Betong-Songkhla ExpeditionRide (Day 2)

It's the 2nd day of the expedition. We slept quite soundly last nite, a much needed rest.

Feeling fresh and high spirited, we started our Day 2 with a breakfast at a Halal restaurant serving a local favourite food. I forgot what it's called though but it's yellow rice cooked with chicken. Although it doesn't come with any soup whatsoever, it is moist and good enough to eat as it is.

So, today we are heading to Songkhla and we are not going to follow highways or the likes. Instead, we are going through the trunk roads or the smaller and more winding roads.

At the Bannang District, we went to a cave called Tham Krachaeng (Krachaeng Cave). This cave is located at Ban Ka Sot, Tambon Bannang Sata, about 50km from Amphoe Muang Yala on Route 410. It has a good scenery of mountains and a stream running through the cave. Once we exited the 410, we went on a dirt road for about 1.5km. It was my first time riding on a dirt road and not to mention, on a tall, big and heavy bike. It went smooth anyway and it was awesome!

The surrounding atmosphere was very calm and relaxing. Next is the Khao Nam Kang National Park . The Park is about 200km square. Its attractions are the rainforest greens, its many waterfalls, and the hand made communist tunnel.

We arrived at Songkhla at about 1900hrs and to our surprise, a lot of the hotels there were fully booked (note to self: book your hotel room in advance). Hence, we had to look around and made lots of calls to any hotel we Googled. And when all hopes seemed lost, we found a small hotel just outside the town area called the Lake Inn Hotel . It was an OK hotel with not much to complain about, except may be the water pressure in the shower. Wi-fi is available at all floors, only thing is either you get a good signal or not.

And again, we had seafood dinner that night at the famous spot in Songkhla, Samila Beach. Our dinner highlight was the Belangkas (Atlantic Horseshoe Crab).

If you ask me, you'll like it only if you like it. Not me! Bluuueerrkk! With Belangkas, you only eat the eggs and not the meat (well, I don't even know if they have any meat). It taste horrible! But some people like it, so I guess it was just me.

After dinner, We went straight to our hotel and retire. We are heading back to Kuala Lumpur and I for one, really need the rest.

All-in-all, it was a great experience for me. Me and the guys are planning to do a trip like this again but with more challenging route and perhaps we can explore other point-of-interests along the way. It'll be a cool "discovery' ride.

Ciao!

Betong-Songkhla Expedition (Day 1)

Hi Guys. This is something different for me. Since I got my MTS...I've never rode further than 200km. So this will be the first long-distance ride for my MTS.

On 13 Sep 2013, me and some mates decided to go on a journey that most of us have never done before. An endurance ride from Betong, Thailand to Songkhla, Thailand. It was a three days and two nights trip.

We were a 6-rider party, a mixture of three MTS's, one BMW GSA1200, BMW RT, and a Ducati Monster 696. Pushed off from Kuala Lumpur at about 0730. Our first stop was at Tapah Rest Area along the PLUS Highway to have quick breakfast.

After breakfast we continued our journey. We did a detour to Bertam, a town in Penang state. There, some of us got their CTC (certified true copy) stamp on their bike grants. It is required by Malaysia Immigration for Malaysian vehicle to cross into Thailand. Sometimes, both Thai and Malaysian Immigration don't really check for the CTC stamp, but since it is required in their standard operating procedure, doing so will just minimize unnecessary hickups. 

Soon after we proceeded to Betong, our first destination of the trip. We went on a Federal trunk road going through Baling and Pengkalan Hulu and just slightly above an hour, we arrived at the Pengkalan Hulu-Betong border. 

The border was not busy, well at least not as busy at Bukit Kayu Hitam-Danok border. All six of us got everything done within 30 minutes.

In Betong, we stayed at the Sweet Home Hotel. Clean and spacious room with queen-sized bed. Good hospitality, ample parking space. The hotel is located at the town so you can just walk around. Alternatively, one can go on a Tuk Tuk. 

We had a rather long day. an eight hours ride from Kuala Lumpur to Betong. By right, time taken should just be slightly over four hours to get to Betong from Kuala Lumpur. But we had quite a few occurrences along the way. Anyhow, we did look for an adventure!

There's a few things you can do in Betong like shopping and they do have some local delicacies and cuisines that are awesome. But I think, Betong is more of an entertainment place. Many clubs, pubs, karaoke joints that you can go to. I'd recommend the Jockey Club (go and surprise yourself!). Here, you don't need Thai Baht, Malaysia Ringgit is widely accepted. The people here can either speak English and/or Malay, although a little but enough to get by. 

