It’s the year 1972. Travelling to Indonesia resembles more the format of the famous TV show The Amazing Race rather than a quick Jetstar strike mission – extra leg room included. Trips are scarce. The archipelago is unexplored and wild—Bali’s free of Potato Heads, Skygardens and Bintang singlets.
Anyone attempting to travel to Indonesia from anywhere in the world needs a lot of time, patience, and an undeniable thirst for surprises. Two surfers by the names of Bob Laverty and Bill Boyum have all of the above as they peek out the window of their tiny plane en route to Bali. Tired from a mammoth trip that dragged them across three continents stretched over several days, they spot one gigantic coral reef, the size of a few footy fields, decorating the southern point of the Javanese Jungle.
As the plane pivots towards their final destination, they look at white water lines breaking off the very tip of the point – running down the line for a kilometre or more along a beautifully groomed reef in perfect symmetry. They can’t believe what their eyes are seeing, and at that exact moment, their original itinerary changes.
Over the course of three days, Bob and Bill plotted their way from Bali back to that mystic reef on their hired motorbikes. Equipped with nothing but a pair of pens and a well-worn map, and a backpack full of luck, they eventually arrived at Plengkung National Forest. Hours later, combing their way through the soft sand, they found a wave breaking down the point along a beautifully groomed reef on the Jungle’s edge. G-Land.
Why I’m telling you this?!
Apart from a bite of history we should all consume daily; today’s conditions were a far cry from the 6 to 8-foot canvases Bob and Bill were surfing with no other soul around.
“Slow”. “Tough”. Was the common denominator in the post-heat interviews of the lads, even though the men and women in the booth did a decent job trying to convince us otherwise. “I hate losing like that”, one surfer said. Gabby backed him up with a “waves look fun, but it’s tricky.”
Unlike the women yesterday, the boys had a long day in the office. With overlapping and extended heats, we saw a ton of action through the Elimination Round and Best of 16, with Filipe and Yago Dora kicking off the day. Toledo got busy in the Jungle early on, catching an incredible eight waves despite the morning sickness of the Indo basin. A pair of high-end sixes keeps him in the event and the yellow jersey.
Caio Ibelli came up short against Matthew McGillivray in Heat 2 of the Elimination Round. Matty is somewhat on a roll coming up clutch in OZ to avoid the cull, while a not particularly spectacular but solid backhand seems to do the trick in Indo.
Heat 3 through to 6 in the Elimination Round were a blur. They happened without much noise or fireworks, other than sending Jackson Baker, Jordy, and Barron packing.
Slater joins the gang back in land camps after coming up short against Sammy Pupo. It was a funny heat for the GOAT, who seemed to have it in the bag from start to finish, even venturing off 500 metres up the point for some soul searching. It should have worked, but it didn’t. Sammy made it through to the Round of 16 (where he bailed out against Kanoa) in a pretty low scoring Heat with a pair of mini scores.
The lack of swell continued headed into Round 16; however, the wind cleaned up, and as a glass half full kind of guy, I want to say that conditions turned from “meh” to “occasional fun ones” throughout the afternoon.
Not good enough for Double John, though, as he lost against Jaddy in an unspectacular affair. One of the best humans on tour, Jadson deserved this win, praising his equipment rather than his springy torques and lighting speed for the Heat win. Humble Jaddy is the best Jaddy!
Elsewhere, Gabby does Gabby things continuing the return of the Chosen One with a Heat win over Andino, while Jack Robinson smoked Jake Marshall with two waves in 45 minutes!
In the later stages of the day, Filipe killed Indo wildcard Rio Waida with a floater assault, while Miggy and Ethan Ewing came up short against the older Cola Bro and Matty G, respectively.
In the last Heat of Round 16, Italo kissed the reef early on after a kamikaze air that rattled the 2019 champ. The ever-busy Ferreira made a series of uncharacteristic errors sending Connor O’Leary into Finals Day.
When we return for the main event tomorrow (presumably), Jaddy takes on Gabby. Jack Robinson battles Kanoa, Connor goes head-to-head with Matty G, while Toledo prepares for the Portugal retaliation against Griffin Colapinto.
Don’t go anywhere!
Round of 16 Results
Heat 1
Jadson Andre – 9.53
John John Florence – 9.37
Heat 2
Gabriel Medina – 14.67
Kolohe Andino – 10.67
Heat 3
Jack Robinson – 11.17
Jake Marshall – 2.23
Heat 4
Kanoa Igarashi – 12.67
Samuel Pupo – 8.17
Heat 5
Felipe Toledo – 11.23
Rio Waida – 8.57
Heat 6
Griffin Colapinto – 14.17
Miguel Pupo – 13.67
Heat 7
Matthew McGillivray – 14.50
Ethan Ewing – 8.87
Heat 8
Connor O’Leary – 9.93
Italo Ferreira – 7.90
Elimination Round Results
Heat 1
Felipe Toledo – 13.40
Yago Dora – 10.63
Heat 2
Matthew McGillivray – 11.84
Caio Ibelli – 8.10
Heat 3
Kanoa Igarashi – 13.67
Jackson Baker – 9.83
Heat 4
Connor O’Leary – 12.00
Jordy Smith – 11.30
Heat 5
Jadson Andre – 12.27
Barron Mamiya – 11.03
Heat 6
Samuel Pupo – 8.90
Kelly Slater – 8.34
Heat 7
Jake Marshall – 11.50
Callum Robson – 9.37
Heat 8
Kolohe Andino – 12.10
Nat Young – 10.73
