I`d really like to have a SEARCH event in Per� (we get good SW swells at that time), but I`d surely rather have a well organized surfing community like AUS or NZL to protect our breaks. Congratulations to them, and thanks for the good example.

It's good to know that Rip Curl is respecting the wishes of local surfers. Good onya RC for figuring it out. Maybe next year they take the SEARCH somewhere really crazy like Canada or Norway?

Rip Curl stuff is cool.

How about holding it somewhere that no one thinks of . Somewhere that no one goes to surf because they dont know it gets waves or they dont even know where it is. Isnt that essence of what Rip Curl is trying to portray. It shouldnt be just some side of a tropical island somewhere. How about Vietnam, Italy, Outer Bahamas Eluethra, Bermuda, Argintina, Nova Scotia? Or you could just hold it at Rincon, and call it "Rip Curl, in search of a parking space"

I agree with Bobby, there is no search in Bali or G-land, maybe Searching for a Place to Park as well!!! These Places are a Search for TeenAgers looking for a Fun vacations! The place shold be somewhere out of the mainstream... Afrika (Namibia, Mocambique, Madagascar, Angola), Irland, somewhwre in Caribe, Rapa Nui...India! A Real Search!!! Congratulations for WA and NZ Surfers !

..come to PERU!!!!!.. it will be an exceptional contest.. there are so many waves uncovered for most of the people.. i think it will be incredible.. peace, love and good waves

I would say to the heirachy of the Ripcurl money machine ,instesd of searching the world to promote and expose allready overcrowded locations. Why dont you guys invest in the future of surfing by helping create artifical reefs in your own backyards.If you guys can budget millions of dollars for 1 competition called the SEARCH why cant you budget millions of dollars for something far more important than glossy mags and webcasts, RESEARCH. Research into creating man made surfing breaks that would benifit Rip Curl in the long run. Young and old would look up to this multi national company and see that you wern't just out to exploit the world for the mighty greenback.There are many locations throughout the world and in the U S that would benifit from the creation of artifical reefs that would alleviate crowds and Rip Curl could be at the forfront of this innovation.With your sponsorship you would be able to Name the reefs as you saw fit eg Ridgeway left,Thrisks bommie,Rip Curl right definately food for thoug

Why do they never consider anywhere in Europe? Scotland, Italy, Gran Canaria - or somewhere different like Morocco or something - they need to stop thinking "pacific" and "south america" so much...

have it in australia. And who wouldnt want the comp in their town i dont get it and it would be sik if they make artificial reefs

I like it .. insted of SEARCh they do RESEARCH. Artificial reefs! Nice!

I think its a joke if the search goes to Bali or G-Land, they haven't exactly searched very hard have they? Take it somewhere cold eg. inside the arctic circle. As i would like to see the top 44 surf in cold water, for a change.

come on! bali a search your mental.everyones been 2 bali and all the waves have been found.mexico was sick but a fluke.you need 2 get to ireland as there some world class waves there ie rileys and watch pancho go over the falls...kook.so come and get searching or let me do it. cheers matt...

Windiwoppa!

dunedin new zealand or even more south where the real sick waves are

Really, BALI or GLAND? Thats kinda gay, we have all either, surfed, seen photos or seen videos of both GLAND and BALI. BOOOOORING! Nothing new there. There are sick waves in India and Sri Lanka. Everyone is frothing at the idea of Peru. God so many waves out there. Where ever you go Rip Curl, make sure it's a SEARCH. I used to look forward to your search ads in all the mags, where you would show some mysterious left point break in the middle of nowhere. If it's not a great spot this year I fear this event will become a thing of the past as what happend to the Quik Pro at GLAND!

submitted a comment few weeks ago. What a load of crap that you can even contemplate holding it at Grajagan or Ulus? I think you need someone who has a more adventurous lust for finding waves few know of. I do understand that you want a spot that is not gonna dish up those 1-2 foot shitty "WQS" waves and it must be consistent but you gonna be doing search events till the end of life - can you seriously expect to find awesome waves for the next 100/200+ years. bro go to Russia, Iceland - we dont care if the waves are piddle, that aint the point. like as you said - we gonna take it to places never/rarely surfed before.fine, go to Ulus or Gland and surf with the many forein poohs and packets drifting around. Lets hit these locations in the future: Papua New Guinea, Madeira, Virgin Islands, Peru, West Africa (Cape Town, Namibia), Viti Levu, Tuamotu Atolls, Taiwan, Madagascar, Oregan, British Columbia, Alaska, East Indo, Morrocco, Guatamala, El Salvador, to name a shitload. Buyaksaha.....not!!!!!

Give me a break. What kind of search is Bali. MIght as well go to Hawaii,whats the difference!This would be a joke to everybody. Go search already, don't go someplace every surfer in the world has been already.

