Sri Lanka’s hidden pearl
ASP Winner Julian Wilson enjoying a cool blonde after his victory
Julian and his supporters
The real party kicked off after the departure of the ASP winner Julian and lasted until sunrise. Sadly, our hero had to catch a flight the same night following his epic win at Arugam Bay
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Asp Winner Julian WILSON. Congratulated here by his youngest fan. Arugam Bay born Miss Leila
Australian Julian WILSON won the ASP Surf Contest at Arugam Bay today.
Perfect waves, beautiful settings and actions all round.
Residents of our remote, underdeveloped little Bay hereby congratulate Julian and thank him for coming to show his skills in this poor part of Sri Lanka.
More photos from ‘behind the world media scenes are appended below.
Yet another splendid day of surfing in sweltering heat on Sri Lanka’s lush south east coastline with the round of 24 completed and now just 16 surfers remain in the Association of Surfing Professionals 6-star rated SriLankan Airlines Pro.
Indonesia’s Dede Suryana was again in outstanding form and the 24 year-old west Javanese surfer is enthusiastic about his chances here.
“It is such a great wave and I’m getting more and more to know how the wave breaks and I really feel confident out there” said Suryana after his impressive heat win defeating South Africa’s Ricky Basnett. Continue reading ‘Final 16 surfers decided as Arugam Bay continues to pump at the SriLankan Airlines Pro’
Nat Young enjoying a superb wave as he comfortably wins his round two heat at Arugam Bay. Photo courtesy ASP Australasia/Robertson
“What a place for a contest” : Arugam Bay !
Sri Lanka, Arugam Bay: Fantastic conditions at Arugam Bay for day three of the Association of Surfing Professionals six-star rated SriLankan Airlines Pro.
A slight drop in swell with waves at 3 to 5 feet (1.5m) but perfectly angled on this incredible point break set-up saw the world’s top surfers shredding the long clean perfect waves as round two was completed and the field is now down to the final 24 surfers.
Number one seed Drew Courtney summed up the feeling of all the surfers competing here after advancing through his heat.
“What a place for a contest,” exclaimed Courtney.
The waves line-up superbly on this point and it’s like a machine peeling through with section after section standing up and allowing major moves – I love the place – the people, the wild-life, everything about Sri Lanka” added Courtney.
There were no major surprises today with all Continue reading ‘Arugam Bay Turns On For SriLankan Airlines Pro’
Voted as the numero uno surf destination in the Asian zone by Floating Asia, Arugam Bay will now host an international surf tournament from June 18 to 24. The event is spearheaded by SriLankan Airlines and will feature 128 competitors from all parts of the globe including USA, Australia, Spain, Portugal, New Zealand, UK, Germany etc.
The contestants comprise former champions as well as some of the best surfers in the world.
Their moves will be graded by 22 internationally recognized surfing referees.
The event is conducted by the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP), the global governing body for surfing. They are the key players in putting together world class surfing events like the World Championship Tour alias the ASP World Tour.
Located in the dry zone of Sri Lanka’s South-East coast, shrouded by the wide spread wetlands, lagoons and jungles encompassing a variety of flora and fauna lies Arugam Bay, a fishing village two and a half kilometers south of Pottuvil. The area belongs to the Ampara district.
Overall humid climate prevails at Arugam Bay. A slight breeze sweeps by from the North-East. Usually, showers are expected in September and October. The surfing season is at its peak between June and October. This is when many holidaymakers and surfers hit the beach. Diving is also a favourite pastime with visitors because the area comprises many ship-wrecks that are a challenge to explore. You can also catch sight of wild elephants in the long, deserted beach leading down to Crocodile Rock.
Fishing and farming are the main occupations at Arugam Bay. Continue reading ‘Sri Lankan Airlines Pro Surf 2010 @ Arugambay’
(0)Day one of the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) 6-star rated SriLankan Airlines Pro at Arugam Bay was officially placed on-hold as contest organizers await an expected good pulse in swell tomorrow to begin the first ever ASP event in Sri Lanka.
Arugam Bay. Main Point
The consistent 1m (3 to 4 feet) clean surf that greeted the opening day was certainly good for surfing but with bigger waves forecast in the coming days along with an extremely favourable forecast for surf in the coming week organizers are keen to run the event in the very best and biggest surf and expect to be off and running first thing tomorrow morning.
“It’s very contestable out there today but both myself and ASP Head Judge Richie Porta agree that with better waves likely tomorrow we’re keen to begin this special event Continue reading ‘SriLankan Airlines Pro at Arugam Bay set to begin tomorrow with Sri Lankan wild-cards decided’
….A also a paradise for party- and wild animals as well:
ARUGAM BAY !
