Two legs Good, Two wheels Bad

An account of the free Learn-to-Ride Mountain Bike Session organised by the SAFRA Adventure Club on Saturday, 16 May 2009

Is life-long learning the way to go? The Singapore government is bent on encouraging Singaporeans like myself to keep on learning. This seemed like the only motivation for me to get up early on Saturday morning, travel to Sunplaza Park at Tampines and participate in the SAFRA Adventure Club's (SAC) Learn-to-Ride Mountain Bike session. Plus the fact that it was conducted free of charge was enticing enough for me.

A bunch of hardly adventure enthusiasts, ranging from 14 to 40 years old, took part in this second session organised by the SAC on 16 May at the Tampines Mountain Bike trails and we (well maybe just myself) were humbly brought back to learn the basic - walking. I also realised soon what I've been missing out by not doing this often.

Our instructor from Dirt Traction was competent, gentle, thorough in his instructions, patient and nurturing, and yet I was tumbling around and making a fool of myself on the trails, to the amusement of the other riders that day.

We were brought progressively from relatively flat dirt paths to undulating patches laden with logs, crevices on the ground and hilly slopes. Soon, I ran out of confidence and speed, and I began to grip my handle bars tighter and tighter till, I swear, the rubber on the bars was turning to pressurised coal.

My fellow riders were two secondary school boys who lapped up the trails and looked like they could just go on and on. Another friend I met at the session came with his new GT mountain bike and had put us all to shame in the fashion section by looking so cool in his own helmet and bike.

As a group, we were clicking well and having a good time, mostly due to the fact that they had a comedy show going on with me falling all over the place. But, it was also because adventure seekers are cool and nice people to hang out with. Not to mention the handsome SAFRA staff Erwin and Kelly, and the charismatic SAC vice-chairman, Jispal, who had come along for the ride, contributed to the fun atmosphere.

With a blink of an eye, the session came to an end. The smiles were still evident on all our dust-covered faces and many of us, including the young boys, were wondering when SAC will conduct the next session as fun as this one. But, I was left wondering if an ice-pack on my butt will make it look bigger than it already was...

Thanks SAFRA Adventure Club for your foresight in organising the sessions. Let's keep the good work and the great rides going! Till the next session, consider me a MTB convert!

This account was posted by Kenneth Tan, Chairman of the SAFRA Adventure Club, who is all healed up and ready to go for the next mountain bike adventure.