Pearl Hill
A decent hill to climb to build up stamina for cyclist.
Difficulty : 
Level 2, Easy to Moderate. Go on low gear and you will be able to reach the top quite easily
Duration : 30 mins from foot of hill to the top
Bike : Road Bike / Mountain Bike
Others : At the top of the hill, there is a temple with tables and chairs for you to sit and enjoy the view. Down hill is fast and will keep your adrenaline pumping if you do not put on brakes when downhill :)
Heard of GClub PEARL HILL CHALLENGE ? If you can cycle Pearl Hill 10 rounds without stopping we welcome you to join the challenge! Click to view the rules and the current record holder
(Highly Recommended) A group of G Club members follow this ride every Tuesday and Thursday 7.00-9am. No need invitations and no need to 'Sign up', just bring your bike and join in the fun ! When you arrive at the base of the hill from Jalan Tanjung Bungah, after passing Seven Eleven on your right, switch to low gear and just ride up the gentle slope leading to the top. Very likely you will meet some of the members along the way up or meet them at the top. Unless you're late, you will be able to catch them between 7am to 9am ! Have fun riding and enjoy a good work out before you rush for work !
Photos of Pearl Hill
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Notice the Seven Eleven on the left. Head straight up is Pearl Hill... |
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Start of the climb to Pearl Hill. There is another access from the other side of the hill. |
At the peak, Micheal, Dr, Susumu, Takaisan, some German riders and regulars Bee Hong and Ah Choo, resting and chit chatting.. |
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At the peak if you turn right following a short dirt road you will reach a Chinese temple |
Regulars Bee Hong and Ah Choo... |
Map
View Pearl Hill Penang in a larger map
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After signing up for Ipoh Century Ride 2010 (ICR2010), I read that there would be rolling hills. Some as tough as going up....Pearl Hill (PH). I hate the hills! Having bought my road bike not too long ago, 4weeks old at that time, I decided to include one hillclimb for my training. Pearl Hill was the best venue.
My 1st ride up to PH was a real memorable one. Rode up with my heavy CroMoly roadie, a blue Gios Sessanta weighing at 10.9kg, aka The GU (cow in Hokkien) and did only three rounds. It was a really an exhausting inaugural ride which I had to keep my mouth opened at all times to have air intake. Pulse shot up as high as 180bpm. I was over my range for a good 9 1/2 minutes for this and the next two rounds.
Having rode 9km as warm up from my house, I took a 5min water break at the car park opposite the German and Bulgarian Restaurant. Switching up to 2nd gear, I started from 7-11. 1st round took me 10min to reach the top. The 2nd in 13min and the 3rd in 15min. I rolled all the way down to the car park and start riding up again from 7-11. I did not follow riders who made a U-y somewhere at a junction higher up. I wanted to know how I fared in my endurance so I rolled down to 7-11 and climbed up again. I fared better in my next training, one week after. My 1st ride was only 9min. The 2nd round was 11min and the 3rd was 13min. I had 2min water break at 7-11 for every interval.
This training helped me prepare for my Ipoh Century Ride. With only twice training at PH, I managed well for my standards to ride over 23 rolling hills at the ICR. With the help of other riders, I drafted behind them to climb up the slopes easier. PH is an excellent place for road bikers to train uphills as the gradient is not too steep but steep enough for the riders to build strength and endurance. Looking forward to my next PH training with my GU.
Haven't ridden all week due to work etc so went for a ride on Pearl Hill tonight. Ended up trying 10 rounds again and managed 1hr 55mins. Not sure if I will try again but the beer was very nice afterwards!
Under 2 hours, your record will be hard to beat, DMB ! Congrats !!
Wow, already concreat idea and proposal was made here under.
Great and much appreciated of Dr. and Daniel's plan opened to any challenger.
I am agreeable in total plan and conditions except the starting point.
From KYT point of view, i recommend to select the starting point from 300 meter above the
suggested place so that we can enjoy this challenge without any risk. I am sure
that Dr will agree with my proposal from the idea of avoiding risk.
Please think about it and make a final plan.
Susumu
P.S
What is KYT ?
KYT means "Kiken=risk" "Yochi =foresee " "Training = Training "
We, Japanese ,are trained well especially who were involved in manufacturing ,must be able to
have a sense of KYT at anytime.
