surf rage. solved. apparently...

[dUg]

THE Gold Coast could soon be home to world-class artificial reefs and wave pools to combat the rising tide of surf rage.

The surfing industry generates $3.3 billion a year for the Gold Coast economy, but it is also in danger of being loved to death, with local beach breaks under increasing pressure from huge crowds.

With the surf cranking on the southern Gold Coast yesterday, some waves were being shared by up to a dozen boardriders, a recipe for tension in the water.

A new surfing taskforce has been formed with the mission of moving the industry forward, and taskforce chairman John Nielsen said that means bringing wave pools and artificial reefs to the Tourist Strip.

"Wave pools will be operational on the Gold Coast within two years. We are already talking with operators who want to bring them here," he said. "Can you imagine having wave pools with perfect waves, operating 24-7, and what that will do for the industry?"

There are already a handful of wave pools around the world, but Mr Nielsen said those be located on the Gold Coast would use the best technology.

"We're not talking about the kind of wave pool like at Wet'n'Wild - we're talking about pools that can generate perfect barrels."

It is understood Burleigh and Currumbin are frontrunners to host wave pools, which can cost from $5-10 million.

There already is an artificial reef at Narrowneck, which has been roundly criticised for its lack of success.

A second artificial reef would use better technology and would probably be based on the southern end of the Gold Coast.

Tourists, such as Switzerland's Silvia Uilliger, come from all over the world to surf our famous breaks. The 21-year-old said the Gold Coast's legendary surfing beaches had swayed her decision when it came to choosing a city to study English.

"I thought about America, but Australia is famous for kangaroos and surfing, so I came here instead," she said.

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/travel/news/wave ... z1lb8hVQgh

http://www.news.com.au/travel/news/wave ... 6263458201

[mustkillmulloway]

ohh dear god.....i give up....have it

[carvin marvin]

So this taskforce has been established for one year.
They say they are interested in building surfing reefs but they have never started a discussion with surfers in the surfing reef forums on Swellnet, why aren't they interested in surfers ideas discussed on an open forum ?

More info here.
http://www.businessgc.com.au/GCSITF

[saucy gibbon]

So this taskforce has been established for one year.
They say they are interested in building surfing reefs but they have never started a discussion with surfers in the surfing reef forums on Swellnet, why aren't they interested in surfers ideas discussed on an open forum ?

More info here.
http://www.businessgc.com.au/GCSITF

coz its not for surfers, its for the japs and fat whiteys to ride surfmats on.

wont happen anyhoo, the insurance will kill them

[alakaboo]

If you follow the link Carvin posted, you'll see they are currently calling for nominations for people to sit on the panel.
http://www.businessgc.com.au/uploads/Ex ... 202012.pdf
Nominations close Thursday.

[huie]

thats you boo

cheers huie

[Nick Carroll]

"The surfing industry generates $3.3 billion a year for the Gold Coast economy"

jeez that figure is growing exponentially. Three BILLION DOLLARS???? If that was the case, Munga Barry and Cheyne Horan would be building multi-million-dollar eco holiday houses at Angourie.

and the way to make even MORE imaginary money is to build massively power intensive, yet to be ever made economically feasible anywhere on the planet style WAVE POOLS, 100 metres from one of the longest exposed beaches in eastern Australia?????

Go for it. Sounds like a great AFR magazine article in the making to me.

[Beerfan]

I have a better business idea, lets sell ice to the eskimos, they love that stuff. You can tell by the way they stash it all around em. Any venture capitalists out there pm me with contributions

[kookster]

http://www.swellnet.com.au/news/2658-wa ... reg-webber

[crabmeat thompson]

Kangaroos and surfing. When you put it like that, you'd be crazy not to.

[chrisb]

"The surfing industry generates $3.3 billion a year for the Gold Coast economy".

Does this figure come from the same people who formulated Joe Hockey's Liberal budget estimates. You know, the one with that $70 billion "black hole".

[carvin marvin]

If they plan to build surfing reefs the logical starting point would be to fix the Narrowneck Reef.
The Narrowneck reef was built too deep and to add to the problem it sunk.
The problem could be that that entire area is sand over swampland which might explain the sinking.

Why not use the existing reef as the foundations for a reef built at the correct depth and see whether it sinks.

And most importantly extend a ramp further out into deep water beyond the existing reef so that the take off area is not as sucky.

Instead of using sand filled bags use concrete steel reinforced tanks (like water tanks but with thicker walls) and fill with water or pump full with sand.

Regarding Webbers wave pool design and the energy needed to generate waves.
If the energy from a fishing trawler can generate surfable 1 foot waves on the Clarence River then it would not take that much more energy to operate the hull that moves around the outside of the wave pool creating a 4 foot wave.

I am keeping an open mind regarding Webbers wave pool concept, I can't wait to see a full size one operating.
His design combining the circular wave pool with his wave generating hull is a brilliant design for a wave pool.
Probably the best design so far.
Whereas Kelly Slugs wave pool design will require a lot more energy to produce a wave.

[purple pyramids]

when you combine the two, you get...postcards of surfing kangaroos. is there anything better?
koalas look stupid on a board - and they grab rails. but kangaroos looks natural. would love to see a wallaby on a board, with it's nuggety, go hard, head down approach. they're the kneeboarders of the macropod world.

there are some good postcards at the charring cross post office on bronte road -- you can tell they're p.shopped by surfers - kangaroo is looking down the line, well positioned for a turn. not like the postcards down at bondi junction mall that have been p.shopped by pommy graphic designers on a working holiday.

Kangaroos and surfing. When you put it like that, you'd be crazy not to.

[still here]

Webbers Wavepool and artificial reefs are awsome idea .
Probably wont happen here though due to carbon taxes and environmental lobby as well as council litigation/insurance etc . Pity , but ..... guess they'll get a webber wave happening in Dubai quick smart though .

[petulance]

Come on guys, 14 posts in and no one mentions that they want to surf with Silvia?

We don't get that kind of Euro birds down Maroubra way.

[brendo]

and to think here i was assuming it was a typo, and silvia wanted to see kangaroos and ROOT surfers while drinking her way through uni....

[Beanpole]

Dime a dozen at Bondi
Who would want to ride superbank when they can hit the wave pool?

One thing I sometimes think would be better is the old set up with Snapper-okay to good but rarely great,
Rainbow peeling for mals and learners, Outside of Greenmount fast and a bit hollow, inside Greenmount peeling down the point into the beach except when its big, stray good sections on Coolangatta beach and then Kirra belting through like the old days as the jewel in the crown of australian waves with the little groin offering a few thrilling moments as well.

It would have to sort some out some of the crowd problems.

[crabmeat thompson]

It would have to sort some out some of the crowd problems.

imo, the superbank has rooted the gold coast from a surfing perspective.

The reasons you identify, no more rainbow bay, greeny or coolie beach. Don't even get me started on kirra!!

I'd love to see a research study on how pumping all that sand, has effected the waves and banks up at Palmy, and the central beaches Miami to Surfers. As the strong southerly pulses came and dredged all that sand north it had an effect.

I remember a photog mate who gets up in a chopper in big swells, was telling me in the height of the pumping you see a distinct line of sand which starts around north kirra and becomes really prominent at palmy/ currumbin all the way up to surfers. And the line of sand sits about 40 odd metres past where the back bank should be, which made a much deeper and wider gutter from the shorey to the back bank.

They are only starting to return now, and its no surprise that no sand has been pumped since 2009. But throughout 2001 up until 2009, you could count the really good (beachie) days on one hand per year, when it should have been more like a score of them, minimum.