Indonesia's surfing development for PON

Kim Bradley
Kim Bradley was known as the surfing sport activist in Indonesia, specially Bali at the 70's and now he talks about the government support of the development of surfing in this country. Kim believes that if surfing in Indonesia was to progress and it must have support from the government. In the past, former Bali governor Ida Bagus Mantra said “ Surfing is just in Bali” but now surfing is all over Indonesia because all areas have waves suitable for surfing.
Now that it is recognized that many provinces in Indonesia have waves good for surfing Kim believes that each province should have a surfing club or association that also coordinates with the tourism department to promote surfing. If every province had a surfing club it would be much easier for surfing to be recognized as a national sport which could then be included in the National Sport Competition (PON)
The government has started supporting surfing now as seen by competitions such as the Bupati Cup held at Canggu last year. The Quiksilver contest at Dompu was also supported by the Bupati as well as several other contests. As we concluded our chat Kim said “ 30 years ago there was noone surfing in Indonesia and now everyone ‘dances on the waves’, hopefully surfing can be recognized as a national sport and be included in National Sport Competition (PON)”

Bli Kacrut
This local Balinese senior surfer also talks about support from the government for the development of surfing in Indonesia that has the same idea with Kim Bradley. Surfing in Indonesia has developed rapidly, as seen by the number of contests now held in Indonesia which is also a contributing factor. Support from the government is also vital as the main supporters of surfing at the present time is the Surfing Industry. Bli Kacrut thinks that surfing must be included as a sport in PON (National Sport Competition) because there are now 7 provinces in Indonesia with waves suitable for surfing competitions. Almost all areas in Indonesia have waves good for surfing and clubs could be formed that report back to the national sport organization, so that they can be recognized and develop more like they have in Bali. Surfing also adds to the tourism potential in all areas. Perhaps surfing will be more recognized in Indonesia this year because Bali is hosting the “Asian Beach Games 2008” for the first time in October. Indonesia
has also chosen several athletes to compete in the games.
Bli Kacrut hopes that next year surfing will be included in Pre PON and he said that Indonesian people, especially surfers, love the beach and ocean so much. It’s feels just right to include surfing in the National Games Event like PON (National Sport Competition)

The Cape Town

From Devil’s Peak (Afrikaans Duiwelspiek), the site of the legendary smoke-off between the devil and the Dutch colonial, you can see forever. Van Hunks, as the story goes, unwisely accepted a pipe smoking challenge from a cloven-hoof stranger, puffed up an enormous cloud of smoke and was never seen again.
Looking out from the peak, just to the left, you’ll notice the harbor, the sea a sheet of blue made stern by the industrial gray of ships and cranes. The city bowl, its center a neat grid, lies between the harbor and the mountain. Straight ahead, as far as the eye can see, you may trace the beginnings of the Winelands, the outline of a distant mountain range.

You probably won’t dwell on the dull bit to the far right—a muddle of buildings that appear to be the size of Monopoly houses on a vast expanse of sandy land: the notorious Cape Flats, where gangs carve up the streets. And tucked beneath the mountain, the leafy suburbs—deep green in an otherwise yellow-brown picture—attest to Cape Town’s micro climates: the weather may be fine in town, drizzling in the suburbs, howling with wind on the fringes of the city bowl.

The Cape Town best view was not an easy place to know. Like a jigsaw puzzle that doesn’t quite fit, the pieces together form something incongruous; a city that is more than the sum of its parts. When its imagine which always recasts the familiar in a different light, seems an illusion: the mountains, the sea, the almost embarrassing prettiness of it all. Table Mountain—the city’s iconic symbol—no longer blends into the background: It demands to be admired; the great stony mountain face, the impressive regularity of the tabletop flanked by peaks on either side.
But Cape Town’s beauty is pockmarked. Sunsets seen from the white sands of Clifton are underscored by the iron sheeted shacks that line the road from the airport. Lush forests are punctuated by buildings with peeling paint in the Main Road, or by the laundry suspended from the wire fences along the highway where homeless people sleep beneath a bridge.

Living in Cape Town entails a tacit knowledge of an environment that doesn’t quite make sense. It’s like seeing your face as a Picasso painting, or being inside a Buñuel film. It’s a temperamental city; there’s always something different around each corner, a sense of never being entirely certain. Always color, always light. This changing landscape—geographical and cultural —combined with an extraordinary natural beauty that even the locals never tire of, makes Cape Town an unusual destination. In Cape Town, you’re always somewhere between the mountain and the deep blue sea. That was an interesting town to visit in Southern of Africa which also known for its best waves in J-bay (Jeffreys bay).

