The Samosaurus Chronicles

Exiting grief

2022-07-13T01:04:00.003-07:00

It felt like I had sat in a car at 400km/h and hit a coconut tree, everything was obliterated and I walked out with just a sprained ankle. We mourned the passing of a family member and at the height of this emotional roller coaster, I went through denial, anguish, despair, a huge sense of loss, regret, and self-pity. I took it rather hard because I spent a great deal of time with my dogs. This is apparent when I am no longer in employment. There were long hours with the dogs as my companion. So, having said that, the bond is very close. Kitto's passing was sudden and nobody saw that coming. So, as a cautionary tale, if you have a female dog, and do not have plans to get a litter, please spay her. She will enjoy a longer life.

Now the dust has settled, it's time to set new priorities. I have Bandit, the last of our pack, and it is my responsibility to take good care of him as I had with Kitto. The whole experience taught me something: Life is short.

I have to make use of time in a good and organized way. I took it back to the range to work on my archery form, which totally sucked in a big way. There is a tournament this weekend and this is a good way to focus on positivity and get into the game mindset. We have a bigger game down South at the end of the month and we need our minds to be on the game. I kept myself busy by building new competition arrows for Michelle. As for Bandit, we do full loops on our daily walks to get our hearts pumping and blood flowing. Time to move on and get back to where we were...

Rock bottom

2022-07-12T06:46:00.004-07:00

IT'S been 24 hours since we lost Kitto, our seven-year-old female Siberian Husky. Her sudden departure has left a big hole in our lives.

I've experienced losing a family member, and close friends, but nothing has ever prepared me for the sudden demise of a pet dog, one which is very close to the family and a constant companion. I'm so used to having a pair of dogs waiting for me at the gate, now it's only one and the loss of his companion is slowly sinking in.
"Kitto's gone, boy...", I said to Bandit. He gazes into the distance, perhaps waiting for Kitto to come back home. The harsh reality is that things are no longer the same.

For me, it was rock bottom. I cleared off some of Kitto's belongings. Her crate was moved to storage. Some of her items were set aside. The lair that she used to sleep in is now vacant. It's hard to get the images out of my mind. What made me feel even sad is the fact that Kitto is still young. Her rapidly deteriorating health and death were sudden. I was looking forward to at least 10 - 12 years of having this pack together. This was my experience with my first pack of Siberian Huskies. Both lived to 12 and 13 respectively. At that age, every day, week, and month is an added bonus and when it comes to death at old age, it was acceptable. Kitto was around 7 years of age and I felt she was gone way too soon. With that in mind, I sank into further despair. I had Michelle, my wife to talk about this, something to air off my chest. Given the best of what we can to Kitto, I have come to terms that she was gone. Her mild temperament and constant companionship are irreplaceable. It will take time to suck it all up and move on...

I will utilize my time with Bandit to fulfilling my responsibilities, take good care of him, and include him in my outdoor pursuit. The older pack was lucky enough to go on hikes and a trip to the beach. And this is something that I owe my boy. Together, we will overcome our loss and heal the wound.

Remembering Kitto

2022-07-11T19:38:00.002-07:00

Kitto came into our lives four years ago when we fostered two rescued Siberian Huskies.
She was a pure white, which is a rare marking for the breed and I immediately fell in love with her mild temperament. After a month of house-breaking, the fostered dogs are as good as our family members.

Last Friday, I noticed that she was not eating and was rather weak from malnutrition. I took her to the vet and have her examined. She checked out alright and was given medication for her lack of appetite. But in the following 48 hours, her health had taken a turn for the worse. Kitto was whining in pain. We had to endure the long holiday weekend and as soon as I can get a vet appointment, I scheduled her for a follow-up. This time, the vet diagnosed pyometra, an infection of her reproduction organs. She picked this up during her last heat and her uterus was inflamed. The swelling caused massive discomfort in her stomach, hence the lack of appetite. We did whatever we can to give her comfort.

After two consecutive blood tests, her odds are not in favour of recovery with an aggressive surgery to remove the infected organs. Nevertheless, I made the call. It's giving her a fighting chance rather than putting her to sleep. We don't give up at all. But fate has put it in a way, Kitto had a short life. I received a phone call while walking Bandit, our Sibe, and was told of her passing. My immediate thought was to give her a burial next to Sir Naughty and Dame Queenie, our previous pack.

Kitto's passing has left a massive void in our lives. I felt sad that her life was cut short due to an illness we didn't see coming. In her existence, she had given love without bounds. Kitto was always there waiting for us to come home. I spent a lot of time with her, taking both dogs for their walks. In the four years that we had Kitto, we gave her care and love she had never received as a pup. It's heartbreaking to see a beloved pet's rapidly declining health and we did everything we could to alleviate the suffering and pain. Kitto will always be remembered as one of our favourite pooch along with Sir Naughty and Dame Queenie.

Now that we are left with Bandit, my duty is to dedicate my time and love to him, as we still have years ahead of us. So, Kitto, say hello to Naughty and Queenie in Doggahalla. We will see you soon.

The Keramat gig

2020-09-22T17:54:00.004-07:00

Coming in a full circle...

Michelle and I started our archery gig in the Keramat Sports Centre five years ago. We got yelled at, chased away and now, we are back. There were familiar faces, compound bow archers with camouflaged pants, some "hunter-dude wannabe", "super-duper coaches" and some very interesting archery personalities. Mostly amateur archers pursuing their hobby.

Since we have our own range in Subang, our contact with the Keramat club archers were kept to the minimum. Back in the days when we brought a hunting recurve bow to the Keramat range, we get dirty looks and were treated like lepers. Some were actually afraid that an archer who uses just a bow and arrow can shoot better than them. They paid RM900 for a bow sight and much more for all the bells and whistles. We also met some folks who had a rig the price of a small car but were too afraid to compete at tournaments because they don't want to "lose face", which is a typical Asian trait. We also met folks who boast about their "perfect" archery form. The form was too perfect, they got banned from tournaments. But to top it all, there was this Man-Gorilla half-breed who boasted about this range and elite club members. It was so elite, it got closed down because animals were maimed and killed near the premises. This personality is so thick-skinned, he actually shot at Keramat and bolted off when the Rangemaster arrives.

Anyway, we were invited to shoot at the Keramat range by an old friend who is also the club's Rangemaster. Currently, we are helping him out to raise funds to upkeep the target butts and stands. Hopefully, this will be done after we host a small inter-club Barebow tournament for the man.

The Keramat range is a great place to train. As a Barebow archer, I'm glad that the National Archery Association had included the class in their target archery events. Hopefully, when the flu pandemic is over, we can compete there...

Fixed...

2020-09-22T17:03:00.003-07:00

A phone call to an old friend...

I gave a call to my old friend at The Star Media Group. Followed up with him on the wrong picture being used in a story that implicated cyclists on highways.

He regretted that it was a mistake. But I told him no apology was necessary on his part.

Apparently, the online team had used an old picture by doing a search on the company's image repository.

It turned out that the photo was an unused image from a series of pictures I took back when I wrote about cycling on the Federal Highway bike lane. This was attributed to my personal take on what it was like cycling from home to work.

Many mistakes and some, causing law-suits have arisen from this.

Why? The person did not perform a fact check and the filing system was done incorrectly. Another good friend of mine who fetched the wrong wire story was sent to the can because of this.

It's all good...

I'm not seeking legal recourse on the matter, but rather let the people who did the mistake to make it good. The picture was replaced with another that actually depicts cyclist on a closed highway.

Far from over...

But, for cyclists, the issue of folks taking it out on highways is still an issue. Some genius from the Malaysian Institute on Road Safety had come out with the idea of issuing licence plates for bicycles. And this was taken all the way up to the Transport Ministry. I think it's silly. Anyway, the onus is on a cyclist to abide by the Law and respect all road users.

Judge, Jury, Executioner...

2020-09-21T17:07:00.001-07:00

A Witchhunt...

The Cops posted a statement on their Facebook page. They warned cyclists not to use the highway as their trampling grounds. This is founded as it is an offence to cycle on the Highway under the Road Transport Act. As a matter of fact, the Cops also posted a picture of a cyclist being detained by highway patrolmen in relation to the matter.

