Surftime Magazine

Punishment and performance were applauded as two days of competition came to a close at the 3rd annual Earth Island Surf Fest at Bali’s Pererenan Beach. The waves were big and unruly during both days, making for challenging conditions but riveting surfing for the spectators. Finals Day began with more lined-up conditions. But as the day progressed, the bombs started going off again. After the second round of the Team Challenge, the Men’s and Women’s Longboard divisions took their turns before the Team Challenge semifinals decided the finalists, ultimately whittling the field from 14 teams down to four. At the awards presentation, it was announced that JS Industries had taken out the Team Challenge Final by a significant margin with a total score of 32.54, leaving BGS (29.47) and Legian Boarderiders (29.33) in a tight contest for second and third place, while Quiksilver finished fourth (23.96). JS Industries’ Dylan Hallyer was all smiles after joining the team to receive their award...

Before the sun awakens over the vast Indian Ocean, peacocks begin calling through the trees, monkeys crash across bungalow roofs and the humid air slowly fills with the sounds of another day beginning. The sweet scent of incense drifts through the village as morning offerings are quietly placed outside homes and temples, adding another layer of tranquillity to a place that already feels worlds away from the rush of modern life. By the time the first boards are strapped to the roof of a tuk-tuk, the jungle has already decided the rhythm of the day. I first arrived in Arugam Bay just before heading to university in the UK. I’d only recently fallen in love with surfing and, like so many others, had become obsessed. Indonesia filled the pages of every magazine I owned. Perfect reefs, heavy barrels and legendary line-ups were the dream, but deep down I knew I wasn’t ready for them. Then I found Sri Lanka. I had no idea that one decision would quietly shape the next chapter of my l...

Troy Hirst had a profound effect on surfboard manufacturing in Indonesia. He was a great surfer who fell in love with the Indonesian waves and was deeply passionate about building surfboards. As one of the hardworking backbones of Bali’s exploding surfboard industry, Troy helped transform Indonesia into a global hotspot for surfboard manufacturing. He taught and mentored young Indonesian board builders, creating an elite team of shapers, glassers, and sanders to pump out an incredible volume of surfboards of the highest quality. Troy was also key in helping local surfers obtain access to world-class surfboards, elevating our now hyper-talented local surf community. He helped kick-start our local surf team, starting with his son Westen, then Dylan Wilcoxen, then Kalani Ryan, Kya Heuer, Philip Duke, and more. With our annual trips to the Kandui resort, every year we got more local kids on the program: Alin, Irfan, Jayden, Izrel, Alif and then a bunch of kids from Lakey Peak. While mo...

For most surfers, Tahiti begins and ends with Teahupo’o. For David Biner, it was just the beginning. Based in Indonesia, working under the moniker INDOEYE, David recently spent a month travelling through French Polynesia. His resulting film, South Pacific, captures the waves, landscapes and characters he encountered along the way. As he examined the thundering waves of Teahupo’o, David also took the time meet the locals and their approach to life on Tahiti. He came away with a film that not only impresses with pinpoint focus, music and editing in the surf, but with a film that celebrates the generosity of the island’s people, the depth of their connection to the ocean and the sheer scale of the environment. South Pacific is a surfer’s film. Not just a series of endless clips. For any real surfer, it is not to be missed.

Padang Padang Bridge, Bali, Indonesia, 27/08/2026, 7:05am Knowing that the Rip Curl Padang Padang Cup is on is a force that draws you out of bed. You feel like a kid on Christmas morning. After all, this day, if the swell abides, comes only once a year. For competitors, the gift they are given is an empty line-up at Bali’s best barrel. And for you, it’s a show unlike any other. Padang Padang Cliffside, 9:15am Making your way through the acacia trees that form a dry, thorny tunnel leading to the judging and broadcast compound, you hear the waves before you see them. Each barrel unloading onto the reef drowns out the new sounds of the modern Bali that you have left behind today. The buses, the motorbikes, the groaning cement trucks, the pounding beach clubs, and the ever-present screeching of the rampant construction that is scarring this landscape forever. And in this moment you are reminded of what you came to Bali for. The shared elation of it all, the smiles, the waves and th...

Can I do it again? Can I win the Quiksilver Air Show for the second time in one year? On the beach in Canggu, these were the questions running through the mind of Alfan, the Sumbawan Lakey Peak boy with alot on the line. Winning once is one thing. Defending that title is another. Every early morning session, every wave, became part of the same question. Not for fame, but for his family, for Lakey Peak. From the very first practice session, Alfan wore the yellow jersey from the previous year. Alley-oops, frontside reverses, backside rotations, and sushi rolls flowed one after another. It wasn’t just surfing anymore; it was choreography, every air rehearsed with the same purpose, to be ready when the contest started. The days blended together. The peaceful rhythm of Lakey Peak was replaced by the chaos of Canggu. Loud music drifted from the beach clubs, scooters buzzed through the streets, and tourists crowded every corner, but none of it distracted him. Even in his sleep he was s...