Anyone crossing the bridge will realise immediately that Arugam Bay, if only because of its unique weather conditions, is an ideal holiday location. This particular corner of the island is protected from the west monsoon by the natural barrier of the mountain ridge around Monaragala and the great Pottuvil Lagoon acts just as effectively as a shield against the east monsoon. These factors working together explain why this particular region enjoys an average of 330 days of sunshine each year – something which will not be found anywhere else in Asia.
One of the 330 sunsets in a single year
The region is favoured with two major rivers and is therefore never in danger of becoming too arid.
These unusual geographic conditions together with the winds and currents around the coast were first discovered and recognised by surfers in the 1960s and the region quickly became one of the top ten most popular surfing venues in the world. From the end of March until the beginning of October and even for a few days in November, water temperatures range from between 24 and 28 degrees (no need for neoprene suits) and with waves reaching 5 metres the conditions are ideal for surfing. No sharks have ever been sighted in these waters, but occasionally wild elephants from the neighbouring national park have been observed in close proximity to the beaches.
After the discovery of the ideal “right hand” surf break at Surf Points, a number of other equally attractive surfing locations became popular.
Arugam Bay seems to work like a magnet and there are many visitors who come back year after year.
The last 30 years of bitter civil war have not stopped dedicated surfers from returning every year and it is this community that has kept the small coastal town alive.
Surfers and security forces were always good friends
The hippies of the past have now all gone a little grey and mutated to a respectable regular clientele, but they add in their own special way to the fascinating atmosphere of this place. These days, they still join in with about a thousand or so happy visitors who come to take part in the 48 hour Arugam Bay “Full Moon Parties” that provide a more spontaneous alternative to the now stage managed so-called “Happenings” in Koh Phangan or Goa.
Arugam's FMP revival
And who would be surprised to learn that, in spite of the worst Tsunami disaster on record, an International Surf Championship took place here in July 2005 with competitors from Australia, England, South Africa and Israel. Many locations now have shops specialising in providing equipment for water sports and a complete outfit can be hired for as little as 500 Rs per day.
It is not only the ocean that provides opportunities for surfing, you can also surf the internet and here you will find more discussion groups and visitor communities dealing with Arugam Bay than any other place in Sri Lanka. Some examples are: Continue reading ‘Arugam Bay – A Paradise for Surfers’
(0)Welcoming all surf maniacs and beach souls!!!
The Association of Surfing Professionals have chosen Arugam Bay, one of Sri Lanka’s most beautiful locations to conduct this year’s World Qualifying Series competition.
Participation of 128 world class competitors representing Australia, USA, Germany, Portugal, Costa Rica, Ireland, Italy, Indonesia, Hawaii, South Africa, Great Britain, Japan, Puerto Rico, France, Spain, Portugal, Brazil, New Zealand and Tahiti has increased the attractiveness of the event.
The event will be web cast live and a television show along with television news feeds will be distributed internationally throughout the event.
UndergrounD http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=31946148801&ref=ts
and Offshore Life http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=19450228912&ref=ts
together with
The SVH – Siam View Hotel in Arugam Bay www.arugam.com/ are hosting a whole week of parties & chill out sessions every night featuring some of Colombo’s coolest Djs beginning on the 19th & climaxing in a pre full moon celebration on the 24th of June @ the end of the world qualifying surf week.
Chill out is on the cards for the 25th although everything is flexibly planned and it may well turn into another all nighter! An after party for all hard core party animals the next night is a possibility too! 
In addition, Siam View Hotel will televise all FIFA world cup games, live, throughout the week on big screens with surround sound, overlooking the main surf point. Continue reading ‘Arugam Bay Surf Week Parties’
(0)Hi Everyone,
Im finally arrived to Arugam Bay in Sri Lanka after 8 long hours on the road for only 300km (that was the longest 300km in my life)
On the road i was traveling with Nathan Edge,his brother and Aritz.The driver was really cool and he was speaking perfect english…
The road was really hard between jungle and busy traffic in town,everyone here drive really crazy,not fast but everyone overtaking no matter if an other car or truck coming on the other side.
The country is really beautiful and people are really friendly,we stop on the good local restaurant for lunch,with good SPICY CURRY CHIKEN and amazing tea..perfect 1st meal!!!!!!!
We also see maybe 10 elephants and a views monkey on the side of the road,i was so stocked to see some elephants,they were really fat!!!