We didn't do much though. We arrived at our hotel at around 1600, as soon as everybody settled down, we went out to look for our late lunch. Starving! After lunch we went around town, did a little bit of pub hoping, and went for a body massage. It's bloody cheap! MYR30 for a one-hour full body oil massage. After a fulfilling seafood dinner, we retired for the day and get ready for tomorrow's adventure.

A new brain..

About two weeks ago, I installed a MIVV Souno exhaust together with a decatalytic (decat) pipe on my Multistrada (MTS). So now the air flow is tempered with and therefore has changed as opposed to the parameters set in my Electronic Control Unit (ECU).

The ECU contains a set of air-fuel mixture setting with a specific type of exhaust system. I changed the stock air filter to a BMC performance air filter hence giving better air in-flow to the machine and also, I changed the exhaust system from a stock exhaust with a catalytic converter to a MIVV Suono slip-on exhaust and a decat pipe hence giving a different and better air flow. But my ECU parameters are still factory-set settings.

To get an optimum output from my new modifications, an ECU remapping is needed. Well, of course, there are two (to my knowledge) different school of thoughts. The first encourages to remap and the other says no need for ECU remapping, just install a Power Commander 5 (PC5) or a Bazaaz will be enough. PC5 and the likes piggyback the ECU. Meaning, you can alter your factory-programmed ECU parameters without remapping and the PC5 tells the ECU what to do. As in, how much fuel for this much of air, and etc. But I chose to remap my ECU, give it a new brain so to speak.

Sent my bike to Motorcraft Performance Lab for the job. It took us about 30 minutes to remap the ECU at a price of MYR1,500 (including DYNO). It is a worthwhile investment. Now my MTS runs superbly awesome with power always at the ready! And really brings out the beast in the sound of my pipe..hehe.

I would recommend anybody to remap their ECUs especially if they have changed their stock exhaust and/or factory-fitted air filter. Notwithstanding, Termignoni exhausts always come with its own ECU or a pen-drive that contains a new ECU parameter. So for Termignoni users, I'd say there's no need for you to remap your ECU unless, you want more power on your bikes.

Well, the bike is what I have expected to be before I remapped the ECU. In fact, it's slightly beyond expectation. With the kind of power it can deliver, I don't know if I will ever change to Sport mode..haha. Touring mode is more than enough for road riding. Time to ride ! Ciao !

BBQ RAYA @ PORT DICKSON

Ducati Club Malaysia held a BBQ Raya Ride to Port Dickson (PD) yesterday and I didn't think twice to join. About 80 riders joined the event.

We rendezvous (RV) at Shell Station right after the Sg Besi toll plaza at around 9.30am. I was impressed as all of us were on time. We started our journey at about 10am and our next destination is to Shell Station @ R&R Seremban being our second RV point. There we group up with another set of Ducati owners. 

We reached PD at 12pm. At the time, the caterer was still preparing the food. Well, we were supposed to arrive at 1pm..ahaks. As usual..bikers don't quickly be seated at the dining table. There will be a lot of catching ups and chit chatting about their bikes, admiring what new things their fellow bikers did to their bikes, etc. Soon, the food was served and after a three-hour ride, nobody wasted any more time and attacked the buffet line!

It was great to have met my biking friends again after the fasting month. I don't even have other photos to share as we were so engrossed with the chit chats and laughs. Great company, great fun! Looking forward to the next event..

Vrooomm!

Yet another interesting day today !

About a month ago, since I got my Multistrada (MTS), I've been whining about the bike being "too quiet". At times, I did lose a bit of enthusiasm riding it..haha.

Today, after quite a long wait, I've installed MIVV Souno exhaust and decat pipe on my MTS.

I got it for MYR3500. I would have chosen for a Termignoni full system exhaust but I was shone away by its looks and price, MYR9,600. Did you just fall off your seat ?? 

Before I decided on the MIVV pipes, I imagined the bike to have a loud exhaust with "amplified" bass and gives a rather solid sound as you roll up the throttle and of course, suits my tight budget. And yes, MIVV pipe it is ! Some say, I could have gotten the Akrapovic (Akra) or even a Leo Vince (LV). To my personal opinion, Akra lacks the bass sound that I'm looking for while LV, I reckon, fits better with a superbike and not on a touring bike. Anyhow, different people, different perception.

So, today, the mission was to install my MIVV system + BMC Air Filter + NGK Irridium spark plugs.

We started out with installing the air filter. There's no particular reason on why I chose BMC. Its just that, I was thinking of using something different other than the usual K&N or MWR. Did a little bit of "research" on BMC air filter for MTS, but being not so technical myself, I concluded that it's just another performance air filter. Do not complicate life more than it's already has..hahaha.

We had to take out the fairings and I have engine guards that made it more challenging. The air filter slot is right underneath the fuel tank.

