Ifran Saeppu, an up-and-comer with a shot at going pro, snapped his femur in two places at Padang Padang. Now, he needs the surf community’s help. Photos: Kandui Resort
In mid-August, a talented 16-year-old surfer named Ifran Saeppu pulled into a barrel at Padang Padang. He’d done that same thing plenty of times before, but this time, something went wrong. The heavy lip landed on him, and broke his femur in two places. Now, he needs the surf community’s help.
Ifran is a staple at Kandui Resort. He’s from a nearby village called Pei Pei, which is where he and Dylan Wilcoxen, a.k.a All Day Dylan, first met. All Day Dylan lives at Kandui, and that coupled with his natural ability on a surfboard has made him yet another up-and-comer to watch in Indonesia.
“Ifran and Dylan met in the third grade in Pei Pei Elementary School and they have been inseparable since,” an email from Kandui Resort reads. “Ifran started spending more time with Dylan…. Dylan quickly realized that Ifran was one of the best surfers to ever come out of the Mentawai… and his community is very proud of him.”
Ifran and Dylan’s friendship is a tight one, and Ifran dreams of becoming a pro surfer along with his best friend.
“Dylan asked his Dad Ray if Ifran could start spending more time at Kandui and that soon meant Kandui home school, afternoon 4Bobs and over the last year, the 2024 Indonesian Contest Tour (Krui, Nias, Bali, etc),” Kandui Resort wrote. “With the help of Ray, Dylan, Kandui, his family, and Pei Pei Village, it’s been such a cool experience for someone without the financial means to get the opportunity to represent his Mentawai village and shoot to become the Mentawai’s first pro surfer.”
His shattered femur, though, has thrown a wrench in those dreams. The femur is the largest bone in the human body, and Ifran broke it clean in half in two separate places. He needed emergency surgery to stabilize it, and he’s not out of the woods yet.
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“He has a long road to recovery that includes the initial emergency surgery, months of physical therapy and a second surgery to remove the plate/screws holding his leg in place,” Kandui Resort wrote. “Our goal with Ifran’s GoFundMe campaign is to generate enough support that Ifran can have the best treatment, physical therapy and surgeons to ensure he can return to his dream of becoming the Mentawai’s first professional surfer.”
The injury has already cost Ifran around $10,000 USD. In October, he’ll have the second surgery to remove the plates and screws, which is estimated to cost around $5,000 USD. Physical therapy and living expenses while he’s recovering will run around another $5,000, bringing the estimated total to $20,000 — a lot for a teenager from a tiny village.
The crowdfunding campaign was started by the Kandui Resort Medical Director, Dr. Mario Quiros.
“Dr. Quiros oversees our Kandui Resort Medical Team, has created GoFundMes for previous Indonesians in need, and has been working with Ray to coordinate Ifran’s care from the time of his injury,” the email says. “He will ensure that all the funds raised will go to Ifran’s treatment.”
At the time of this writing, the GoFundMe had raised just over $12,000, but there’s a long way to go. With the surf community’s help, Ifran will be back riding waves again in the near future.
