First vision from Kelly Slater's Wave Pool - video

Ben Matson picture
Ben Matson (thermalben)
Swellnet Dispatch

It's been years in top secret development, but Kelly Slater's Wave Pool has finally seen the light of day. And the results are incredible - check the video.

When will the first WSL inland comp be held? What about surfing in the Olympics? And what about Wavegarden and Greg Webber...? Read more here.

 

Comments

thermalben's picture
thermalben's picture
thermalben Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 6:29am

Wow. Proper barrels!

Victoriasurfing1's picture
Victoriasurfing1's picture
Victoriasurfing1 Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 6:42am

That is the sickest thing Kelly you absolute jet

fitzroy-21's picture
fitzroy-21's picture
fitzroy-21 Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 6:49am

Woah, good length of ride and reasonable size too. It can only get better from here.

grub10's picture
grub10's picture
grub10 Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 7:27am

I would like one for Christmas as I have been good all year......honest !

thermalben's picture
thermalben's picture
thermalben Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 7:28am

jasper99's picture
jasper99's picture
jasper99 Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 7:52am

That is unreal.......have a good think about it.

jasper99's picture
jasper99's picture
jasper99 Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 7:56am

I wonder how often waves are produced? Had to watch it again. So good

jaunkemps's picture
jaunkemps's picture
jaunkemps Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 7:59am

Holy Chocolate Cannoli thats freekin awesome !!!!!!!!

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 8:51am

Vid from Dec 5th.....theres me thinking BKS piked the peahi comp......
Unbelievable, fuck id pay a lot $ for a full day of fun like that
wonder why the cold climate....steamer boots and gloves

indo-dreaming's picture
indo-dreaming's picture
indo-dreaming Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 8:35am

Farrrrrrkkkk….never thought id ever want to surf a wave pool thats is perfect 100 times better than that puss in UK.

barley's picture
barley's picture
barley Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 8:35am

Looks epic just wondering if they will calculate the main wind direction when they place one in any given area?would have to wont they?
And also that was slater surfing how fast does that thing tube..what about ave joe?
Only small questions cause it lòoks mental!!

Bob's 2 Bob's's picture
Bob's 2 Bob's's picture
Bob's 2 Bob's Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 8:57am

All he needs now is some business acumen and learn from the crew who explained what he's doing wrong with his clothing label....are we ready to chime in yet????

indo-dreaming's picture
indo-dreaming's picture
indo-dreaming Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 9:01am

Its like a Pambula river mouth that breaks every day except every blue moon…..i can't stop watching it, it's hypnotic.

Looks like one of his new boards too, looks an fun shape.

zenagain's picture
zenagain's picture
zenagain Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 9:00am

All of the above.

Credit where credit is due, that's a pretty sweet little wave with a lovely shape.

gearoid's picture
gearoid's picture
gearoid Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 9:09am

I could get tubed there, and that's saying something.

Amazing how quickly the technology evolved once people got serious about the concept.

What is the current state of wave pool development in Oz?

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 9:11am

So a 6-8 ft wave pool barrel will be possible real soon ........turn the pumps up Kelly

pointy's picture
pointy's picture
pointy Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 9:18am

he's wearing booties and gloves

it's obviously cold there, I wonder if they will build others in warmer climates

Ramazan's picture
Ramazan's picture
Ramazan Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 9:29am

Location??

mick-free's picture
mick-free's picture
mick-free Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 9:58am

Game over. Kelly wins.

tonybarber's picture
tonybarber's picture
tonybarber Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 10:02am

We have a game changer, here.

neiltreg's picture
neiltreg's picture
neiltreg Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 10:11am

Put in certain locations we would be lining up 24/7 for our booked time slot! Unreal.

cycd's picture
cycd's picture
cycd Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 10:21am

I'm going to surf it .... that is all

saltman's picture
saltman's picture
saltman Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 10:29am

light up the pool and you could surf anytime - day or night
Think arena events combined with music and expression sessions or gladiator type contests.
Scheduled TV coverage - with no tea bagging time wasted delays.

Tho other side is there isnt the randomness of nature - so surfing becomes increasingly technical and less instinctive?

zenagain's picture
zenagain's picture
zenagain Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 11:10am

Not to mention merchandise and concession sales.

Billabong burger, Hurley fries and Quikshake anybody?

lom's picture
lom's picture
lom Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 12:08pm

If you look at the poster shot or the still frame that shows at the start/finish of the vid, the surfer- possibly Kelly, is wearing board shorts, so it may have been taken in US summer, and the "first wave surfed" kept secret for a while.

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 12:23pm

What brand of wetsuit might the bald one be wearing ?

rooftop's picture
rooftop's picture
rooftop Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 12:27pm

Wow, wow, wow. It's already been said, but this is a game-changer. Welcome to the post-wave pool era.

velocityjohnno's picture
velocityjohnno's picture
velocityjohnno Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 2:41pm

Totally epic. Man has bottled nature, selected perfection from it, and re-produced it on demand.

