There's been a lot of talk over the past 20 or so years about man made waves being the solution to our overcrowded line ups. Unfortunately the meat of the solution has been all fluff- from Big Surf in Tempe Arizona to Kelly Slater's semi-defunct wave pool community 'Maddison Estate' in Australia. And I've reported on most all them here- from Slater's technology to Disney theme parks to Dion's desert oasis. Even freeboarding and wakesurfing behind boats- basically anything mother nature can't create on it's own.
So now it's June 2013 and we're left with 2 waves battling for the title 'Man's Best Friend' (sorry Fido). Stepping up to bat first is Spain's Wave-Garden. The North County Surf Blog reported a couple years ago on this new technology about a secret wave pool deep in the forests of Basque Country. Since then they've been perfecting their technique and have since made a slightly bigger and slightly longer wave. They even invited a top notch crew to come test it out- Dane Reynolds, Taj Burrow, Gabriel Medina and more. Even though it's not the biggest wave, it sure looks darn fun. My groms watched the video this morning and were FROTHING. So I know there's at least 2 people signed up for this wave when it finally gets built in the States. There were even some tiny grom barrels to be had (Jadson Andre was game enough to squeeze in a couple). Long story short, check out the first video submission for the Man Made Wave Battle.
Joining the Wave-Garden in the ring is the Granddaddy of man made wave of them all. The Super Bowl of Surfing. The Wimbeldon of Style. The Indy 500 of Speed. The Wedge. Don't believe this falls into the category of man made waves? Here's the scoop. After the last ice age, the Santa Ana River started to flow through Orange County and emptied into Newport Beach creating the harbor and eventually an outlet between Corona del Mar and Newport Beach. Once the area started to prosper in the early 1900's, mariners were looking for safe passage through the rivermouth and into the harbor. The Army Corp of Engineers then built 2 jetties in the mid-1920's: The 'Big Corona' jetty and the 'The Wedge' jetty. What the engineers didn't realize though is that on S and SW swells, the incoming waves refract and meet up with the waves behind it creating a 'wedge' which almost doubles the normal wave height. To add to the mayhem, the beach is naturally steep so large thick waves detonate in only a few feet of water. On big days, the shallowness just adds to the drama. So now you've got the opposite end of the Wave-Garden here: The Wedge has a shorter ride but it's 5 times as big and thick. So I bring you the Wedge's video submission- created just recently from the big SW swell last week.
And the winner of the 1st ever Man Made Wave Battle is...
It's a tie! What?! BS! What a scam! How the heck doesn't the Wedge beat the Wave Garden by a mile?! What a crock! Basically it comes down to this: The Wedge isn't surfable. I know guys try, but basically it's a suicide mission. I think the Wedge video speaks for itself. Now is it fun to watch? Damn straight it is. Best show in the house- including Pipeline. But basically only 1 out of 10 waves is makeable- and that's IF a sponger doesn't drop in on you. On the other hand, the Wave-Garden is, well, a day in the park. Girls on the beach with drinks in their hands, the wave allows 10 turns if you want, and it's a laugh a minute as you get to heckle your friends from the sidelines. Now of course I doubt we'll ever see this technology here in the USA during our lifetime, so until then, we'll have to be content to gaze upon the mutant known as the Wedge.
