Surf Park

Burgerman55

has anyone come across this idea before

for beginner to intermediate surfers the toughest part of the experience is continually battling the waves to get out far enough to catch a decent run
i would like to develop a surf park with pulleys to drag you out through the water - kinda like in skiing

good idea if i can get planning permission?

seachto7

are you serious?

TheTubes

go for it.
let us know how how you get on.

kodute

I will build what you are proposing, for the low low price of 54.7 billion :pac:

how about one of these for a much lower cost...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGDg0yDkMCI

In fact I think someone said there's one of these in the National Aquatic Centre.

Burgerman55

seachto7 wrote: »

are you serious?

yes

i've spoken to some engineers and they guarantee me it is structurally possible
finding an appropriate site is the difficulty
i've made initial enquiries through the lahinch surf school but they want a detailed spec and business plan
i'm reluctant to go this route yet

gerk86

emm battling through the waves yourself to get out back is an important aspect of surfing. If you're a bic weilding weekend warrior getting towed out to the waves and your leash breaks out there you're probably going to panic and drown in just moderately big surf.

c - 13

gerk86 wrote: »

emm battling through the waves yourself to get out back is an important aspect of surfing. If you're a bic weilding weekend warrior getting towed out to the waves and your leash breaks out there you're probably going to panic and drown in just moderately big surf.

I agree, if you're not able to make it out to the break then chances are you shouldnt be out there - Its either above your level or your having a "weak" day or whatever, if something goes wrong your pretty screwed.

I really cant see anyone giving you the go ahead with insurance on this, too dangerous.

PeakOutput

c - 13 wrote: »

I really cant see anyone giving you the go ahead with insurance on this, too dangerous.

i dont see insurance being a problem as far as getting it cost might be prohibitive but you can get insurance for far riskier things than this

i can see a place like lahinch surf school liking this idea with all their beginners many of whom surf once and never again it would be a great marketing tool for them


while im sure it could make money as far as the 'real surf' community goes its a ridicolous idea

tedshredsonfire

jetski and several ropes

Low Pockets

Burgerman55 wrote: »

has anyone come across this idea before

for beginner to intermediate surfers the toughest part of the experience is continually battling the waves to get out far enough to catch a decent run
i would like to develop a surf park with pulleys to drag you out through the water - kinda like in skiing

good idea if i can get planning permission?

Man the f u c k up!

If you cant paddle out, you have no place out there.

cue

Burgerman55 wrote: »

good idea?

No.

Cecil Mor

Looking at this all wrong, you should be considering a ski-lift style approach rather then cables & pulleys towing style system.

With a ski-lift style system Fiachra, Fintan and other similar w@nkers don't even have to get their bleached blond hair wet:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

liberal

solution


jetski..... 2 euro pull out

Burgerman55

thats not practical liberal.

need a reinforced concrete shell built on a beach foundation
a pulley system is connected to the shell that takes surfers out maybe 25m, 50m, 100m - users would have the option to leave the pulley at these particular intervals or return to base if timing was not suitable.

i'd imagine you could sell a daily pass for approx 10e a pop
insurance quotes are not that ridiculous so far
particularly when the system would employ full-time lifeguard staff

imagine how useful this would be for surf school!
its a winner

thehangtenguy

If you can't paddle out thru the whitewater, your have no business being out the back, lifeguard being present or not.

Fiendybob

I recon it's a great idea for the lazy surfer - all the fun and no effort - brilliant! Surfing for the microwave generation...

liberal

I seriously thought this was a piss-take.......

cons
90% of school bussiness is poeple that dont do out beyond chest depth

people who do go out back aren't going to pay a tenner

and alot of people like the work out

and wouldn't the pullies just plow you head first into the waves head first anyway?


pros

your ambitious

liberal

head first like!

glide

and do you actually think that any council in the coutry is going to let you plant two pylons on any beach in ireland

just learn to surf then you will get outback!!

Burgerman55

this is a business venture at the end of the day..

surfing profile is on the up amongst irish teenagers / adults
surf schools are springing up everywhere
this is a natural next step

key is to locate this on a suitable beach somewhere close to an emerging town in ireland

kodute

Burgerman55 wrote: »

this is a business venture at the end of the day..

surfing profile is on the up amongst irish teenagers / adults
surf schools are springing up everywhere
this is a natural next step

key is to locate this on a suitable beach somewhere close to an emerging town in ireland

Who is the target market?
If its people who can get out the back and are simple feeling lazy then it won't turn a profit.
If its people who can't get out the back due to not being strong enough then you are going to hire plenty lifeguards to pull people to shore(or the return pully). Best case scenario you won't be sued.

glide

and there isnt a chance of any council letting you build it!
i had problems getting permission for a bbq on the beach for a one day event they arent gonna let you put up a permanent structure!

this is one of the funniest things ive ever seen on a forum! :pac:

save your money build a proper flowrider instead!

