HISTORY
The Camel Trophy was held in Indonesia four times on 3 different islands. The first was held on the island of Sumatra, the second was in Kalimantan, the third was in Sulawesi and then the fourth was back in Kalimantan with a different route. Around 2019, they (Sandglow) started brainstorming ideas while developing a concept to hold an event that aims to revive the spirit and true sense of adventure of the Camel Trophy. When they first created this concept, Sandglow had not yet formed. At that time (during the Berau Tropical Challenge 2018 event) it was just a crazy and creative idea from Greefion Kamil (Indonesia 4×4 Expedition), Saeful Hasyim and Tandon Padmodimuljo (Carnal Production) to explore and be able to elevate the beauty of Indonesia to the eyes of the world. However, they also realize that to make this crazy idea happen, they need energy and thoughts from other professionals.
The three initiators of this activity came from the same club, namely LRCI (Land Rover Club Indonesia). Therefore they offered the Club to join, participate and will use the LRCI name as the organizer of the activity even though in practice anyone may and can join this activity. They all share the same passion as the initial goal, because the Camel Trophy is a valuable heritage for Indonesia.
Then they held meetings to discuss the initial ideas as well as adding other inputs related to the planned event. During this trip, many people contributed, including Adi Santosa, Syamsu Setiabudi, James Budiono, Thomas Pfister and Bambang Pratesa. This was before the election of the LRCI board in mid-2019 which turned out that after that several people went in and out of this small group.
ROUTE SURVEY
September 2019 during the LRCI Anniversary in Puncak, LRCI officially joined the boat and become the organizer of the event known as the Tribute To Camel Trophy, a tribute to the legendary event, Camel Trophy Sumatra in 1981. Not long after, Fion Kamil departed to survey Camel’s original route Trophy 1981 which will be used by the participants.
In Jambi with Taufiq Waligar (far left), one of the founder of Berau Tropical Challenge.
Due to limited funds and crews, the route survey was carried out using 1 (one) Land Rover vehicle. Not alone, Fion was accompanied by Syamsu Setiabudi, Mang Hardi and Mardi Jordison. For one month they went in and out of the track and connected two Legs which would become one lane for the Tribute To Camel Trophy. The Leg 1 from Jambi – Pekanbaru and Leg 2 from Pekanbaru – Berastagi. Just like the 1981 Camel Trophy route, only this one is reversed.
After returning from the survey, the good news spread and everyone agreed to hold a Dry-Run in Leg 1 which would involve no more than ten vehicles. Not just ordinary ten vehicles, but a strict selection was also carried out, because the Dry-Run was included in a series of survey activities, so the vehicles had to be fit and not hinder them during the trip.
DRY-RUN LEG-1
How do you make an event feels like the real thing without any of the officials having experienced the atmosphere of being in the 1981 Camel Trophy?
Of course, by inviting someone who participated in the Camel Trophy Event!
Toshiharu Urabe (far left) Japan team Camel Trophy veteran, with Bule (middle) dan Tandon
Toshiharu Urabe (Toshi) a Japanese adventurer, is a good friend of Tandon. Toshi is a veteran of the Japanese team – Camel Trophy 1987 in Madagascar and later served as Official in Camel Trophy events until 1996. After several contacts and exchanging ideas, Toshi agreed to come from Tokyo as an advisor for the Tribute To Camel Trophy event.
In December 2019 as many as ten Land Rover vehicles of various types departed from Jakarta to Jambi to start a journey re-tracking the 1981 Camel Trophy route. The following are the participants:
Land Rover Defender 110” Adrijanto – Driver, Andiman Ahmad (Nchex) – Co-driver, dr. Iqbal – Medic, Mang Hardi – Head Mechanic
Land Rover Discovery T Mirzalsyah – Driver, Harry Oktavian – Co-driver, Fion Kamil – Event Director, Budi Kurniawan (Bujang) – Navigator
Land Rover Lightweight 110” Rahadian Mahendra – Driver, Harry Bo – Co-driver
Land Rover Series 88” Hybrid Haji Minto – Driver, Dede – Co-driver, Fakhrur Rozi – Crew
Range Rover P38 Saeful Hasyim – Driver, Budi Saptowibowo – Co-driver, Iskandar – Crew
Land Rover Defender 110” Tontong – Driver, Mardi – Co-driver, Pengendum – Suku Anak Dalam, Penyuruk – Suku Anak Dalam
Land Rover Discovery Matu Adam – Driver, Mufti Oksana (Bule) – Co-driver, Tandon Padmodimuljo – Producer / DoP, Toshiharu Urabe – CT’87 Veteran
Land Rover 90” DB Song (Kong Abi) – Driver, A Nasution (Ucok) – Co-driver
Land Rover109” Hybrid Syamsu Setiabudi – Driver, Thomas Pfister – Fotografer, Tober Hasudungan – Cameraman, Wawan – Crew
Range Rover P38 James Budiono – Driver, Teguh – Co-driver
The event was supported by Disyon Toba as the owner of the Consina Outdoor brand, so that during the Dry-Run they didn’t have to worry about the uniforms of the participants.
