IF you’ve always wanted to explore Malaysia by bicycle, but have never found the motivation, here’s your chance to kill two birds with one stone: riding, and at the same time, raising money for a charity.
The Malaysian AIDS Foundation (MAF) and Singapore’s Action for AIDS (AfA) is jointly organising a cycling trip that will take you from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore in eight days.
Called Riding For Life 2003, the convoy will be flagged off on June 1, and then meander over 900km (averaging 112km daily) of tarred road that will take you through obscure places like Bandar Muadzam Shah before you find you way back to the west coast of Peninsula Malaysia.
Organised once every two years, the effort requires each rider to raise at least RM2,000 in pledges for MAF, all of which will go towards prevention education programmes as well as to help people living with HIV/AIDS. Participants will have to bring their own bicycle, safety gear, and bear all travel expenses, while those who manage to raise RM5,000 or more will have their travel expenses waived. The event sponsor, which is the Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia, will match each ringgit pledged up to RM100,000.
The route has been picked by the Pedalphiles Cycling Club (PCC), formed by a group of Klang Valley-based cycling enthusiasts who will also provide training and guidance for participants.
Briefly, the route will be as follows:
Day 1 KL-Genting Sempah-Bentong-Karak-Mentakab-Temerloh (160km)
Day 2 Temerloh-Kuantan (126km)
Day 3 Kuantan-Bandar Muadzam Shah (137km)
Day 4 Bandar Muadzam Shah-Kuala Pilah-Seremban (157km)
Day 5 Seremban-Tampin-Melaka (106km)
Day 6 Melaka-Muar-Batu Pahat (92km)
Day 7 Batu Pahat-Yong Peng-Ayer Hitam-Johor Bahru (121km)
Day 8 Johor Bahru-Singapore (50km)
The organisers hope to have around 100 cyclists for this event, and everyone, irrespective of gender or race, is welcome. In the meantime, those who are itching for action should start training for this event. Incidentally, PCC riders are having one such session this Tuesday (around Subang Jaya) at 8.30pm.
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