And here's where things got really interesting. A friend on mine posted a link to Carsifu.my on a related article. It has a picture of me posing next to a motorcycle and bicycle sign on the Federal Highway. The story made an example of the cyclist on a Highway. But, without verifying facts, they published the story without a caption. To the uninitiated, the traffic offence is indirectly linked to the photo.

For the record...

The picture was lifted by The Star straight from my Facebook photo album. It was taken more than eight years ago when I cycled to work from my home in Subang Jaya to Section 16 in Petaling Jaya. I used the main road to connect with the bike lane along the Federal Highway. I did not cycle on the runoff on the Highway. Instead, I used the designated bike lane to get to work.

A series of photographs captured above explains the route taken from Subang Jaya to Petaling Jaya via the Federal Highway bike lane. And as a rule of thumb, it is against the Law to cycle on the car lanes along the Highway. You don't have to be a brain surgeon to figure that out. I used the bike lane, not the car lane. So, how is this against the Law?

An axe to grind?

The photo was my personal visual entry on Facebook. Only friends can access the images. The person who published the photo is perhaps no stranger to pictures of me cycling everywhere.

The question here is "what is their agenda?" Is The Star, being a moral guardian -- saying that it is wrong to stand next to a road sign and take pictures?

They singled me out to make a point, based on a Facebook statement by the Cops on the dangers of cycling on the Highway and the penalties of doing so if caught.

If I had actually done it on the Highway, then there is no argument. But this was not the case. The people who ran this story actually took the trouble to scour my Facebook album and used the photo without properly verifying the facts. In fact, they published it without my permission. And just so that you know, this image was taken on a tripod and self-timer. I am the rightful owner of the photo.

Why so personal?

Aren't there any pictures of cyclists actually caught in the act? I won't draw any irrational conclusions. Perhaps it is poor training on the part of the Editor in this case. Any responsible journalist would check for the correct facts before the story makes it to final print.

Two things are in play. First, they violated my privacy by using the photo without permission. Second, they incriminated me by associating the image to the offence under the Road Transport Act. Was it deliberate? No one knows until some fella has the balls to own up. Till then, we wait and see.

The right thing to do is to contact the owner of the photo and give a reasonable explanation to the public shaming of a cyclist using the Federal Highway bike lane as a means to commute to work...

Mora: A knife of all seasons...

2020-01-04T03:41:00.001-08:00

A chance discovery...

Back in the early 90s, I did plenty of bluewater fishing. One of my requirements was a bait knife. So, while shopping at a local tackle store, I round a Swedish-made knife. It came with a plastic sheath and a finger guard. The price? RM12 a pop. I didn't hesitate to grab the knife. It has some surface pitting, but that didn't really bother me at all.
I took it with me in countless trips to the ocean and it became a loyal companion.
The knife in question was a KJ Eriksson Mora. It's a simple fixed-blade knife with a green plastic handle. It came with a plastic sheath and a PVC belt loop.
The blade length is 3.75" which made it an ideal utility knife for food preparation. As a bait knife, it served its purpose till I settled for a Martiini fillet knife.

Carbon steel

Now, if you ask some knife collectors and "steel snobs" they will scoff at carbon steel. But, if you want something cheap and good, and you know how to maintain it, the Mora is a knife that can be handed down generations.
Carbon steel isn't so bad. But if you don't take care of it, surface rust will set in and damage the knife.
I had some issues when I stored the knife. Atmospheric pollution contributed to some heavy surface corrosion. This was taken care of by polishing the blade with abrasive paper.
Once restored, the Mora is as good as new.
Carbon steel is also very easy to sharpen, but edge retention is not the best.
You have to keep sharpening it after some use. The heavier the usage, the more you will have to work on it.
But, hey, if you pay RM12 for a Mora, it's part of the chore!

The Mora legacy...

There was a resurgence of the Mora in the mid-2000s when Bushcrafters have heavily promoted the Moras in their social media channel.
It's the "go-for" knife if you want something cheap and reliable. There will be no guilt whacking it.
In the mid-2000s, KJ Eriksson became Morakniv and a new line of Mora utility blades was introduced.
Their market was intended for bushcrafters and purists. Till today, the basic carbon steel mora is still an affordable knife.
With inflation and currency fluctuation, you can purchase a basic carbon steel mora blade for less than RM50 a piece.
And if you take good care of the blade, it will last you a lifetime...

Now comes the crunch...

2019-12-18T18:05:00.002-08:00

Retrenchment...

Corporate jargon such as: "Manpower Rationalization Exercise" is a candy-coated word for "Retrenchment". This is a last-resort move by companies to save their ass from further deterioration.
That said, one of the largest media houses in Malaysia has called for such a practice.
But, this is not new. They have offered voluntary layoffs since 1998 and went on doing so for a number of times.

The changeover...

Prior to the new government, the said media house has played a role in executing their political master's agenda. With public trust diminishing over the years, sales have dropped. Our currency has never improved since 1998 and the cost of a newspaper has never increased. Basically, the profit is driven by advertisement and poor customer service has driven many advertisers to a rival media house. Another issue is the quality of the product. The media house suffered a talent drain as many of the good writers have either quit or joined a rival company.

Poor leadership qualities and succession rate...

When personal development is gauged on kissing ass and being a "yes-man", many of the talented folks who worked in the media house became disillusioned. They persevered and when they can't take it anymore, they leave. Those who chose to be in "the right camp" ascended. As an eyewitness, I saw how the Editors yell and scream at their charge. Instead of being professional, they punished their reporters by victimizing them.
One jarring example was at one particular set-up in the media house, a news Editor had sexually harassed one of the female reporters by using the editorial operating systems messaging board.
But this was swept under the rug as the said person was under "protection" from the higher-ups.
Another guy who tried to do the same by sending short messaging on his expensive personal device wasn't so lucky. The case was blown out of proportion and the guy had to leave before a domestic inquiry was called.
The journalist union in the media house was weak. Reporters continued to be abused. That's how bad the working conditions were at this place.
As the media house continues to decay, those who rose through default was politically-appointed to succeed some who had to leave. All they need to do is to continue kissing ass and spread propaganda.
The final in the coffin was the appointment of a group of mediocre Editors to helm their company. These guys were the worst of the lot and it's no surprise the impending doom of the media house was compounded by a lot of poorly made decisions.

Fear, not the hardship and sufferings...

I sympathize with those who got retrenched. But life goes on. Get another job elsewhere, weather it out and hopefully, things would get better...

KIFAC 2019 - Part 4

2019-12-01T06:36:00.001-08:00

Unmarked distances...

With Pak Sani and his wife, archers from Bandung, Indonesia...

We have reached the climax of our shoot in Batam and the last round was field targets with marked distances.
It's actually similar to what we have done the day earlier with the exception of distance markers placed on the shooting line.
As usual, the barebow folks would shoot at the last station where six target butts were placed with 20cmx3 triple faced targets.
From what I have learned the day before, to get things right, I must place my shots low and the results actually showed. I had fewer misses compared to the unmarked distances and as we progressed, some archers struggled with keeping up.

Playing the mind game...

Most of the archers experienced at least a 30% drop in their overall scores. They might have taken some things for granted, but a few meters in terms of distance and elevations can result in a miss or a poorly placed shot.
The guys in my flight, Pak Liswantoro, and Pak Dedi felt this when most of their arrows had missed its mark.
As they struggle, I maintained my lead.
I had a few badly placed shots and some misses on the 30m and 50m marked targets.

Pak Ilham, one of the event organizers...

Michelle, taking her shot at the 20m marked targets

Pak Dedi in action...

With Liswantoro (L) and Dedi (R)

The game continued until the third pool where we were given a break. Michelle and I had our packed lunch and exchanged notes on the shoot.
She didn't do really well with at least a dozen missed shots.
I told her to take it easy and make it up at the last station. The game continued till the last arrow landed on the target face.
At 30m, I did pretty well until the last target face where I had two misses.
Right there, till the end, the 50m marked distance targets proved to be a "deal-breaker" for most of the archers.
Those who did very well the day before were 30 points behind.

Samo, at the 30m marked distance targets...

Archers at the 30m target butt...

A good day to shoot!

Making their way to the last station at the field course...

All in a day's work...

