KUCHING: A favourite training ground for Kuching cyclists is the Petra Jaya area.
It has been popular with competitive and recreational cyclists for a long time due to the lower traffic volume and relatively good roads.
Located in the vicinity is Medan Hamidah, a small strip mall with a fast food restaurant, a cafe and a supermarket, owned by Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak(TBS).
With the growing popularity of cycling amongst Kuchingites, the mall has become a meeting point for cyclists.
TBS recognises that fact and intends to take advantage of this association with the sport.
“Medan Hamidah is like a pit stop for a lot of cyclists,” said Datu Abang Mohd Shibli Abang Nailie, general manager of TBS.
“We want to create more awareness on the importance of cycling as a healthy lifestyle,” he added.
Plans are afoot for Medan Hamidah to become a ‘cycling hub’ for cyclists to gather.
TBS even has it own Al-Bait Cycling Club.
Of particular interest to Kuching cyclists is their plan to organise a road race at the end of May or early June.
“We will be organising a race which will start from Kompleks Islam Baitulmal and end at Medan Hamidah,” said Shibli.
Kompleks Islam is located at Jalan P. Ramlee.
An organising committee member said the race will most likely have a distance of between 90 to 100km.
The prize money is expected to be attractive enough to lure top teams from the Peninsula and Pontianak.
The date of the race is also good as it will be before Ramadhan and also considering that there will be many events after the fasting month.
This race is good news to local racers as many believe the sheer lack of competitions has stunted Sarawak cycling standards.
It helps that Shibli himself is an avid cyclist.
He gave his proposed race serious “street cred” when he showed up in full cycling kit to lead his club members in a warm-up ride with Team Corbusier on the last day of their recent training camp.