The starting point you suggested normally have rather heavy traffic, so when we
do challenging this ride, turning point must be safe and less traffic.
Please consider !
300 meters? Ok, need to take a photo of the spot you suggested. Stay tuned...
This is the place where we normaly turn around to come down, and going up hill again
in daily training.
Michael and Diana, used to park their car in here , and there is sufficient space
for turning around.
Susumu
OK, great Susumu san ! Anyway I will still take a photo and post it up here later. Thanks.
Dear Dr.
I regret that I could not join P.H ride today with Dr. due to other appointment.
11 round in 2 hours 15 mins. is a great record !!
Since last couple months, both Dr. and I could not join P.H ride,however
now we are ready to go back to normal,and regular ride to P.H.
My record in the past was 10 rounds in 2 hours 15 min, however in my case, I just started not from
the bottom of P.H, so my record cannot be compared with Dr.'s recorod of today.
After I move to Tanung Bungah, I will make a enough training to challenge this record.
Since P.H riding became G-club members training course in Feb.2010, there are more
and more riders are coming ,and we found it is a very good to go to enjoy training as well as
to get a resh air, and also enjoy a nice view from the top.
Thank you Dr. and Daniel to encouranging so many riders to enjoy P.H ride, and I am sure I will
also challenge 11 rounds in the very near future.
Susumu
Susumu san,
You are a very strong man at your age, and I am very sure you could make it. We have been missing you since you were away last 3 months. Welcome back to our ph ride.
Dear Dr.
Thank you for a nice comments!
Yes, I finally came back to P.H regular ride and wish to see many riders once again.
I turst this is the place which can give you a spirit of challenging , say how many round,
how many hours, and mins of which anyone can try.
The point I wanted to mention is that you can enjoy riding in Pearl Hill at any time, at any days
whenever you are free ,besides it is very safte and comfortable in riding for anyone !!
Everyone can enjoy!
Hope to see many friends soon !
Susumu
Susumu san, Dr is throwing the challenge !! How fast can you cycle 10 rounds of Pearl Hill ?? He holds the record of 2 hours 15mins !!
If you want meet his challenge, follow these rules...
1) You must submit a GPS reading consisting of time and route (can borrow Dr's Garmin. Can borrow from me when I get mine back)
2) Ride starts from base of hill near 7-Eleven
3) Ends in front of the gate to Casa Asmara
4) There is no age limit
5) You can use any type of bicycle
6) Submit your results by uploading your GPS time and route to our Pearl Hill Challenge Forum here and the final decision to decide the record holder will be made by G Club committee
We will have a virtual challenge trophy awarded to the holder and published permanently here in gclub website soon. (working on 'achievement' feature whereby virtual trophy can be awarded and published in the main page)
Comments and suggests are welcome.
Good training circuit!
Before going to work about 6 of us going up and down pearl hill. The usual regulars, Michaei; Susumu san, Tony Bee Hong Jonathan and a few new and old regulars. Weather was superb . Calories burnt 1,600 plus. good excuse for a hearty breakfast
Went up to Pearl Hill for a ride this morning, unload the bicycle but cannot find the front wheel! Must have forgotten to put it in the car after yesterday ride, ha! ha! If anyone see a lonely front wheel in Pearl Hill please let me know.
Mike, no problem what, you just do WHEELIE all the way up and down and ask the rest to beat that !!! after all, i know you will not be able to beat the speed record set by Denzell !!!! so try something new. cheers
Hi sptan007 ,
Did you enjoy pearl hill ride today? I hope you did.
Yes it is a good training circuit, therefore it was appointed to be one of the recommendable
training circuit by Dr. and Daniel. Let's enjoy P.H riding.
Hope to see you on Tue or Thu in the morning, if not possible ,during week end.
on Sat. or Sun.
Our aim is to enjoy P.H riding and meeting several riders to share the pleasure of riding.
I trust.
Susumu
I like to train on Pearl Hill but never tried 10 rounds before. Gave it a go today and managed 2hr 05mins.
Hi DMB,
What GPS set and software used to plot above map?
