full ahead both engines!

last week i came upon a very peculiar handling ship. this new ship was just being built and this is the first time to bring her out to sea. at first, the ship was towed out in the estuary by a smaller tug boat. imagine a kancil towing a 40footer prime mover. all i could do was directing the boat’s skipper where to go.

when we were out of the restricted waters, tugline was casted off. the ship is on her own. engine started and i was there to handle the raw power of the rm30 million ++ ship. still far cheaper than the naval ships, this one. the ship was equipped with twin controllable pitch propeller, twin rudder and bow thruster. she must handle well then. not so this time

the pitch setting was still not at optimum. during the trials, she is always steaming towards starboard(that is the right side to u landlubbers). everytime she is going to starboard, i have to apply port helm. this happened all the way, i thought it was only the current affecting her.

but then, the person who is in command have to decide where does the ship is going. when there is a person in command, he should be having some power. and power is nothing without control. just like a ship, our life is almost the same.

when a person not entitled to command, he/she should not wrestle the power to gain control which they can’t handle. as simple as that or lose it altogether. since the ship is still new, it is not a tiring process if the ship went the way she was only during the sea trials. any mistakes or adjustments done  to correct the defects are to be done.from there onwards, the ship should run like a ship should.

would it be tiring if the ship acts like that all the way from commissioning.she must be brought back in line everytime she strays off the courseline. this is an unnecessary problem for people who handle her because they have other things to consider such as stability, water,provisions, fuel, her cargoes, in case of warships, her ammunitions. the human factor must also be considered.

definitely, we must therefore know who are in the higher position in the chain of command so as not to conradict any ethics or code of conduct. we live in a world full of problems. there are rules for everything. whether we like it or not, the rules must be adhered to because we are answerable to somebody else higher in the chain of command.we must know where we stand. and stood firm if you believe in it. provided it is correct and it is not wrong to be stubborn. what is wrong is being stubborn and not thinking at all. god created human as superior to other beings by providing them with brains to think. if not, we are just as equal as another cow in the herd.

today , nothing much happening.just back to my car again. just adjusting the throttle position sensor, again. those connectors and the stepper motor. when the engine started to jerk, i knew where to look. peugeot 405 did won by a wide margin as the "european car of the year 1988".

i still love the car. to me, this is the most complete car and will never be replicated, even peugeot stated that the 406 was never a proper replacement of 405. up until now, just ask any owners, this is just a great car, so simple yet so complete.

who do i said so. for a 2 liter car, the consumption is frugal ,about 10.5 km/ltr urban and 14km/l highway. maybe due to the weight. the car only weighs 1135kg and the 8 valve SOHC engine is producing 123hp. that translated to 108hp/tonne which is good for a 4 door saloon. this is not a performance car or sports car.

just for comparison in the same class, the car from the same era, circa 1995 onward
volvo s40               136hp,1255kg = 108hp/tonne

perdana v6             150hp,1300kg = 115hp/tonne

or in 1.6 segment

proton waja 1.6          110hp,1190kg = 92hp/tonne
satria neo 1.6             110hp,1159kg = 95hp/tonne

why they built car so heavy nowadays??

the only thing that made the 405 having all the advantage is the suspension system. peugeot are very well renowned to be a specialist in this field, hence the moniker : the black art of suspension tuning. on paper, the 405 only boast front macpherson strut with stabiliser and at  the rear ,trailing arm with  torsion bar  and anti roll bar. compare that to the competition, with double wishbone and all. yet on the road, it is totally different.

i believe that the french got it right  this time. there was always balance between  comfort and  handling.  it does take  corners flatly, no drama even though one of the wheels hit a pothole, it won’t stray off the cornering line. just point and shoot. the steering provided ample feedback to the driver of what the front wheel is doing. this is what those japanese manufacturers can’t catch  up until now, the new accord still provided with limp,lifeless steering.too light and over power-assisted. not good in the twisties. provided solid stick-to-the-ground attitude even though it is actually lighter than a perdana V6 which is floaty beyond 160kmh.

the car just shrink itself around and feels like a smaller car. the more corners, the merrier. even so called sports car failed to just keep up when it come to the twisties. our car manufacturer should make big note for this. while it still entertains in the twisties, the car still absorb whatever road undulation without fuss. nothing transmitted to the cabin, only faint feedback to the steering. no wonder peugeot are loved in those desert/mountain roads in jordan,egypt, algeria, tunisia, morocco,yemen and iran. they seem to go on forever.