After we were done, we went back to the staging area to pack up our gear. I had some souvenirs distributed to some fellow archers and key people who organized the game. In no time, the results were published on inseo.net, an online repository for archery events and its results.
Despite having a bad day, Michelle came up in second place. My scores were the same compared to the previous day where I was ranked sixth. On the second day, I came in fourth and overall with two days of scores combined, I landed in fifth place.

Michelle (L), flanked by the champion Mardhiyatillah (CTR) and Nurul Hidayu from Satria Archery Club, Johor.

Summary

The Batam field shoot was well organized in terms of time management. This was their first time and the guys should be given a pat on the shoulder for finishing on time.
They have plans to organize two events of similar nature yearly and with adequate marketing and promotion, they will succeed.
Michelle and I have had a great time shooting at the course.
If we set foot on the island again, getting decent accommodation would be our priority...

KIFAC 2019 - Part 3

2019-11-28T05:55:00.002-08:00

Unmarked distances...

The head judge giving archers a final briefing before the game...

Fear of the unknown puts many folks in suspense.
To begin the day, the head judge gave a thorough briefing about the game and how it's conducted.
We walked to the edge of the course where six target stands were set up with 20cmx3face in a shooting sequence of A, B, C, and D.
Two archers will shoot first in the group beginning with archers A and B. The sequence follows with the last two target faces. This is similar to indoor triple face targets where we actually shoot the first and third target faces to give each other more space. Well, some archers did not observe this and shot just about any target face they fancy. If there is a protest, he will lose points.

Michelle and one of the woman archers on the course...

I was placed in a flight with two guys. One from Batam, a Javanese goat herder, another from Pekanbaru in Sumatera.
The goat herder, Pak Liswantoro is relatively new to archery while Pak Dedi Suryadi was the more seasoned archer.
This was apparent with Liswantoro wanted to call for the judge when his arrow landed between the line of value between two points. I called out the score and awarded the goat herder the highest score, but he insisted on calling the judge. We only call for a judge when all of us could not agree on the value of the score. In this respect, the Indonesians have quite a way to go...

Runners handing out scoresheets to the archers...

Protocol, protocol, protocol...

At the first pool, we shot six targets.
I didn't connect well with the top 20cm target face as my arrow landed high. This actually taught me to set my aiming point lower to allow the arrow to land dead-center. After placing 18 arrows at the first station, I only managed to harvest 57 points. Not too shabby to get the day started.
When everyone had completed their rounds, the announcer called for a break to observe the opening ceremony.
Pak Dedi, my shooting partner remarked that it's all speeches, dancing and delay to the entire event.
We spent two hours listening to speeches from all the VIP guests and by the time it was over, back to work.
The next pool was a set of six targets with a 60cm face at a distance of 30 meters. It's time to make up the lost points and I managed to connect my shots with a couple of misses.
On the third pool, we had a set of 40cm target face at roughly 20 meters. Now, this is our bread and butter and we were expected to do well.
I had failed to factor-in the slightly elevated slope that I was standing on to take my shot. Each arrow landed high in a tight group. No misses, but very little points.
While working on the third pool, the organizers had called for a meeting among the team and club managers.
A decision was made to proceed with the game until the end.

An Indonesian national archer at the opening ceremony

The first pool of 20cm target faces

Saving the best for the last...

Everyone dreads the long and elevated target faces. Placed at a distance of 45 meters on a mound, a badly estimated shot can land your arrow in the bushes.
I observed as one guy from a different flight had only one arrow on the target face. It was tough.
The top archer in my group was Pak Dedi. He did very well and came in at fifth place on the unmarked distance ranking.
On the first day, I managed to score 206 points to land a spot on the sixth place. Plenty of misses, especially in the 45m unmarked distance targets. One of my arrows landed on the wooden target stand. Some went low and hit the ground. Precision and form are key to connecting your shots in this case...

Having our packed lunch...

All in the day's work: Beer Bintang to quench our thirst...

Michelle came in first in the Women's Barebow division. She ranked high with 227 points after 72 arrows.
We headed back to Nagoya Hills earlier than the previous day and walked around the area before settling at a hawker centre at the city walk for some beers.
There, we ate simple, sat around to unwind as the marked distances await on the final day of the tournament...

KIFAC 2019 - Part 2

2019-11-28T02:58:00.003-08:00

Official practice, registration and equipment inspection...

The Field of play overlooks Singapore's skyline

We woke up as early as 5.30am in preparation for the official practice and equipment inspection at Indah Puri Golf Resort which is located in Sekupang, some 14km away from Nagoya Hills. Since it was a workday in most parts of the island, we had to join the early traffic rush.
Michelle and I had decided to have breakfast at McDonald's which is about a block away from our hotel. There, it's the usual McBreakfast and a cup of black coffee to get the day going.
The day before, we nearly got ripped off by a ride-hailing driver. Michelle had decided that it was best to get a five-star person to drive us to our location across the island.
We hailed a ride, loaded out gear onto the car and joined the hustle and bustle of the daily grind in Batam.
I observed that the roads around here were really bad. Some years back, I rode my bike across the island to get to Bintan.
The driver took us to a series of small villages before we hit the golf resort's entrance.

Indah Puri at last!

An aerial view of the Field of play

An awesome location!

There weren't many archers on the first day of the meet. A technical meeting was about to take place at 9am sharp before we were allowed to practice at a designated pool.
The organizers had made sure that the rules were laid down and all archers would know what to do during the game. I like it that the guys were thorough and they made sure everything is covered...

Sighting-in...

I shoot split-finger, so, there little concern on my part about "string-walking" or setting the "right crawl" on my bow. I base my technique on instinctive archery and whatever I see, the arrow will follow and land. Not 100% accurate, but it gets the job done. I didn't join the shoot to earn medals, but rather have fun and enjoy the shoot.

Michelle, sighting-in her bow

Equipment inspection...

The technical meeting session

The head judge, laying down the rules...

After all the formalities, we were introduced to a family from Kluang, Johor. Two ladies in the group were shooting in the Women's Barebow division. One of the women's husbands, a young bowyer was among the crowd. We have actually met at the Istana Negara shoot that took place in early November.
The folks were really friendly as we exchanged knowledge on Field Archery. Some of the archers who registered for the shoot arrived later in the day to join in the practice.
Later, Michelle and I had decided to have lunch at the golf course clubhouse.
We had a decent meal consisting of fried rice and oxtail soup and hung out there. It started raining heavily before the 2pm practice session and we were glad that the rain actually stopped.

Nasi goreng Indah...

Oxtail soup...

Weathering it out at the clubhouse

Making the most out of it...

Time passes slowly when you wait. But it bears its rewards when you connect your shot at unmarked distances.
We shot for the second time at the course and found our arrows landing at the target faces.
I always had issues of dropping my bow arm, causing the arrows to land low and short. This, I tried to fix and minimalize my form mistakes. Michelle, on the other hand, had a better time connecting her shots.

Retrieving arrows from an elevated target...

One of the hardest pools in the course...

Rain gear on the course!

Targets on the marked distance pool...

Practice session...

My wet riser...

We had a full day at the tournament venue. Making full use of the practice session.
I was quite satisfied to land some shots at the 40m targets. The first day would be unmarked distances followed by marked distances on the last day. Elimination rounds were called off due to time management issues.
By the end of the day, it was back to our shithole hotel in Nagoya. We hailed a ride that took forever to arrive and manage to make it back all the way.
At Nagoya, we had to refill our drinking water and prepare for the competition day. After a good meal, that was it for me. I crashed early to earn some sleep time...

KIFAC 2019 - Part 1

2019-11-28T02:14:00.002-08:00

Indonesia's first Field Archery Tournament...

I caught wind of the KIFAC 2019 (Kepri International Field Archery Championships from Mike Song, the man behind Excella Archery Pro Shop and took the opportunity to shoot in Batam, one of the islands in the Riau Archipelago.
We registered for the shoot before heading off to Japan for our break. Michelle had never shot field before and was unfamiliar with the rules. I took some time to explain to her about the scoring system and all the necessary information about this archery discipline.
The entrance fee was 300,000 IDR (RM89) and payment has to be done via Telegraphic Transfer to the organizer's bank account. I did this via on-line banking and it was not a hassle at all.