Rich travelers get cold feet

Financial crisis chills holiday mood at ultra-rich Swiss ski resort. Russian tourists are making cancellations everyday, and the reason they give is the financial crisis.
At the suite-only Carlton Hotel, which charges up to US$6,800 ($10,000) per room during the winter peak season, the reservations department is getting disturbing news daily.

The hotel's general manager, Mr Christopher Cox, said: 'We are getting Russian cancellations every day and they are telling us that the financial crisis is the main reason.' In St Moritz, where one in every four hotels is five-star and where pop stars, princes and presidents count among regular skiers, tourism industry players admit that the global economic slowdown is chilling demand. The trend corresponds with findings from a recent study commissioned by Italy's luxury goods producers' association indicating that even the wealthiest consumers, once thought to be immune to economic slowdowns, are cutting back on spending.
Mr Cox said the dropped rooms at the Carlton are being snapped up by others on waiting list, but he admitted that 'extra revenues', such as those from food and beverage and luxury boutiques, are expected to slide. He said: 'Guests who used to order two pizzas with a bottle of wine that cost 8,000 Swiss francs ($10,200) may not do that this year. I think most people will still come on holiday, but I don't think we will get the same amount of extra revenues.'

Russians make up the biggest group of customers by nationality and account for three in 10 of the hotel's guests during the winter ski season. They are among the most lavish spenders.
However, a slew of bad economic news has dampened consumer sentiment in Russia. Since posting record highs in May, the two main stock markets in Russia had lost about three-quarters of their value, slipping on a plunge in oil prices and financial turmoil.

Not just the Russians, but Americans and British - the two other main tourist groups here - also appear to be tightening their belts. Mr Dieter Bonner, a member of the board at Engadin St Moritz, which runs area ski lifts and mountain trains, said he had also heard of cancellations at other hotels, adding that 'there are Americans who aren't coming because of the crisis'.
But he remained optimistic about the winter holiday season, saying that this 'can be an opportunity' for St Moritz to attract more local consumers.

Crisis spending
Mr Bonner said: 'In a crisis, people tend to stay in their country. This could be a chance for us to get our local tourists to rediscover Switzerland.' He was, however, concerned about the effect of the Swiss franc, which last week hit a historic high against the Euro. Compared to a year ago, the franc has gained about 11.6 per cent. 'The strong franc could be a bigger handicap than the crisis,' he said, as it could drive Swiss consumers to spend in neighbouring France, Germany or Italy instead.
Mr Eugen Arpagaus, who heads the tourism and economic bureau of canton Graubuenden where St Moritz is located, agreed that the sudden currency swing could have a negative impact on consumption here. He estimated that a 15 to 20 per cent gain in the franc could translate to a fall of about 5 per cent in overnight stays. But for Mr Arpagaus, the main worry is the length of the crisis. He said: 'What worries me more is how long this crisis will last. People will still go on vacations for now, but if the crisis goes on for three years or five years, then we could really see an impact.'
The chief executive officer of Graubuenden Tourism, Mr Gaudenz Thoma, had the same prognosis, saying the effect of the crisis would most likely show up only in the summer.
He said: 'The cancellations now could help us overcome the problem of overbooking. I don't think we would suffer tremendously in winter, because we are strong in winter. But if the crisis lasts, it could really hit us in the summer.'
---edited from the New Paper_November

The danger of Cigarettes

Many people believe that smoking is dangerous for health. Smoking means saving illnesses. They may not appear now, but they will surely appear someday. It has been said that cigarettes contain many dangerous contents. They contain thousands of chemical agents, for example carbon monoxide (CO), nicotine, tar, nitric oxide, methane, benzene, and other chemical agents. The amounts of these chemical agents are very little, but they can be accumulated in the body and they will cause adverse reactions to the cell of the tissues and body organs.

Cigarettes cause many illnesses. However, the most common illness caused by cigarettes is heart disease. This is because of the damage of the endothelia of vascular tissues. The damage will lead to the hardness of arteries, which has been known as arteriosclerosis. When arteriosclerosis develops, the affected arteries will loose their ability to relax and the size of their lumens will be reduced as well. This lead to hypertension, coronary heart disease, thrombophlebitis and even cerebrovascular accidents (stroke). The damage on the endothels is a perfect site for thrombus to develop. When the thrombus blocks the lumen of the artery totally, the blood flows to the distal tissue will stop and leads to the ischemic of the tissues. If this happens to cardiac tissues, this will cause ischemic heart disease and even death.

