A Day at the Races

Yesterday I went to the races.  This was not a stylish horse race (such as the Adelaide Cup ?), and although it is famous locally, it took some finding.  It was the Mekepung, the races held around Negara in western Bali for the normally docile water buffalo.  It was not just any old race day, but the 2012 Bupati Cup.  It was the culmination of the series of local races held around the district through July and early August.

Whilst the Bupati Cup is very important, the Governor’s Cup race held in mid October is of even greater value.  (“Bupati” is a colonial word used as the term for the administrator and governor’s representative in a district or “regency”).

The tradition of the bull racing dates back to the first half of last century. It probably comes from the traditional practice of carrying home the harvested rice by bullock cart, and may have been come from nearby Java where bullock racing is popular. Bulls are selected for strength and colour, are never used for plowing the fields (it’s mainly looked after by small mechanical paddlers), and pampered by their owners.  Given the care and attention they get, it’s surprising to see the blood on the rump of some the buffalos from riders whacking them, urging them to the finish line.  The winning bulls gain in value for stud purposes and also when sold.

Hans Mbot, my friend and “tour agent” in Bali, and Wayan our driver, picked me up at 3:30 am for the long drive northwest towards Negara.  Even at that time in the morning the roads were busy, but not yet congested.  We travelled along surrounded by swarms of motor cycles carrying people heading towards Java for the celebrations marking the end of Ramadan.  The oncoming traffic was an almost steady stream of trucks, vans and buses coming from Gillimanook, the ferry port for the short sea trip to Java.  Even in the early hours people were out and about, and markets were operating by lantern in the pre-dawn darkness.  Reaching Negara was easy, but locating the track out in the fields about 10 km beyond Negara was a bit more difficult.  After seeking directions we got close, but when we spotted a truck with buffalo and cart we were able to follow it to the track, reaching there at 6:15.  The early arrival was needed as racing started at 7 am. 

Trucks arrive with bulls, cart and support crew

Contestants were still arriving long
after the first buffalos had set off.

I’ve never seen so many buffalos before and it was a spectacular sight.  Equally impressive was the amount of fresh dung they produced whilst waiting for their turn to race.  I had no idea of the capacity of a buffalo’s bladder – that was also educational although it did make walking a little tricky. 

Owners and handlers hitched the buffalos to the carts and fussed about the ornamentation – leg trimmings, wraps around the horns, bells, collars and various other decorations were checked and adjusted.  Some carts flew the red and white Indonesian flag as this was the lead up to Indonesian Independence Day.  The small carts are about a metre square and some carry traditional decorative features.

Vendors had already set up small canteens and warungs (Indonesian food stalls) so Hans and I were able to have a cup of coffee and eat the bun I had brought.  There’s no picture but it must have been quite a sight as we sat on a small rough bench which was slowly sinking into the very soft earth, drinking our tiny plastic cup of Nescafe pre-mixed with condensed milk.  Appreciated at that hour but hardly an elegant sight.

Just the place for a cup of sweet
coffee whilst sinking into the mud.

Whilst I try to leave a good impression
wherever I go, this is not what I mean.

Soon after sunrise in the morning gloom the racing began.  Participants belonged to either the red team or the green team.  They wore a hat and sarong of that colour, and displayed a flag of the appropriate colour.  Racers appeared to have been “seeded” in some fashion (possibly as a result of all the local races in the previous month)  and in most cases they raced in pairs, so the event was really a series of match races between a red and a green team.  Occasionally a group of three started together, just to confuse me.    The reds are members of the club to the east of the Ijo Gading River and the greens come from west of the river.

The starter surveys the line up.

And they're off and racing

On the starting grid the green team started about 7 or 8 metres ahead of the red team. A couple of assistants held the buffalos steady until the start. On the starting signal they ran a few paces to steady the animals as they set off then jumped aside as the rig got under way.

The handlers stand clear as the cart pulls away from the start

The buffalos get up to speed quickly

Some drivers stand, this one crouches.