Upon returning from Japan, Michelle was really busy with work. I had a couple of days to get the paperwork done for bringing out our archery equipment and getting the ferry ticket purchased. Our plan was to drive down to Johor Bahru and take a ferry across to Batam.
To the uninitiated, Batam is located across the Singapore Straits and can actually be seen from it's Northernmost tip.
The KIFAC 2019 tournament was held at the Indah Puri Golf Resort. To get things going, I booked our stay at Batam Centre and it takes about 30-minutes to get to the golf resort where the tournament was held.

Getting ready to board the ferry from Puteri Harbour near Iskandar Puteri

Downtown Singapore as seen from our boat's window

Murphy's Law...

Not everything had turned out as planned. Before we boarded our ferry, I received a call from Booking.com informing us that our room was canceled due to overbooking. This was done at the very last-minute and sounded really suspicious. The company's customer service said they will replace the room with a hotel that has the "equal quality".

The replacement hotel in Nagoya Business Centre, Batam

Our "executive suite"

"Buyers beware..."

As a rule of thumb, double-check offers that are "too good to be true". I checked out the hotel in Batam Centre called "Capital O" on Booking.com that came highly-rated.
For four nights, the rates were 1.23mil IDR which came up around RM360.00 for the whole stay. I thought it was a great offer which turned out to be a real nightmare.
We were redirected to Nagoya Hills, located some 5km away from Batam Centre. Even when we had arrived at the ferry terminal, there was a turf war between taxi drivers and ride-hailing services. To get where we wanted, we had to drag our suitcase for nearly half a kilometer before boarding a Toyota Avanza. The ride costs about 39,000 IDR and the driver wanted everything. He was reluctant to give the loose change. I insisted and was given a stare. Well, fuck him!
The room, as it has turned out, was rather run-down. The only thing that kept us going was the air conditioning and hot shower that worked. I had Michelle to thank for not being fussy about being stuck in a real adventure situation.
In most parts of Indonesia, smoking is permitted in hotel rooms. We had a real raw deal and had to contend with cigarette-stained furniture and a musty smelling room.

Kuala Lumpur and Singapore prices...

If you plan to eat out and have a couple of beers, be prepared to pay the rates as we did at home.
We ended up at a place called "Dju Dju Baru", a Chinese restaurant. We ordered three dishes: Fish soup, Fried Bittergourd with egg and Botok, the local otak-otak. We also had two large bottles of Bintang Beer and the bill came up to 203,000 IDR (RM60.80). The beers chalked up nearly half the price of our dinner. Later, we found out about a food court near the Nagoya City Walk that serves Beer Bintang at 33,000 IDR (RM9.78).

Our first night in Batam was done after a meal. Nagoya, for starters, is an entertainment district on the island. There are many sleazy bars surrounding our hotel. I was in such a bad shape, it didn't take long for me to crash...

2019 Singapore National Games - Part 2

2019-11-20T05:31:00.000-08:00

"TBAC Territory"

Team Rogue Archers: Samo, Isaac, and Jeremy

Since Barebow was contested as a team event, the Teluk Belangah Archery Club or "TBAC" in short, has been dominant. They eliminate all their competitors and came up top 3 in the event. For them, it's a clean sweep through and through.
To throw them off the track, Jeremy had waited till the last minute to register our team. I pitched the name "Rogue Archers" which the guys had well received.
The TBAC guys never saw this coming and after day one, we came up tops in our group. While the dominant TBAC archers who formed a great team was numero uno in their own terms.

Getting ready for the K-O rounds on day 2...

On the elimination rounds, we met the more laidback guys from TBAC consisting of Uncle Tan Tock Seng, Toon Wee, and another old-timer. I met Uncle Tan and Toon at the Sungai Lembing 3D shoot. So, this was a small reunion.
The first game was "easy" as we eliminated the "fun" guys from TBAC.
This was followed by a break before we met the "next generation" archers from TBAC called "Bersatu".

Taking my shot at the finals...

Teamwork at its best...

"Bersatu" was made up of TBAC's finest young talent. Two guys and a lady made up the team. One of them, Dennis, I met him at the Thailand Princess Cup in Bangkok back in June. Turned out to be quite a decent guy.
During the K-O rounds, our lead archer Isaac had a bad release, resulting in a miss. Jeremy and I made up with some good shots.
Even with a miss, we came up with 11 points higher than our opponents. More apparent was one of the ends with all arrows in the yellow. We were relaxed, didn't lower our guard and had a great match with TBAC's younger and inexperienced team.

Completing the circle...

Our match at the finals was with TBAC's team OK.
We took them on the day before and they consist of three of TBAC's finest archers. They were Ang See Chuan, who won the 2016 Thailand Princess Cup Barebow Open, Dennis Ng and Gary Ang, one of the club's top archers.

Ending TBAC's dominance at the Singapore National Games

Thanking our fellow archers...

Jeremy put his plans into action. He picked Isaac as his running mate and added the final touch with me as the "mystery archer" in the team.
It was psychology warfare with Jeremy keeping the opponents guessing, much to the dislike of some folks. I can see the resentment on the faces of the guys that we have eliminated. But hey, it's just a game.
We met the last team standing. All our arrows connect and when the last arrow hits the target face on the final end, I can see Jeremy raising his arms, signaling an end to years of TBAC dominance. We congratulated the second-place winners and thanked them for a good game.

receiving our medals from TBAC's coach

Mission accomplished!

We later received our medals and small prize money. Jeremy took the celebrations with beers and hot-pot at a local restaurant. He was very happy to add another trophy and to him, it was a trifecta. Previously, he won the recurve and compound team matches. Barebow completes the Holy Trinity.
For me, it was living up to the expectations of getting the job done. I am the foreigner whom nobody gives a shit about at the game. So, that said, the Singapore National Games lent valuable experience in teamwork and cohesion in high-pressure situations. I also struck off another of my "Bucket list" which is to shoot in Singapore...

2019 Singapore National Games - Part 1

2019-11-20T04:13:00.002-08:00

Into the Lion's den...

Rogue Archers: Jeb, Samo, Jeremy, and Isaac

Sometime late last year, my archery buddy from Singapore Jeremy Han had mentioned his intent to compete at a team game at the Singapore National Games.
This actually happened as I traveled to Singapore to compete with his team.
I have never shared the shooting line with Jeremy and was introduced to Isaac Goh, a fellow teammate earlier this year when I made a trip down to Singapore.
The plan was to crash at Jeremy's home and head down to the Toa Payoh stadium for the shoot.

Logistics...

My plan was simple. Take a bus down to Singapore. This is also the first time I am bringing in archery equipment to the island republic. So, I went in prepared.
There are daily bus services to Singapore from Bandar Sunway which was perfect for me.
For this game, I packed light and brought my trusty CD Archery WF25X bow with me.
To get past Customs, I first have to declare the equipment at the Sultan Abu Bakar CIC complex near Tanjung Kupang. This was, of course, a pain in the ass.
Next, comes the most trying part: The Singapore Customs...

In the bus, ready to roll...

My ride to the far South...

Arriving in Singapore...

I hauled my gear to the X-ray machine and handed the paperwork to the security staff.
She called a senior Customs officer and two cops. Lots of questions to answer and I was brought to a room where more screening was done. After determining that the intent to bring archery equipment into the island republic was justified, I was allowed to enter.
Thankfully, the bus was still waiting. It made its way to the HarbourFront and my buddies Jeremy and Jeb were already there.

"Annihilate with extreme prejudice..."

Fighting sleep deprivation, we had a full day ahead of us. It started with a light practice at a private range near Teluk Belangah.
Jeremy had set up a new bow which is identical to the one Isaac was using.
Prior to this, I had never shot with the guys.
I sighted in with my bow and was confident of pulling it together at the qualifying rounds on the first day of the team event.

Jeremy sighting-in his bow

Zeroing-in with my WF25X

We met the first team from the Singapore "Boy's Brigade". They came in third last year and was said to be very experienced in the game.
We have two arrows each to land on two 40cmx10ring target faces. One anchor archer with shoot an arrow each on the two faces.
Since we have never shot as a team, Isaac decided to be the anchor while Jeremy and I took one face each.
We took the first end, the Boys Brigade equalized and the rest of the game belonged to us with an 8-2 win (with one bonus round).

