Main Point Arugam Bay – A world class break they say. Many learner surfers stare longingly at the “hardcore” surfers at The Point, hoping that they too will one day progress to the level of capability to venture across the reefy bottom from Baby Point to Main Point. 

But having counted around 65 surfers in the line up one sunset evening with a small swell,  it held as much appeal to me as attending a packed shopping mall on Christmas eve, with a hangover. And 20 screaming kids in tow. And no bar in site. While the turkeys and gammons are all sold out. Get the picture?

It’s carnage really. Small swell, too many people, occasional bad vibes and people who think they can surf. The locals are cool and the tourists have attitude. It’s great entertainment though if you watch from the shores, chilled Lion in hand, taking bets on who will drop in on who, the next board / fin to be shredded on the reef or counting how many people take off on the same closing wave while boards decapitate and amputate. It’s a fantastic late afternoon show not to be missed. 

So it was hard to believe that this could really be a world class surf break. But rest assured, when the gods of the ocean, swell and wind play together nicely, it is indeed worthy of a trip.

At the same time when Main Point, Arugam Bay finally cooks on a decent swell, it has the great ability of separating the men from the mice. Recently, a swell that saw 6-8ft sets rolling past the point, drew more spectators on the beach than surfers in the water. Only a handful of confident surfers and locals braved the conditions, with sets that are not as hard as Indo, but roaring enough to instill doubt in an upstart’s surfing prowess and cocksure attitude. A few big wipeouts and broken boards helped keep the novices and faint of heart at bay. 

We watched again with cold Lion in hand, but this time cheering on while the locals impressed and showed why this is rated as a world class surf spot. 

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