2 September, Taliwang-West Sumbawa: In a final that provided the best surfing conditions of the day, Rahtu Suargita slotted into a beautifully glassy double-barrel wave and exited to post a 9.25, the highest scoring wave of the day, on his way to his first ISC Tour win at the inaugural Rip Curl Scar Reef Pro in West Sumbawa over fellow Balinese Garut Widiarta.
“I almost can’t believe I won…I feel so relieved,” exclaimed Rahtu with a huge smile after the awards presentation. “I haven’t made it past Round 3 in a contest yet this year and was starting to get a little bummed, but this time I felt really relaxed and just enjoyed myself without any pressure. Even though I was up against Garut, who is on fire this year having won two contests already, I didn’t stress out but had fun and just enjoyed myself,” he added.
After the presentation everybody headed to the bar at Ago’s place for food and drinks, where soon the bar was opened wide and an impromptu jam session started up. Ago invited Rahtu up on stage, where he showed that he could not only surf but he could also rap with the best of them, and then everybody celebrated until the bar was dry. Then they all piled into the bus for the ride back to Bali, tired but stoked with having surfed and competed in this beautiful part of Indonesia.
The morning started off with a few waves coming in on the rising tide, but the strengthening side shore winds and inconsistency of sets led to delaying the completion of Round 4 until noon, when the tide began to drop and more waves were pushing through.
For the majority of the afternoon, unlike the previous day when the winds were blowing from the south, the strong northern winds kept the barrel rides to a minimum up until the final, when the winds miraculously turned and groomed the 4 foot set waves to glassy perfection.
In the sometimes testing conditions, standouts of the day included Mustofa Jeksen, who was taken out by Rahtu Suargita in the quarterfinals, but still came home with the Coca-Cola ISC Best Manuever Award and Rp 1 million for his crazy air reverse on the shallow inside section.
Dede Suryana, who after this event is now the Coca-Cola ISC Pro ratings leader, was the lone regular footer in the quarterfinals, and made into the semifinals to where is run for the final was stopped by eventual runner-up Garut Widiarta. Yesterday Suryana posted a perfect 10 for pulling in and out of three barrel sections, quite a feat when surfing backside at low tide at Scar Reef.
Garut was on fire at this sometimes tricky reef break, a lightning fast surfer equally at home in waist high beachbreak waves and triple overhead pits, he had little trouble racking up big points and advancing to the final, where up against his fellow Kuta Beach resident he just couldn’t find a double-barrel of his own with which to post a big score in answer to Rahtu’s 9 pointer.
This is the inaugural running of the Rip Curl Scar Reef Pro in West Sumbawa, an event envisioned several years ago by two intrepid surfers named Ago and Cahyo, residents of the nearby town of Taliwang. West Sumbawa became a regency three years ago with its own tourism department, and recognizing the value of the surfing potential in the area, Ago and Cahyo lobbied for government assistance to organize a surf contest. In less than two months ago after governor agreed to provide some money for the event, funds, the Coca-Cola ISC Tour management, the Rip Curl Search Team, and Ago and Cahyo, the Rip Curl Scar Reef Pro became a reality. And according to Governor Zulkifli Muhadli in his event opening address, he will be supporting this event next year and in the years to come. He also added, “I also promise to do something about the road coming in here. Looks like it needs some work!” This was met by loud cheers from both visitors and locals alike.
The Coca-Cola ISC Tour and Rip Curl Indonesia would like to thank the Government of West Sumbawa and Ago and Cahyo for all their help and effort in making this event a reality and a success, and look forward to doing it all again next year.
Coca-Cola-ISC Mens Pro Results
1. Rahtu Suargita
2. Garut Widiarta
3. Dede Suryana
3. Wayan Wirtama
Coca-Cola ISC Best Maneuver Award
Mustofa Jeksen
Current Coca-Cola ISC Tour Rankings:
1. Dede Suryana
2. Garut Widarta
3. Lee Wilson
4. Wayan “Gobleg” Suyadnya
5. Devis Ratif
The Scar Reef Pro at West Sumbawa is sponsored by Rip Curl Indonesia, the Tourism Department of West Sumbawa, the West Sumbawa Tourism Forum, the Coca-Cola ISC Tour, Surf Time Magazine, Newmont Nusa Tenggara, and Magic Wave.
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Tim Hain
Media Director
Coca-Cola Indonesian Surfing Championship Tour
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