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MENCOS (Arip Nurhidayat)
Insta: @mencosss
From: Batu Karas, Indonesia
Fins: 10.25” Cruise Control, 10” Hang Loose, 9.5” Come Back
Stance: Goofy
Favorite Wave: Batu Karas and Noosa, Australia
Favorite Food: Nasi Campur
Dream Surf Trip: Malibu, California
Contest Results: 3 x Indonesian & Asian Champion (2011, 2012, 2013)
Quarterfinals Padrol WSL 1000 Bali 2023
Surfers don’t come as smooth as Mencos when he’s gliding down a peeling wall. Watching him gracefully perform difficult and technical longboarding moves is like witnessing the finesse of Baryshnikov on a surfboard. Add to the fact that he switches stance at will between maneuvers on the same wave can make your head spin and your eyes cross. Surfing and board control like this made Mencos the 3x Indonesian and Asian Longboard Champion and undisputed switchfoot master.
Batu Karas has quickly become the capital of Indonesian longboarding, the Malibu wave of Asia if you will. This hotbed of 9 ft plus board surfriders came into the spotlight when the Godfather of Indonesian surfing, Arya Subyakto, took note of the surf potential in the area. The sandbottom peelers of the “BK” point were perfect for training and developing a serious longboard game.
Under Arya’s watchful eye a crop of millennial longboarders with world-class skills emerged from Java Island making a solid name for themselves and their hometown. Amongst contemporaries like Deni “Blackboy” Pirdaus, Dean Permana and “Kang” Husni Ridhawan (Indonesia’s first longboard champion), Mencos was there blazing the path at the beginning and continues to do so today.
His daily schedule includes catching prime set waves, coaching and teaching surfers and spreading Indonesian Aloha vibes. And of course family time and tending to village responsibilities and duties in his hometown of Batu Karas. With recent sponsorship from Bali’s Drifter surf shop and Ross Concept surfboards, competition is also coming back into the picture. Most recently he placed in the Quarterfinals at the Padrol WSL 1000 contest at Kuta Beach, Bali.
Previous competitive successes span the Asian region. Mencos has seen wins in India, The Phillipines, Thailand, Malaysia and around Indonesia plus Finals days in many more countries. He was crowned both Indonesian and Asian Longboard Champion three consecutive years in a row from 2011-2013. With all that traveling his dream surf trips still involve classic longboarding waves like Malibu and Noosa.
When the waves are on it is a sight to behold watching Mencos surf. From showcasing huge swithfoot carves that would make a shortboarder’s jaw drop to a nose game that Joel Tudor would approve. All while seamlessly connecting sections into the next maneuver with an effortless style and always lots of speed.
Early in the Makai Fins startup days Mencos was one of the first surfers that ever laid hands on our fins. Batu Karas was the perfect fin testing grounds and he quickly proved that our handmade fins were worthy. Clip after clip was sent over Indonesian internet streams showcasing truly world-class surfing on fins we had painstakingly hand-carried to him during the Covid Pandemic. It was well worth the effort as we saw what the possibilities and limitations were of each model. Starting with the Sickle Flex, Come Back, and Hang Loose, Mencos put them through some serious R&D pro testing.
To date Mencos calls the 10.25” Cruise Control his favorite fin for classic longboarding, his Ross Concept longboard and Makai Fin combo working together like bread and butter. From experience we have to agree that the fin does perform magnificently, but looks way better under his feet.
Side Note: It wasn’t until 2008 at the Asian Beach Games in Bali that longboarding was included in Indonesian competitive surfing. This was directly due to the buzzing longboard movement coming out of Batu Karas led by Arya, Husni and Mencos. From then on it was set as an official Indonesian and Asian surfing division, eventually hitting mainstream status.
