From Indo by Lou Niles/photos II
It seems the most common surf stories tell of exotic far off destinations, scary situations, score of a lifetime, the big hold down and run ins with corrupt local authorities, I was fortunate enough to enjoy a trip that had nearly all of these “qualities” with an extra special bonus quality shining over the top of it all.
I’ve been to indo two times with SurfAid International The 2nd trip we spent on a boat. There to see first hand what was going on in various villages, traveling by boat allowed us to meet at all times, day or night en-route to villages. This also gave us a chance to catch a few magical Mentawai waves in the sunrise hours before work began.
As surf stories go I certainly found both the far off and exotic being nearly 60 hours from my home in remote islands of ancient cultures. Soon I logged my big hold down story in pristine overhead lefts at Scarecrows. I’m a goofy foot and I was in heaven. Six of us just taking turn on the 4-5 wave sets. It was the classic rogue double sized set swinging wide that caught us all so good the boat hands launched the skiff thinking maybe they’d lost a couple of us. We caught a couple good surf’s this trip but the real story was the village visits over the following days.
Walking into these villages, there is such a feeling of the unknown and of exploration. The crunch of the coral and volcanic based soil under your feet, the distant sound of waves and the hum of tropical insect noises. Nobody around. As you go further and become discovered by the locals the word spreads fast. Adults and children come from every direction; curiosity, apprehension, amazement at the blonde hair is strong.
As we reach a meeting place to talk with the local health worker and village mothers the front row becomes filled with mothers and their small children. A couple times I was approached by mothers seemingly trying to hand their baby over to me. But then realized they were trying to “show off” their well-rounded babies to me. Beaming with pride, the proud mother showing the difference she herself had been able to make in her child’s health with a bit of knowledge, a little guidance and a hand up they had changed the course of their child’s life and most likely other children in the village.
Toward the last few days of our trip we were night crossing, we had moved from the shelter of the east side of Sipora to cross the strait to the south, headed west on our way to Silabu. I had no idea that a non-hold down near death surf story was about to be a part of this trip. I have to mention that due to careful cost cutting measures we were traveling by riverboat, large, slow, flat-bottomed, not for open ocean. We had planned to hole up in a cove until sunrise. Around midnight it was getting rough, a tough rolling few hours and we were informed we were pulling anchor to make a run around the corner for Silabu before the full storm hit. Well we came around the corner just in time to catch the storm full on broadside. Heaving, rolling, taking on water, 9 hours later we found some shelter behind a few small islands. We settled down for a while, shaken and feeling blessed to have our lives. As a hole opened in the clouds, the storm winding up for another punch we decided to make a run for Padang (our original port of departure),
As we sailed back, having made it through the storm we paused and all dove in the ocean to shake off the ordeal. Treading in the deep blue beyond, under the thunderhead filled sky I reflected on the millions who live like that everyday. Millions of people on our planet challenged to make it through each day. It seems a more simple life but they are truly fraught with real everyday dangers many that these people have limited power against, all fighting through a storm, fighting to survive in so many ways we take for granted.
Life is so short and fragile, I realized the greatest impact isn’t the feel good you receive by your effort to make a difference but the open door to empowerment that you offer a person who is suffering or has an unfortunate situation.
I’ve watched the industry and the whole surf community take great bounds in fact leading the way in many areas. Companies creating green product lines and in company foundations, supporting outreach groups, disease research & awareness, coastal and ecological guardians, fighting famine, malaria, AIDS, global warming, relief in local and national disasters, supporting so many causes locally and going beyond our country to support so many less fortunate. Now having moved on from SurfAid I focus part of my time producing films, web and television works that I hope will make a difference and dedicate my time and knowledge wherever possible.
It’s important to me like the everyday individuals, the pros, the executives who step forward to support the causes, down the street or across the globe, we as surfers are making a difference in all sorts of ways around the world.
It’s that part of the community, That surf story, or story about surfers that I hope grows and that I myself will always put forward, that part of the surf community that goes beyond responsibility for our surf traveling and exploring, forever setting the example, let us leave a light footprint but a deep impression from the heart
