The Stalled Evolution of Wave Pools

I will plead ignorance here and say that not only have I never personally been to a wave pool, but I haven't even looked at footage of a wave pool in years. Which is why when I saw the video below, it blew my mind. No wonder people are advocating the development of wave pools to replenish a very limited resource.



The wave pool was located in Miyazaki, Japan as part of the Seagaia Ocean Dome. Prior to watching this video, the only type of wave pool I've seen footage of are the tiny ones that require an incredible amount of balance and don't provide a long ride.



The wave pool in Japan however looks like the real thing. Straight authentic. And led me to investigate what exactly makes this particular wave pool so special, considering we here in the U.S. don't have anything even resembling this.

Correction: We here in the U.S. do have something resembling this. In Orlando to be precise. To be even more accurate, Typhoon Lagoon, the name of said wave pool, is located in Disney World. No joke. Supposedly they open up the wave pool after the park is closed, since generating larger waves could endanger the health of little gromlins during park hours.



So my question is: Why haven't these massive wave pools been mass produced? Think about it: General retailers like Wal-Mart, Costco and Target have been pushing surfing hard to the general populace. Between the invasion of $100 blue foam boards sold at Costco and $600 Stand Up Paddle boards available at Target to Kelly Slater's new Dream Tour introducing surfing to the general populace via Disney's ESPN, it's only a matter of time before surfing's popularity explodes to the point where every known surf break will become grossly overcrowded.

So why not mass produce wave pools in major cities that aren't near the coast? Probably the one thing that prevents a lot of great things from happening: Money. As more and more people inside the industry learn everyday, surfing is not bringing in a ton of cash. Sure, a few individuals here and there are making out just fine, but a lot more barely get by just so they can stay close to their true passion: Surfing. In fact, the wave pool at the Seagaia Ocean Dome in Miyazaki, Japan shut down at the end of 2007 after nearly 15 years in operation because the owners of the dome found it more financially feasible to demolish the dome and build a new hotel. Cost overrun of the establishment was too much for the owners to handle. It didn't help though that the dome was built right next to a beach.

A lot of people feel strongly about the effectiveness of wave pools, both on a personal level and financially speaking. Surf designer Greg Webber is working on a concept called the Liquid Time Wave Pool, where the pool is actually a man-made river surrounding an island, with a boat-like hull circling the river to create wakes.



In theory it looks amazing, considering you could ride a six-foot barrel for an astounding 30 seconds. Again, in theory it looks and sounds amazing. Having someone invest millions to make the dream a reality remains to be seen. Not to mention most surfers enter the ocean to feel closer to nature, to feel one of the Earth's amazing sources of energy right beneath their feet. Wave pools are completely man-made. Nonetheless, if I were living inland, I would probably be a regular visitor to a wave pool (especially during summer/fall months when there was no snow on the peaks).

Overcrowding in surf breaks is a problem that continues to worsen. Are modern, spacious wave pools the answer? Only one way to find out. Here's to concepts like the Liquid Time Wave Pool becoming a mass-produced reality.