i intend to keep this car for a very long time. it have reached cult status in certain parts of the world, just like peugeot 504 or VW beetle. the styling by pininfarina is very subtle, simple yet elegant and functional. it won’t have nice curves, but the lines represent a modern classic, along with the car that was designed alongside it : alfa romeo 164. you may wonder why they look just alike, with similar features such as the quarter rear window, raised rear deck and small rear spoiler. only the size differ, the 164 is in the class of peugeot 605(previously used for french cabinet minister and foreign dignitaries, now replaced by 607).

just want to make a toast to the french for getting things right. niggles here and there, particularly the electricals, are forgotten when the car is in its element, twisty and badly maintained mountain road. the peugeot suspension is so good that one review stated that it can absorb an earthquake!

in our country’s motoring climate, what 2.0 car does have  space  bigger than mercedes benz E-class,boot bigger than a 3-series, handles like a car one class smaller,stick to the road like a leech but still light in comparison,absorb any type of road undulation, frugal like a 1.8,comfort of a couch for those long distance run, for a price less than a secondhand iswara. the japanese competitor cost more, offering less comfort and class. next time when you are tailed by a peugeot on a tight twisty and severely pockmarked road, just let it pass and try to keep up if you are lucky.unless you are driving a BMW or alfa romeo, or something else more superior, an aston martin perhaps….

this is a new song from radja ’s new album "aku ada  karena kau ada"(i exist because of you) . well,this new song caught  my ears while i was driving. read the lyrics and enjoy the song! understand what message  the song is trying to convey.

benci bilang cinta

sudah berulang kali aku percaya

namun ternyata tak ada beda

kau anggap mudah yang dulu ku salah

hingga aku menyangka
diri ini bagaikan tak berarti di matamu

bila kau malam gelap aku bintangmu

ku terangi dirimu dengan cintaku

agar kau bisa mencintai cinta

dan menyayangi cinta
setulus kau menyayangi dirimu kekasihku

jangan benci bilang cinta

jangan marah bilang sayang

jangan mendustai hati

bila engkau memang suka

jangan kau merasa jauh

bila kau dekat denganku

jangan kau menganggap cinta

mudah datang mudah pergi

to watch the clip, pls click below

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDf_Jj_xXmA&mode=related&search=

hot. why ? my car air conditioning done it again.this time , it is the blower fan again. one bad thing about the french is the way they make the electrical connector. even my friend told me that the french made eurocopter have this trouble. nothing wrong with the system actually, only the connectors.

from my previous experience, the blower did broke down and i have to dismantle it twice weekly. so far i am able to do it in less than 5 minutes. that was fast for an amateur, do-it-yourself weekend mechanic. that time was the contact between the carbon brush and the armature windings(or wahatever it is).just clean the contacts and it was done. this time it is the connector again. from my observations, there was burn marks inside he connector because of "arcing", sparks flying between two supposedly connected wires.

i have to solve it once and for all. went to the hardware shop and bought simple "chocolate-block" connector, some insulating tapes and cable ties. the job is harder than i think because it is not easy for the person of my size to work under the dashboard. limited space and the wires must be worked from the bottom.i may not be a good contortionist, but the job was done nearly 1.5 hours.

these french are quite funny when it comes to wiring. the wires from both sides are not identical either in size or coulour coding. there are even same coloured wires in a row. just the codes is different. but then, a man got to do what a man got to do. marked all those wires with a permanent marker. the cutting process is the most heartwrenching part. there was no turning back at this point.

total of 10 wires need to be cut and reconnected using the connector. after the reconnecting part is finished did i have to go for a break. think of working upside down under the dashboard ,and it is getting dark.finally the job was done and the blower was running at full blast. yeah, that’s it.  the fan was running at 85% speed before. now it will go 100% at  maximum speed setting.

i am satisfied with chowkia-type connection as it served the purpose. as long as the blower is running, i am a happy man. with temperatures running at 40-42 degrees on the road surface, airconditioning is a godsend. i wonder how we survived the 80’s without airconditioning. in the late 70′, my father’s car have no airconditioning. only in 1984, the new car have airconditioning.

mmmmmmmm, so long since the last post. well, i have visited an old place that i belong to, quite a long time ago. actually, i went to my fraternity’s website ,www.ansarabp.com. looks like the place is deserted now. it seems that i am alone in the forums. nevermind, i am used to be talking to myself.

where are all of them went to? i don’t know. maybe all of them have other more important commitment. as if i am the one with no commitment.mmmmmmmmm. my alma mater is deep inside the penang interior, the other side of the island actually. MRSM balik pulau as i fondly remember, is still under construction in some part when i went there for the first time in 1985. that was 21 years ago and i was in form 1 then. the field was more mud than grass.

