Riding in Indonesia

[robot]

im going to indonesia for my first time soon and im keen as to take my hardtail.
Im not too sure if its worth it because of the caos over there and maybe their is no where to ride but if anyone has been there and can tell me differently please do.
there are some massive mountains over in indo, got to be something there!?!

[covert wolf]

Havnt been there before but it certainly looks like theres some cool riding around(from what ive seen on tv). Though i wouldnt expect anything built particulary for the sport of mtbing like a dh track. And yeah getting your bike around the country may be a bit difficult, i guess. Off course i have no idea what im talking about but i hope i helped somehow.

[daanhilla]

Havnt been there before but it certainly looks like theres some cool riding around(from what ive seen on tv). Though i wouldnt expect anything built particulary for the sport of mtbing like a dh track. And yeah getting your bike around the country may be a bit difficult, i guess. Off course i have no idea what im talking about but i hope i helped somehow.


ive been many times, but dont expect to find much of a recreational riding community over there. There are plenty of decent mountains and plenty of people who ride bikes, but riding a bike usually means they can't afford a car. The roads are chaos and riding with those crazy drivers around and is scarier than riding down the amazon rockgarden blindfolded.
Good luck

[robot]

Cheers for that
i dont mind riding around on the crazy roads, part of the fun.
how is the terrain for street riding there in the big cities like Jakarta?

[gages]

Cheers for that
i dont mind riding around on the crazy roads, part of the fun.
how is the terrain for street riding there in the big cities like Jakarta?

Jakarta is awesome to ride in --Riding a bike really breaks down the barrier over there and you will no doubt meet some very interesting people because of it
When I was in the Navy I used to take my bike every where with me and go riding in lots of different countries (and Jakarta) and thourghly enjoyed the crazy roads and rules as in Jakarta there aint any --just give way to anything and everthing BUT i bet you have an awesome time of it --The roads are at best terrible but defianately not too bad

ENJOY--I'm jealous :D

[robot]

yeah i was a bit worried about the locals freakin out.
im not into upsetting the local crew no matter who they are but dont quote me on that.
i dont want to get jailed either for launching off stuff!
what about parts for you bike, does anyone know if they would be easy to find there?

[chris_mtb]

i wouldnt take a good bike to indonesia they will steal it and if you try any street rding you will prob have you bike taken by the cops

[robmundall]

i dont mind riding around on the crazy roads, part of the fun.
It is nothing like australia. There are no lines no blinkers nothing just every man for them self.It is really dangerous.

[Jon]

I would be checking with the dfat website (dept of foreign affairs and trading) for details about travel to indonesia.Personally I would NOT be taking your pride and joy as it would be a target for thieves .However high end bikes maybe not that common in indo so maybe hard to offload therefore not worth pinching.Dont know so check with dfat and maybe search the web for bike shops over there and check with them.
cheers jon

[monkeymagic]

i lived there for like 4 years... all the street around is awesome... lots of good stuff, but the spots are far far between... street around hotels, apartments and malls is where the good stuff is at, and the security dont really do shit... thye might tell you to leave, but most of the time they will just sit and watch.
be really friendly to everyone and you will get lots of friendlyness back. and rememebr knowing a bit of the language goes a long way.
that guy up ^ there saying everyones gonna steal your shit is fucked... i never once had a bad experiecne with people, and the only incidents i heard of were when people were being absolute fucks to security guards, and locals.
in the city centre, near the football stadium and the hotel hilton and kempinski apartments is really good stuff. and in a place called bandung, its a bit of a trek. like 45 minutes by car. but the skatepark there is great for bikes, big and open and flowing.
uh, dunno what else to say... booze is cheap in the supermarkets, the american sports bars are sick. and make sure if you eat somewhere dodgy dont eat salads or get ice in your drinks... but pretyt much everywhere else you will be sweet with food n stuff.

another awesoem skatepark is in kemang, its like 10 minutes from city centre.

hope you have a good time.

[Jon]

Sound ok ,I was really making a possibly misguided judjment based on the one sided info from the aus media. Someone like yourself is in a MUCH better situation to offer advise. However I dont think that the situation may be different for a long term visitor as you would get to know local custom and earn some respect etc,rather than be a blow in tourist:confused:
cheers jon

[monkeymagic]

yeha well basic customs are pretty easy...
lots of smiles, hellos, tip people basically everywhere, dont wave your fist or make a fist at anyone, its really rude, dont touch peopel with your left hand (thats the wiping hand) if you have to call someone over dont use an open palm like we do here, turn your hand over so the back of your hand is facing them with your wrist down and pull your fingers towards your wrist a few times, be relaly patient with peopel, never lose your cool. see everythign as an experience, if you enjoy yourself without being a dick peopel will be friendly to you.

[robot]

thanks for all the info. great to here there are some stakeparks present. indo sounds like a breeze compared to other developing countries ive ridden in. if you want to live on the edge try riding in mex city(the terrain is worth it!). there you should so try and go in a group to scare away the kidknappers, corrupt police and other attackors. So do you think its cool to ride alone in the day?

[darth rider]

A couple of other little things; Indo's are very touchy - feely so don't be alarmed when they grab you on the arm especially if they're trying to sell you something. If you're not interested, just be firm and smile while shaking your head etc and say thank you (terima kasih). Once you've settled on a price your obliged to pay so don't back out or this will really piss them off. As you'd know Java is predominantly moslem so try to respect their customs e.g. try to keep your shirt on especially near a mosque. Don't use your foot to point at something and showing the soles of your feet is also bad manners. As for riding you'll see terrain everywhere but just remember it takes a long time to get anywhere when you're out of the cities and you have to work on "Indo time". i.e. no hurry.
You may get corrupt cops inventing supposed traffic offences and asking for a bribe for them to "forget" it. It's a good idea to have different denominations hidden in various parts of your attire so you can bring out whatever you think is large enough and say that's all you've got.
There's plenty more, but it's fun to work it out for yourself too. Selamat Jalan!