As for the land-based surfing pools, ASR and Jamie Meiselman, Nick Behunin and Doug Kirk of surfer-owned firm, SurfParks, LLC, are working hard on their mission to bring you consistent, un-crowded perfection...for a mere $2.99 a pop. That's based on a starting price of $59.99 for one 2-hour "session", or about 20 waves, with volume discounts in full effect. Surfparks is responsible for three projects in the USA: Ron Jon Surf Park in Orlando, Randall’s Island in New York City, and an undisclosed location in Southern California.
2-footer in the Ron Jon Orlando Tranining Pool
There is a bit of uneasiness in the surfing world surrounding the 100% man-made nature of surfing pools as opposed to the ocean-based blend of mostly natural elements mixed with artificial reefs. "Nothing is going to replace the natural feeling of being out in the real ocean, waiting for sets, and seeing all the animal life going on around you," Dr. Black concedes. "But, I see surfing pools as a huge supplement, as opposed to a substitute, for ocean-surfing, especially for the wave-starved people who haven’t had a wave in two months. They’re still real waves out there – it’s still real surfing.”
The primary intention of Surfparks and ASR is to simply provide many more surfable days in the year for the average surfer. Though some are suggesting that surf pools may generate the necessary conditions for a full-scale revolution in progressive surfing, resulting from the precision and consistency a pool can deliver.
Whether you talk about wave pools or multi-purpose reefs, it’s hard to argue against the wealth of data backing all the active projects and future potential.
With more than 30 years of related experience, Black, Dr. Shaw Mead, and the rest of ASR have been submerged in scientific studies, tackling a myriad of topics that cover wave dynamics, reef dynamics, rip currents, swell patterns, tides, sand and sediment transport, computer modeling, physical wave tank modeling, to detailed estimates addressing the economic impacts a surfing reef could have on a local community.
“The most critical part in our efforts has been transforming science into actual construction,” Black articulates. “We always put all of our reef projects through a series of models first."
Determining the right formula for a proposed reef starts with an iterative process between physical models (wave tank) and computer aided models. The physical models have proven extremely accurate in showing the wave breaking and barrelling. The computer models are very good in showing design, wave changes, and sand changes.
For ocean-based artificial surfing reefs, the enthused scientists and staff of ASR are not only designing the reefs, but they offer a turnkey, “cradle to grave” organization, which means they also design the construction and deployment methods that put the reefs in the water, and then prefer to do the dirty work themselves.
Mt. reef construction: 1) the geotextile bags are unpacked, folded and loaded onto barge. 2) the empty reef is released from a barge and put into prescribed location. 3) The sand is pumped from a dredge on the head of the digger through a pipe and lowered into the filling holes by divers.
You definitely know these guys are surfers by the name of the method they invented to get those monstrous sand bags into the water – R.A.D. AKA, Rapid Accurate Deployment – a patented, efficient, and sophisticated system of barges, cranes, and nylon webbing that is designed to lay hundreds of yards and thousands of tons of geotextile bags ever-so-gingerly onto the sea floor.
“Being extremely precise in physically deploying the bags so that they are true to the measurements and models developed for each reef is absolutely essential,” Black explains. “Once the bags are laid and filled, there’s not much you can do to easily move them, so getting them positioned right the first time is fundamental.”