Tour de Singkarak 2017 will be held on Nov. 18-26 and joined by participants from 30 countries.
ne of the interesting activities that will be featured during Tour de Singkarak (TdS) 2017 in West Sumatra is the Saribu Rumah Gadang Festival. The festival will be held before the race’s sixth stage that travels from Solok City to Kayu Aro in South Solok on Nov. 22 and will showcase traditional arts and cultures such as Randai, Traditional Silat, Traditional Speech and Tari Piring.
South Solok Regent Muzni Zakaria explained that Saribu Rumah Gadang is a village that still preserves the Minang tradition. “Saribu Rumah Gadang will be held annually, this year marks the first time it's being held. Artists from Solok will take part in the event, one of them is Hartati, a reputable artist and choreographer,” Muzni said.
“The principle of 'duduak samo randah, tagak samo tinggi, dan pemimpin ditinggikan sarantiang' is our reference for this festival,” he added.
The festival will be themed "Manjupuik nan tatingga, mangumpuakan nan taserak, mengambang pusako lamo" which means picking up what’s left, collecting what’s scattered and re-exhibiting the old heritage.
Read also: Biking to work may help you lose weight as effectively as daily exercise
Locals who live in Saribu Rumah Gadang will be asked to wear their traditional costumes: Kurung for the women and taluak balanggo for the men.
TdS 2017 will be held on Nov. 18-26 and joined by participants from 30 countries. There are 20 competing teams comprising of 15 international teams and five national teams.
The starting point is set at Tanah Datar and racers will travel through 18 regencies and cities for the total distance of 1,246 kilometers to the finish line in Bukittinggi.
TdS was first held in 2009 and it has become a mandatory championship in Asia that is able to attract more than one million visitors. In 2013, Amauri Sport Organization (ASO), the committee of Tour de France, recommended TdS as a major race in the Asian region.
Based on the number of visitors, TdS takes the fifth spot with 550,000 people right after Santos Tour Down Under with 750.000 people, Vuelta a Espana with five million people, Giro d’Italia with eight million people and the in the first spot is Tour de France with 12 million people. (asw)
Share your experiences, suggestions, and any issues you've encountered on The Jakarta Post. We're here to listen.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We appreciate your feedback.