Hey people, Those are PROFESSIONAL surfers, why would they have it in tiny Euro beach breaks? They have to get GOOD and Consistant waves-Europe,east coast USA,Vietnam,Nova Scotia, just dont have the waves!

I just saw the little article about this in the mag last night. I really hope that the event is not held in Bali. I can see how it serves as a last minute fix to being denied in NZ and WOz, but Dayrak is right, Bali is not a "Search" location. I'll be in bali on my honeymoon for the entire waiting period and i already booked my bungalow in bukit! I wouldn't have booked it at that time if i knew that the top 45 and all the hoolabaloo that goes along with it would overrun bingin and ulus. the whole peninsula would be overrun!!! if it goes on in bali, i guess we'll be heading to caangu and/or lombok. please rip curl! do it somewhere else.

This is in response to DAMO DEG... You are right, we don't get GOOD and CONSISTENT WAVES so please tell everyone not to travel to Nova Scotia this season. It would make life much easier for us whom want the bad waves to ourselves.

Somebody mentioned Rapa Nui! Waves are sloppy and very inconsistent! Those shots in the movie step into liquid are just a fluke and result of a large swell that come every now and then. The location is really isolated and not worth the effort just to surf 2 feet Motu Hava. I could think of more than 200 spots to hit rather than Rapa Nui. Caroline Islands looks perfect, hollow, consistent and reachable.

elands bay, west coast, south africa. consistent left hand barrels comparable to j -bay. a small town that could really do with the income. perfect. or madagascar....

Go away rip curl, no one needs you, keep away from NZ. St Clair Boy shut up and go get some fat ones out at Clair, pfft!

although i agree that Bali and G-Land would be cop-outs, everyone's missing some key points. first, the waiting period, smack in the middle of the northern hemisphere summer, severely limits your options. no chance for Canada, Morocco, Europe, or most of the Caribbean (Barbados would still be an option, and a pretty good one. i would love to see Brazil replaced with Barbados. Soup Bowls is classic, challenging, and most importantly it's about as consistent as waves get in the Atlantic, plus there's a real-deal big-wave option on the north coast in case of giant swell. think Sunset). maybe they could go to New Caledonia and we could watch Jeremy Flores get spanked on his home turf. Peru is definitely a viable option. the problem with much of Africa is infrastructure, and Cape Town is way too windy and sharky to make it worth the risk. Sri Lanka is out for political reasons. nix Philippines for consistency, two-week flatspells and surf contests don't mix. Indo is a solid option, but to Hell wi

what about a search event in Europe? I would like to see the top 45 surfing waves at the Lofoten Islands of Norway. Especially as Rip Curl should be interested in further promoting the H-bomb...

Would have hated to see gnarloo over-run with the worlds top 44 surfers and film crew. Onya ripcul for respecting the locals

These are weak posts... The Rip Curl Search is fully aware of environmental impacts brought to the local venue. Props to Aus and NZL for stopping the event from coming to their area? NO PROPS, just a bunch of misguided tree huggers!!!! Bali is an excellent choice to see the top 48 showcase their talents... Oh yeah, I get it, all surfers are going to board a plane and fly half way across the planet to Aus, then fly all the way across that continent to Perth to then drive 13 hours up to Gnaraloo and 'take over' the break. Gnaraloo would have been sick, now Bali will be...

come to ireland...weve got sick waves try rileys in co.clare its a big heavy lefthander with massive barrels

hey come on! lets give bali ago! the people have gone though lots of shit over the last few years! lets support them! yeeeeeha!

bry oceans, your Seppo-centric attitude reveals itself clearly when you write, "Oh yeah, I get it, all surfers are going to board a plane and fly half way across the planet to Aus, then fly all the way across that continent to Perth to then drive 13 hours up to Gnaraloo and 'take over' the break." As if "all surfers have to embark from U.S. to "take over Gnarloo. You're a dunce mate. There's quite a healthy surf population in Australia in case you didn't know; in fact, there's even quite a healthy surf population in West Oz alone. The "world" is not just in your backyard. It is your kind of myopic thinking that is misguided; not the thinking of your so-called "tree huggers." I'd be willing to bet that the surfing tree huggers you're debasing would never be so ignorant as to consider their little corner of their Earth the center of the surf world, or the center of the world for that matter, or "theirs" for that matter.

They're not gonna hold in in Europe cos its the middle of summer and the waves suck in summer! What about Nias, or a mobile event in the Mentawais? For one they could do with some investment in infrastructure. Has to be somewhere guaranteed to get quality waves because there are already enough let downs every year on tour.

RE-Search, and build an AR. Spread out the crowds. We got beaches with loads of swell but usually shit banks. I'm sure theres 1000's of places that fit this criteria. Put a bloody add on the reef if you want. Think of all the news bulletins and free advertising. Sick idea. Build lots of em...

