The bikes were ready, panniers mounted and prior to rolling out, En Suzali gave a short briefing and Abang Din, one of the older guys around recited Muslim prayers for a safe journey.
We rolled out towards some scenic places in Kuala Kangsar.
If it hadn't been for the bike, I wouldn't have seen so many places that I thought had never existed.
Suzali had the town on his palm because Kuala Kangsar is his hometown
He was quite thorough with the briefing and had three other guys sweeping the group.
We were shown around the area and later, led out of Kuala Kangsar to enter Karai, a small village at the outskirts of town.
From there, we were shown the Victoria bridge, a heritage site and rolled out towards Chegar Galah, one of the checkpoints along the route..
By the time we've cleared the touristy area, the Sun was out in it's full glory.
Temperature rose to as high as 40C in mid day and we were still far from reaching the Sauk junction.
The heat and fatigue took a toll on one of the newcomers.
He was struggling with his bike and the guys who swept him from behind were very patient.
On a ride as such, with more than 18 people in the group, breaking up is bound to happen. The stronger riders are ahead and by the time they found a place to rest, the middle bunch catches up..
To the inexperienced rider, the first thing that would slow him down is the weight he is carrying.
It's never easy cycling along undulating terrain with gradients ranging from 3 - 10%.
This will be very challenging if you have only eight speed on your bike.
The more experienced tourer and bikecamper would have at least twice the gear ratio.
If the weight don't wear you out, it'll be the long and steep climbs.
So, it's never embarrassing to get down from your bike and push -- knowing that there are more hills ahead.
The worse ones are on the horizon, especially along the Chegar Galah - Sauk junction.
After clearing the hills, we found a place to cool off from the hot Sun and waited for the rest to regroup.
We had the comfort of knowing that the weakest link is being cared for.
So, after leaving Sauk, we rode along the Kuala Kangsar - Gerik expressway.
This leads to the Raja Muda Nazrin bridge that crosses the Tasik Raban water catchment area.
It's another 8km of undulating terrain before we could take a late lunch break and head to the campsite.
We were also informed that the sweeper and the last person was at least one and a half hours behind.
I didn't really felt like eating because my stomach was full of fluid. Re-hydration and cooling off the body was essential to prevent heat stroke,
Suzali had the decency to pack some food for the tail-enders while we made our way to the campsite which is another 3km from the place where we had lunch..
LEFT: The Victoria bridge linking Kuala Kangsar to the outside world via rail.
RIGHT: Chilling out at the rendezvous area while waiting for the rest f the cyclists to arrive and depart from Kuala Kangsar to Lata Kekabu near Lenggong, Perak.