Palm Springs Surf Club shut-down blamed on lightning strike!

“We understand the optics of this situation are not ideal, but we intend to use this down time to upgrade our advanced settings.”

Earlier today, the world awoke to the shock news that the Palm Springs Surf Club, a facility patronised and feted by the world’s best surfers, had been shuttered indefinitely because of “technical challenges.”

You’ll remember BeachGrit’s Com Turren visited the Palm Springs Surf Club shortly after it opened to the public on New Year’s Day, booking two advanced sessions, at two hundred dollars per hour, and one intermediate session at one-fifty, but was denied the tubes cause of tech probs.

Still, our man enjoyed himself immensely concluding, “150 for 12ish intermediate waves in an hour seems like a fairly even trade given the $80 million dollar investment in this place.”

Following its closure, an email to patrons advised:

“It has been a tough decision to make but based on the current state of some technical issues with our wave machine, we will be cancelling the remainder of sessions scheduled for January; effective tonight, 1/10/24.

“In recent days, we have been experiencing technical challenges. We have been working through them but our goal here at The Palm Springs Surf Club is to consistently deliver epic waves. In order to maintain the quality we have worked so hard to achieve within our wave settings, we need to take the whole system down to make it strong again. As a team that has been dedicated to the stoke, it saddens us to make this call but we can confidently say we will be back again with the product you all have seen and hoped to experience.”

Later, the creator of the pool’s tech, Tom Lochtefeld, wrote to BeachGrit, giving a little more detail into what happened.

Chas and Derek – 

I’ll take the hit for the Palm Springs Surf Club (PSSC)  let down; although legitimately I can blame a ‘lightning strike’ (there was definitely was an aberrant power condition) and 3rd parties, i.e., the “technical challenges” which affected our advanced setting wave performance and PSSC’s ability to offer a premium surf experience.

Notwithstanding, due to the fault tolerance of our wave generating system, we can still make good intermediate waves; however, our ‘core’ market want premium slabs, barrels, and sections. Since Surf Loch is not satisfied with just ‘good’ and rather than compromise the offer, we have mutually decided with PSSC to cancel all remaining January / February surf sessions and the pool will remain closed until warmer weather. 

We understand the optics of this situation are not ideal, but we intend to use this down time to upgrade our advanced settings, improve our unfinished beach run-up, and expand our intermediate and beginner wave riding options.

You guys have treated Surf Loch fairly, and your confidence and support are of utmost importance to us, and we appreciate your understanding during this opening period.

We are excited to bring PSSC back online with an even better wave and overall surf experience.

Lightning!

Delivered by God or a bolt from Team Slater?

Wavepool king Tom Lochtefeld on his Palm Springs Surf Club Miracle!
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HamSammish

I’m not buying the lightning excuse. No hamsammish!

tim_nelsen

Now, to take matters into overdrive, the farmers have rebelled and
blocked roads all over the country, and the railway workers are on
strike, with healthcare workers vowing to stop, too.
AP

Speaking of plunging? We all have a bit of Viking in our genes. Due to all the raping!

Stick man

It’s how the reef at Pipeline was formed…give it a couple million years and see how good Palm Springs is then.

Stick man

Must’ve snapped one of the Springs with his Palm…

Low wide stinkbug stance

You guys gotta do an interview with Bernard from west world, aka jeffrey Wright (no relation)

“In the maw of awards season, Jeffrey Wright retains the hope that surfing can help him maintain equilibrium.”

“The water has become a really healthy companion. The water grounds me.”

Straight outta GQ magazine.

Dim Sim

Hey Derek, it’s being streamed.

https://www.icj-cij.org/mul…

Dim Sim

Whoopsie doopsie, soz, that link goes nowhere but (honest to goodnest) if youse click around on the icj site youse will find the route to seeing what the judges are seeing (about the gross genocide being done by Israel on Gaza, in case you’ve been napping in a cave for the past 90 days) Plus, more interesting (arguably) than the da hui back door shootout going on at the same time (is that right? Is that where we are in the calendar? The wozzle totally fucked it by turning a predictable calendar (snapper to start, Pipe to finish) into an entirely forgettable sequence of non events,). Bon soirée.

