[Trip Report] The Twisted Tour – Malaysia by Multistrada : Aug 2006

[Multistrada4Sale]

Hi guys,

 

I did a multi-day tour on my Multistrada in August 2006 and I wrote the following for some Multistrada-riding pals. I want to share it here because I used posts on “Trip Thrills” to get inspired and do my pre-ride research. Sure, I’m also trying to sell my Multi, but my main point is that if you’ve got a moto, you ought to get on your bike and ride! The number of people who limit their touring to the North-South Boreway is always sort of a surprise…

 

 

The Twisted Tour – Malaysia by Multistrada!

 

The stars align: 1) wife and kids visiting family overseas; 2) four days off

work due to weekend, lost time and public holiday; 3) relatively new rubber and 2,000 kms to go until next service interval.

 

Time to flee Singapore and head for the hills in peninsular Malaysia!

 

Day One

My two German friends, call them Hans and Franz, join me on the first two days of this journey, which basically begins with a run on Route 9, a twisty back road that holds its share of challenges--decreasing radius curves, sandy patches and mad lorry drivers.

 

Our destination is Bukit Fraser, a 1,500-meter high hill station founded by a guy who reportedly ran gambling-and-opium dens. You reach the resort, which is popular with tourists from Kuala Lumpur, via one of two approaches: Both involve dizzying hairpins and switchbacks, blind corners, stomach-churning drop offs and occasional apex-clipping cagers. In other words, darn near perfect. And thanks to the colonial British influence, you can find a pub at the top.

 

Day Two

We descend the second of the two approaches to Bukit Fraser, this time

heading toward the Genting Highlands, a garish, theme-park-like resort atop the closest hill station to Kuala Lumpur. But it's not the hotels, casino or amusement rides that draw us. It's the roller-coaster of a road that leads up the 2,000-meter-high hill station. Known as the "Awana" run, the local sportbike-mad boys hit it every Sunday, often dicing with supercars from nearby KL.

 

The Awana has decent sightlines, great peg-scrapping curves and thoughtfully placed passing lanes. And with a Starbucks at the top, this is one time you can say you rode your Duc to the coffee shop without feeling like a loser. We run into a bunch of Malaysian riders. A local with a beautiful Boxer Cup Prep BMW befriends Hans, who is riding his K1200R. He advises us to hit Bukit Tingyi, another hill station resort that is on the way to Route 9, which leads back to Singapore.

 

I split off from Hans and Franz as they have to work on Monday and I don't. I hump it on a new highway that traverses the peninsula. My destination is an exclusive boutique spa on the east coast in Merang. I have visions of good drink, a gourmet meal and a relaxing massage, but the resort is booked up and I have no reservations! I end up at a Best Western, picking from a cold buffet and watching a straight-to-cable movie about flying dinosaurs with anger issues.

 

Day Three

My motel misstep in Merang has still left me within easy reach of the

East-West Highway, ostensibly the main goal of my multi-day Multi ride. This engineering feat runs just south of the Malaysian-Thai border and is 100kms of high-speed sweepers through mountains and across a vast lake. It's a remote road, with a past history of insurgent activity and elephant-crossing warnings. (Running into the latter would bring a whole new meaning to "road kill.")

 

I run into neither insurgents nor elephants, but I do run into a checkpoint manned by guys with automatic weapons. Fortunately, my papers pass muster. I then unsuccessfully try to get the guys with guns to pose for pictures with my Multi. I ask twice before deciding not to press my luck.

 

I press on to Cameron Highlands. This is another hill station resort about

1,800 meters above sea level. My approach will use the Pos Slim Road--in my opinion, one of the finest motorcycling roads ever. Imagine taking the Sepang International Circuit, lengthening it by a factor of 10 and grafting it onto a mountain. That's Pos Slim. While it was being built, the sportbike boys from KL used it as their private playground. Even now, most traffic seems to use the old road, since it is closer to the major population center. Great sightlines, great surface and great turns--and no police. Only the lack of runoffs and the ugly things that await anyone who gets off--walls, cliffs, bridge abutments etc.--make it clear that you're not on a race track.

 

Day Four

I head down the backside of Cameron Highlands down a new, but remote road leading to the interior of the peninsula. It's a very steep descent and I'm cautious going into the corners because you're never sure when a Malaysian road engineer is going to play a joke on you. I finally reach Gua Musang, a frontier logging town. I take Route 8 southbound on a relaxing run through the interior of the peninsula, passing the ancient Taman Negara rainforest as well as the occasional overloaded logging truck. I finally reach Karak, which is the juncture where I can pick up Route 9 and head back towards Singapore.

 

Conclusion

August represents my third anniversary with my Multistrada and this trip

seemed like a second honeymoon. The bike ran flawlessly and seemed perfect for the varied conditions I faced. This is the first time I've been able to do more than a weekend trip and over the 2,400 continuous kms I got to learn new things about the bike. I know this post sucks without pictures, but some of these roads are so good you can't blame a guy for not stopping more!

[Phang]

Thanks for sharing your touring experience, I went to Cameron Highland 2 weeks ago and took the Pos Slim route as well.

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v198/Phang/PDSCN4260.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v198/Phang/PDSCN4297.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v198/Phang/PDSCN4298.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v198/Phang/PDSCN4312.jpg

[DeusExMachina]

Nice writeup.

 

I did a 3-day round-M'sia trip back in late 2005.

 

Day 1 SG to Cameron via the boring NSH.

Day 2, Cameron, Gua Musang, Jeli to Gerik via East-West Highway, and supposedly back to Cameron again, but an incident delayed me and we stayed over at Gerik

Day 3, back up Cameron for lunch, then down again and back to SG.

 

Pos Slim (exit via Spg Pulai) is indeed a beautiful road up and down, though I prefer the run downhill as the added speed and momentum makes things very interesting.

[Multistrada4Sale]

Appreciate the comments guys. Nice pics Phang.

 

I've lucked out on all my road trips and enjoyed relatively dry conditions on the best roads.

 

I read one post where some guys did a similar route, but clockwise, and ran into really heavy rain. That would have been harrowing for me, especially as I was traveling solo for the most part.

 

I know I had good luck, as well as a good bike.

 

Cheers,

 

M4S