I’m arrived at the sunset at my hotel, the hotel is really nice place just on the beach and maybe 20min walk to the famous spot or ARUGAM BAY!!!This morning the waves were nice,small but no wind and good warm-up!!
The contest start tomorrow, i’m surfing heat 22 so maybe no contest for me tomorrow….
i think it’s gone be a funny trip!!!
see ya
romain
source:
http://romaincloitre.blogspot.com/2010/06/road-to-arugam-bay.html
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A large assembly of dedicated Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) athletes are now making their way to the exotic south east coastline of Sri Lanka for the inaugural ASP six star rated SriLankan Airlines Pro which is set to begin on Friday at Arugam Bay.
It’s the first ever ASP event in Sri Lanka as ASP Australasia breaks new ground venturing into a territory that holds fascination with stories dating back to the 1970′s of pioneering surfers finding super consistent and perfect waves on this lush island.
The June monsoonal winds and a very active winter Indian Ocean combine to make Arugam Bay the surf location that it is and the field descending on the break this week will put the wave to the test like never before as they chase essential six star rating points and a prize pool of $US145 000!
Elite world tour surfers Drew Courtney, Dan Ross and Blake Thornton head the field with an array of international talent like recent six star winner Aritz Aranburu (Spain), former ASP world champion Sunny Garcia (Hawaii), South Africa’s David Weare, Masotoshi Ohno from Japan, Richard Christie (NZ) and Alan Stokes (UK) to name just a few of the surfers heading for this wave.
Even the contest organizers are uncertain what to expect from Arugam Bay however contest director Dane Jordan from ASP Australasia is optimistic the venue will deliver.
“I’ve spent five days there in three years preparing for this event and I have seen it break with excellent shape and consistency.
” I’ve surfed the break and it’s a super high performance wave – I’m not so familiar to know the exact prime swell directions, tides, winds and all else but indications are there’s a 17 second period 8 feet south swell forecast for Saturday and I’m imagining that could be an ideal starting point” exclaimed Jordan.
“I’ll liaise closely with a good bunch of local surfers and we have a very healthy waiting period to get the best out of this and the rest we’ll leave to the surfers who I know will shred the daylight out of these waves.”
Jordan also announced the final make -up of the wild card surfers into this event headed by exciting Japanese surfer Osawa Nobuyuki and backed up by equally exciting Australian’s Mitch Colborne, Davey Cathels and Chris Friend.
Extra wild-cards will be awarded to Sri Lankan surfers who will compete under an ASP assisted trials for these positions.
Asanka, widely regarded as the number 1 surfer in Sr iLanka and also owner of the restaurant and land right on the point is a favourite to take one of these positions and in his best English commented on the opportunity and the event saying -
“I think good the tournament for our boys!
“All the local boys are happy.
“It gives us chance to make our surfing better .
“Also for rest of Sri Lanka to see how good our boys surf and how much surfing good for country.”
Like all new locations that ASP surfers explore, there will be rich and positive sharing’s of all things surfing in a quality event that should benefit all.
The SriLankan Airlines Pro will be live webcast and will include a quality produced and globally distributed television show along with television newsfeeds distributed internationally throughout the event as well as highest quality digital images focusing on the event, the environment, wildlife and of course the abundance of surf from the region.
The SriLankan Airlines Pro is made possible thanks to SriLankan Airlines; Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, Lanka Sportreizen, Dialog, Billabong and ASP Australasia
While the surfers pray for ideal conditions, the kiters pray for WIND.
/kitesurfsrilanka.blogspot.com
Ok, lets come to compromise…wind in the afternoons at least in Arugam Bay. Pretty excited to witness a star studded event in Arugam Bay this weekend. Its epic and great for Sri Lanka. Hope it might not bring too much publicity or else we might have to share the waves with every Tom, Dick and Harry! Life….
In other news, be prepared for a Fun Kiting Event powered by Faith Kiteboarding to be held on the 26th of June in Kalpitiya.
Got to pack the bags now, see you guys in heaven – AKA Arugam Bay!
source:
http://kitesurfsrilanka.blogspot.com/2010/06/warning-kitesurfers-might-steal-asp.html
(0)It’s not long since our last post, but I realised after speaking to my sister last night and listening to her laugh that you might appreciate some photographic evidence of our local frog problem. As Stu described in his last post, we have been arguing with a large local family of frogs about whether or not squatters rights apply in Sri Lanka. We are fairly insistent that they move on, but they clearly felt that they’ve been here for a while (the house has been empty for at least 3 months) and have been strongly resisting any attempts to move them on.
