Cheyne Magnusson has a new gig at Endless Surf. Photos: Endless Surf
Cheyne Magnusson has made a career move: he’s now the new Surf Design and Operations Manager at Endless Surf. The wave pool veteran brings a pile of experience to the team.
Magnusson, who was one of the partners behind the Palm Springs Surf Club, is uniquely qualified for the job.
“There are only a handful of people on the planet with as much wave design experience as Cheyne Magnusson,” an Endless Surf Park press release reads. “He’s part of an obsessed, laser-focused elite squad of wave designers – individuals who can take a multi-million dollar piece of equipment and shape waves.”
He’s been in the wave pool business for a while now. Nearly ten years ago, while he was working at Body Glove, one of the higher ups who saw the writing on the wall regarding the future of man-made waves, asked him a simple question: “what can we do with wave pools?” That led to Magnusson playing a starring role at the Waco pool and also to the creation of the Palm Springs Surf Club. Magnusson recently left his post there due to circumstances yet untold.
“Goodbye Palm Springs Surf Club,” Magnusson wrote on Instagram on May 9. “The ride has ended for me, kinda ended back in the fall when I think about it. Imagine putting six years of passion and dedication into something you loved and pioneered just to be told you have no value to it. One day, the real story of what went down here will be told, not today though. Despite that, I am still very proud of what we built. The real people who worked the day to day will always be the best thing I take from this experience. The relationships are what matter.”
Magnusson brings a lot to wave pools — he’s a longtime staple of the surfing world. He’s the one who urged his half-brother, Clay Marzo, to send a sponsor-me video to Quiksilver. In 2000, when he was 16, he was the men’s Hawaiian State Champion in surfing. He was surfing professionally by his early 20s, and over the course of his career he’s had stickers on his boards from Body Glove, Quiksilver, Osiris Shoes, Dragon, and Chemistry Surfboards.
“With deep expertise that bridges core surf culture and surf park innovation, Magnusson’s appointment marks a strategic step forward as Endless Surf scales global deployment of its breakthrough surf lagoon technology,” Endless Surf continued. “Cheyne brings more than two decades of surf industry experience, including pivotal roles in developing and operating multiple surf parks.”
As wave pools get better and better, a real surfer’s expertise is necessary. Engineers can create waves, but only a surfer with experience can tell them what those waves need to do.
“Cheyne brings a unique rider’s perspective to wave technology,” Endless Surf explained. “From crafting wave libraries and leading commissioning to building full-scale operational teams, his expertise in wave design and surf park operations is unmatched in the space.”
The Endless Surf team is extremely happy to add him to the team, and for good reason. “Cheyne is the kind of talent you build around,” said Paul Chutter, President of Endless Surf. “His track record, feel for wave design, and ability to create next-level experiences make him a huge asset as we grow.”
Magnusson too is happy about the new gig. It didn’t take him long to land it, either, which is a testament to his wave pool knowledge.
“Endless Surf is already pushing the envelope with what’s possible in a surf pool,” says Magnusson. “To join Clement [Ginestet] and Axel [Terradillos], and be a part of this next chapter, is something special. The runway we’ve got with this technology is truly endless and I can’t wait to start taking it to even greater heights alongside this best-in-class ES team.”
