Tony is our resident web analyst + developer and this is his first experience in participating in a regatta. He has mentioned that before this he thought ‘regatta’ meant a name of a place before learning it was a sporting event. The following adventure details his journey from Indonesia all the way to Langkawi, Malaysia for the Royal Langkawi International Regatta 2016.

Shaiful, Tony and Zana at the Royal Langkawi International Regatta 2016

Shaiful, Tony and Zana catching some waves.

Going to Kuala Lumpur

I begun my morning with prayers, resisting the urge to get some extra sleep and making some final preparations before leaving my house. Understanding that my flight departs at 10:58 AM, I wanted to get to the airport early. Using GrabCar, I got picked up from my place and arrived at Soekarno Hatta Airport at 8:30 AM. All that time in-between meant that I could catch up on my downloaded anime. When it was time, I boarded the airplane and traveled across the sea to Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

Hanging Out with Shaiful

My flight to KL was on a Saturday and the following flight I would need to take to get to Langkawi was on a Sunday; this meant that I had one day in KL to explore. Shaiful offered me a place to bunk in during my stay at KL (thanks master!). We spent some time at his place talking about Indonesian and Malaysian topics whilst munching down ‘pisang goreng’ (banana fritters) and sipping hot tea prepared by Shaiful’s mother. Later that evening, Shaiful drove us to Aimar Corner to indulge in ‘char kuey teow’ (a noodle dish). That was my first time having it and two plates were finished before I realized it. Once we got back, we did some work on the Langkawi Regatta website.

Initial Thoughts About Langkawi

The following day, we took a flight from KL to Langkawi. I was amazed by how similar the island looked like when compared to the south side of Bali with its numerous cafes, motels, hotels and foreign travelers. I found the vibe very good and started liking this country more!

My Awesome Team

My involvement during the regatta was to update the event website’s timeline on all the action that occurred from morning up to the evening. This also included popular social media channels such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. The updates came in fast, by the minutes in fact. During midnight, we would prepare the timeline for the following day’s events. Teamwork was key here and without it, things wouldn’t have gone smoothly.

Before we proceed any further, a small introduction to the team:

Stampede team at the Royal Langkawi International Regatta 2016

Dahlia, Zana, Shaiful, Tony and Iwan ready for what’s in store!

  1. Iwan. The leader of the team with the most experience about regatta among us. Hence why a lot of people in the club knew him.
  2. Shaiful. My master, who gave me his advice regarding all matters on updating the timeline. His role was to update the website.
  3. Dahlia. The project manager and designer who helped prepare all the visual assets that were used for the event.
  4. Zana. The social media manager, who prepared all the content to be sent via social media.

We were like the Power Rangers!

I had a good time in Langkawi while working in the yacht club and hanging out with Dov and Shaza (thanks for the BBQ). The guys and I spent a lot of time talking on various topics, one of which was an old Indonesian song that both Iwan and Shaiful knew. It was interesting to find out that they knew quite a bit on Indonesian music, at times they knew tracks that I never knew. These talks happened mostly while working as well as in the room where we all crashed for the night.

On the Race Days

During the yacht races I did not really know what was going on, but I think it all went well judging by how fast the yachts were skimming through the seas. Obviously the one that was going the fastest had to be winning.

There was a heavy downpour on Thursday and that could have been the cause of why Friday had such small winds while Saturday had almost nothing. Because of that however, the race had to be cancelled and due to its cancellation, on Day 4, the team with the lead position would be crowned the winner. It was a pity that some teams lost the chance to catch up due to the cancelled race day.

Common Scene at the Royal Langkawi International Regatta 2016

On the 4th day of the race, the yachts sailed very closely to the marina. Iwan mentioned that this was the first time it was happening and it looked beautiful. It was also that day where I got the chance to enter the sea with Shaiful and Zana. Shaiful prepared anti-seasick medicine but we couldn’t drink it because we had to consume it at least 1 hour in advance, something we only noticed 15 minutes before. On the boat, I told myself mentally to just keep looking ahead and not the side or the back to prevent myself from turning over. I didn’t want to become a spectacle if it happened but surprisingly I didn’t feel anything even after reaching the shore.

On the last day, Dahlia had to rest because of food poisoning. It was a pity because there was a lot of food that night. I had a lot of delicious satay which had a different flavor from the ones I was familiar with in Indonesia. The event closed in a fireworks finale and the guests and participants invited themselves onto the dance floor.

Farewell Langkawi

The final day had arrived and it was time for me to return back home. It was a Sunday and my flight was booked at 11.25 AM. Shaza picked me, Shaiful and Zana up from our lodging and we left at 10 AM to go to the airport. Shaza shared with me a myth which mentioned that someone who travels to Langkawi will return back to Langkawi (and she proved it!). As for myself, the next time I’ll go to Malaysia/Langkawi with my own little family.

Thank you everyone at Stampede for having me at this event. See you next year!