Ivan_Liew
Member
I haven't posted to the Cruzbike Forum in ages but I am still riding my Silvio 2.0! I took a ferry from Singapore with a friend to a nearby island in Indonesia to do what is called the Barelang 7 Bridges ride. Dramatic eh? That's my best action shot on my 2 year old Silvio!
7 bridges connect tiny islands in the archipelago and crossing all of them results in a hilly 160km two ways - perfect century! We had no support, just stopping at roadside stalls for food and drinks.
The view from each of the bridges was fabulous. A clear day but also up to 36 deg C and very humid made the 1300m ascent tough but worthwhile. Silvio handled the rolling hills with aplomb, and tackled the frequent 6-7% grades no problem. A couple of 10-12% grades had me tugging on those bars and a bit of wheel slip (I never get to practice those gradients!).
At the southernmost tip, a seafood "kelong" restaurant awaited us amidst classic tropical beach scenery. A kelong is a structure built over the water. This one had a long jetty, served food, coconuts and drinks, kept fish, and even allowed you to stay the night of you can't bike the return journey immediately!
The return ride seemed faster for some reason. The final bit of heavy traffic with swarms of motorbikes made Singapore traffic look mild. We made it back in time for the last ferry back home to Singapore! All in all a great day!
7 bridges connect tiny islands in the archipelago and crossing all of them results in a hilly 160km two ways - perfect century! We had no support, just stopping at roadside stalls for food and drinks.
The view from each of the bridges was fabulous. A clear day but also up to 36 deg C and very humid made the 1300m ascent tough but worthwhile. Silvio handled the rolling hills with aplomb, and tackled the frequent 6-7% grades no problem. A couple of 10-12% grades had me tugging on those bars and a bit of wheel slip (I never get to practice those gradients!).
At the southernmost tip, a seafood "kelong" restaurant awaited us amidst classic tropical beach scenery. A kelong is a structure built over the water. This one had a long jetty, served food, coconuts and drinks, kept fish, and even allowed you to stay the night of you can't bike the return journey immediately!
The return ride seemed faster for some reason. The final bit of heavy traffic with swarms of motorbikes made Singapore traffic look mild. We made it back in time for the last ferry back home to Singapore! All in all a great day!