Thanks,
Edwin Tan
Hi Edwin,
I have a Garmin Forerunner 405 GPS watch. I assume you can get maps like this with any Garmin product. It synchronises with Garmin Connect - an internet utility to capture all your exercise activities. It is pretty good for getting nice maps but you can also set weekly goals etc. You can programme the watch for different exercise routines too.
regards,
Denzell
That is a cool time at just pass 2 hours to complete 10 rounds. I think we met on the hill during those odd evenings that i cycled up and I noticed you are a strong rider.
I have just received an SMS from the Penang Triathlon group who are going to cycle Pearl hill at 8 am i.e few minutes time. They may try the 10 rounds knowing this bunch. Hofefull they have their GPS to document their rides.
It DMB(Denzell McBurney) the new record holder of Pearl Hill Challenge !! His time 2 hr 05 min, 10minutes off Dr's record !
Great, anyone can challenge and there is no limit of record braking!
Congraturations DBM !
Susumu
Susumu and Dr,
Rules to Pearl Hill Challenge updated with new photo - turning point is the bend where Micheal and Diana usually parks their car...
So the challenge is ON !
Dear Daniel, and Dr.
Many thanks for your quick action of changing starting point photo as usual !
Due to my personal reason, moving to T.B, I need a time to prepare by the end of Aug
however after that , I will be ready to go. In addition to Tue, and Thu, i can even
come to P.H. in weekend as well to enjoy this challenge with all challengers, 30- 50 riders ?
There is no limit of ages which I like most of all.
Thank you very much again to organize a dream, and exciting planning opened to
any riders in Penang, hopefully in whole Malaysia in the future .
Susumu
Susumusan,
Unless triathletes like Ah Loon and his pack decide to join the Challenge, I think this will be a duel between yourself and Dr !!
Riding up slowly at your own pace is totally different from riding up to beat the record time(record holder's time of 10 rounds in 2 hr 15min by Dr)
Challenge no challenge, i will try to be there tuesday and thursday for my daily workout. Hopefully can improve on my own timing. But agree with susumusan about his KYT (not PYT) this turning is a lot safer. Less traffic and if there is there slow down because of the acute turn.
Your virtual challenge trophy will be a good idea to spur more people to ride esp along this hill. Put lah the record holder's name on your virtual trophy and if respond is good we will get someone to sponsor a real trophy like the WORLD CUP FOOTBALL TROPHY
This morning Susumu San and I did a 5 rounds one hour 11 mins round burning 1,213 calores. Good for a morning wake up call
With Mike and Susumu san away for 3 mths, We are less by 2 regulars. Todays training was very pleasant after a heavy torrential rain yesterday with the road littered with leaves and small branches from the hill. We hv the regular few, Mr Lim on his Scott scale 20, Taiwan Lee and Daniel on his roadies. The KTM ladies did not make it probably post night round island fatigue!!
Total time 1 hr 17 minutes, 21.01 Km, elevation gain 802 m, total calories 1468 Cal. See you guys Thursday.
This morning Susumu san clocked in 8 rounds of Pearl Hill, and me 5 rounds. The next round Thursday Susumu will attempt 10 rounds which is a great challenge on his heavy bicycle. After the ride we had 2 half boiled eggs, wantan mee and soya drink and carrot juice. C u guys on Thursday
Pearl Hill 11 rounds ( I thought it was 10 rounds but when I calculate the peaks after loading into my computer it was 11 rounds). 2 hours 51 minutes, distance travelled 39.73 Km, elevation climb 1382 Mcalories burnt 3550 calories. Can go for a good heavy dinner,
A round is a loop, starting from the base of the hill near 7-Eleven, riding to the top, making a u-turn just outside the gate of the bungalo house Asmara and back down.
Any challenger?
Since this morning Tlk Bahang ride is cancelled due to the rain, I am planning a long 10 rounds pearl hill ride on my red bull from 3 pm to 6 pm today Some along and sweat it out if you are game. If finish early can help soya bean drinks at the foothill!!!
Dear Dr.
Many thanks for your assistance !
Because you have already fixed the target of today , I could also make it.
Maybe next time, we can try another challenge ! Susumu
I am amazed u could do the 6 rounds in almost same time as me in your HEAVY bicycle. I already got advantage with my carbon bike. Next time on Sunday Evening, we try to do 10 rounds in 2 hours ??? I think u can, u are very fit
Dear Dr.