Well done Kelly and Team.

batfink's picture
batfink's picture
batfink Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 2:42pm

Well that was beautiful. Imagine going to all that work to build a farking right-hander.

Kelly, it's going the wrong way. :-)

dastasha's picture
dastasha's picture
dastasha Sunday, 20 Dec 2015 at 9:46am
batfink wrote:

Well that was beautiful. Imagine going to all that work to build a farking right-hander.

Kelly, it's going the wrong way. :-)

This^

floyd's picture
floyd's picture
floyd Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 3:16pm

If it were near me I would surf it for sure, no doubt, who wouldn't. Its a truly wonderful thing.

Lots of questions in my head.

Is this the future of surfing right there? Imagine 1-3 of these pools in Sydney - Brisbane - Melbourne operating 24/7 and how that might take the pressure off the coasts .......... and and .......... if they can shape a reef like that in a pool what about those hundreds of places on the coast absolutely primed for the installation of a man made reef?

As Sunny said in Sik Joy .... too many barrels my head hurts

alsurf's picture
alsurf's picture
alsurf Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 4:01pm

unbelieveable not one negative nelly on this topic yet almost as amazing as the wave

caml's picture
caml's picture
caml Saturday, 19 Dec 2015 at 11:56pm

Bahh pathetic see dolphins in swimming pool

penmister's picture
penmister's picture
penmister Sunday, 20 Dec 2015 at 1:35am

I think its a release?

indo-dreaming's picture
indo-dreaming's picture
indo-dreaming Sunday, 20 Dec 2015 at 8:09am

I was thinking a similar thing last night Floyd about the fact if we can produce a wave like this in a pool, then shouldn't that help our understanding and knowledge needed to be able to produce a similar artificial reef?

frog's picture
frog's picture
frog Sunday, 20 Dec 2015 at 9:24am

Indo,

Super high quality artificial reefs are totally doable technically but would cost millions with no easy way to create a return on investment or to ration waves so it is not a dog fight in the water. Create a Macaronis in Sydney, it would be so crowded as to almost become a negative to any benefactor / government who might build it. Many sporting faciilities make a loss but most provide a return of some sort.

A wave pool can pay back investors and ration wave to create a pleasnt experience.

The water quality looks dodgy - wave action stiring up a muddy bottom all day long. Staph, giadia, e coli or just dirt?

dastasha's picture
dastasha's picture
dastasha Sunday, 20 Dec 2015 at 9:50am

So glassy. Hypnotic.
Now lets make a real surfing competition out of it. Thirty guys paddle for the wave. Anyone who rides the barrel for five seconds makes it through to the next round.

Seriously though, salt or fresh water? Changes the buoyancy of your board.

indo-dreaming's picture
indo-dreaming's picture
indo-dreaming Sunday, 20 Dec 2015 at 12:37pm

I can't stop watching this vid every few hours I've got to watch it again and again i think I'm up to 25+ views…not only i the wave perfect but the vid is shot perfectly.

I almost want to change my forum name to "Misty waters"

Imagine how many people would have turned up at this place today thinking they have a chance to ride it.

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Monday, 21 Dec 2015 at 10:32pm

Same Indo im probably around 50 views and wondering how long Kelly is going make the world wait for more footage.......this ones just a little teaser im sure - save the best till last .

surfercook's picture
surfercook's picture
surfercook Tuesday, 22 Dec 2015 at 10:39am

BUCKET LIST!

Lake surf's picture
Lake surf's picture
Lake surf Thursday, 24 Dec 2015 at 12:30pm

Now we need this in ohio for Lake Erie surfers we're suffering here, times our tough.

indo-dreaming's picture
indo-dreaming's picture
indo-dreaming Wednesday, 27 Jan 2016 at 4:18pm

Good recent interview with Kelly on his wave pool http://www.surfermag.com/features/kelly-slater-man-made/#kBOtHCpXf6mJ1rF...

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Thursday, 14 Apr 2016 at 7:29pm

This pool may soon be added to the WCT.

chickenlips's picture
chickenlips's picture
chickenlips Thursday, 14 Apr 2016 at 7:58pm

Change the wave! Not the Boards! China's gonna love it!

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Thursday, 5 May 2016 at 7:09am

Slater has posted a few more short vids.: Vimeo.

udo's picture
udo's picture
udo Saturday, 8 Jul 2017 at 6:57pm

Mick Fanning enjoyed it.
Ks wave co insta

indo-dreaming's picture
indo-dreaming's picture
indo-dreaming Friday, 18 Aug 2017 at 11:02am

Rumour has it: First comp will happen at Kellys wave pool ,at least six CT names will compete in the event scheduled between the Lowers and European leg

wingnut2443's picture
wingnut2443's picture
wingnut2443 Wednesday, 13 Mar 2019 at 8:12pm

And, now... The future?

Or, well at least it's current usage...

So, Hurley n co stumped up the reported $55,000 for JJF to fine-tune his act?

Thought a jetski was expensive. This level of training is another level.