My understanding of the rules is very sketchy, but of the several explanations I received, there was agreement on the following – the race covered an “out” leg, a loop and then a return along the original track; the red team tries to catch and pass the green team and points are awarded for the margins between each pair; the margins are aggregated to determine the winning team; the winner is not necessarily the fastest as points are awarded for decoration (of the cart, the yoke and bullocks) and the driver’s style.  The track was stated as between 2 and 4 km, but either the bullocks went very slowly once of sight, or they had a rest along the way, or the track was much longer than stated, because the first runners set off at 7am and did not return until around 10 am.  But even a few more than the stated 4 km in 3 hours still seems a very slow pace.  At the start and at the finish the drivers went at a cracking pace, and even if this was not sustained in the distant and unseen part of the track, I’m sure they travelled at faster than walking pace.  The drivers urge their charges onwards with liberal use of a short spiked stick, and by twisting their tails to encourage them to follow the curves in the track which is not much more than a sand covered roadway between irrigation drains.

I read on a regional website advertising this even that this was the event “in which buffalo thunder down racetracks at speeds of 80 kph”.  Hmm, I wonder if the writer had attended the event.  Maybe they hit 40-50 kph for a short spurt, but not 80!



The red team has caught the green team right at the start.

Just as in motor racing a driver will stall or miss the start, so it happened with the the buffalos.  The red cart was on to the green cart before it got underway and the drivers would push for space on the narrow track.  Sometimes the handlers had to leap to safety to avoid a cart which veered to one side at the start, and I saw 2 instances where the cart went into the ditch as the driver urged his buffalos on.  No damage was done, the bulls were unhitched, extricated, reharnessed and the cart set off as the match racing partner disappeared into the distance. 

A bit muddy, but otherwise unhurt and ready to set off in pursuit

The drivers were a mixed bunch – fit, tough young men, grizzled and wily old men, and even some young lads all took the reins.  In the hour or so between the last start and first finish there was not a lot to do except watch the crowd and the vendors of all sorts of things, and listen to the gamelan band and the large bamboo xylophones where the bass instruments have sound tubes about 20cm in diameter and are a couple of metres long.

Some of the hopeful vendors at the races...

The peanut man - a common sight in Bali

The woman with baby is not interested in the large rattles

Snacks and drinks

There's a woman under there

The trophy table

The bird man

The band stand

Check the bass!

As reports of the approach of the leaders the crowd came to life and started to spill onto the track – the way we see in the Tour de France cycling where the racers are squeezed by the crowd.  This gave a real sense of excitement as the bullocks thundered past only a meter away.  But when there was a last minute to attempt to overtake on the homestretch the crowd would scatter out of the path of the oncoming rigs.  It made photography quite dangerous and several times I was sprayed with dust and sand from the hooves as the buffalos passed close by.

 



A sprint to the finish

Although in each pair of match racers the green team was first away, in many cases the following red team member had made up the distance, and often passed the green team, so red seemed to finish ahead more often than not. Occasionally a single buffalo dragging part of the shaft of the cart would race past, following those ahead.  Eventually all who were still standing had finished.  Most of the crowd left quickly and after all their efforts the winners had few left to cheer them as they received their prizes.  Just as in cycling the event winner gets to wear a special jersey, so the winner of the Bupati Cup wore a special outfit in recognition of his achievement.  He will wear it in next year’s event.

The winner wears the victor's costume

Did tell you that I once held the Bupati Cup?

Hot, dusty and very weary we made our way back to the car, joined the procession from the racetrack and headed for home.  There was a stream of trucks loaded with buffalos, cart and tem members who often rode on the cabin roof.

Loaded again, the racing team heads for home

 I arrived back on campus at 3:30, 12 hours after setting off.  And although tiring, it had been an interesting experience.    Now I can say “Bupati Cup?  Been there, done that!”

Paul in Bali

August 2012