The crowd in the Tao Payoh Stadium

Pep talk with Jeremy after finishing a round...

Counting scores and marking the target faces...

After a good lunch break, we took on four other teams and came up top in our group, unbeaten.
My arrows connected throughout the rounds and I was just glad to be able to do get the job done.

Inculcating good sportsmanship: Jeremy thanking our opponents for a good game...

We cleaned up the rest good including two teams from the Teluk Blangah Archery club. These are premier and seasoned Barebow archers in the island republic who have vast experience competing overseas.
My last brush with them was at Sungai Lembing at a 3D shoot...

Next: Changing mindset...

Sincerity...

2019-11-20T03:36:00.001-08:00

The phone call...

Just days before heading to Japan, my cellphone rang. The caller identity belonged to someone I knew from an old workplace.
"Hey, how are you?" he asked.
"Fine," I said.
"I just called to tell you that my car club is organizing a ride in the East Coast for your late friend.
"We are leaving tonight," he continued.
"Wah, very thoughtful of you to inform me. At the last-minute," I replied.
"Ah, I just thought of you, our mutual friend is the reason why I called," he said.
"Thanks for keeping me in your thoughts," I added.
"Yeah, you are lucky I actually remembered you...," he concluded.

My late buddy Shaharul on the far left...

The drive...

The person honored in this car jamboree was a close friend of mine, Shaharul Zain who passed away in April this year.
I knew him since Secondary school and kept in touch until he started working.
I attended his wedding and since he had a divorce, the guy kept his distance.
I respect people's need for space to heal.
Moving forward, I was having beers with my buddy Jeb and Coach Tan. A WhatsApp message came to inform the passing of Shaharul.
We finished up our beers, went to a mosque in Bangsar where his last rites were performed and made it just in time before the crowd dispersed for his burial at the Kiara Muslim cemetery.
There at the burial ground, it started pouring. It was poorly-lit and I can see the last scoop of earth being poured onto the grave of my old friend.
Tears rolled down my face as that was the last time I saw my buddy being committed to the ground.
I went up to his father, Col (RTD) K.N. Zain to offer him my sympathies and deepest condolences.
He was calm and composed. Later in the night, a thanksgiving prayer was held at the late Shaharul parent's home near Lucky Gardens, Bangsar.
Jeb and I went there to pay our respects to Shaharul's Mom and Dad.
"Hello Uncle," I introduced myself.
"Yes, I remember you. How have you been?," asked the Colonel.
"Fine, Sir," I replied.
The Colonel shared with me about Shaharul's final days.
It seems that he was doing very well and was at the peak of his career with the Malaysian Investment Bond.
I wished both parents well and went on. That was many months ago.

The caller...

The guy who rang me up tried to sell some land to the Colonel. He was a "close family friend".
Truth to be told, some guy who calls you after 13 years and informed you about a drive that is taking place on that very same day - is someone that is the least sincere.
The guy asked if I am employed. I said: "No".
"Hey, I have a website, it's a non-profit thing, you can write to "stay relevant"," he pitched.
"Nah, thank you very much. I will rather be irrelevant these days," I told the guy.

The business...

I spent nearly half my life in the media scene. Started as a photographer, changed my career as a reporter and eventually rose up the ranks to a Deputy Editor and ended my gig as a Producer.
Someone I knew said I will never make it far. Why? I don't "kiss ass".
I am a non-conformist and had never been in the "mainstream". For most of my career as a reporter, I was very fortunate to have some really good mentors.
Back in the newsroom, there were good Editors and a few great Editors.
The rest? Well, the majority of them are just dead weight. Great Editors, they take the trouble to teach you. Good ones, well, they just want to get things done and over with. And some, are just plain assholes.
The connection made with the phone call was the days in the newsroom. The guy who went for the drive was somebody who is still trying to "stay relevant". Well, good luck!

2019 Perak Open

2019-07-22T19:37:00.004-07:00

A recovery game...

Fresh out of the Thailand Princess Cup, we head up North of the Malaysian Peninsular to shoot at the Perak Open Archery Tournament. Barebow is competed at this event with a little addition. It's the organizer's house rules with 72 arrows in two rounds.
We thought it would be an awesome way to stay in the game and also meet some of the country's top Barebow archers at the shoot.
We set out early on a two-hour drive to Tapah where the event was held and managed to get a good spot to park our vehicle.
There, we set up for the qualifying round where 16 of the top Barebow archers will shoot at the 1/8 KO matches.

The Field of Play...

Chief Judge Johari Abu Bakar briefing the managers

Unlike most the kampung shoots that we regularly attend, this one adheres strictly to the World Archery ruling on archers' conduct, clothing etiquette and scoring.
There, I met Mr Ong, a welder from Kuantan who came in a pair of jeans. I told him the ruling and he changed into a pair of Khaki shorts. Mr Ong's hometown is in Teluk Intan and it was a last-minute do for him as he replaced an archer from the Pahang Barebow Archer's team who came in full force for the event.
At the qualifiers, we had to send 72 arrows downrange. For an 18-meter game, it's odd. But that was house rules and we just shot as we were told.

Event volunteers setting up the target butts...

Taking scores at the qualifying rounds...

The Usual Suspects...

We met Cikgu Suhari and his compatriots: "iceman" Syam and Cikgu Mat who came all the way from Kelantan at the shoot. As usual, they were the favourites. My lane mates were Cikgu Syam and Farid, an old friend from Malacca who took a long break from archery. Shooting alongside with Farid was a new guy who said he was honored to be in the same flight as the Thailand Princess Cup Barebow champion.
At the first round, I managed to shoot 249/360 and was ranked 19th. I actually had a miss with a bad release. This was also the first time I competed at a big event with my CD Archery WF25X riser. I must say that I was off-form and was plagued with a mixture of poor bow arm and release.
Then, after a 15-minute break, came round two. This time, I managed to connect the shots and chalked 277/360 on the target face with an improved ranking at 8th place. The total score of 526/720 placed me at 9th place overall, while Michelle managed to take 12th place with an overall score of 514. Both of us made the cut and went on to the 1/8 match rounds.

My flight with Syam "iceman", Farid and the new guy...

Michelle at a the qualifiers...

With sleep deprivation and a long drive, I wasn't mentally prepared for a KO match. I met Ustaz Omar, a regular Barebow shooter who is also a familiar face at the games. He took the game in a straight set. A clean win.
Michelle, on the other hand, met Cikgu Mat from KEMMAS Five Arrows. This was the first time they met at an elimination match and the scores were toe-to-toe. They drew at the fifth-end and a shoot-off was called by the judge.
Both shot a "9" in the yellow and the line judge awarded the win to Michelle as her arrow landed very close to the "10" circle. From an archer's perspective, Cikgu Mat has come a long way since I last met him in Kemaman, Terengganu. His archery skills has improved tremendously. Next, was the quarter-finals where Michelle met "iceman" Syam. He took the game with a 6-2 win and went on to the semi-finals with Kholidin who came all the way from Jakarta, Indonesia.
Cikgu Suhairi, on the other hand, was in good form and met Kholidin the finals. The Barebow gold medal went to Indonesia to Kholidin who shot extremely well. We had a great time at the shoot and went to Sungkai to celebrate Michelle's getting her MoJo back with some beers and salted baked chicken in Sungkai...

Elmination match with the iceman...

Michelle got her MoJo back at this intense elimination round with Cikgu Mat

Southeast Asia's top Barebow archers: Iceman Syam and Kholidin the one armed Avenger...

Michelle receiving a certificate from a NAAM official at the Perak Open

The Barebow winners

Having a chilled one before hitting the road home...

2019 Thailand Princess Cup Archery Tournament - Part 2

2019-07-22T18:02:00.001-07:00

Elimination day...

We had a silent understanding among each other. If any of us got bumped out, we will assume the role of coach and manager. This was split between me and Michelle. She spotted for Khoo, one of our top archers who made it to the 1/32 rounds.
I spoke to the organizers and managed to secure a media vest to capture the moments on my little mirrorless camera.
Unlike previous years, the Barebow folks had a day off before resuming to shoot at the KO rounds.
We took it easy, spent an afternoon at a range nearby and shot with the Kelantanese team.
On that fateful Sunday morning, two things were about to happen. First was our guy squaring-off with one of the top Indonesian barebow archers. Next, was history in the making...