As for pregnant women, cigarettes cause fetal growth restriction, under wight baby born and pre-term delivering. Unfortunately, many smoking women do not realize this. They keep smoking even if they are pregnant. Cigarettes cause many serious illnesses is indisputable but why the government seems to do nothing. Victims have increased year by year, anti smoking is only promoted by non government organizations. The government itself seems to neglect the people's health. Some of us should be agree with the motto saying that put out your cigarette now or it will put you out.

Surf chick : November

This month profile :Jasmine Tiara Haskell
D O B : 14 November 1985
Style : Regular, Board Size : 6’1 and 6’4
Loving to do something enables you to be really good at it, so the more things you love the more things you will be good at. Like the following profile, Jasmine. She has both American and East Kalimantan blood, she was an active and multi talented woman. Like to enjoy many things such as photography, skateboarding, music and surfing and does them all well….but out of all the things she does surfing is always number one. She was born in Malang and grew up in Jakarta. When she was 14 she moved to Bali. When she first arrived, she has 6 months before her school started so she used that time to learn how to surf at Legian. She would spend every day at the beach with her uncle and she became addicted to surfing In the following years she entered many surfing contests and was often on the podium. Her most impressive contest was in Malaysia (Sunway Lagoon) which she won. As a result she was able to get several sponsors.
These days, she loves to surf at Brawa. Besides being close to her house, the waves suit her really well. Jasmine hopes that there will be many more girl surfers in Indonesia. Ohya….if you want to catch DJ Jasmine performing come to Home bar and resto on the Oberoi………..Yes, she is a multi talented girl…salute!!

Point of interests in Pacitan

Pacitan is one of the simply beautiful region in East Java since its relatively poor areas, the infrastructure is not so good. Entrance to Pacitan there are only two, the east side; Ponorogo, the west side of Wonogiri/Yogyakarta. Pacitan had stony mountain because of that when rainy season, always happened many landslides in some location.
Tourism city object is Telengria beach. By motorcycle ride from Sedeng/Pringkuku/Punung, view to the sea was truly beautiful but be careful because of the way down to a steep was decline. In Telengria beach there was a hotel named Happy Bay, about 2 years ago there is no ac, the rate about 60.000 rups, its quite beautiful at the beach if you want to have activities in the morning and afternoon. The other alternative was Srikandi Hotel (the only home stay/lodge which recommend in Lonely Planet book), food was good (rate about 100.000 rups, with AC). If you want to have dinner, you could walking around the crossroad of city center's store . Near the market there was a good place to eat by sitting on the floor, Mrs.Sum (near BNI) . To all spicy food lovers, you are lucky, at market close to Enggal jaya shop there was called gobyos vegetable, like opor (chicken curry) but most of chilis than chicken inside. If lunchtime, at the right corner (the position facing the sea) there are lot of antique stalls, the main menu of fresh fish with tiwul rice. Cuisine is particularly rays grilled with spicy vegetables, it called KALAKAN vegetables. Eating fish with tiwul rice in the day it was truly extraordinary. If you not get used to eat, don't take tiwul rice in full portion. If you like tempe, a rare tempe was unique in Pacitan, wrapped with banana stems.

Other hotel which can be recommended in Pacitan was Permata, Bali Queen and Pacitan Hotel. All located around the city center and if you continue like fishing, go to the sea. The fish were very large size. If you want to continue your trip, you could go straight to Yogyakarta's direction to Pringkuku, there was a more beautiful beach than Telengria. All beaches in Pacitan have white sand. In Pringkuku, there was a dramatic moment, there was a coral reef in the middle when tide's time, full of water and the waves urging to the top made a fountain like whale's back. Its excellent so was a good sunset. Along your trip to Punung, now there is gong cave (inside a cave you could listen traditional music that is called Gong) Its Wonderful!!! In punung, you could also found a sudden market after branch to the gong cave and that market was selling many agate stone in twenty pack which is cheap and good. If you continue your trip to Ponorogo, then come to Arjosari where there was bathing warm water place, which is intend to real heat. If you go to Trenggalek in Jatigunung village, subdistrict Tulakan, please stop by to organic food stalls that managed by young people. Standard menu like tiwul and fish with cassava leaves. Then you could walk to Lorok beach or Sidomulyo. Most of similar but its different was the beach view. If you want to go home please stop by to southern market of Arjowinangun (Kebonagung), the center of porridge. It taste good and different from kudus porridge (jenang).

If you go by bus, it can be accessed from Solo (namely ;Aneka Jaya, Timbul Jaya, Ismo) directly to Pacitan of from Ponorogo (Aneka Jaya), or from Yogyakarta (Pacitan Putra Jaya, but its rarely or travel Purwowidodo, etc.) It's nice, just sit and reached the destination.

