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Malaysian cycles around Southeast Asia for charity | Free Malaysia Today (FMT)

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Malaysian cycles around Southeast Asia for charity

On Dec 6 last year, Pepper Lim set off on a 3,800km journey, travelling through five countries on a bicycle for 36 days.

Noel Wong @ FMT Lifestyle -

With nothing but his trusty e-bike, Pepper Lim cycled 3,800km in 39 days – all for charity. (Muhaimin Marwan @ FMT Lifestyle)

PETALING JAYA: Going on a cross-country trip is an adventure few can boast of. Yet, Pepper Lim, 55, is one of the few who did just that; and what’s more, he completed his journey on nothing but an e-bike!

Beginning his 39-day journey on Dec 6, 2022, Lim cycled from the Bukit Jalil Stadium all the way to the Vietnam-China border.

Now that he has recovered from the physical pain of cycling for over 3,800km, Lim found some time to share his story with FMT.

The private tutor and “part-time adventurer” said he recently realised just how finite life was. “Now that I’m in my fifties, I’ve realised that I’ve already hit the halfway mark.”

Lim cycled through five countries – Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. (Muhaimin Marwan @ FMT Lifestyle)

With many entries to strike off from his bucket list, he decided to put his free time to good use; specifically, charitable work.

A member of the local Lions Club, Lim has raised money for charity by cycling around West Malaysia, garnering donations worth RM30,000. And he achieved it during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns.

With how successful this effort was, he wanted to repeat a similar charity ride, albeit on a grander scale, once international borders reopened.

With this said, one might think Lim has been cycling since young. The truth is that he only started cycling about 10 years ago.

“My friends were cyclists and they were seeing my country from a completely different point of view,” he explained.

For his achievement, Lim now holds an entry in the Malaysia Book of Records. (Muhaimin Marwan @ FMT Lifestyle)

Eager to see the hidden side of Malaysia like they did, Lim got his own bicycle and has never stopped pedalling since, even writing a book on the subject and founding a cycling club.

His recent cross-country trip was nothing short of “amazing”, he said, with many memories made in Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.

“However, this is not something I would ever do again,” he laughed. Apparently, the physical pain from riding for hours on end remains long after the adventure.

Admittedly, Lim had been told not to cycle continuously with no days of rest, but circumstances did not always permit him to take a break.

The journey had some perilous moments, with the weather sometimes taking a turn for the worse. (Pepper Lim pic)

There was another problem as well. Lim’s sponsor pulled out at the last minute, leaving the fate of the charity ride in the air.

In the end though, he decided to push through regardless. “In Thailand, I said to myself, if I don’t complete this journey, I’ll regret it.”

Lim’s daily routine during the trip was not particularly exciting, he himself admitted. “I’d wake up, pack my bags, cycle, look for iced coffee for brunch, look for lunch.”

He would take a rest at 3pm, during which he’d search online for somewhere nearby to stay the night.

Lim’s Malaysian passport helped him cross borders with ease. (Pepper Lim pic)

With the vast and lonely distances between some of the towns and villages he passed through, he often called it a day by 4pm to avoid cycling late into the night.

After dinner, he would write a progress report and record a video for his personal WordPress blog, “I Am Pepper Lim”. Once done, he would head to bed.

There were some eventful moments during his journey, though, with some being life-threatening.

Lim recalled one incident, close to the Laos-Vietnam border, where he cycled into a raging rainstorm.

“It was as though the gods of Laos would not let me pass! It rained all the way to the border which was on top of a mountain.”

In one humorous story, Lim was served a plate of fried kangkong when he was expecting something completely different. (Muhaimin Marwan @ FMT Lifestyle)

The gales were so strong that he had to wear sunglasses to shield his eyes, and at one point, the winds blew him into the path of an oncoming van, which quickly swerved around him.

Other than nature’s wrath, Lim had a rather pleasant time, with many interesting interactions throughout.

In Laos, curious village children would flock around him as he passed, waving at him and using what little English they knew to welcome him.

He also recalled a time when he stopped at a Laotian roadside stall to order a bar snack to go with his drink.

Lim encourages everyone to pursue their dreams while they still can rather than live to regret it later. (Muhaimin Marwan @ FMT Lifestyle)

Using Google Translate, Lim ordered the curiously-named “Fire Pumpkin” on the menu, which he assumed was potato fries. It turned out to be a plate of fried kangkong.

Not wanting to make a scene, “I just took up the chopsticks and pretended this is what Malaysians order when we have beer. And I just ate it like that.” The waitress apparently watched on, baffled.

Silly experiences aside, Lim said he hoped everyone, including his own two children, will take to heart the lesson to always be willing to pursue their dreams.

“Everyone has their own dragon to slay. It’s always better to try and fail rather than never to try at all.”