A Thai archer consulting the line judge...

Team manager

Michelle, with Khoo at the equipment line...

Khun Pichet, one of the line judges, calling a score dispute

The KO rounds were fast and brutal. We saw the bottom 32 and top 32 archers slugging it out. The more experienced ones stayed on to the 1/16 rounds as the battle to survive continues.
At the 1/32 rounds, we witnessed an incredible match between Malaysia's Norliana Sulaiman who ranked 3rd at the Women's class and Ang See Chuan, 2016 Princess Cup Barebow champion. They were neck-to-neck with Norliana leading the way until Ang caught up and drew at the fifth set.
A shoot-off was called and Ang wasn't that lucky. Meanwhile, our top shot Khoo lost to Hudzaifah Abdul Salam from Indonesia.

Ang, squaring-off with Norliana at the 1/32 match rounds...

Our archer at the elimination rounds...

From competitors to spectators, team SBA at the match rounds...

The iceman cometh...

Throughout the tournament, one guy had bulldozed his way through 153 Barebow archers. He's a 34-year-old Science teacher from Pasir Mas, Kelantan. Moving in the shadow of Malaysia's top Barebow archer Suhairi Azha Ariffin, is Norhishyam "iceman" Ismail. Standing at six feet in height, he is as cool as a cucumber on the shooting line. Ranked 1st in the overall Barebow class. Cikgu Syam shot his way to the finals after beating his countryman Suhairi and top-seeded Thai archer Thammaluk Niamhom. Cikgu Syam met Kholidin, a one-armed archer from Indonesia at the finals.
Kholidin's story itself, is awe-inspiring. He lost his arm two years ago in an accident and recovered by shooting barebow. A compound bow archer by training, Kholidin is peerless in his home country in the Barebow class. For his effort, the Princess Cup organizers had presented him with a special award...
The Indonesians were the wild card entries and came prepared to take all top three spots.
One guy stood in their way and that was Cikgu Syam...

Norhishyam and Niamhom at the semi-finals...

There was a one-hour interval before the finals and that gave everyone enough time to rest and slug it out at the main event.

It was incredible to witness how far the Barebow class has progressed. In four years, Malaysia saw its archers shooting their way to the finals. Literally everyone had improved.

Norishyam "iceman" Ismail placing his shot at the final round...

The Malaysian challenge was answered by Cikgu Suhairi and Cikgu Syam. This year, Suhairi managed to shoot his way to the quarter-finals. A much better performance compared to previous years. The Thais, on the other hand, were denied of their hope of defending the Princess Cup that was won by Attapol Chareonpak in 2018. Infact, the Indonesians had stepped up the game by raising the bar in terms of scores. Most of their top Barebow archers made it to the elimination rounds.

Kholidin is an inspiration to a whole new generation of Barebow archers in the Southeast Asian region...

Eyewitness: creating history...

I stood next to an internet TV cameraman and recorded the finals on my little mirrorless camera. Moment by moment was captured as Cikgu Syam took the lead. Kholdin caught up, but didn't score enough points to break his opponent's lead.

As the last arrow landed on the target face in an alternate shooting rule at the finals, the Malaysian crowd cheered with a loud roar. What happened next was history. Cikgu Syam became the first Malaysian archer to win the 2019 Princess Cup Archery Tournament in the Barebow class...

Team KEMMAS and their champion

Throughout the finals, Cikgu Syam was calm and composed. He showed no emotions, continued to place his shots accurately till the final moment. It was a clean win by an awesome sportsman and archer. I can see the sigh of relief on his face as his fellow countrymen cheered. Friendly rivals from Malaysian teams who came for the event also joined-in to celebrate the win.

The iceman is Southeast Asia's top Barebow archer...

Kholidin (left) receiving a special award from Thailand Outdoor Archery Club President Thanaset Maneesombatkul (right)

Conclusion

This year's Princess Cup was very interesting. It saw a huge gathering of archers from all classes who came all the way from every corner of Southeast Asia.

For us, it was a great opportunity to catch up with old friends. As far as competing is concerned, this experience also taught us to work on our form and shot placement in order to stay in the game. We would like to thank Sunee Detchokul of Thailand Outdoor Archery Club and her team for putting up such an awesome tournament and look forward to the game next year!

2109 Thailand Princess Cup Archery Tournament - Part 1

2019-07-21T23:26:00.000-07:00

Southeast Asia's largest gathering of Barebow archers...

There has been tremendous development in the region's Barebow scene as Thailand's Princess Cup archery tournament had recorded it's highest numbers in terms of participation in the Barebow class.
More than 150 people from all walks of life took part in the Barebow shoot and this year's event saw history as Malaysia's entry stood at the podium for the first time.
As for our team, we prepared for this by training regularly at our range and when the time came, we just hopped onto the airplane and headed straight out to Bangkok where the game was held...

Getting some arrows on the target butt in Archery Thai

Zeroing-in with my Spigarelli Club 650 barebow riser

Our game plan was to head in two days earlier, practise at a nearby archery range, attend the manager's meeting to collect our passes and listen to the new ruling on electronic scoring during the Barebow qualification rounds.
This year, it's a bit different. The organizers decided to do a full 18-meter round. We had to qualify with 60 arrows and the elimination rounds had been reduced to 1/32. Only 64 of the top archers will face-off on the last day of the event.

Tatrawee Harikul of TOAC gave the briefing during the manager's meeting

Registration...

Qualifying rounds...

Our day started very early on Friday, June 28. We made our way to the event hall, set up our gear and waited for equipment inspection. Michelle, my wife was a bit annoyed when she was told about her centre-serving. There as a loose thread which we managed to remove and her arrows are not properly marked.
That aside, we waited till mid-day before warming-up and before we knew it, it was time to stand on the shooting line to qualify for last day.

Equipment inspection

The judge at work...

Qualifying rounds

The cadet-class archers

Getting our ass whooped...

It is fair to said that on being an old-timer, (my fourth outing at the Princess Cup) I maintained my game-play and worked on an average of 7.5 points per end. This is not even enough to make it to the mid-ranks as the archers became really good.
There were wild cards in the fray and I must say that Indonesia's debut in the Thailand Princess Cup would get many more Barebow archers to compete at future tournaments held in Bangkok.
Michelle was ranked at 66th and I came in at 68th place out of 153 archers.
In total, more than 100 archers had scored at least 200 points in the first round. The remaining 53 people had scored below 400 points in total making this one of the highest scoring class with team Five Arrow's Norhisyam Ismail shooting 272/300 and 262/300 totaling at 532 points after 60 arrows.
The last guy in the top 64 came in at 446 points. We were just a couple of points shy of qualifying and this became our motivation to train even harder.
There are a lot more games in the offing and we shall not take for granted on how good the Barebow archers from Malaysia has become...

(next: elimination rounds...)

Rumble in Rembau

2019-06-07T01:24:00.000-07:00

Taking a long distance shot at the last station at the Second Malaysian 3D shoot in Rembau, Negeri Sembilan...

The Legendary Tuan Bahar!

Mawaddah Archery is synonymous to 3D archery in Peninsular Malaysia. Why? Because Tuan Bahar and his team called Gabungan Pemanah Underground are responsible for the best 3D shoot money can buy.
I took part at their first game in Seremban last year and vowed to return again because I had a great time.
This year, Tuan Bahar had raised the bar by investing heavily in procuring SRT targets from Italy through Excella Pro Archery shop in Alor Gajah, Malacca.
For starters, 3D targets are not cheap. Many pro shops in the Klang Valley took advantage of this by selling crappy products at cut-throat prices. This is not the case by Excella Archery which was created by archers for archers.
Okay, done with the plug. Moving on, our team had registered for the game in Kampung Ulu Kendong near the Malacca border. As usual, when we need to travel, we set off early.

Setting up

The crowd...

Jeb, cheerful as usual...

Positive response...

