Remember when our minds collectively exploded a little over three years ago while watching Kelly Slater’s mind explode? He was watching an actual perfect wave break in front of him that was years in the making and it was all his. It was a collection of minds exploding while simultaneously mind-surfing a man-made wave that, until that very morning, only Kelly himself and a handful of people knew existed. Grey matter everywhere.
Kelly Slater Wave Co. wrote the book on how to unveil a wave pool that day. Later, we all kind of freaked out when BSR Surf Park videos started sliding into our Instagram feeds. That looked like a fun wave. The Surf Lakes unveiling had a viral moment too— probably more so because the giant plunger powering it than the wave itself. The latter two waves were objectively good but the tops of our heads didn’t need to be screwed back on like the first time we watched those cylindrical glassy things in Lemoore. Nonetheless, those three moments all crossed off at least one of two key elements in revealing a wave pool to the surf world:
1. Show people a really good wave.
2. Give us a video worth blowing up every one of our ‘shred-thread’ private text groups.
Phoenix-based Swell MFG is a new-ish player in the game of building artificial waves, and while every new technology is worth a headline (maybe) and a little reading, this one only gets a Kelly-worthy viral debut if they’re trying to pull a rope-a-dope on their target audience.
#TBT to the days a new artificial wave actually got this kind of reaction from us.
The only video on Swell MFG’s website shows a breaking wave in what’s probably a tub and not a pool. Obviously, a scaled model is the most cost-effective and logical way to get anything off the ground, but it’s not exactly going to move the needle for the rest of us. Speaking of moving the needle, a jaunt through the company’s Instagram feed has more videos going back a full two years, showing off their miniature model A-frame wave. Turns out, Swell MFG doesn’t appear to be trying to blow our minds just yet anyway. They’re staying completely under the radar, which is either creepy or intriguing. So while a video of their test model wave isn’t going to blow your mind, maybe, just maybe what they’re touting of their technology will? If nothing else, the fact that they’re advertising what their technology will be capable of, but not telling us how, is worth a little intrigue:
Variety:
The company says their machines, coupled with software, actually allow them to adjust waves themselves throughout a session, “offering up shorter waves with large, punchy barrels, to long, drawn-out peeling lefts and rights.” They actually use the term, “whip up your own desired waves like creating a new music playlist.”
Install Over Existing Tech:
“We can drop our system right in front of, or remove (current systems), updating existing wave pools and bringing them up-to-date with high volume waves and reduced operational cost,” their site says, meaning they can retrofit existing pools with MFG technology.
Accessible:
Hellbent on building a wave park for just you and your friends (who isn’t) but couldn’t hit that multi-million-dollar Kickstarter goal to buy 50 acres of land to build it on? Just like needing the actual ocean to surf, that’s a problem of the past.
“Swell MFG can produce to nearly any size, enabling surf lakes in tight spaces down to under one acre (and) up to as large as you would like.”
