Last week, we brought you a sneak peak of the first surfing trials at the brand new Surf Snowdonia Wavegarden in the UK, which has officially opened its doors as of today. The video was sort of disappointing, as the small, mushy wave left many critics unenthusiastic about the park’s opening, concerned that it made no new, significant contribution to man-made wave technology. But that’s certainly not the case.
The wave was operating at fifty percent capacity and simply served as a test to gently run before one hundred percent power was achieved, said Surf Snowdonia in a press release. “It’s important to note that this was slow testing of the machinery,” said Surf Snowdonia. “Fine tuning of the wave is underway and the two-meter barreling wave, with the 1.2-meter by its side will be here soon!”
According to Wavegarden, the technology can produce a 2 meter wave (6 and a half foot wave! Definitely not Hawaiian, though) that peels 150 meters and runs for 16 seconds. That sounds nice.
After much anticipation – although still very much in its testing phase – here is a more adequate portrayal of what Surf Snowdonia Wavegarden is capable of. These photos were captured by photographer Nick Pumphrey a week before the grand opening.