When we arrived near the 3D tournament course, the crowd was steadily building up. People from all over the country have convened to showcase their talent with their bows. This time round, Tuan Bahar had included the compound bow class, attracting a fair bit of people. Some, who came all the way from Kuantan, Pahang.
There, I met many old friends -- especially a group from the Meraga Sukma archery club in Terengganu. This gave me a chance to catch up with them and ask about up and coming archery events in that state.
When the time came, Tuan Bahar gave a briefing and long before we knew it, we were on our way to our respective zones. There were three courses divided for the 250-odd archers taking part.
My flight had 10 people, mostly traditional archers. There were only four barebow archers in our flight.
The first station was a 20-meter target on low elevation. I took three shots and landed only one.
Then, we moved on to a more challenging station. On an animal hide. There was a pig placed downrange about 35-meters away. My goal was to land all my arrows without missing the target...

Shooting from a platform to a low elevation target

Jeb taking aim...

The flight leader taking scores...

For those who missed, they have a chance of "redeeming" points with smaller targets placed at a shorter distance. Most who thought this was easy missed.
One of the toughest target was a jackal placed on a ledge. The animal's color blended with its surroundings. This made it difficult for archers to land their arrows on the scoring rings.
We covered as many as two zones before breaking for lunch.

Taking a shot at the jackal

Helping a fellow archer spot

The event was held on a hillside resort owned by an ex-sailor. It's surrounding hills proved to be pretty tough for those who are not in a good physical shape.
If you lug your arrows on your waist, by the end of the day, your entire lower body will be sore.
I used my proven Rancho Safari Cat Quiver. The load bearing capabilities reduces fatigue and does not restrict movement, especially when you have to go down to a rut to retrieve arrows.
But all this has taken a toll on our buddy Jeb. He was flat out tired. Coach Lau, my team mate and I continued to the last station and finished the course.

Two different shooting styles

Taking scores

Coach Lau at work...

Piglets at the last zone

Conclusion: Great fun!

After sending three arrows on a resting bear while standing on a rock, we made our way to the car to pack up.
I took out a bottle of beer, which was already getting warm and handed it to Jeb. Even Coach Lau had a few sips of the brew. It has been a long day and as soon as the event had ended, we made our way to the highway and headed straight back to Subang Jaya. I wished I could have a nice dinner with the gang in Tampin, but I had a family event to attend to.
The top barebow archer in the lot was from the Meraga Sukma club. Its no surprise since he won the Ompa Field Archery challenge in Benton about two months earlier. I was told that the Terengganu club will be hosting similar events in the months following Hari Raya Aidil Fitri. I can certainly look forward to that.
As for the second Malaysian 3D shoot, I had fun. It was a quality game, but the organizers were apologetic over the difficulty of the course due to the terrain it was in. As long as you are in a good shape, hauling ass and sending arrows downrange in the jungle should not be a big issue...
As I am speaking, I do look forward to another 3D shoot near Alor Gajah in Malacca this middle of June!

Sungai Lembing Rendezvous - Part 2

2019-06-06T17:27:00.003-07:00

A group photo with our friend Stefan Von Teichner

The team event...

We had to wake up early, fight a hangover and complete the game in the team event.
But there was a snag. Our numbers. We had to split-up into a team of three and complete the course.
Jeb, one of our guys had to team up with Stefan, a 3D range owner from Malacca.
With that sorted out, the teams were briefed before they head out to shoot all the targets placed in 24 stations around the course.
It started with a team placing their shots on an elevated target, slowly, they were released and moved around in a circle.

SC Khoo from team SBA placing a shot...

Jeb at work on a riverbed course...

Connecting all the dots....

Since it was a team event, we took turns to sight and give directions on where the arrow had traveled.
Some stations were tough. We had to balance ourselves on a fallen log and take the shot.
There were guys who completely missed and the good ones, they connected every shot they made.
Only this time round, I sent two arrows to its demise. One shot hit a target stand and made a real sickening nose. That sharp "ping!" signaled a write-off.
Another arrow went low and was buried in stand. A piece of rock stopped it and flattened the tip. All-in, I've lost three arrows. We were told that someone will retrieve the lost arrows by using a metal detector. But, that didn't happen.
As the Sun begins to warm up the day, things slowly took a toll on the archers. Heat and humidity got to them and as we shot the last few targets on the valley below the resort, the heat became unbearable.
One of our guys had to bail out. And for not informing the organizer, he had a mouthful from the course director...

Archers doing their practice rounds in the morning...

Taking turns to shoot the target...

Wild boar tracks...

A deceptive target layout, but nevertheless, both my shots connected!

An interesting conclusion...

Once we were done with all the targets, it was time to head back to the villa and check out. We had to hand over the keys to the property.
We left the resort to do the needful and while having lunch, a phone call came.
A fellow archer had informed Jeb that team SBA has won the second day shoot.
I thought it was a joke, so we carried on eating before heading back to the resort to thank the organizer.
By the time we got there, everyone had left. I checked the score sheet and found out that we led by only one point. A team from Kuantan took second place at the shoot.
The organizer asked for a feedback about the event. I told him that he should invest heavily on good foam animal targets.
His response was "everything came out from his own pocket..." My take on this was very simple: you charge a fee for the event, it's not free and costings should be worked into giving a quality game. Not whine about not having funds.
My personal opinion: the place where the event was held is amazing. Nice scenery, totally awesome for 3D shoots. The targets can be improved. Instead of using animals printed on vinyl buntings, the organizer should invest heavily on high-quality foam animals. What I saw, were really lousy foam targets that fell apart even before the event was over. To rub salt to the wound, I actually owned a similar looking target which I bought a couple of years ago from a shop in Malacca. It was so bad, the foam disintegrated by the elements. It will be great to see some good 3D targets from Italy's SRT targets or Delta McKenzie from the US being used at such a course. The fees of course, will be higher, but it's all for a quality game...

Sungai Lembing Rendezvous - Part 1

2019-06-06T02:58:00.002-07:00

Field and 3D archery events are far and few in-between here in Malaysia, but it's gaining popularity among archers....

And so it begins...

I jump at the first chance to try out field and 3D archery events organized locally. It's fun walking in the jungle and plinking foam animal targets at unmarked distances. So far, only one organizer had pulled off a great show when it comes to 3D archery.

Sometime earlier this year, I met an archer from Kuantan who made mention about a 3D shoot in Sungai Lembing, a former mining town near Pahang's state capital.

I raised the matter to my buddies who agreed to take part, so, I made the arrangements to get hold of the organizer to register for the event.

They charge RM80 for the shoot, which is a pretty decent price considering the cost of buying foam animals for 3D course. To begin with, the animals are not cheap. A small critter can cost between RM400-600 and larger animals can go up to the thousands. So, that said, the plan was to car pool from Kuala Lumpur to Sg Lembing. We set the rendezvous at 3.30am for those living in Subang Jaya. I had to pick up another guy before 4am in the Kepong area before hitting the East Coast highway.

The plan is to arrive at Sg Lembing, have breakfast and head straight to the 3D course. None of the guys have been to this area before, so, it's a visual treat!

New gear, sleep deprivation and busted arrows!

You don't get much sleep when you have to wake up early and drive for four hours. Driving in the dark and putting full concentration on the road can be a real pain in the ass. And the safety of all the guys in the car is paramount.

It takes about four hours to get to Sg Lembing from Subang Jaya. When we arrived at town, the first order of the day, was to get a good fill on our tummies. It's going to be a real long day as we were expected to hike with our bows and arrows including archery tools and drinking water at the course.

Having savored the local fare, we were satisfied enough to head down to the resort where the event was held.

Most of the archers were already there and there were a few familiar faces. Some of the folks we met were from Kuantan. The organizer gave a briefing about the rules and the course layout and the first group was sent out. Well, to a slope where they have to shoot from an elevated position.

Targets were placed on the ground, some 40-50 meters away. This was very interesting as the archers took turns to engage on paper targets placed downrange.

Some guys missed while a few good ones actually connected with what they have aimed at...

I had bunch of new gear to test out at this course. For shooting 3D, I have ditched my field quiver for a Rancho Safari load bearing system and arrow carrier. My bow as a brand-new CD Archery WF25X riser with Hoyt Velos #32lb limbs. And the most controversial part is using the "VAP V-1" arrows that I bought cheap from supplier in the East Coast. Small diameter target arrows do perform, but they do come with a hefty price is you send it to the wrong spot. Hit something hard, you lose the arrow. On the first day, I lost one arrow after missing a foam target from the distance of 25 meters.

