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Pink October Charity Ride 2017

The Pink October Charity Ride 2017 went off without a hitch today
The ride is in conjunction with October being the Breast Cancer Awareness Month
About 200 participants joined the ride

Organised by Hawa Motor Club and Ipoh Road Clan together with support from the Malaysian Cancer Society, and hot on the heels of the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride (DGR) last month, the Pink October Charity Ride (POCR) 2017 proceeded well today.

While DGR sought to raise awareness towards prostate cancer in men, POCR’s objective was a campaign to highlight breast cancer research.

About 200 participants congregated at the Malaysia Handicraft Development Corporation’s (Perbadanan Kemajuan Kraftangan Malaysia) grounds for the flag off.

There was a good mix of motorcycles: From mopeds and scooters, to standard bikes, naked sportbikes, adventure-tourer and 1000cc superbikes; besides the large number of customs and café racers – including the famous Puting Beliung (“tornado” in Bahasa Melayu).

Participants were provided a white T-shirt with the words “Pink October Charity Ride” emblazoned on its back, patches and stickers. They may also donate to the Malaysian Cancer Society (Yayasan Kanser Malaysia).

As more and more riders, young and old arrived, it soon became apparent that this wasn’t a ride which encouraged only female participant. There were as many men as there were ladies. It’s encouraging and heartwarming to see that both the Pink October Charity Ride and DGR transcend the gender barrier, despite both rides sought to raise awareness for afflictions common to respective genders.

And despite gutter politics kicking up religious and race issues, everyone rode together for a common cause, regardless of religion, ethnicity and creed. How common is it to see a 150cc café racer ride alongside an R 1200 GS? Or a Triumph Street Twin next to an S 1000 RR?

The participants were briefed by the Chief Marshal and Royal Malaysian Traffic Police escort, before being flagged off.

The convoy proceeded at a steady pace until it reached Naza Auto Mall in Petaling Jaya.

There were lucky draws and a helmet bidding session throughout the day. Participants were also offered a free health check-up, free of charge.

Seeing the success of this Pink October Charity Ride 2017, we hope the event will continue next year with even more participants.

Yamaha Y15ZR SE GP Edition – From RM8,891.28

The Yamaha Y15ZR SE GP Edition is set to hit the market
Features the colour and graphics of the factory Yamaha MotoGP team
Basic sales price of RM 8,891.28 with 6% GST but without roadtax, insurance and number plates.

Yamaha’s Y15ZR is by no doubt a popular kapchai, seen everywhere throughout the country. Launched in Malaysia in 2015 (click here for the launch event), sales have been and are still going strong. Similarly, there are already many Y15ZR owners clubs, consisting of thousands of owners.

Since then, there has been one update for the model earlier this year whereby new colour schemes were introduced. The Y15ZR remains mechanically the same as there is a need to – the design is sound and reliable.

That is why the Yamaha Y15ZR is hailed as “The King of the Streets.”

To commemorate the 2017 Malaysian MotoGP and Yamaha’s long-time active participation in the pinnacle of two-wheeled motorsports, Hong Leong Yamaha Motor Sdn. Bhd. (HLYM) is set to introduce the Y15ZR GP Edition. This special edition is bedecked with the new Movistar Yamaha MotoGP Team colour and graphics.

The bike will be available in the market beginning next week onwards.

Recommended Basic Sales Price with GST (without r/tax, no. plates & Ins) is RM 8,891.28.

Biker Stories (Part 3) – The Wall

I was working as soon as I finished my SPM examinations. Didn’t go on a long holiday with friends, didn’t even bum out at the beach night after night with a cold drink. “Time to earn your own money, Son.”

Through the help of a few friends, I became a waiter in a hip new pub in Penang, called “20 Leith Street.” The place has since been converted to a hawker centre and it’s just next door to the blue-coloured Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion, which is now a boutique hotel. Back then, the latter was overgrown, run down and pitch black like a haunted house. I didn’t dare step near it.

Anyway, one morning after work, the five of us guys stood outside, just chilling, talking gibberish and smoking. Our supervisor whistled at and teased the transgenders who walked up and down the street outside. A homeless man in torn shirt and pants sat on the sidewalk opposite ours, mumbling to himself (hoped he didn’t see dead people). Yeah, those were the bad ol’ days.

