21 Years Of the Best Damn Tuberiding Show On the Planet

In a world where little makes sense, The Rip Curl Cup Padang Padang is a fissure in the smog. 

Whilst the CT is enslaved to the highest regional bidder, eternally swinging from place to place in a whirlwind of fleeting and superficial dalliances, Padang Padang X Rip Curl, by contrast, is an old-school Shakespearean romance. 

Thanks to the support of Rip Curl, the comp gets a month-long waiting period, which enables a hand-plucked selection of offbeat tube hounds to properly score the rarest bird on Bali’s Bukit Peninsula.  

As we near the beginning of the 21st iteration of one of surfing’s most iconic events, let’s explore the kernel of the cup, as well as unpacking some of the moments that have etched themselves into the folklore of the storied competition.    

Welcome to the Rip Curl Cup Padang Padang.

So what’s this all about?

Bali’s changed, sure. Padang Padang, however, has not.

The local culture is robust and unthreatened by time. The gods are still smiling. And after 21 glorious years, the Padang Cup will run once again throughout the month of August. Swell-permitting.

Since its humble beginnings in ’05, the comp has remained largely unchanged, serving as a nostalgic vestige for what surfing events once were, as well as an important reminder for what they can still be. 

Padang Padang, though fickle, is the best wave on Bali. In order for it to properly show face, it needs a south-west swell with enough swagger to bless the holy temples of the Bukit, wrap around the cliffs of Uluwatu, and then march towards the famed reef, carrying with it the secrets of ancient Hindu spirits and the blood of anyone foolhardy enough to surf Ulus on such a swell.

The catchphrase for the comp is, ‘It’s On When It’s On,’ which means, literally, that the opening buzzer will only sound if the waves are pumping. The organisers, charmingly, are staunchly faithful to their mantra.

Last year, the prophesied swell didn’t arrive, so they called the whole thing off.

The All-Star Roster

The Rip Curl Cup Padang Padang is Indonesia vs. the world. In the past, the competitive fixture has been completely gender-blind, with both women and men competing against each other for the crown. Bethany Hamilton was the first woman to don a jersey at the break back in 2012, and in the last event held in 2022, a then 15-year-old Erin Brooks made it all the way to the final after genially smoking several of the planet’s best male surfers (more on that below). 

This year, for the first time in the event’s history, there will be separate divisions for men and women. The men’s draw will feature 16 surfers, whilst the women’s will have eight. Each division will include an equal mix of International wildcards and local shredders from Indonesia’s rapidly expanding talent-pool. 

The women’s side of the draw will feature two of the next-gen’s most scintillating freak shows in Erin Brooks and Sierra Kerr, as well as Guinness World Record holder Laura Enever and Pipe Masters Champ Moana Jones Wong. 

The men’s draw will be populated by the reigning event champion, two surfers with a stunning fondness for boog-only corpse-hunters, the 2023 SOTY, Coco Ho’s brother, the most barrelled man of 2024, Kelly Slater’s former best friend, and also, Nic von Rupp.  

Is a more stacked lineup even possible? Just look at that roster below and imagine the accumulative tunnel-time.

Women (International)

• Laura Enever
• Moana Jones Wong
• Erin Brooks
• Sierra Kerr
• Ziggy Mackenzie

Men (International)

• Clay Marzo 
• Harry Bryant
• Soli Bailey
• Noa Deane
• Nate Florence
• Nic von Rupp
• Mason Ho
• Rob Machado 

Locals

• Mega Semadhi
• Mega Artana
• Dylan Wilcoxen
• Manik Rudita
• Made ‘Bol’ Adi Putra
• Tommy Sobri
• Garut Widiarta
• Bronson Meydi
• Kailani Johnson
• Jasmine Studer
• Taina Izquierdo

So When is it On, When it’s, On?

“Our standard is to guarantee that 24 of the world’s best tube riders – 16 men and eight women – are competing in all-time barreling conditions at Padang Padang,” said event director James Hendy. “Anything less would mean compromising the integrity of the event.”

Unless the island is plagued by malevolent forces, a month-long waiting period in peak season that fails to produce a swell worth surfing, two years in a row, is improbable. One can expect that we’ll be treated to a tube-riding spectacle powerful enough to revive Bali’s verdant beauty.  