The Rancho Safari Cat Quiver IV was a real life-saver. I don't have arrows rattling and dangling all over my hip and the load bearing system actually helped to relieve fatigue, something I have already been experiencing due to sleep deprivation and the long drive to Sg Lembing.

As for our team, the rest of the guys shot pretty well. One ended up in the top-5 while the rest of us settled in the middle-ranks.

The course tested on how we would resolved on shooting in tough terrain. At some stations, you literally have to stand on a log, balance yourself and attempt to land a clean shot. Using a 70" bow, I had the limbs snagging on vegetation above me... Hahahha!

By the time we were done, it was time to head to your villa located near town. We had a couple of chilled beers before checking out a siew-yuk (roast pork) joint nearby. This eatery opens only once a week and was a real treat.

There was a BBQ session hosted by the organizer later in the evening. We decided to enjoy the siew-yuk which turned out to be a blessing in disguise because it turned out that the BBQ was a horrible affair.

After socializing with some fellow archers at the resort where the shoot was held, we decided to head back to town for supper and called it a day as the team event takes place the following day...

Barebow archery, loving it!

2019-06-06T01:30:00.004-07:00

Barebow was given its due recognition at the 2019 World Archery Congress in Netherlands recently...

Four years and counting...

I am enjoying retirement and haven't been posting anything for at least a year and a-half.
For me, life has been good and things have been going really smooth for me. And it has been four years since I took up archery. I bought my first takedown recurve bow and never looked back.
Michelle my wife and I went through a bit to get our hobby going. We were chased out of public range and at the time when we doing our barebow gig, most of the "upper crust" archers in target archery had deemed us as "unworthy"

The motion tabled at the 2019 World Archery Congress

People who matter in the archery scene representing 85 member nations from all over the world had convened in the Netherlands to vote on 15 motions. One of them was recognizing barebow in target archery. So, what does it mean? Technically-speaking, barebow archers would have the opportunity to create world records in target archery where they compete. Well, sanctioned events by World Archery of course...

Here and now...

The local archery scene has witnessed a spike in Barebow entries. From the beginning of the year till the end, there are events such as 18-meter shoots and the newly-introduced Barebow 50m. With the inclusion of Barebow in target archery, archers now have a chance to earn the 50m badge by submitting their highest scores in sanctioned events. The onus now is for the national archery association to move along with World Archery's stand on the recognition for barebow. Since history was made, we will see the changes. Barebow archers are no longer "unworthy", but people are people, there are folks who hate. We can't change that mindset. But, it is now the barebow archer's part to learn the rules and dress accordingly for events. Discipline matters and good sportsmanship will ensure that the sport remains recognized and respected.

Dame Queenie 2006-2018

2018-02-14T17:46:00.004-08:00

The vet rang up to inform the passing of Dame Queenie. My heart sank. She has been critically ill for the past few days and was treated at the Gasing Animal Hospital. The vet and medical staff there has given her the best treatment they can to alleviate her suffering from tick fever.
I picked up her body and laid her to rest next to Sir Naughty who died in December last year. The two were inseparable. I guess after the death of Sir Naughty, Queenie has been missing him. Now they are together again.

Throughout her life, Queenie has been a feisty pup. Always the expressive one and was also a great companion. We raised her from 8 weeks old right to her ripe old age of 12. So, losing a dog after so many years can be emotionally tough. We don't have children and we kept the dogs as our companion. Through the years, Sir Naughty and Dame Queenie have given us smiles on our faces.

We missed both our kids and now, the legacy carries on with Bandit and Daisy, our latest addition to the Samopack.
Rest in peace Queenie and thank you for all those good memories! Love, Momma and Poppa Samo....

2017 - The year in perspective...

2017-12-29T05:58:00.003-08:00

Oh, what a year!

Only two days left before we cross into 2018 and I must say that the last 12 months have been really interesting...
Nearly every quarter, we stayed in the game in terms of our archery pursuit and the range time that I had with my bow and arrow bore the fruits of my labour.

Archery, archery, archery...

I'd say that throughout the year, I have been spending much time in the range with my trad bows.
In the earlier quarter, I competed in the Kelantan Indoor Open with my Hoyt Tiburon. It's a trad bow and I love how it performed. Later in March, I acquired the Hoyt Satori and the game was about to change. For three months solid, I trained with the new Hoyt Traditional bow and I must say that the results were amazing. I improved my scores at the Thailand Princess Cup barebow competition. Managed to compete in the 1/16 elimination rounds. After coming back from Thailand, I transited to shooting with a barebow riser.

Sharing a light moment with a fellow Thai archer at the Princess Cup

With Tatrawee Harikul, the main man behind the Princess Cup tournament

The Spigarelli, an awesome riser at the right price

Sending an arrow downrange with the Spiga

There was enough time to train and break-in the bow for the UPM indoor open back in October. The Spiga needs plenty of work to get it competition ready and once its teething problems are taken care of, it performs.
The UPM event is another notch on our local tournament rankings as Michelle and I did pretty okay. We made to the 1/8 elimination rounds and also improved our scores.

At the indoor archery world cup in Bangkok

The icing on the cake is, of course, December's Indoor Archery World Cup. It was held in Bangkok and we had a swell time shooting with some of the best archers from Asia. Once again, we met our counterparts from Thailand and stood at the shooting line with them. Other highlights including organizing our club's Invitational event and two smaller shoots for our club members.

The Malaysia Day tournament

The 2017 Invitational

We lost our boy...

Sir Naughty 2004 - 2017

Our dog of 13 years passed away on Dec 22. It was a great loss to us because he was such an awesome companion. Sir Naughty kept our home safe and our hearts warm. Its always been great coming home to a furkid wagging his tail and he did that all through the years and right until the end.

Demobilizing

After 10 years in the Star Media Group, it's time to move on...

My workplace announced that they had to cull 500 people to save 800 jobs. I knew it was time to hit the road and I was happy to do so after being offered a redundancy package. To me, after weighing the pros and cons, it was the right thing to do. My time was over and there's nothing wrong in stepping aside to allow others to progress. From reporter to producer, I have come a long way after nearly three decades on the job. I don't feel at a loss or remorseful stepping out. The real challenge is out there and 2018 has a couple of gigs to offer.

Sir Clifford McNaughty 2004 - 2017

2017-12-22T06:38:00.002-08:00

A day in living memory...

IT was a dreadful moment when I had to make the call to euthanize my 13-year-old male Siberian Husky.
We had Sir Naughty in our home since 2004 and I will never forget that fateful day when I picked him up as a pup from my mom in-law's home in Petaling Jaya.
Naughty lived with us for a year before we welcomed another Siberian Husky Dame Queenie. Both as been partners for as long as I can recall.

Sir Naughty and his faithful partner Dame Queenie

My boy's health has deteriorated through the years and lately, he lost a lot of weight. We introduced two more dogs to the house and that's where things went South for our old boy. Two weeks ago, he was injured in the face after fighting with Bandit, our new dog. Naughty went into a recluse and develope maggot wound infection.
His condition worsened and it came to a point where he couldn't walk anymore. It was a devastating sight to see a healthy dog deteriorate right before your eyes...

The mischievous pup

Sir Naughty, as I would remember him the best

Towards the end of his lifespan, Naughty was in constant pain. He peed and pooped all over himself. I knew I had to make a decision to ease his suffering with a trip to the vet today.
I put him on the inspection table, the veterinarian gave her prognosis. I told her that I don't want him to suffer anymore.
While giving him a pat on the head, I said: "Thank you boy, for all the great years, you don't have to suffer anymore. Goodbye boy..."
I can sense that he was calm before going to sleep. I have even prepared to bury him at my neighbor's orchard. I asked Mr. Huang if I could lay him to rest near his fruit trees. The man agreed.
I signed a consent form for the euthanization and picked up his body from the consultation room. We headed back to one last ride home. I placed his body respectfully into his grave, buried him and said a prayer.
Sir Naughty is one-of-a-kind. I don't think I could find another pooch that has his feistiness, on top of being a loving and faithful companion. After his passing, all I have with me are the good memories. Travel well my beloved pooch, and thank you for being such a loyal companion. Love you always...