Morning routine before leaving for Lipatkain.
Equator Monument (Khatulistiwa) in Lipatkain still in renovation progress.
This is the route that will be used in the Sumatra Tribute event later on, the locations and landmarks that will be passed along the way are more or less the same. It’s just that there are differences in conditions now and then. For example, the Equator Monument in Lipatkain which is still under renovation.
The Dry-Run journey took approximately 10 days to complete and the documentation was fully supported for by the Carnal Production team, Tandon as DoP – Producer and Tober Hasudungan as Cameraman.
The use of the Camel Trophy logo, even when it was just for a Tribute event, is related to Camel cigarettes. According to government regulations in Indonesia, there are limitations to the form of sponsorship of cigarette manufacturers in certain activities. Finally, after the Dry-Run, they changed the logo and name of the event. Previously using the Tribute To Camel Trophy with the Camel Trophy Logo, now has became Sumatra Tribute 1981. In early March 2020 the name Sumatra Tribute was officially announced during a gathering and exhibition of Dry-Run photos.
SURVEY LEG-2 MEDAN - JAMBI, MARET 2020
Unlike the first survey, the second survey trip had one additional vehicle, so two vehicles were shipped from Jakarta to Belawan, Medan. The team consists of only two cars :
Land Rover Discovery 300 TDi Bambang Pratesa (Gembil) – Driver, Syamsu Setiabudi – Co-Driver, Fion Kamil – Event Director, Mang Hardi – Head Mechanic; Land Rover Series III 109” Canvas Mufti Oksana (Bule) – Driver, Tandon Padmodimuljo – Producer / DoP, Mardi Jordison – Co-Driver / Mechanic.
Arriving in Medan, they were greeted by Wahyu Ginting and friends from the Land Rover Club Medan (LRCM) and not to forget tasting the local delicacies and coffee. After lunch they prepare to be moving to the next point, Berastagi.
Unlike the first survey, the second survey trip had one additional vehicle, so two vehicles were shipped from Jakarta to Belawan, Medan. The team consists of only two cars :
Land Rover Discovery 300 TDi Bambang Pratesa (Gembil) – Driver, Syamsu Setiabudi – Co-Driver, Fion Kamil – Event Director, Mang Hardi – Head Mechanic; Land Rover Series III 109” Canvas Mufti Oksana (Bule) – Driver, Tandon Padmodimuljo – Producer / DoP, Mardi Jordison – Co-Driver / Mechanic.
When traveling in Medan, all vehicles function just normally as before. The strangest thing was that when they were about to leave, Gembil’s Discovery suddenly had a high fever, so they had to pop up the hood by the side of the road to see what was going on. It turned out that the fan belt snapped and resulting in overheat. Because it was rather late in the afternoon they decided to just stay the night, so they wouldn’t be tired on the road and more efficient in time and energy.
When traveling in Medan, all vehicles function just normally as before. The strangest thing was that when they were about to leave, Gembil’s Discovery suddenly had a high fever, so they had to pop up the hood by the side of the road to see what was going on. It turned out that the fan belt snapped and resulting in overheat. Because it was rather late in the afternoon they decided to just stay the night, so they wouldn’t be tired on the road and more efficient in time and energy.
The next day the Discovery was still being repaired, it turned out that the cylinder head was bent and had to be replaced. The survey must go on, Fionk, Bule, Tandon and Mardi carried on using the Series III 109” Canvas going to Berastagi. The Discovery followed on the next day after repairing finished in Medan.
The track near Tigalingga was rather cruel, especially for Bule’s stock Series Land Rover. The trip down the hill was full of rocks with big ruts. For cars that don’t have power steering, this is a challenge, especially for the driver.
