Padang Padang, Bali – The 2011 Rip Curl Cup Invitational at Padang Padang could be ON in the next 48 hours. A significant Indian Ocean groundswell is currently tracking towards Bali, prompting contest directors to switch the official event status from red to yellow, or “high alert.”
The 32 invited surfers – 16 of Indonesia’s best and 16 of the world’s top tube riders – are either already standing by on Bali’s Bukit Peninsula, or en route to the island.
According to official event forecaster, Magic Seaweed, the swell is expected to make landfall in Bali on Friday afternoon and build rapidly through the night, with the peak hitting sometime early Saturday morning. The latest numbers on this southwest swell are reading 10 feet @ 16 seconds, coming from an angle of 213 degrees. Tides for Padang are looking ideal on Saturday, with medium tides throughout the day.
Contest directors are monitoring conditions at Padang closely, and the 32 surfers in this year’s Rip Curl Cup have all been put on standby for a possible Saturday morning start at 7 a.m.
Official 2011 opening-round heat draw:
Heat 1: Mikala Jones (Haw), Luke Stedman (Aus), Putra Hermawan (Nusa Lembongan), Made “Bol” Adi Putra (Bali).
Heat 2: Pepen Hendrik (Bali), Jamie O’Brien (Haw), Lee Wilson (Bali), Laurie Towner (Aus).
Heat 3: Raditya Rondi (Bali), Mega Semadhi (Bali), Dean Morrison (Aus), *FINAL SPOT TBA*
Heat 4: Kane Faint (Aus), Garut Widiarta (Bali), Morehu Roberts (NZ), Wayan “Gobleg” Suyadnya (Bali).
Heat 5: Flynn Novak (Haw), Mustofa Jekson (Bali), Anthony Walsh (Aus), Marlon Gerber (Bali).
Heat 6: Wayan “Betet” Merta (Bali), Tom Lowe (UK), Bruno Santos (Braz), Made Lapur (Bali).
Heat 7: Kalani Chapman (Haw), Made Lana (Bali), Oney Anwar (Sumbawa), Ryan Turner (Calif).
Heat 8: Rizal Tanjung (Bali), Chris Ward (Calif), Alex Smith (Haw), Dede Suryana (Java).
Watch All the Action! Event Website is Live!
Check the Rip Curl Cup website at www.RipCurl.com to see the event status and find out when “It’s On.” On contest day, fans will be treated to “Heats On-Demand,” which can be viewed on the website minutes after the final scores come in. Also check the website for in-depth interviews with all the invited surfers and daily video features on all the hottest surfing, parties and happenings in Bali during the waiting period. See it all at www.RipCurl.com.