Indonesian Surfing in Asian Beach Games 2008

Men's Surfing
On 19 October 2008, 20 year old Garut Widiarta Rip Curl’s rider from Bali became the first surfer in history to win a gold medal in the sport of surfing at an Olympic event at Kuta Beach in Bali, Indonesia. The talented young surfer proudly held up the Indonesian flag as he and silver medalist Raditya Rondi accepted the cheers of the crowd in front of the judging tower.
In an intense 30 minute round of competition in their home break of Kuta Beach, the two cousins fought a pitched battle in the 2 foot low tide surf with Rondi leading for most of the heat, until Widiarta maneuvered into the perfect position to let loose with a couple of amazing aerial displays that had the judges reaching punching some big numbers into their keypads.
When the horn blew Widiarta had tallied up a score of 18.50 for his best two waves, leaving Rondi just short with 17.20. 10 surfers from 5 countries, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, the Maldives, and Vietnam competed today in the 1st Asian Beach Games men’s shortboard surfing event, with Widiarta winning the gold over Raditya Rondi and Shigenori Suzuki from Japan getting the bronze. This is truly a benchmark for surfing, as it is the first time the sport of surfing has ever been included in an Olympic event.
Shortboard surfing event Result:
Gold :Made Garut Widiarta (Indonesia) , Silver:Raditya Rondi (Indonesia) , Bronze: Shigenori Suzuki (Japan)

Women’s Surfing
On 21 October 2008, Akiko Kiyonoga raced through four rounds of surfing in the Women’s surfing event of the Asian Beach Games at Kuta Beach to claim a gold medal for Japan today. The silver was taken home by Indonesia’s Yasniar Gea. Kiyonoga was matched up against Gea from Indonesian in the Grand Final and came back to the beach with the win, scoring a total of 13 points for her best two waves against Gea’s 9 points. Gea had previously bested Kiyonoga in the four woman 2nd Qualifier, but when they met again in the final Kiyonoga went straight to work and by the end of the final had 11 waves to Gea’s 6, with high scores of 6.0 and 7.0 ,to Gea’s 3.75 and 5.25. Bringing back bronze medals today were Marianita Alcala from the Philippines, who had the highest single wave point score of the day, an 8.0, and 15-year-old Diah Rahayu Dewi from Indonesia.
Shortboard surfing event Result:
Gold : Akiko Kiyonoga (Japan), Silver : Yasniar Gea(Indonesia), Bronze: Marianita Alcala (Philippines), Bronze : Diah Rahayu Dewi (Indonesia)

Aerial competition
On 22 October 2008, Indonesia’s Dede Suryana completely dominated the Aerial competition at the Asian Beach Games in Bali today. Suryana leapt to the lead in the first heat of the day and consistently outscored his opponents in every subsequent heat through to the final, racking up 8 and 9 point waves with regularity and leaving the rest of the field far behind. Winning the silver was Yuichi Kurogi from Japan, and countryman Shuhei Kato took home a bronze. Also in the final was fellow Indonesian Made “Bol” Adi Putra, a very proficient aerial specialist himself, who today just couldn’t find the waves in the final that would allow him to display that proficiency to its fullest. He did however end the competition with a bronze medal, having gotten several high scoring waves earlier in the day to get him into the final with the two competitors from Japan. The beach was pumping with music and cheering during all 40 minutes of the grand final, with flags waving and drums beating to encourage the competitors on. The ocean could have been a little more generous in terms of high quality waves, with only 1-2 foot surf on offer, but Suryana made the most of it to the delight of the crowd on the beach, who proudly celebrated the moment with him. Dede Suryana fly’s high to Win Second Gold Medal for Indonesia in Aerial Competition
Aerial competition Result: Gold :Dede Suryana (Indonesia), Silver : Yuichi Kurogi (Japan),
Bronze: Shuhei Kato (Japan), Bronze: Made “Bol” Adi Putra (Indonesia)

Sun blocking

Ultraviolet rays in sun light can cause serious and often irreversible harm to the body. This
can range from eye damage to the more extreme, skin cancer. Prevention must start from
early age. For the skin, sun blocks or sunscreens have been proven effective. Informations below are some helpful hints on blocking the sun.
SPF
The sun protection factor (SPF) or filtering power of a sunscreen product determines what percentage of the ultraviolet rays get through to the skin. An SPF of 15 allows only 1/15 (7%)
of the sun’s rays to get through and thereby extends safe sun exposure from 20 minutes to
5 hours without the skin burning. A SPF higher than 15 protects against sunburn for more than
5 hours.
Tips:
• When going to the beach use a sun block with a SPF 25 or higher.
• For every day use, apply sunscreen with SPF 15 or higher.
• Children generally should avoid direct sunlight, use protective clothing such as a hat, long
sleeved shirt, sunglasses etc. If needed, apply a creamy non-fragrant sun block with SPF 25-30.
• Babies under 6 months must avoid direct sunlight.