And sure enough, at the end, the Series III gave up, the steering box broke twice and it really took time and a true bush mechanic to fix. Two repairs had to be made under the not-so-friendly Sumatra sun. There, they met a teacher named Sinaga who was kind-hearted, brought black coffee for those who were making repairs, and it turned out that Sinaga had contributed a lot in their next survey trip in this area.
Bule’s Steering box broken twice during downhill.
Sinaga (teacher at local school) participated in the survey. His wish was the track could be joined so he won’t have to spend hours going around when going to work at his school.
Accelera tire manufacturer agreed to take part in the Sumatra Tribute. For the Survey they provided several sets of MT-01 Accelera tires. Of course this is a good moment for us and especially Accelera, because these tires are tested directly to real adventure facing tracks full of obstacles and challenges!
The Medan – Jambi Leg 1 survey was somehow incomplete, because the information about the spread of Covid-19 kicked in the middle of their journey. Many rejections came from villagers around the locations they passed. At the end they decided to not finish the survey and returned home right before the Lock-Down.
SURVEY FINAL JAMBI - SUMATERA UTARA
Leg 2 Pekanbaru – North Sumatra begins with the road from Jakarta to Pekanbaru. On the way to Pekanbaru they had to stop in Palembang and Jambi. In Palembang they were hosted by Land Rover Bedulur, a Palembang Land Rover club. What a luck! Because one of their vehicle broke down (the clutch failed) on the Lampung – Palembang Toll Road, it was really troublesome at the time.
Bush mechanic skills very much needed at the Lampung – Palembang toll road.
In Palembang, they were assisted a lot by Oktopian. The broken car was brought into Okto’s garage and repaired by Keea and Okto’s reliable Palembang mechanic. That night they spent the night at Okto’s house.
The next day they left for Jambi and were greeted at the workshop by Haji Minto, a Land Rover enthusiast in Jambi and also one of the Dry-Run participants. They stayed overnight there while preparing and loading supplies into vehicles.
Checking the camping area at Suarnadwipa International Circuit.
In Palembang, they were assisted a lot by Oktopian. The broken car was brought into Okto’s garage and repaired by Keea and Okto’s reliable Palembang mechanic. That night they spent the night at Okto’s house.
This is the Final Survey, the route is a combination of all routes that will be used in the Sumatra Tribute event later on. The survey is divided into two parts, leg 1 and leg 2. The first leg will be using Bule’s and Haji Minto’s cars with the addition of Mardi’s and Bujang’s trail bikes. The second leg will be using 3 vehicles from Land Rover Club Aceh that will join at Lake Toba. , as well as meeting the Minister of Tourism Sandiaga Uno, who at that time was on a visit to the Kaldera on Lake Toba.
After finishing Leg 1 in Bangkinang, Haji Minto’s and Bule’s car returned to their respective homes, for Haji Minto going back to Jambi, and for Bule, on-road to Jakarta. In the Leg 2 survey, there are three vehicles that have come and join all the way from Aceh. The team is as followed:
Land Rover Discovery 300Tdi Muhammad Natsir – Driver, Fion Kamil – Event Director, Mirza Fuady – Co-driver – Land Rover Defender 110” Canvas Deni Fidiata – Driver, Supriadi – Co-driver, Surya Dipa – Crew / Photographer – Land Rover Defender 110 ” Dedi Mulyadi – Driver, Mirza Mubarraq – Co-driver, Muhammad Nur – Navigator, Tandon Padmodimuljo – Producer / DoP
Tigalingga is the track that will become the Hardcore section of the entire series, and sure enough, it’s hardcore! Without a good experience and vehicle preparation, entering this track could result in total nightmare. However, they have prepared everything well, all the problems and challenges on this track could be minimized. This survey trip ended well and this is a sign that the Sumatra Tribute event is ready to be launched!
No cars has been crossing this route for God knows how long.
Leaves were meant to get rid off the insects, but it didn’t work as expected.
Campsite in the middle of Tigalingga route.
Stalled but not dead
Originally, the Sumatra Tribute will be held in 2020 to commemorate 40th anniversary of Camel Trophy. Who would have thought that the Covid-19 pandemic stroke the whole world that the entire globe would enter a lockdown period. Inevitably the event had to be postponed for an indefinite period of time. In two years since the start of the pandemic, the whole world has been silent, and so has everyone. The Universe is taking a break.