Cprh

AFAIK, the standard surf school insurance doesn't cover "out the back" surfing.

Regardless, the first time surfer cannot surf an unbroken wave anyway - so why bring them out there. All you'd be doing is increasing driftwood and tbh putting them in uneccessary danger.

Concrete, pulleys, machinery??? On a beach, point, or reef. Are you mad? Surf breaks need to be left in their natural state.

If you truly want to achieve multiple easy access waves have a look at the new adventure park place in London.

It has, what I would consider, the first relatively respectable man made wave.

http://www.venture-xtreme.com/water.html

There is a test video on youtube somewhere but cant find it.

Basically, it's an artificial pool with a beach and a proper wave machine that creates up 2 metre waves that peel left and right for about 50 m maybe while decreasing in size. £30 for 10 waves I believe.

Anyway,

Your pulley systems is ridiculous. Rant over

high horse

Wouldn't putting a large concrete structure in the wave area destroy the formation of the waves?

Burgerman55

high horse wrote: »

Wouldn't putting a large concrete structure in the wave area destroy the formation of the waves?

no cause the waves typically form from up to 250 - 400m away from the shore

seachto7

Burgerman55 wrote: »

this is a business venture at the end of the day..

surfing profile is on the up amongst irish teenagers / adults
surf schools are springing up everywhere
this is a natural next step

key is to locate this on a suitable beach somewhere close to an emerging town in ireland

if there happens to be a nature reserve nearby, you could build apartments on top of it, for your new clients to stay in...:rolleyes:

OldGuysRule

no cause the waves typically form from up to 250 - 400m away from the shore

Burgermann55, if you believe that placing this 'out the back' will have no effect of waves, or genuinely think that waves 'typically form up to 250 - 400m from the shore', then you have no understanding of how waves develop. How do you propose to account for rising / falling tide levels, littoral movement (formation and movement of sandbanks), storm protection, visual impact, safety.

I for one would not want to see nonsense development such as this any where on the Irish coastline. You will put people in a stuation they shold not be in, ruin the natural formation and operation of a line up and pi55 most people off.

donga_perkins

I think it's a fabulous idea, Tullan Strand would be an ideal candidate for development, you could build on the fairy bridges there.
Paddling out there is always a pain

Killgore Trout

You can put your surf resort next to my unicorn farm - rather then powering your pulleys with electricity we can use unicorns harnessed into machines - imagine the green credentials! There's high unemployment in the the local leprechaun workforce - so it's cheap labour a go-go.

donga_perkins

??? I meant the fairy bridges on the cliff there, that's what they're called. I wasn't talking about imaginary creatures

Killgore Trout

I was talking to the burgervan guy.

Fiendybob

glide wrote: »

and do you actually think that any council in the coutry is going to let you plant two pylons on any beach in ireland

just learn to surf then you will get outback!!

Just build on to the groins in G-town! Never mind knocking them down - make them bigger!!! - horse on a few pullys and sorted. I always knew them groins would come in handy one day...

TheTubes

Fiendybob wrote:

Just build on to the groins in G-town! Never mind knocking them down - make them bigger!!! - horse on a few pullys and sorted. I always knew them groins would come in handy one day...

groins are gone already.

useurename

why not a huge catapult on the beach and just lob yourself out there:cool:

TheTubes

Pfft, catapults are so middle-ages,
you should look into some sort of transporter system.
Google "star trek transporter how to/tutorial"

bagus

Burgerman55 wrote: »

this is a business venture at the end of the day..

I for one am dead set against your plans. Don't underestimate the resistance you will face from surfers in Ireland if you are serious about this nonsense.

Do us all a favour and put your energy into a charity or something useful, preferably non-surfing related.

donga_perkins

Whats with the negativity? I reckon most surfers would be delighted with something like this. There's no real downside, more waves for everyone!

tedshredsonfire

The downside of it is that you will have a lot of people who can surf the waves but not paddle out to them. When they go to another break with no pulley system they will be in **** creek imho. paddling out and learning how to get out the back is an integral part of surfing and makes you more confident and more importantly more competant in the water.

bagus

donga_perkins wrote: »

Whats with the negativity? I reckon most surfers would be delighted with something like this. There's no real downside, more waves for everyone!

By most surfers I assume you mean raw beginners who don't mid an eyesore on a beach, that will be dangerous, very quickly fail as an idea, and be left there to fall to ruin, and become even more dangerous.

Getting out the back is a skill that a beginner needs to learn.

eiresurfer

I'm not sure who's serious or who's taking the píss in this thread. I'd imagine Burgerman55 is laughing away to himself, having wound up everyone with this (obviously ridiculous) idea.

frag420

The idea of a pully system is just plain wrong. There are numerous reasons why posted here so i wont go on about it.