Gnaraloo and New Zeland are out, I think the best option could be a mobile event at Mentawais as someone call it, there you keep the essence of the search, but the problem is the logistics over there I guess. Then you have Bali, a mobile event between Padang - Ulu - Keramas, etc. For 2009 think in North Peru or Galapagos ( pshyco waves and big barrels, and surfing in a unique place in the world )

How about Pismo Pier on California Central Coast. Its an epic wave

At this time of the year South swells in the Pacific are really heavy. I would love to see this contest in waves like Punta Lobos- Pichilemu, or Rapa-Nui, the waves there are really heavy, the pros will have to give it all in that places.

Rip curl search - why not Pipeline? I heard that there is some waves there sometimes. Come on ripcurl try a bit harder.....Bali for christ's sake! Maybe if it was 1974 you caould call bali somthing like "the search". The search for profits more like...

How about p-pass in micronesia?

tell em to go look for themselves, ive been to most of the spots you have all mentioned, dragged my girlfreind around for years and now my two kids backback with us in the true meaning of search!!! wake up rip curl and dont spoil whats left for the true adventurer and stick to the obvious. yas f...d up mexico ,dont do it again somewhere else......

the contest should take place over the honey island in brazil, there are awesome tubes in the waves called canto da vo maria!

Trigg point in Perth. Doesn't get over head high so it would be safe for everyone and has great accommodation. Its a semi secret spot so don't tell anyone

Trigg, are you serious.....Semi secret!!!!! Semi secret to about half a million. Rip curl would be laughing at you. WHEN ITS ON ITS ON, JUST LIKE EVERY OTHER PLACE IN THE WORLD. 2foot perfect barrels to 15foot massive slabs. Its on when its on. I reckon they go antartica....

I think the last great frontier in Australia is undoubtedly Cactus. There's a variety of setups, and winter is the best time of year. With the shark attacks in the region, the place has turned into a ghost town, and many of the feral locals have grown old. None the less, it looks like Ulu's it will be - not much of a search.

Puerto Escondido, the Mexican Pipeline, is the best option. 2 years ago Puerto Escondido was one of the best stop ASP ever.

everyone complains that rip curl hasn't searched if they go to ulu's or gland. and everyone also complained when they took it to mexico to an epic point break which is now crowded everyday that it breaks because of the attention rip curl brought. I'd rather they didn't expose unknown breaks. I'm happy with them having a floating license but maybe they should just change the name of their "search" slogan. Anyway, chile and reunion weren't secret spots either

screw ripcurl. they ruin everywhere they touch. just imagine all the surfers on trips to bali and cant surf cuz of the contest.

I'm amazed at the ignorance shown on this board. How many of you have actually organised a small function let alone a surfing contest?!!? International laws and regulations, logistics, flights, web casting, local communities to please, accomodation, food... the list goes on! With Rip Curl heading to Bali this year, they're helping a developing nation get back on its feet after being decimated by terrorism by promoting one of the worlds premier surfing spots - Uluwatu. I'm sure the pro's aren't complaining. So what if Rip Curl make a few dollars... they are an organised and hard working company. If it was you cashing in, I'm sure you wouldn't be throwing your keyboard courage around, whinging like spoilt 5 year olds...

im glad they not having the comp in wa,its already getting more an more crowded even in winter in the south west,i seen wat happened to the wave in mexico,,its a joke how many throfers are all over it ,,its a good thing if they hold the comp in bali anywho they need the money,it will help the locals out,bali is so overcrowded these days in wont make a difference,catcha im going up north ooowwweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Should be called the "'Sploit" I reckon. I agree, Bali is a lame choice but I'll also be stoked if they don't fk up another semi secret gem like the one in Mexico. I was in north Peru in '98 doing my own search when they filmed Chocolate Barrels Liquid Trips. Lucked into the best, most consistent waves of my life but the funny thing was, the Search surf crew who were comfortably put up at a nice hotel on the point slept in every day while it smoked like a reverse Kirra in the early morning glass and got out there about 11 am when the sea breezes were on it 'cause that was when the light was best for filming! "Search" my ass!

Rip Curl-Search and Destroy Ruining spots worldwide

Just had a look at the live video feed. First thought was "that's Bali"...2 seconds later, realized "that's Padang Padang!", Bali's world famous, most photogenic and crowded wave. The whole time the commentators are crapping on about "an undisclosed location somewhere in Indonesia" which is ridiculous enough in itself but even funnier when Mick Fanning blows them out of the water in an interview and says "stoked to be back in Bali, I've never surfer Padang before"...! Come on Ripcurl, WHO ARE YOU TRYING TO FOOL? Just admit you don't have the imagination to do a real "search". LAME.

Supertubos, Portugal, was a dream come true... very good waves and tubes...