After having turfed the whole family out once already by shooing them out through the front door only for them to re-emerge through one of the open windows hours later, we decided that something a little more drastic was needed. Continue reading ‘Frogs in a bag @ Arugam Bay’
Sri Lanka – Surf Center
photo: taken from the Surf-the-Nations blog and web site
The vision of a Surf Center in Arugam Bay, Sir Lanka was birthed when STN sent a team to help with the tsunami of 2004. A STN Surf Center would be an outreach center housing a permanent team with the ability to receive short term teams.
At the center, local people will be taught how to repair surfboards, will be taught English as a second language, will be able to train locals in food services by building a small restaurant on the property; will create a place to “hang out” to watch surf movies; etc, etc.
We are sending $500 of the Jedidiah donation to our team in Sri Lanka for the Surf Center work/building.
The property is secure and we have finally successful dug our well (the well was a major project taking three attempts) so we now have water on property. Buildings still need to be erected so the base can become a place where people can live and gather together.
Sri Lanka is a big surfing destination for Israeli as well as other international surfers so we’re looking forward to how this will impact them as well as the local community.
This summer there will be a 6 star surf contest event with Sri Lanka Airlines right in “our” little village, Arugam Bay.
Disbursement of the Jedidiah Donation:
Bangladesh Surf Clubhouse: $500.00
Sri Lanka Surf Center: $500.00
Wahiawa Transformation: $724.43
STN Wahiawa Headquarters: $15,519.00
Total Donation $17,243.43
For more about Surfing The Nations, head to www.surfingthenations.com
(1)SriLankan Airlines is bringing one of the worlds most glamorous and highly rated surfing events to Sri Lanka, part of the airlines multi-faceted strategy to position the island as one of the worlds most sought after travel destinations.
The SriLankan Airlines Pro 2010 tournament will draw some of the top stars in the surfing world to Arugam Bay from June 18 to 24, among the 128 competitors from the United States, Australia, Spain, Portugal, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Germany and other countries.
SriLankan Airlines Pro 2010 is expected to showcase the picturesque southeast resort of Arugam Bay as one of the most beautiful beaches in the world, positioning it as a destination for all types of beach lovers and not just for surfers.
It will also generate massive publicity around the world for Sri Lanka, already experiencing a continuous boom in tourism over the last 12 months.
Courtesy: DailyNews
Posted on Friday, June 11, 2010 @ 09:21:53 LKT by SaNDuN
The ‘SriLankan Airlines Pro Surf 2010′ tournament will be held in Arugam Bay from 18 – 24 June and will draw 128 competitors, some of them among the best known stars in the sport of surfing, from United States, Australia, Spain, Portugal, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Germany.
The event is being conducted by the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP), the global governing body for the sport. Twenty-two international surfing referees will judge the event.
SriLankan Airlines is the Principal Sponsor supported by Sri Lanka Tourism Promotions Bureau (SLTPB) and Lanka Sportreizen (LSR) is the ground handler. Competitors will be shown a glimpse of Sri Lanka’s many attractions in Negombo and Belihul Oya on their way to Arugam Bay.
http://serendib.btoptions.lk/article.php?artid=100
(1)by Madubashini Jayawardena
It was a long journey; we (eleven of us )set off from Eco-v office at 4.30 a.m on Friday on 30th April and reached our destination around 2.30 p.m. Our destination was Lahugala Kitulana National Park (situated approx. 15 min. West of Arugam Bay).
Eco-v-Team: "Going to be a Force"
This monsoon forest lies in the basin of Heda Oya, 16 km inland from the coastal town Pottuvil in Eastern Province. The Pottuvil-Monaragala trunk road runs through the south eastern sector of the Park.
Officers of the Lahugala office of the Department of Wildlife Conservation of Sri Lanka warmly welcomed us. They served us a steaming cup of tea and we served them biscuits. So we had a tea party-discussion under the shade of a huge Mango tree. Park warden Mr. Gajaweera briefed us the history and the current situation of the park. Continue reading ‘CO-V visits Lahugala Kitulana and Kumana National Parks’
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Arugam Forum
Former Discussion Forum – now replaced by arugam.info
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Arugam Photo Galleries on Picasa
Huge and often updated photo collection from Arugam Bay
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Old Website
Link to the old website of the Arugam Bay Hotel Association
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Press Coverage
Press Coverage of the situation in Arugam Bay
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Surf Forecast for Arugam Bay
Surf Forecast for Arugam Bay in real time on magicseaweed.com
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ALIYA Wildlife Project
Sri Lanka’s Wild life Experts
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