i spent most of my wonder years there, until i took the spm(or O levels) papers in 1989. 5 long years there brought a lot of sweet, bitter, sour,hot memories. the formative years between 13 and 17 years old is very important, that was what my counsellor, puan nadiah said. adolescence to be exact is the period where we learn respect,bonding,friendship, tolerance ,hatred etc,etc.

deep inside, i still long for the place. why??? i grew up there. i spent most of my schooling years there. whenever happens to meet my old friends, my memory lingers about being 16 again. most of us hoped that we grew up to be 30 or 26 then. compounded  with songs from that period, instantly brought me back through time. about the jokes we share, sad stories, about winning and losing, about everything. i hope someday i will return back there for a visit. last visit was 1999 during the ten years reunion.

to the friends who have passed away, may Allah SWT bless you. alfatihah for:
mohd nazri ligun(my ex room mate)
fazarudin othman
shaifuddin
sharifah mahdiyah
wan azlan

today, i read some of my friend’s blogs. interesting stories, heartbreak, frustration, joyfulness, list will go on and on. another interesting read is the "goofy kid" part.mmmm , you should like sports goofy very much! after years of blood, sweat and tears, even the "goofy kid" was transformed into a dashing young merchant navy officer.  joining the merchant seaman training academy did bring a man out of every boy. that was every boy’s dream, join the merchant navy and see the world and ………..(i don’t think it is appropriate to complete the rhyme).

but the best part is about the media house management staffer. after all these years, some people do hold their grudges or quirkiness(perhaps myself included). or they still have something inside, unsettled matters. well, i don’t know what it is all about, it was an all girls gathering anyway, people speak! moreover the women. they don’t put it as "mother tongue" without cause, u agree?

well, anything else, i still can’t quite catch up with the current things. about the "getting married again" thingy,no comment. been there,done that. not interested any more.

anyway, a lot of things happened last week. some like it  hot, some like it cold………….

last weekend was very interesting. i am a sailor again, but this time was on board a very different watercraft that i have experienced before.armed with navy blue shorts and white shirt and sperry top-sider deck shoes(all blue and white colour coordinated), we(8 of us) headed to the lumut yatch club jetty for the weekend sailing.

for the first time in my life, i sailed on board a maxum 30 footer(i’ll check again) powerboat, not a commercial merchant ship or anything associated with it(she still need to fly the merchant red ensign). this time it is purely pleasure, hence the name "pleasure craft".just  don’t think of other pleasure.

it so happened because the boat is owned by my friend’s family friend(does that make sense???!!). i still sometimes hope ms. loh(my secondary school english teacher) will correct my sentences. the boat(compared to a ship) is very different, she reacted very fast to throttle and helm orders. she is powered by twin out board V6 2-stroke motors, 225HP each. with power to weight ratio that will embarass a scooter, she is quite fast on the water,i reckoned we are doing 28knots in sungai dinding.

we went out to sea for fishing and swimming trip. the rocking,yawing motion of the boat gave new definition to the term "seasickness". lucky me as i am doing the "mind-over-matter" routine of singing while playing the guitar. couple of guys did "head-in-the-bucket" routine, you know what is the byproduct of seasickness.

the fishing part was quite frustrating anyway. maybe because i kept on singing "biarlah rahsia" ,hence the fish in the area keep some secrets to themselves. i should have sung those old sea shanties, but i don’t have a fiddle or an accordion to accompany those songs.

finally we decided to have a swim on the secluded beach. there was no access to the beach from land. in the beginning i did not intend to swim at all. when the boat went aground, actually the swell pushed her beachwards, i have to do something. first ,as i faintly remembered in the seamanship books is "ground tackle". let’s put theory into practice.

not easy to carry the boat’s anchor: danforth anchor holding power was not that good,maybe the chain was not long enough. the sandy  bottom adds up to the drifting,dragging anchor part.tried to dislodge the boat, still unsuccessful. finally, pushing the boat was the answer. i think i have to throw the book away.

i was at the helm when we went upstream the dindings river up until kampung baru. a lot of marine activities going on both the riverbanks.we went back after the boat struggles to move: fuel is running low. at the rate of the twin engine drinking the fuel, i don’t think two range rover HSE will equate them. gas guzzler these two engines. we topped up the fuel tanks and proceed back to the yatch club.

maybe when i am more mature(not older) and economically stable, with my own boat(i prefer a sloop), this can be done more frequently.now, economically unstable,still struggling,unsuitable as the upkeep of the boat that kills the owner. it was good to smell the salty wind, sea breeze again, nothing beats that. once a sailor, always a sailor!

p/s: i do wonder where is ms loh mei ling, my english teacher.only if she reads this…..