The World Tour, unforgivably, does not feature a single event in Indonesia, which seems more absurd than the United States presidential debate. All those islands. All those friendly facing atolls. 

The Padang Padang Cup gives the people what they want, which is, to steal a phrase from the Wozzle, the world’s best surfers on the world’s best waves. 

Well some of them at least, as well as a smattering of reclusive shelf-merchants, eccentric vloggers, new-age prodigies, and local priests who can negotiate hollow waves as well anyone. This colourful collection of invitees allows us to observe an unrefined version of tuberiding that isn’t bound by any formula or inflexible rules.

Snapshots of a 21-year legacy

Two decades it’s been, since this thing began. 

Made ‘Bol’ Adi Putra first hoisted the cup to the sky back in 2005, and this year will mark the 21th iteration of the event. Over that time, the contest has built a storied history. 

Notable moments include Bol vs. Rizal’s inaugural showdown in 2005, Jack Robbo’s near perfect heat to win the event in 2018 and Rizal and JOB’s double barrel back in 2009.  

Here’s a few more of our favourite chronicles from The Cup.

15-year-old Erin Brooks finals against the boyz

“It was my first time even surfing at Padang Padang, and I beat Luke Swanson, Mason Ho, Shane Dorian, and Nic von Rupp,” Erin Brooks told Stab in our HSGP series. 

Erin was the only female in the entire draw, and at 15 years of age, she was the second youngest person to ever compete in the event. Her diminutive size and lack of experience did little to discourage her from curb stomping fully grown and seemingly helpless men. 

According to Jamie O’Brien, Nic von Rupp saw red after being scalped by a 15-year-old girl, but in a brave act of redemption (or perhaps after realising that it’s no longer 2004) he would later chair Erin up the beach after the final. 

“At first, I think he was excited that I was in his heat, because I’m a little girl and he didn’t expect me to do much,” said Erin. “But then I got an eight in the first couple of minutes, and then I sat on him, because I know that he’s such a good barrel rider and I didn’t want him to get any scores. After the final, he chaired me up the beach. He was such a good sport.”

Reportedly, every man in this year’s draw let out a collective sigh of relief, knowing they no longer have to worry about getting poleaxed by Erin.

1000 ways to ride a barrel, by Mason Ho and Clay Marzo

There’s something about an empty Padang Padang that encourages surfers to get a little freaky with it. Maybe it’s the impossible perfection of the wave. Maybe it’s the pressure of knowing that for a moment in time, you’re surfing the best wave in Bali, in the best conditions of the dry season, with only a few others in the lineup. Maybe all that kinky arousal makes your body behave unconventionally.  

Whatever it is, the Padang Padang Cup seems to be the only tuberiding competition in the world where competitors break free from the regular shackles of a professional surfing event.  

Take Mason Ho’s front arm stall and Clay Marzo’s frontside layback, both executed whilst donning competitive jerseys, as subtle nods to tube-riding progression.

Mega Semadhi becomes a 2 x champ

Mega Samadhi is a local Bukit surfer that comes from a holy Hindu bloodline. Both of his parents are Mangkus, which roughly translates to ‘holy priest’. Mega once said that before he fulfils his Mangku destiny, he has a bunch of partying to do first. Everything in balance. 

Back in 2016, to the delight of the entire archipelago, Mega won the cup for the second time, a triumph on par with Jeremy Flores’ victory in France. Instead of indulging in a three-day celebratory bender from Bordeaux to the Basque, Mega celebrated with his mother. She joined him on stage at the awards ceremony and led an electrifying rendition of the national anthem.

Mega’s win in 2016 was the last time an Indonesian surfer hoisted The Cup.

Bruce Irons 10-pointer

Bruce Irons is no stranger to disappearing. Over the years, he has built a reputation for long hiatuses from the media, from being social, and from social media. Back In 2016, after waltzing into the Padang Padang Cup, he was only gone for a few seconds, but it was the most tantalising disappearance of his entire career. 

To this day, it stands as the longest barrel in event history, and as one of the best-ever waves ridden at Padang. 

Or, one of the best-ever ridden waves at Padang Padang, so far…

It’s on when it’s on. Watch it live at ripcurl.com.”