Badminton Holiday in Penang Malaysia - 2014

Visited the Penang Badminton Association (PBA) at Bukit Dumbar. Did not play any games there...

                               The office of PBA, where bookings can be made

A badminton shop at PBA

                                                           The badminton courts at PBA

Of course, it goes without saying, Penang is famous for its street food. Below are some of the stuff I've sampled.

                                                                        Oyster omelette

Pasembur (Malaysian Indian Salad)

Penang laksa and popiah

At the clan jetties, Penang.

The houses built on the pier at Clan Jetties.

Mizuno Wave Fang VS 7KM-27009 (Shoe)-review

Just bought this pair at a sale.

Surprisingly, this shoe is a unisex shoe.

The gum sole comes in one piece; the forefoot and heel. There is a large ventilation mesh in the middle of the sole. The shoe fitting is cut slightly narrow, the ankle is a low cut.

 This shoe model was released in 2013, a badminton specific model.

Technology: Mizuno Wave, AP+, XG Rubber, Mild Cushion, Mizuno Intercool, Mizuno Green Grade, Wide fit

First impression: Comes in two colors, red/black/gold and red/black/pink (Mid cut).

Fit: The shoe fits well enough, there is some break-in period needed. Size fits slightly tight and not suitable for people with wide feet, even though Mizuno advertised it for wide fit. Felt very snug when wearing it, support is good but upon wearing the shoe sits low on the ground and the grip of the sole is very sticky.

Game time: Although the shoe felt low/sticky, this shoe felt feather light when performing footwork (split step) to hit a shot (landing with the racquet foot). This shoe have excellent ventilation as there are 3 mesh like structure to allow air flow, one at the midsole, two at both sides on the upper and three at the toe area. The shoe felt a bit sticky to the ground and not as bouncy. However, owing to how low the shoe sits on the ground, mobility is not a problem. On the one hand, on the downside, I felt the cushioning is not as good as the Yonex SHB65s power cushion shoes. On the other hand, the shoe is very light weight. 

Pros: Great looks, excellent ventilation, light weight and sticky soles. Unisex shoes, which explains why it is tight for men's feet.

Cons: Adequate cushioning, lack of bounciness and very snug fit requiring long break-in period.

Fit: 7/10

Ventilation: 10/10

Feel: 9/10

Cushioning: 7/10

Durability: 8/10

Movement/: 7/10

Grip: 10/10

Yonex shoe review-SHB65X

Yonex released the 3rd generation SHB65 model, the SHB65X. 

This model comes in 2 colors, Red/Black and Red/White. 

The model below is the Red/Black color.

This shoe is the successor to SHB65FT.

The gum sole is one split into two halves, the forefoot and heel.

A replacement of SHB65FT, this shoe model was released in 2013.

Technology: Ergo Shape, Round Sole, 3-layer Power cushion, very cool mesh, hexagrip sole, Hyper msLITE, Power cushion Insole CF, outsole structure

First impression: This shoe is replacement for Yonex badminton shoe SHB65FT. Comes in two colors, red/black and red/white. The shoe sits slightly higher up the ground and felt like a Mid-cut shoe. The shoe comes without extra shoe strings, unlike the freebies thrown in in SHB65FT and SHB65CF.

Fit: The shoe fits well enough, feels like no break-in period is needed. Size fits as indicated, not too tight and not too loose. The shoes sit slightly higher up the ground than SHB65FT. Felt very comfortable wearing it, support is very good but upon wearing the shoe looked and felt a bit bulky/chunky.

Game time: Although the shoe felt bulky, this shoe felt bouncy when performing footwork (split step) to hit a shot (landing with the racquet foot). Lunging is easy and so is vertical jump. Somehow, felt the ventilation is not as good as SHB65FT; there are fewer mesh like structure to allow air flow, even though it has the very cool mesh. The shoe surprisingly does not feel heavy during game and the 3-layer power cushion thingy perhaps works well as advertised.

Pros: Great looks, excellent cushioning, comfortable fit and bounciness.

Cons: Like most Yonex soles, easily builds up dusts and the sole may not be as durable. Also less ventilation compared to its predecessor. 

Fit: 9/10

Ventilation: 8/10

Feel: 9/10

Cushioning: 10/10

Durability: 8/10

Movement/: 9/10

Grip: 9/10

Yonex tennis backpack model 1429-review

Have been using this JP Yonex bag for about a month.

All I can say is this bag is well constructed and with clever allocation of pockets. It's deceptively bigger than it looks. The material is standard backpack polyester with the shinny part made of PVC.

The main compartment houses two tennis racquets or 3-4 badminton racquets. The top compartment allows you to store fresh clothing and the side pocket allows storage of keys or small items.

The middle compartment allows storage of wet clothes, shoes etc. There's also a small pocket for storage of water bottle.

The bag is made in Taiwan. The straps are secure on the shoulders, however, there is no waist strap like a backpack. Therefore, there is a limit on how much weight you can carry on this backpack.

KL badminton holiday continue

This time the players hotel is located at KL sentral.

The location is very isolated from main city attractions and nothing to do, perhaps walking through the KL highways to Brickfields aka Little India for some Indian food.

The hotel is called the Best Western Premier Dua Sentral.

Away from the matches

I went to the KL Bird Park

Apparently in the surrounding areas are lots of monkeys, pretty ferocious monstrous monkeys based on the photoshopped monkey biting a human hand.

I went on foot towards the Butterfly farm, braving the ferocious monkeys.

And then I went back to the Stadium to catch another exciting match featuring the Invincible M. Ahsan/H. Setiawan of Indonesia.

And then back to the hotel, but before that, filling my stomach with some local food.

Nasi lemak at a restaurant (Mdm Kwan's) with stink beans 

KL Badminton Holiday-POV entering the KL badminton stadium

Walking from the ticketpro.com.my's counter to the main entrance, to get my ticket stamped.

Was browsing through the Yonex merchandise before making my way into the spectator's seat.

Badminton Holiday in Kuala Lumpur 11-15 December 2013

The Superseries BWF finals was held in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia last week.

Without hesitation, I booked my bus ticket to KL to watch the games.

Bought the badminton tickets at the Cheras KL Badminton Stadium.

The stadium was blacked out just like the Sudirman cup, with the spotlights shone directly on court.

This is also the 1st time, the Hawkeye cameras were installed and used during the matches.

It is only available on centre court. Players are allowed only 2 challenges to the call of the linesman.

 Killing  two birds with one stone, I took the opportunity visit the city and the local attractions.

At Batu Caves, Kuala Lumpur.

A Hindu temple at Batu Caves

Near KLCC, Petronas twin towers

But going to KL goes without saying, the food is the main attraction.

Here are my pictures of my many meals in KL.

Breakfast at a traditional Malay Nasi Lemak stall. It's coconut rice served with toppings like Sambal chilli, peanuts, anchovies, fried egg, Rendang chicken and sotong (cuttlefish). A pretty standard Malaysia breakfast, complete with a teh tarik or 'pulled' milk tea.

A plate of mee rebus or (steamed noodles). It is then covered with gravy and boiled eggs, tofu and chillis are added. Ordered a teh tarik.

BBQ stingray/squid served with rice

BBQ stingray at KL's Jalan Alor

Or Western fast food in KL

Or course badminton shopping at the Yonex booth in the Stadium

Before going up the stairs to catch the live match

Of course, the matches would not be complete without fanatic supporters. 

An Indonesia supporter decked with mask, hat and costume with Indonesia flag colors. Comes complete with a drum and a loud voice. Joking and heckling with the Malaysia supporters provided comic relief.