5th of the ISC Tour

The Junior Tour of the ISC is already underway with four events completed at locations in Bali, Lombok, and Sumatra. Now the anticipation begins with Indonesia’s finest pro surfers all getting psyched up for the start of their season.

To briefly recap the 2008 pro tour season, West Java’s Dede Suryana took an early lead with a win at the opening event, the Quiksilver Pro at Keramas Beach in Gianyar in April. He didn’t get another win again until August at the Surf For Bali Kids event at Padma Beach, but finished in epic fashion with a victory at the Rip Curl Surf and Music Festival at Kuta Beach, the final event of the year.

The only other surfer with more than a single contest win during the season was Bali’s Garut Widiarta, who took home a win at the Quiksilver Open Lakeys at Lakey Peak in Sumbawa ( a six star prime event) in July and then won again at his home break of Kuta Beach at the Oakley OROKR Pro in August.

The third place finisher of the 2008 season was the 2007 champion, Lee Wilson. Lee didn’t get a win the entire season and still finished third, a tribute to his consistently high standard of performance. He only missed surfing in one event during the year, and even that was due to sponsor obligations.

In fourth place was young Raditya Rondi, a 20-year-old Kuta Beach native who also claimed the ISC Pro Junior Championship in 2008. He is already a well-travelled and very talented young man, currently in Australia competing in several pro junior events there.

Rounding out the top 5 was Made Awan from Serangan, who had his best ISC year so far: he got his first ever ISC pro win at the Rusty Rumble in da Jungle event at Sanur Beach and continued his run in the rankings with a semi-final finish at the Surf For Bali Kids event at Padma Beach, before ending the year in the quarter-finals at the Rip Curl Surf and Music Festival at Kuta Beach.


So what will it take to win the 2009 championship, and who has it? Lets start with the location lineup for where the tour will go this year.

First stop on the 2009 Coca-Cola ISC tour will be at nearby Sanur Reef in April-May. A 3 week waiting period from April 26 – May 16 will allow enough time to run the estimated 3 days of competition in the best possible conditions for the Rusty Rumble in da Jungle. Fickle, but known as one of the best right-handers in South East Asia for multiple tube rides when it’s on, it takes savvy and guts to take on this wave and exit unscathed and with big points.

The next stop will find the ISC crew and competitors exiting Bali to travel to West Java to surf at the cobblestone right hand point break of Cimaja, the home of current ISC champion Dede Suryana, for the Billabong West Java Pro. A high performance wave that provides ample opportunity for a mix of radical manoeuvres, it is a welcome return to a location that is enjoyed by the crew, the surfers and spectators alike.

Hopping over Bali to land on the island of Sumbawa in June, third stop on the tour is the Rip Curl West Sumbawa Pro, which will fire off with a 10 day waiting period going from June 10 – 20. After the success of the area’s first pro tour event last year, the Scar Reef Pro, this year’s contest has been expanded to include Supersucks and YoYo’s in addition to Scar Reef as contest venue sites.

With two world-class lefthanders and a quality and consistent right-hander, it should be an exciting and challenging event that offers great opportunities for both natural and goofy-foot competitors alike.

Though technically not part of the ISC Tour, the next event on the schedule will be the Rip Curl Cup Padang-Padang, back in Bali. In a new format this year, this specialised invitational event will draw top international surfers to Bali’s most picturesque and notorious left hand barrel to compete for the Rip Curl Cup. Several of the ISC’s top ranked surfers will receive invitations to be included in this event, which will be limited to 32 competitors and will have almost the entire month of August as its 30 day waiting period.

Next up the tour returns to the birthplace of surfing in Indonesia, Kuta Beach, for the Oakley O’ROKR Pro, a fun filled two day event during the height of tourist season and Indonesia’s Independence Day weekend, August 16-17. Many of the pro competitors have surfed this break of Halfways since their childhood, and they give the spectators a real show with super aggressive and crazy manoeuvres with nothing to fear from the sandy bottom beachbreak.

In October, Kuta Beach is again host to another tour event, the Rip Curl Surf and Music Festival on October 25th.