HALFWAY KUTA BEACH – BALI: Grommets from all over Indonesia were on fire this weekend for the National Finals of the Rip Curl GromSearch 2013. From Bali to Lombok, Java to Sumbawa – 60 of the best young surfers came to the legendary Halfway Kuta Beach in quest of the National GromSearch Champion Title and a chance to get an all-expenses-paid-trip to the International Final “Somewhere” in 2014.
Festivities began on Saturday as the last stop of the Rip Curl GromSearch series kicked off the weekend in a friendly atmosphere in perfect peeling 2 – 3 ft waves giving chance for some incredible surfing from the next generation of Indonesian Surfers. Also on hand was the Rip Curl Test Drive Centre where stoked Groms, Moms and Dads alike could take a brand new Firewire or DHD board for a slash in the Bali’s perfect beach break testing grounds. Another huge success was the Games Booth where Groms of all ages took part in Bowling and bow and arrow target practise shooting at the “Wheel of Misfortune” to win prizes from Rip Curl and Sponsors.
In the Under 16 Boys Division, Mega Artana from Kuta, Bali pushed into first place to take out the Kuta region title in-front of Lakey Peak’s Andre Anwar, putting Kusuma Rai of Kuta, in 3rd place and Raju Sena of Padma, Bali in 4th position. In the Final of the Under 14 Boys Division, Rip Curl Team rider Ketut Agus Aditya and Kuta’s Dhanny Widianto got themselves to the final by finishing respectively 1st and 2nd followed by Tenshi Ishii Ratif and Ryuki both from Bali who came a close 3rd and 4th.
The girls did awesome as well showing that there is an incredible young talent pool coming from Bali with local Dhea Natasya taking First place over the Bukit girl Cinta Hansel, followed by Taina Izquierdo from Bukit and Hayana Iguchi from Canggu.
On Sunday the waves were pumping and the kids were ripping as the swell picked up for the Under 16’s National Final. It was time for the local boys to show off their capability – with the strong support from the Padma Family, it was the on-fire Raju Sena who blasted his way to he finals to go up against Halfway boy Kasuma Tanabe, whipping the crowds of supporters to a frothing frenzy the boys shredded the small windy conditions to pieces to impress the judges. With overall highest points collected, it was eventually Raju who did enough to claim the GromSearch National Champ title this year!
Raju wins the All expenses paid trip to “Somewhere” to compete in the International GromSearch Finals in 2014 where he will have a chance to test his skills against some of the best young surfers on the planet in front of the Worlds Surfing media and fans….. Go Raju!!!
On the Expression Session, held in the afternoon surfers also put on an amazing show for the crowd as grommets took to the air blasting huge aerials and big turns. The Expression Session was won by Wayan Andika from Pererenan with an incredible aerial reverse.
The Interclub Tag Teams event rounded out an epic weekend taking advantage of the waves. Getting an amazing support from the huge crowds on the beach and proving rivalry is still very alive in Bali ! Eventually again it came down to a Padma Beach V Kuta Halfway Dogfight with both teams showing off there best juniors mixed with top Open division pros such as Garut Widiarta and Padma’s Darma Putra Tonjo. After a neck-and-neck challenge it was the guest beach of Padma Boy’s who finally put paid to the host beach Halfway Boardriders making it a 2- 0 victory for the Padama Family!
The Rip Curl GromSearch 2013 is sponsored by Skullcandy, Shapers, Bliss Surfer Hotel, Sticky Bumps, GUS and the local association Halfway Kuta Boardriders. Media support was provided by Surftime, MagicWave, Indosurflife.com and it is sanctioned by Asian Surfing Championships.
(Day 1) Rip Curl GromSearch Halfway Series #9 2013 result:
Under 14th Division (Boys):
1st – Ketut Agus Aditya (31.4)
2nd – Dhanny Widianto (29.4)
3rd – Tenshi Ishi Ratif (24.3)
4th – Ryuki (22.3)
Under 16th Division (Boys):
1st – Mega Artana (32.5)
2nd – Andre Anwar (30.2)
3rd – Kusuma Rai (27.5)
4th – Raju Sena (21.5)
Girls:
1st – Dhea Natasya (31.8)
2nd – Cinta Hansel (24.7)
3rd – Taina Izquierdo (18.8)
4th – Hayana Iguchi (14.7)
Ticket to National Final:
1. Naoki Surya (1st Highest Place)
2. Dede Sulaksana (2nd Highest Place)
3 Putu Krisna (Kuta Boardrider Wildcard)
4 Dhanny Widianto (Kuta Boardrider Wildcard)
(Day 2) Rip Curl GromSearch Series #10 National Final 2013 result:
Under 16th Division (Boys):
1st – Raju Sena
2nd – Kusuma Tanabe
Equal 3rd :Mega Artana and Febri
Expression Session:
1st – Wayan Andika
Interclub Tag Team:
1st – Padma Boy’s
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