AI (for ever) .

Why are they closing the first of October and talking about it now?

Occ Topus

Ke11y is amused.
“Hey guise… MY pool is still working! Hahaha.”

Beef & Beer

I’m just surprised that he thinks slab seekers are his ‘core’ market, when surely it’s main paying customers would be more of an intermediate variety (which apparently the machine can already cater too)…

Pauly Matt War-Shore

That’s what’s they’ve found in Melbourne.

channelbottom

Do you think Russell Bierke is champing at the bit to get into Palm Springs and ride slabs?

tim_nelsen

wrong ingredients, wrong shape, less fat chicks…guesiness beer & some short rribs~

JohnsKnees

My brain also short circuited reading that excuse, I too blame the lightning in the area.

Sean Connery

I use an excuse like that on my jobsites all the time- Ma’am………I’ll take the hit for your scratched cabinets although legitimately I can blame Hector and Juan who were walking around with there bags on after I told them not to.

Gil Gunderson

Everyone needs to settle down. Kalani is on his way to the pool, bone broth in hand. The pool will heal up before we know it. The pool’s vax status is none of our business.

#prayforpalmspringspool
#wavepoolsmatter
#pooltoo

Stick man

Don’t forget every great surf spot needs an aluminium tower overlooking it!

Chief Hot stuff

If this isnt russian interferance id be very shocked.!!

Dim Sim

Vlad don’t surf

Pauly Matt War-Shore

Is it troll…? Bitching like him.

c4

Has there been a lightning storm in Palm Springs in the last ten days?

ValiantScorn

Everyone knows what really happened, I have footage.

https://www.youtube.com/wat…

deeks

I smell a bald 50 something y.o. rat! Chewing the wiring.

Barrelled

He’s taking the hit but blaming it on anyone or anything but himself. His fucking toolbag mumbo jumbo about aberrant power and fault tolerance simply means there was a power surge and they didn’t have their $80 mil toy protected properly by breakers. Idiocy at its finest.

Dane’s beer belly

Yep. It’s also funny to still see Chas and Derek kissing his a** and not calling him out for clearly bogus explanations. All for “Access Journalism.”

NEGATRON

Speaking of funny. You going silent and blocking me, after I offered you an open book tour of the mod panel after you alleged BG deleted your comments to keep its “access journalism” pool status.

Sean Connery

Boom

Black Rubber

Shoulda used one of those surge protector thingies! I think I got an extra.

tim_nelsen

made in china…

7dollarsurfboard

Like traveling to Hawaii to surf pipe without travel insurance.

Erik Bogan

Waves are starting to pump on the east coast and the aussie points are lighting up. The original and best wave pools

Pauly Matt War-Shore

Vicco summer being a total arsehole. CBF driving up to the wavepool anymore, and they keep putting up the prices. Still, cheaper than this pool that looks worse, and you get more waves an hour.

The Bitchy Crab

I’ve had so much fun in that dang pool.

Oh it’s fun. No doubt.

longtomssecondcuztwiceremoved

how much per sesh now?

Depends on time off day/side etc. Arvo sesh on advanced right is $125. “Expert” 160. Left is cheaper.

longtomssecondcuztwiceremoved

whaaaattttt????!

It used to be 90 bucks.

Sean Connery

It is if your American

Black Rubber

Lefts are worth nothing to me

Sean Connery

One man’s trash is another mans treasure

Dim Sim

Get in now before the sharks get bored in S.A.

AI (for ever) .

Dawn just breaking and the pass has over a hundred out already

Erik Bogan

I surfed the pass the last few days and has been a fun swell ! Low tide drainers behind the rock, sand is epic at the moment !

Otto

65 more lightning strikes and then we’ll pay attention

https://youtu.be/OGR6Wk3Kbo…

Dane’s beer belly

I dunno man, no one on site mentioned lightning as the initial cause of their mechanical problems. Numerous other reasons were given including faulty bearings and caissons. Lochtefeld is looking like a charlatan playing damage control to his own rep, just a couple weeks ago he was saying Kelly’s tech is “headed to the junkyard.” I trust the on site ground crew more than that snake.


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