Anyways, we talked about all sorts of stuff. Fishing, camping, hiking, swimming… There was no such thing as Astro and PlayStation in 1998.

Boys being boys, we got around to talking about cars and motorcycles. (About girls too, of course, on how we don’t understand them – and we still don’t today – but that’s for another story).

Among us, only Poh Keat owned a bike, a used Honda C90.

The rest of us wanted a bike for ourselves too, but we haven’t ridden one before. Then Chris got super-enthusiastic and wanted to learn how to ride at that very moment. The compound was huge, tarred over as a parking lot and there’s no one around to be a bother

After much cajoling, Poh Keat gave in to Chris’ requests. He pointed out on how to get it in gear, roll out and stop.

As Chris got moving, we started throwing insults at him. We were his buddies, right. But he ignored us and started doing pretty descent by his second orbit around Poh Keat, who stood in the middle and barked orders.

We lost interest in teasing him so we went back to talking about girls. I was still single, okay. All the while, Chris passed by like clockwork, getting a little faster each time.

Then on one pass, Chris gunned the throttle a little too much, casuing the bike to roar forward. Surprised, he instantaneously chopped the throttle, which resulted in the rear hopping and squirming (he must’ve been in first gear). His arms went straight immediately and his legs came off the footpegs, looking like a character from The Flinstones trying to brake by dragging his feet on the ground.

The bike now went straight, instead of turning into the circle and headed for the tall wall separating 20^th Leith Street and Cheong Fatt Tze!

Poh Keat yelled while running toward Chris, “WOI!!! STOP STOP STOP!!!”

At this point, we heard “BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!!!” all the way to the wall. THWACK! The bike’s front tyre tapped the wall like how when someone walked into a glass door.

Chris and the bike plopped over like sacks of potatoes stacked too high. And the horn was still on! BEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeeeppppp….. its sound tapering off as it got hotter.

Poh Keat had caught up to Chris and tried to lift the bike up. We ran over to help too.

“WHY DIDN’T YOU BRAKE?!” yelled the unfortunate bike owner.

“I did try to brake!” replied Chris in defiant defense. “But instead of stopping, your stupid bike only went beeeeeeeeeeeep!”

Our wisecrack Supervisor spoke up, “So did the wall move out of the way when you honked at it?” Apart from Poh Keat and Chris, I believe the other three of us have never laughed any harder than that morning until this day.

Click here for Part 1.

Click here for Part 2.

Custom Harley-Davidson XL1200 by Thrive

This classy custom Harley-Davidson XL1200 is built by Thrive
Thrive is based in Jakarta, Indonesia
Dubbed the Kuzuri, it drew inspiration from traditional Japanese custom bikes

Pictures of a custom Harley-Davidson XL1200 by Thrive showed up on the internet lately, and for good reasons.

Thrive Motorcycle is based in Jakarta, Indonesia with the reputation of building some of the most beautiful custom bikes. This example, dubbed the Kuzuri is a prime example.

The project began two years ago when the custom builders were looking for a stock Harley-Davidson engine which was to be used as the testbed for developing their T/H/R/V brand of parts and accessories. A friend of theirs had 2000 XL1200 Sportster, by coincidence. The builders started fitting the new parts to it initially, handcrafting more along the way.

As an overall theme started to take shape, the Thrive team visited the Yokohama Hot Rod Custom Show and found discovered many great designs and, the traditional Japanese chopper. It was also here that they found the inspiration for Kuzuri, or wolverine in Japanese.

The team ordered a custom rigid frame from another custom garage and started shaping the aluminium panels, aiming for a bike with “timeless and streamlined looks” that’s clean, sleek and minimalist.

Thrive built the gas tank, headlight fairing, tail unit, oil tank and electrical in-house around the frame and engine. The forks were shortened to allow the bike to hug the ground. Custom accessories such as switchgear, footpegs, gullwing handlebars, brakeless front hub and Mooneyes grips were installed.

The Sportster’s stock belt final was converted to a chain drive. A chain-tensioner fashioned out of a skateboard wheel was installed underneath the drive chain.

Another cool feature is the stop light, modified from a Softail and hidden beneath the rear fender.

As the final touch, Thrive sprayed-painted the frame and body in sapphire blue and silver.

