campus.  He is not a hi-miler but whereever he goes, his blue-bike is with him.


There will be more stories and more later...