The Motor Bike.

My involvement on two wheel motorised transport mode came about out of the stress and frustration of having to face the maddening KL traffic day in and day out. Not to mention ever rising fuel costs. One day, I decided that I have had enough of this and start exploring available transport options. Car pooling is out as my hours are erratic at best and I am not too keen on having to put up a happy face for my fellow car poolers. I am not a morning person you see....

LRT is also not that desirable as the station is neither here nor there in terms of distance from my house. I am doubtful on the safety of my car if parked daily at the station. As much as I would love to walk to the station, KL is not Cardiff. Its humid and hot, the thought of being sweaty and crammed in a steel tube like sardines is not a pleasant one.

Cycling I would gladly do, but it is more than 20km, the routes are chockful of zipping cars, lorries and buses. No, too risky....

Final option, motorbike. I have never in my life ridden a bike before, well perhaps once but both the bike and me ended up in a ditch somewhere. Therefore, first step is to get a license. Was thinking of just getting a B250 but the driving instructor advised against that and recommended for me to take the B full instead, adding more money of course. He was good and especially patient in teaching me to ride. Thank you Haji Yusof of Kampung Baru. The worst part of getting the license is the mandatory 6 hours lecture. Its a total wate of time. I was expecting to be taught the technique of motor biking or doing emergency repairs or such things. Instead the whole 6 hours we were bombarded with statistics of motorcycling accidents, why its two wheels makes it the most vulnerable on the road, over and over again. Totally unlike the syllabus of the UK or US which I read through while doing research on getting a license. Anyway, finally got my license and start looking for a bike. As much as I would have liked at least a 600cc naked bike, it is not something that I could afford.

Again Haji Yusof recommended getting a scooter as he says that its only for going to and from work anyway. I was not too keen on the idea, the word scooter itself sound soooooo lame. But, being realistic, I bought the Modenas Elegan 150CC. It was just launched and had some good reviews. It was a good comfortable bike, untill, by chance I saw the Aprilia Sport City 200CC at a roadshow. The 150CC of the Elegan felt inadequate, sold it off and got the Aprilia. Bigger CC with narrower profile making it easier to weave in and out of the gridlock of Jalan Tun Razak. Had been using it for more than a year now. Anddddd the 200CC is beginning to feel inadequate, luckily there are no better scooter out there... Perhaps the newly launched Aprilia MANA (no kidding, its really the name of this new automatic bike) 850CC.

Anyway, it has been a worthwhile effort. My stress level has gone down considerably. My fuel costs have also gone down from RM60 to RM12 weekly. To those who are thinking of making such a move, overcome your fear, get a license and get proper protective gear. Its worth it.