HJC Helmet Malaysia Introduces New Models

HJC Helmet Malaysia introduces new models to its already extensive 2017 lineup
The lineup includes additional Marvel comics characters
Be sure to follow the HJC Helmet Malaysia weekly giveaway contest

HJC has long been known as the helmet maker who produces world-class helmets and offering them at lower prices to consumers.

The Korean helmet manufacturer have tied up with Marvel Comics and Disney Films in recent times, resulting in helmets with rightly distinctive designs and graphics from famous franchises such as Venom, Iron Man, Spiderman, and Star Wars characters Kylo Ren and Boba Fett. Find out more by clicking here and here.

It didn’t stop there and HJC Malaysia showed off a few models and graphics recently

CS-15 “Spiderman”

The CS-15 is HJC’s entry-level helmet which replaced the popular CL-STII range. Comfortable and relatively quiet, the CS-15 range it earmarked for riders who are moving up the motorcycle capacity ladder and want a full-face helmet that doesn’t break the bank. However, in terms of classification, HJC calls the CS-15 a sport-touring helmet.

Features

Advanced Polycarbonate Composite Shell is lightweight
Removable and washable interior pads with NYLEX
Anti-UV and anti-fog faceshield
Quick-release faceshield mechanism
Advanced Channelling Ventilation System (ACS) ensures cooling airflow
Glasses groove
Micro adjustment buckle
ECE R22.05 certification

IS-17 “Deadpool”

With advent of Marvel Comics’ graphics, many HJC and fans of the movie have been asking if there will ever be a Deadpool helmet.

Well, your prayers have been answered.

Shown here is the IS-17 Merc-with-a-Mouth aka Deadpool. The IS-17 is more of a jack-of-all-trades, standing in as the helmet for all riders from the daily commuters to sport-touring to track riding. HJC has invented much in building their own wind tunnel and as a result, the IS-17 is built to be aerodynamic and relatively quiet. The helmet includes a one-touch drop-down sunshield.

Features

Advanced Polycarbonate Composite Shell is lightweight
One-touch integrated sunshield
Anti-scratch anti-UV faceshield
RapidFire Shield Replacement System for ultra-quick faceshield replacement
2-stage faceshield closure system with one-touch centrally-located lock
Advanced Channelling Ventilation System (ACS) ensures cooling airflow
SuperCool interior with anti-bacterial, moisture-wicking fabric
Crown padding and cheeckpads are removable and washable
ECE R22.05 certification

RPHA 70 ST “Grandal”

Want a helmet that’s comfortable, stable and quiet while touring, but also one which is lightweight, stable while blasting down the straight at top speed, and certified for trackdays? You have to choose from either type to fit your requirements but the RPHA 70 ST has bridged that gap. Built on the principles of the RPHA 11 race helmet, the RPHA 70 ST is certified by the FIM for track use, making it the true 2-in-1 helmet.

Features:

Advanced P.I.M. Plus (Premium Integrated Matrix Plus) construction: carbon fiber, Aramid, carbon-glass hybrid fabric for enhanced shock resistance
Anti-fog smoke tinted sunshield deploys quickly
RapidFire system for quick, tool-less faceshield removal and installation
Emergency cheek pads removal
Multicool interior with advanced anti-bacteria fabric provides enhanced moisture wicking and quick drying
Crown and cheek pads are removable and washable
Anti-fog lens prepared shield
Includes anti-fog insert lens
Glasses-friendly EPS design
ECE 22.05 and FIM approved

PICTURE GALLERY

2018 Triumph Bonneville Bobber Black unleashed!

The 2018 Triumph Bonneville Bobber black was also introduced together with the rebirth of the Speedmaster.

Coming in with all blacked out colour scheme, the 2018 Bobber Black also comes with a host of new upgrades especially on its front end.

A set of 47mm Showa cartridge forks is attached to a new 16-inch wheel with a pair of 310mm disc brakes modulated by a set of Brembo two-piston axial-sliding calipers.

Together with the launch of the new 2018 Triumph Bonneville Speedmaster, Triumph Motorcycles again blew our minds with the introduction of the all-new 2018 Triumph Bonneville Bobber Black. Following the massive success of the Bobber, the Bobber Black comes with a host of new upgrades for 2018. (more…)