Creed and Stablemates Surf The Definition of Indo Fun

“Some of the boys were freaking about the forecast, but I’d been there before and knew we were going to get fun waves, at least,” says Kai Hing.

As blown-out as Indonesia’s big name spots are, there’s still pockets where—if you’re willing to sacrifice ruler-edge perfection for fun—you can still surf your brains out with few other humans around. The village where the Bong team posted up (which, although not a secret, let’s leave nameless) has a reef/sand A-frame out the front that Kai describes as “a bit funky, but heaps of fun,” that needs little swell, so that’s where Kai, Creed, Buddah, Ethan and Indonesian connection Mega Artana surfed for the duration of their five day surf/trunk-shoot expedition.

Bubble boys in the richest of blues.

A few days into the trip when the gang had had their share of whacking the life out of the A-frame, a whisper that a nearby right slab (of sorts) could be working, and Kai was the first to put his hand up to check it out. “I got the right the last time I went, so as soon as the call went out I was keen,” Kai tells me from his home on the Sunshine Coast. “When we got there it was a bit suss because of the tide, and we were actually sitting on the boat contemplating going out for a while, then casually decided to give it a go.” As can happen in parts of Indonesia open to the brunt of the Indian Ocean, “a bit suss” transitioned to “stand up barrels” in a heartbeat, and soon Kai and the gang were threading as perfect (looking) tubes as you’re likely to see, although Kai admits that it’s a tricky she-devil with the tendency to lure the over-confident rustler into a dry-reef closeout. Which is exactly what happened to him on the first wave of the set before Creed got that wave.

Creed McTaggart has long been a Stab fav, and we (seemingly along with the rest of the surfing fraternity) are thrilled with the level of surfing he’s gifted us with of late. His performance on this here Bong trip is no exception, and Kai echoes the sentiment, describing his friends’ surfing as “inspiring”. “He’s absolutely killing it,” says Kai. “His Globe part was insane, and he was ripping on this trip. Riding that 6’1 Dahlberg and doing the biggest airs and hacks.” Kai tells me that he viewed Creed’s cover wave from the boat, as he’d been lured into the one before—a filthy closeout that gifted him a tour of the reef and snapped his craft. “I just saw him drop into this mutant, get the shot and then straighten out over dry reef, just fully dodging rocks.”

This pro surfing lark’s good work, if you can get it.

As an epitaph to a thoroughly pleasant conversation, Kai tacks on a touching anecdote relating to the filming of his last part “Glass Ceiling of Happiness“, which contains a number of the same sessions that ended up in Creed’s latest solo release. “I was at Deserts and I’d literally snapped every one of my surfboards, and there was the best swell coming,” Kai says. “Creed rang me and told me to come to Lakeys to film, and I was so bummed and told him I literally had to go straight home. He swung by the JS factory and picked me up a whole new quiver and flew them over for me. He did me such a solid, and we absolutely scored.” Great surfers and good blokes—enough to warm to stoniest of hearts. 

If you’re down under then your summer trunks live here.

If you’re stateside and planning a vacay (or hyper-organised) then dive in here.