I would however be in favour of an indoor type wave machine in a central location. All ya v to do is look at the vids posted about them to see how much fun they are. How often do we moan about no swell eh?? Anyways untill such time i will continue my paddle out the back...............

frAg

NothingMan

In Munich they surf in a stationary spot on the river. Now that's a way to do it that involves no paddle out!

I would post youtube vids, but I am in work and the evil IT guy blocked it.... Wait that's me... HAHAHAHAHAHA.

donga_perkins

I thought it was an inland surf park he was on about. That'd be great if they put it in Dublin, keep all the Easties off the West coast

Crumble Froo

inland surf thing would be awesome alright.

but paddling out really is such an important part of surfing, not just for the beginner trying to find teh sweet spot on their board, not to mention building up muscles for paddling for clean waves when they do get out the back... but even from a safety perspective, feeling the water, the tides, the rips, the drifts. feeling the different ways the waves break at different tidal points (my local just slams straight down at low tide, i'd much rather learn that on the paddle out, than when im nosediving into shallow water, tbh.)....

i'd imagine many of us have joked about it at certain points, that we wish someone could just drag us out, or we could magically transport to the line ups with no effort... but i wouldnt pay a tenner to get there (or use it at all, tbh)

Burgerman55

just to clarity what i have envisaged and am in the process of designing

up to 20,000 people every year take up surfing
roughly 3 out of every 4 people within this group fail to surf more than 2 times in a given year, therefore there is an extremely high rate of drop-outs
this is fuelled by the difficulties beginners face in getting into position to catch a wave, getting upright does not appear to be so much of a problem

clearly the system will work best in surf schools although i will not restrict it to these on a location basis
it will enable a high number of beginners to overcome the challenge of paddling against the waves, its a definate money spinner and this is evidenced by the fact that we have already had interest from 2 schools in ireland and 1 in portugal

the major challenge behind this project is ensuring that the apparatus required is aesthetically pleasing and sufficiently flexible for use/setup in a range of different locations

you'll recall our original design involved erecting concrete foundations and building the pulley system around that. we've drastically improved the design and now the system is capable of operating on a specifcally desugned floatation devise with minimal permanent structures required on the beach front

PM me for further details or for investment opportunities.

gerk86

lol good one.

You should also have a facility out back that will pull you through a sneaker outside set that is about to annihilate the line up.

You could charge a nominal fee of lets say 50c. Pop your change into the machine as the monster set looms all the while the que behind are telling you to "HURRY THE F**K UP". Hold tight onto the rope and get dragged over the top to safety just as you hear "FOOOOCK, I LEFT MY WALLET IN MY CHINO-OOOoohs......"

ronanoc

While I have joked about this in the water before, I would be horrified to see something like this on Irish beaches. (I can't speak for other countries but I'm sure the same goes)

Along with all the points mentioned previously about it being irresponsible, part of the beauty of surfing in Ireland is the view of the landscape. When I'm in the water for a while I always take a few minutes to take in all the surrounding and I can't imagine this being spoiled by a mechanical device.

Getting out to the waves is part of learning to surf, it's not something that should be seen as a barrier to surfing. It's like someone saying they want to play football but don't like running so put some motorised wheels on your boots.

kodute

Burgerman55 wrote: »

this is evidenced by the fact that we have already had interest from 2 schools in ireland and 1 in portugal

I would like to know which schools have endorsed this and how many (total) you have approached with this idea?

Crumble Froo

Burgerman55 wrote: »

up to 20,000 people every year take up surfing
roughly 3 out of every 4 people within this group fail to surf more than 2 times in a given year, therefore there is an extremely high rate of drop-outs
this is fuelled by the difficulties beginners face in getting into position to catch a wave, getting upright does not appear to be so much of a problem

have you actually surveyed any of these 15,000 people to ask why they dont surf more often? could it be that they live inland, that they lack the transport/funds to get to the beach, or to buy/rent a board and wettie?
could it be that they only went as a holiday once off weekend thing?

catching waves isnt hard, especially as a beginner, when you're mostly catching whitewater. it's a lot harder to catch clean waves out the back. and you'll never catch waves out the back if you can't paddle like hell... and guess the best way to develop your paddling?

the major challenge behind this project is ensuring that the apparatus required is aesthetically pleasing and sufficiently flexible for use/setup in a range of different locations

not to mention that it's not getting in other surfers' way.

tedshredsonfire

burgerman I've already pointed out my views as a surfer so now purely from a business point of view how have will you overcome the implications of having such a device on a beach ie. planning permission, potental injurys to people using or not using it ( simply crashing back into it). if it involves pulleys and ropes/cables etc it could be a hazard if you surf back in towards it again or take a tumble then get washed into it.

neon_glows

I cant believe this thread is still going, i cant believe for one minute that any of it is serious, it sounds like complete nonsense and id be gobsmacked to think any surf school would want involvement in something like this.