Motorbike Madness in Malaysia

I learned to ride a bike off-road when I was 14 through the RAC/ACU and again when I was 16, passing my full bike licence at 17. I had bikes since then, with my first being a Yamaha FS1E (anybody remember those?) and my last being a Yamaha FJR1300. Although I haven't ridden a bike now for ten years, I still consider myself a seasoned biker with a total of 26 years on the road and at the tender age of 52.

I recently moved to Malaysia from England and was immediately appalled at the behaviour or bikers over here. They ride scooters and small bikes in their 1000s. Really, it's quite something else. Soon after moving here, I bought a new car and within just two weeks it was almost written off by a biker hitting the side of my car as I (oops, unexpectedly) turned right. Fortunately the biker was not seriously injured and was wearing a helmet. That in itself is a miracle as most of them don't and ride in flip-flops!

To better understand the mentality of the Malaysian biker, I decided to buy a bike myself. Boy was I scared?! Not only was it my first bike in ten years but it was my first experience riding in Asia and, in particular, in Kuala Lumpur City Centre. I was so nervous I was probably a liability on the road. I didn't have the confidence to weave between traffic so maintained the road position of a car for several days, even queuing at junctions and traffic lights. Other bikers must have thought me mad because no bike queues here in traffic. Honestly, you're lucky if bikes even stop for red lights which appear to be totally discretionary! I've seen bikes riding the wrong way on highways, up slips roads, through junctions on red lights, on the pavement, you name it. The craziest thing is that they don't even look; they just pull right out into traffic.

I've been biking again now for two months now and do you know what's funny, or rather, scary? I've almost turned into now of these bikers! I really have sympathy for car drivers sometimes because they cannot even change lanes on the highway without looking in their mirrors a dozen times for fear of a bike zooming between the lanes through the traffic. I watch these crazy bikers and I understand how the car drivers feel. It doesn't stop me doing the same as the other bikers, though. Here, it's a dog-eat-dog world. Any hesitation or holding back, any uncertainty is simply seen as something to take advantage of by car drivers and bikers alike. The most difficult thing for me is that, no matter how fast I ride between the traffic when cars are stopped or slow-moving, there will always be a biker behind me that wants to go faster and will even try to overtake me as I pass between the cars. It's SO dangerous; I don't do this, I have my limits.

My first few days of daily riding into KLCC in commuter traffic took an hour and twenty minutes, partly because every time I rode, I got lost! There are so many route options and Google Maps kept directing me down unfamiliar roads and highways where I got lost and had no idea where I was. Now I'm familiar with my chosen route, I ignore Google's misdirections as it tries to redirect me to avoid congestion. I've shaved quite a lot of time off my daily commute too, my quickest time being just 42 minutes, which is pretty impressive for 45km in often almost stationery traffic!

Yes, biking in Malaysia has certainly been an experience. I have progressed from abject terror to real enthusiasm and I love my daily ride. I only wish I had a bigger bike. Bikes here are lousy and there is just no choice; it's hard to find a superbike and even if you do it costs a fortune. I've decided that my next bike should be a Kawasaki Versys 650 as this seems to be a superbike that is actually available here at a reasonable price, but still costs RM40,000 (c.£6,500), but I have to save up first. In the meantime, it's back to red-lining my Yamaha FZ150i all the way!

Jonathan, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia