Threads from Trey's Journal: Round Two the diary of george of the balinese jungle

8.12.08

Today was my first non-Saturday day off. I slept in until 9:00am, then stayed in another hour, just enjoying the AC, being alone, and starting a new book called "Flow," which is a psycho-analytic study of happiness. Then I took a long shower and shaved for the first time in about a month; kept the beard, just cleaned it up a bit.

conny?

After breakfast, I borrowed Simon's scooter and went in search of Rizal Tanjing, the godfather of Indonesian surfing. I checked out his surf shop, which had a perfect barrel board for me, a 6'3" YU hand-shape for Rizal with a thumb-tail and leopard print airbrush . . . but the asking price was 5.5 million.

Bartek?
Bintang?
Arak?
big problemmmm...:) yes maaannn

I went across the alley to his restaurant, Balcony, where you can "dine with surf royalty" and his cell number from the hostess, after alot of failed attempts of communication in broken English.

beachie beachie:)

I sent him a text message explaining our mutual friends at Chemistry Surfboards in San Diego, Jeremy Heit and Jason Bennett, but did not hear back from him today. In the afternoon, I drove the scooter out to Bingin where Nate Zoller and Dan Shea have a loft room above a warung right in front of the break.

Always Balangan

They share a bed, but only pay $5/night and have one of the best views in Bali and a restaurant right below them.

Bartek's Padma...not working as always
At least camera working

We surfed it low tide with head high sets. I flailed the drop on my second wave and got caught inside with an approaching set. The incoming waves suck out nearly all the water off the reef, so duck-diving isn't even an available option.

Balcony restaurant...check it out n get a margharita

I was right in the impact zone, and after taking one right on the head, the wave flipped me, still lying on the board, nose over tail, and slapped me right onto the reef, sandwiching me between the reef and the board, gashing my left heel and serrating my left shoulder blade through my 1.5mm wetsuit top.

Ulu

After that, I pretty much surfed without abandon, knowing it couldn't get any worse. It did. I found myself in nearly identical situation about an hour later, except this time an inept Euro surfer came crashing down on top of me with the lip. Boards and bodies were in complete disarray.

Mr. Trey in Balangan

Remarkably, my body and my board survived relatively unscathed, only a bad charlie-horse from the initial impact of breaking his free-fall into the reef.

nice floater nach ulu

Our leasches were badly tangled . . . but he was wearing reef booties (=kook) and was able to stand up and avoid the incoming onslaught of whitewater that I was taking in the face because he was too busy apologizing to realize he needed to take off his leasch.

our neighbours are sooo sweat

The guy did have a sweet mustache though, and out of a respect for the 'stache alone, I smiled through the whole ordeal. It's impossible for me to get mad at any surfer with a mustache, mutual mustache respect.

Bartek fliping in Balangan

Besides those two incidents, it was a great session . . . some very fine barrels, even ended on a perfect 'lil in-and-out, the stoke of the last ride lingering for the rest of the day.

Sweet home Alabama...
uppppssss. Das ist eine Balangan
Es es un mi casa Balangan
To jest nasz dom w Balangan
C'est Balangan mon ami

PS what is happenin now is 1 am n we two are simply runnin out of Arak
so the mood is getiing quiet funny and more languages are coming to my hilarious mind...
said guesss who???

Met a young Aussie named Nick who is headed home to Burleigh Heads to sail to Tahiti with three of his mates in a 40-footer steel-hull. His friend bought the twenty-year old vessel and has been stealing from a hardware store for a year, fixing it up. None of them have any real sailing experience, but they have a "how-to" book and a pound of weed . . . I'm beyond jealous of their undertaking.

Balcony una vez mas

I also met Steve, another Laguna local, who spends about six months a year globe-trotting for surf. His love life and mine are in similar binds, and it was a relief to talk to someone with a similar burden on their heart. In the end, it boils down to: can you really make someone else happy, if you aren't happy? He seems to be set on his path; I feel like I'm just getting my footing on mine.

Balangan popppy

After a crazy rush-hour scooter ride home, where I learned the maxim that if you drive like you don't care about your life then people will give you your space, I attended an evening yoga session at Prana Spa, led by the lovely Aussie Mandi. Her sessions kick my ass every time and she does up to four sessions a day - amazing endurance. Along with Johnny, she will be leading the instructor course in October. Although I feel like I have alot of ground to cover from now until then, I'm looking forward to pushing my mind and body into new places.