Next was the spark plugs. The all-new 2013 MTS has a twin spark engine. Means, the V-twin Testratretta engine has two spark plugs on each piston. This should give a smoother ride at low RPM, apart from making it a little bit more power than the previous years' models. However, and to my disappointment, the Irridium plugs I bought were not the right size! The size for the standard plugs was 14 and I bought size 16 plugs. Aaarrgh! Thus, we had to forgo the intention.

Now, the highlight of the day, MIVV pipes. A few friends told me that, when I take out the stock exhaust, I will shed a little bit of the bike's weight. Yes, they were right! We estimated the weight of the stock exhaust is about 5-8kg, at least! I know...it's not significant, but hey, that's pretty heavy! 

It took us about an hour plus to complete the exhaust. But it was worth the wait. Now the MTS is ready to roam the streets with a roaring sound. The sound that I have imagined. A good investment, I'd say. I still have my DB Killer (muffling the sound) on though and yet it makes quite a sound. Although, there is something whispering in my ears saying that "it could be louder". I'm thinking to take off the DB Killer and see how it goes.

All-in-all, the mission was partly unsuccessful as we didn't manage to change the spark plugs to irridium plugs. Hence, it does not complete the "Stage 1 Mod". Am checking with my supplier if I can swap with the right ones. As for now, lets roar !!

My new found love...

On 28 June 2013...I got my dream bike (well,  one or them) my newly found love, the Ducati Multistrada 1200 (2013).

It's a base model without the latest Skyhook suspension technology, hence no DSS on the bike but the shocks are still adjustable manually. The all-new 2013 Multistrada   (MTS) 1200 doesn't use Ohlins shocks anymore. Now Ducati installs Sachs shocks. Not sure of the change though. My guess is for riding comfort..coz Ohlins shocks, being high performance shocks, can be quite hard. I may be wrong.

Anyway, I got my MTS at a retail price of MYR89,990. It was a promotional price from Ducati Malaysia for the first 50 bikes after which, the MTS base models will be retailed at MYR95,000. Panniers and double stand don't come standard on MTS base models as opposed to the MTS 1200S models and higher. I bought my panniers separately for MYR3,600.00 and they are very useful! Except when going through between cars,  I am still developing my confidence for it...haha. Ducati recommends a maximum speed of 180/kmh when you have the panniers on. I've done 190/kmh before and the panniers were still intact without any vibration whatsoever. Perhaps, I should try travelling at 200/kmh and see how it goes. Next, I need to save up for the double stand which will cost me MYR960.

Been riding it and already clocked 2250km on the mileage. It feels great and superior sometimes...ahaks! Really2 loving it ! The ABS system is smooth. I'm going to install MIVV Suono with link pipe bypassing the catalytic converter. Cant wait! As for now...let the good times roll !

A long silence...

Omg!

I thk it is exactly 7 mths since I last blog..!

A lot had happened through out the time but I didnt got it recorded...sigh.

Well...lets start afresh....will start blogging again...so stay tuned !

Ciao!

How to start a new year...

Hahaha...started my new year with a track day @ SIC...keeewwll!

The DYNO result...

As mentioned in my previous entry, went for a DYNO Base Run yesterday. It was my first experience...kinda cool! The run took about 10 minutes but the setting up took quite a while.

The result was kind of below expectation. Was hoping for my horsepower (on wheels) to be around 85 but it was just 78..I guess, it's time for a Superbike..hehe

The graph shows the data for my DYNO test. The correlation between Power (hp), Engine (RPM), and Air/Fuel mixture. Overall, my engine power is not bad for a naked bike. Now I'm fine tuning my ECU map so that the Power curve will be smoother and try to tune the map to give more power at full throttle. The 'new map' will be ready by Mon..

Can't wait!

DYNO test!

Today, am gonna send my bike for a dyno test.

(Source: sportsracing.com)

As per my previous entry, I did an ECU remap on my bike. To make the new map even better is to know your exact Air/Fuel Mixture setting, engine power (Horsepower-Torque), and a few other data, so that we can fine tune the map.  Once we have the data, we can customized the Throttle Positioning System and the Air/Fuel Mixture setting uniquely for your bike. 

So today, am gonna do just that. Will update when I'm done.

Ciao!

ECU Remapping

Had an ECU remap. Its a Stage 3 map where the lambda sensor (amongst others) is removed and the TPS setting is set more towards higher performance.

Oh..I also got my foot peg changed to a race type. It is by CNC Italy. So it's a little bit higher than the standard. Hopefully no more scrapping on the track.

Am looking forward to join the Track Day this coming Sunday. Let see how my baby performs.