I have thought about it and found out that " I am a man of in the morning ".
I can do a good job in early morning, but in the evening my power will be
going down significantly, so I have to refrain from accepting your kind offer.
Please let me try in the morning, Dr. ,,,,,,,, Susumu
Pearl hill, a short 6 rounds with Daniel and Ben, joined by Sifu and family. Anyone coming tomorrow Tuesday and also thursday. I will b there. See you guys 7 am
Wow! 6 rounds! How long did that take? I missed Pearl Hill for regular exercise, even though some parts of Brisbane can be very hily. Glad you guys enjoy the exercise, looking forward to joining in when we get back, but not sure about the 6 rounds!
I will be starting off from my hse at Tg Bungah at 7 am. Hopefully the rest can make it Susumu, Daniel Robert , otherwise I will be having roti chanai alone. Ray is too tired tomorrow. Hopefully it is not because of organising the workshop
Pearl Hill run, 22.15 Km, 6 rounds, 1hr 38 mins with 15 mins rest at the last lap. Total calories burn 1,592.
See u guys on Thursday.
hi doc,
run 22km in 1hr 23min(minus the 15min break) is amazingly fast for your age group. are you a sub 3:30 hrs marathoner?
hi chic, FYI if Doc. can run 22km in 1hr 23min, he would be a SEA Games record holer
Hey this is a bicycle site lah. When we sayPearl Hill Run, I mean on a bicycle's run, hahaha. You think superman aah. uphill somemore, 22 Km in 1 hr 38 mins is very fast, you see the max see downhill is abt 40kph. Daniel can do 50 +, I am real worry abt tumbling
lol... no wonder so fast, you were on the bike. I didn't check the speed on your charts, otherwise won't confuse 'run' with 'running'.
cycling uphill at that speed is quite an effort too.
We have a big group of cyclists going up Pearl Hill this morning and I find it a very good replacement for gym cardiovascular. After a few rounds of up and down, we adjourned for roti chanai. Our Pearl Hill ride advocate Daniel is unfortunately not able to make it this time round.
We will make it very Tuesday and Thursday ride.
Just watch out... there is a cold horse (today he rode 4 round in Pearl Hill) is chasing up... I think he's got a speed of light. hahahah
Will see you all in 1200 steps this sunday, Ray
Susumu, Ray and myself will be cycling up Pear hill tomorrow 12 January 2010. Anyone wanting to join please meet at Macdonald, Gurney drive at 7am. It's an easy morning ride up Pearl hill and thereafter tosai for breakfast.
Regards,
Daniel Shee
On the dot 7am we set off from Gurney drive and mid way up we met Dr on his MTB. We did 2 rounds, met the two regular Pearl hill riders Bee Hong and her friend. Also there were four German ladies, aquintances of Susumu. On our way down we bumped into another regular Pearl hill rider Mr Lee from Taiwan. All in all a good work out and it was good to be able to socializing with a few friends and riders. Susumu did a great job spreading the "gclub news" to his Germans friends. Ray and I managed to "sweet talk" Bee Hong and friend to do a Balik Pulau ride. We said that riding in Penang is not complete without the experience of a Balik Pulau trip !
Had yummy nasi lemak for breakfast in Tanjong Tokong and caught up with Gerald Foo the farmer, who happened to be around there. We talked about going to his farm in Keroh in his 4 wheel and from there ride into Betong (Thailand), then cycle up to the communist tunnel with the group of riders who came for our Ride with CM. This could be our next adventure ride, will let you know if it comes thru, stay tuned...
Oops, forgot to bring my camera !!
DANIEL, SUSUMU SAN, RAY and myself went on a two rounds PEARL HILL ride burning abt 800 cal . Worth my 10km scheduled run in the gym which will also burn same amt of calories probably not so enjoyable as the ride. Surprising lots of riders and morning hikers up the hill. Will do more of this in future.
Anyone? Thursday morning 7.00 am Pearl Hill ride??
OK I'm on. Anyone keen to join the ride meet 7am at Macdonald Gurney or if you are living around Pearl hill, ride straight up to the peak and wait for us there. Ray, Susumu?