KELLY’S WAVE | The Next Level Of Man-Made Surf

Kelly Slater

“9 years we’ve waited for this moment! Kelly Slater and our team Kelly Slater Wave Company built the longest, open-barrel man made wave in the world! Through science and innovative technology and the sheer grit of everyone who put their heart and soul into this, we have been successful in producing a world-class, high performance wave. We are super proud of the team and very excited about the possibilities this technology might unlock. It’s only the beginning and we look forward to sharing more information about our activities and plans with all of you in the near future.” –KSWAVECO.COM

My freshman year in high school I took a trip to Disney with my family, escaping the chill of New Jersey, while dreaming of artificial waves. It was the year Typhoon Lagoon was opening and we were arriving just in time for it’s unveiling. As a young grom, I was stoked, and the thought of a wave that you could surf everyday was more than appealing. I never got to surf the wave, as only a select few professional surfers were the chosen few to test the waters. As I remember the wave was small and lack luster, yet it was a tiny step further in the direction of a proper man-made wave.

Now, nearly 3 decades into the future, Kelly Slater reveals his much anticipated high performance artificial wave. As a grown man, with some time under my belt in the water, I have mixed feelings about wave pools. One part of me thinks they’re wonderful, must be tons of fun, and certainly serve a solid purpose for sharpening your surfing skill. There’s another part of me that almost feels like it’s blasphemous, as silly as that may sound.

A huge part of the surfing experience, for myself, is the interaction we have with the natural environment. In fact the communion with nature may take precedent over the actual surfing many times. In the world of professional surfing and most surf media outlets, surfing is the focus, and all else is secondary or totally obscured. As I watch this film, I am stoked on this wave, and I’m stoked for Kelly. Growing up on the east coast, we loved Slater before the rest of the world, so he’ll always have a little special place in my heart. That said, I’m hoping this wave enriches our surfing path and doesn’t further cheapen it as much of the industry continually does.

With my personal thoughts put aside, watch with an open mind and come to you’re own conclusion. I’m already mind surfing that tube right now.

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Shawn Zappo

Growing up in New Jersey, Shawn discovered and quickly immersed himself in the sub-culture of surfing and skateboarding in the mid 80’s. With a diverse and eclectic background, Shawn has walked the path of a competitive surfer, Hare Krsna monk, action sports industry player in NYC, DIY theology and religions major, and a touring punk rock musician. Now a father and self-proclaimed seeker of the “soul” of surfing, Shawn enjoys sessions with friends at uncrowded peaks along his home state’s shoreline and writing about his surf related experiences.

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