Sunscreen
There are several kinds of type available.
Lotion and cream are the favorites, and give good protection.
Oil is easy to apply because it spreads more easily, but it only provides a thin layer of protection and needs more frequent application and in addition, it causes a greasy sensation on the skin.
Gel is also easy to apply but it also tends to wash or sweat off more easily and there’s usually a stinging sensation caused by the alcohol content contained in it.
Sun block sticks are good, but problematic to apply on larger areas.
Dry spray on lotion is also popular and provides good protection. However, sprays aren’t recommended. It’s wasteful and most of the effective content is lost to the air and it usually forms an uneven layer on the skin.
Tips:
• Use the type of sunscreen of your preference. Make sure you read the recommendation when to reapply the sunscreen (usually every 3 or 4 hours).
• Apply sunscreen 30 minutes before exposure to the sun to give it time to penetrate the skin.
• Give special attention to the areas most likely to become sunburned, such as your nose, ears, cheeks and shoulders.

Waterproof
Sunscreens will wash away with sweat and water, especially after swimming. Some sunscreens proclaim to be waterproof or water resistant. Research shows that the “water resistant” sunscreen can maintain their SPF after 40 minutes of water immersion, and the “waterproof” after 80 minutes. Saltwater reduces the SPF faster than freshwater. This brings out a new production of “surf shop sunscreens” that proclaims to maintain effective SPF for seawater activities, however, there are no significant studies to show that these are more resistant.
Tips:
• Apply the sunscreen at least twice more frequently than recommended (about every 2 hours) for water activities, especially for sea water activities.
• Re-apply immediately after swimming or profuse sweating.

Sunscreen Tips :
• Use a sunscreen with SPF 30+.
• Some sunscreens are safe to apply on the face and lips, just make sure the type of sunscreen applied is appropriate for these areas.
• Use a sunscreen every day even when it’s a cloudy day.
• Wear UV close-fitting protecting sunglasses to protect against eye damage.
(read our article about sunglasses)
• Wear sun protective clothing. Dark, tightly woven clothes are best.
• Use shade and limit your exposure to the sun, especially between 10 am and 4 pm, when radiation is at its strongest.
• Don’t forget to keep hydrated, drink a lot of water.
•Wear a hat that protects your face, neck and ears.

Edited source from:
• National Safety Council: Sun Safety Program

Arctic ice melting faster

According to WWF observation, the Arctic’s ice may be melting faster than most climate change science has concluded. It found that ice in Greenland and across the Arctic region was retreating 'at rates significantly faster than predicted in previous expert assessments'. The report showed that ice sheet in Greenland is shrinking at a fast pace with an ice volume of about 2.9 million cubic kilometers and it could contribute much more than previously estimated to global sea-level rise during the 21st century.

The arctic warming has reduced both the area and thickness of the northern region's multi-year sea ice, making it more prone to summer thaw. Many climate change scientists have inadequately considered the drivers of such trends, such as interactions between sea ice thickness and water temperature. Last year, UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has issued reports of the recent acceleration in sea-ice retreat is not captured by most models, in the study reviewing global warming research from 2005.

A climate change adviser with WWF International's Arctic Programme, Martin Sommerkorn said that 'Our understanding of climate impacts lags behind the changes we are already seeing in the Arctic, and this is extremely dangerous, as some of these Arctic changes have the potential to substantially warm the Earth beyond what models currently forecast.

WWF said that climate change has already affected all aspects of ecology in the Arctic, including the region's oceans, sea ice, ice sheets, snow and permafrost. This climate change awareness has arise on Arctic nations - including Canada, the United States, Russia, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark, through its Greenland territory - to work together to help the region's communities adapt to the challenges ahead. The phenomena of fast-melting Arctic ice has the potential to cause coastal erosion, impact indigenous peoples' livelihoods, affect marine organisms, and make the region's mineral and other resources more accessible with new, formerly inaccessible marine routes. It could also have global effects, particularly causing rising sea levels that could threaten coastal communities from Bangladesh to the Netherlands to parts of the United States.

Because of the impact, Mr Sommerkorn said that 'We need to reduce global emissions of greenhouse gases to levels that will avoid the continued warming of the Arctic and the anticipated resulting disruption of the global climate system'. So for those who still aware with this impact, let's save the earth while we can by doing simple thing like trashing the garbage into the trash can and separated between recycled or non-recycled. Hope with this little step around your environment could reduce the global warming impact.