Lost in Laos - The First Day

19 Dec 2009

0001hrs - 0500hrs

Laos - a destination that came into view only after completing Vietnam on a rented bike in 2008 and a strong desire to ride our own bikes high up North again. The opportunity presented itself easily enough - luN is preparing to head a group up to Laos and we are more than happy to join in.

Our trip preparations has never been earlier. Discussions were already full fledged a few months before the move off date and being a meticulous person, luN went ahead and gathered much of the facts we are to use for the trip. A couple of meet ups later, the group were also mostly confirmed and the dynamics couldn’t be much better. Lun would lead an Dylan and CS while Larry and myself will head up later due to work commitments. All with pillions except Dylan and CS, who have each other... :)

routes, routes and routes

we don't tire of maps!

LuN is the methodical, research -crazy and, along with myself, the de-facto leader for this ride. His character can be summarized like this: Every single item he buys is analyzed from a needs point of view (although most of his ‘wants’ become his ‘needs’ in the end) and you would expect that the itinerary is planned with his usual careful disposition. Some might find him anal, but I find him necessary. And as expected, his plan didn’t disappoint. He’ll be bringing along Winnie, who is sure to enjoy Laos with a walking travel guide such as luN!

Mr Watanabe wannabe - luN

Dylan is luN’s cousin and playfully known as Biao-ge (Mandarin for elder cousin). This tag stuck with him because luN wanted everyone to know that he is younger than Dylan. Dylan is new to riding his BMW 1150GS but we are most willing to ask him to come along because of his easy, affable nature and stable riding habits. We are also sure we need his muscles to lift the bikes into boats in Laos!

Dylan's all ready

Cs is one of the pioneering members of Kruzers, when we were known as the SBF Cruisers. He is also new to the 1150GS but we know he is more than capable of riding and troubleshooting this beast. As the ‘baby’ of the group, his carefree character and never-say die attitude rubs onto you and is sure to bring much life and cheer to the group.

CS goes through shit with you and he'll eat it too!

Larry and Tricia have not been riding for some time but they are also a seasoned rider/ pillion duo. Having gone up to Hatyai with him five years back brought back some memories and it’s a pity that work prevents him from coming along for more trips throughout the years. That said, this ride is a culmination of the frustrations of missing out on the action!

check out Mr Macho!

tricia with a very steamed face

Soon enough, 14 Dec comes along and the 1^st wave consisting of luN, Cs and Dylan sets off from Taman Jurong KFC. The excitement of the ride hasn’t kicked in yet for me and watching them leave just made my mind focused on the ride on the coming Friday. Work was happily in the backburner…

the four musketeers form the first front!

a decked out GS Adv

Getting ready for Lost in Laos!!!!!

Preparation for my good ole Varadero started way earlier. In October, my old faithful was sent in for a total overhaul partly to make sure that everything that could go wrong with the bike (due to 10 years of wear and tear) are rectified. Seeing the bike stripped to its bare bones left me wondering how impressive engineering can be with the 2 wheeled variety. As the date inched closer, more items were bought, more spare parts were bought and potential problems on the bike were rectified.

the monster's all naked and stripped

With the usual efficiency of Racheal’s packing prowess, both of clothes, toiletries, sleeping bag and footwear were squeezed into a single pannier while the spares and tools were stuffed into the other. The bike was as light as it could be. We can’t be more ready, I thought to myself quietly.

the suits are all set and the gears are all packed

the sight of the room gives me a warm, cosy feeling of travelling... :)

The day has come for both our bikes to set off and we did good times till we hit Rawang R&R, when problems mounted. When the bike refused to start up, I could only think that it was the rectifier or battery playing the devil. We traveled almost 350km and there really should be a fully charged battery in there! So out came the spare rectifier (which almost wasn't brought) and was on the way out again after a quick jump start. The hope was that we would hit the next stop 200km away with at least a semi charged battery and all will be well again.

Then, barely 2km out, the headlights went dim, the signal lights can barely be seen and the bike sputtered before dying out on me. Incredulous that such bad luck had hit me, we jump-started the bike again and pushed off, hopeful that that would last us to at least the next big town with a big bike shop in Penang. With an annoyed and worried mental state in the middle of the night, turning back to KL was not an attractive option for me.

Then, the reality hit me again a couple of kilometres away when the bike choked to a sudden stop. Stuck in the dark at 5am and not knowing what was wrong, we decided to wait till day break while I texted our most trusted mechanic, Rosli, back in Singapore about the problem. At this point in time, we’ll just have to enjoy whatever spanner was thrown at us, so we huddled at a drain next to the North-South highway, waiting and waiting….