KERTIH: It was a fun yet challenging ride for more than 1,000 participants who pedalled 38.5km for honours in the ‘Harian Metro Mountain Bike Grand Prix 2017’.
The event was flagged off by state Infrastructure, Public Works, Energy and Green Technology committee chairman Rosli Othman, who is also Kemasik state assemblyman, at 8am on Saturday from Sekolah Kebangsaan Kertih.
Present at the event were the New Straits Times Press (Malaysia) Bhd chief executive officer Datuk Abdul Jalil Hamid, Affin Islamic Bank Berhad chief executive officer Nazlee Khalifah and Harian Metro executive editor Othman Mamat.
Othman said that the ride was the second in the series owing to overwhelming demand from cycling enthusiasts in the region.
He said the event was a resounding success especially in conjunction with ‘Visit Beautiful Terengganu 2017’.
“To make the race more exciting, we have included greater navigational and technical, as well as off-road challenges along the route that is lined with hills, streams, ravines, rocky tracks and narrow paths.
“The whole race is a test of the rider’s skills and stamina. It will take about two to four hours to complete the race, depending on the rider’s ability,” said Othman.
He added a similar race was held at Bukit Merah Laketown Resort in Perak on July 29, with the third in the series scheduled at Sungai Buaya, Selangor on Dec 2.
The race in Kertih is divided into the men’s junior, Open, junior Masters, senior Masters and women’s Open categories.
Sponsors for the ride include Affin Islamic Bank Berhad, Tesco Stores (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Universal Fitness & Leisure Sdn Berhad (UFL) Deuter, LeRun Industries Sdn Bhd, Honda Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Polygon, Demak, Julies Biscuits, Mamee Double-Decker, Isuzu Malaysia and Resorts World Kijal.