Cyclists set to Circle the Globe
BaikBike says, “HOORAY! Malaysians to break cycling record!!”
—————————————————————————————————
KUALA LUMPUR: Cycling around the world in 288 days is the dream of army commando Corporal Abdul Khalib Zakaria, 39, and his civilian partner, Mohd Aswad Zainal, 24.
They have dubbed it Projek Berbasikal Mengelilingi Dunia ke 2 (BMD 2) and plan to start from Putrajaya on Wednesday.
The journey will be the culmination of a seven-year quest for which both trained hard under the guidance of Datuk Hasan Nawawi, who cycled around the world in 389 days — from Jan 4, 2001 to Jan 27, 2002. He was then 47.
Their preparations included a 100-day ride through Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and China.
Khalib said the trip from Jan 12 to April 17, 2005, was the toughest and longest they had attempted.
He said they were disturbed by vandals during their journey through Vietnam, adding that his special forces training helped as he had to defend himself a few times.
“Our mentor (Hasan), who initiated BMD 2, wants us to break his record by cycling in 288 days.
“We are looking forward to the trip. We have trained locally and hold the record for Malaysia’s longest distance cycling, with 4,547km through the peninsula, Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei.
“By the end of next April, I would have served 21 years in the 21 Army Special Forces Regiment (21 GRK) and will be due to retire.
“During the fasting month and Hari Raya, we will be on the ‘Silk Road’ in interior China heading west to Kunming, Chengdu, Langzhou, Gomlet, Kashgar, Osh, Taskent and onwards to Teheran.”
Army chief Gen Datuk Zulkifeli Mohd Zain presented a cheque for RM10,000 to Khalib as a contribution from the army.
He also expressed confidence that the two men would be able to complete the trip.
Those who want to follow them online on their journey can go to www.bmd2.multiply.com.
