Brave lil Mason Ho, Hawaii's Queen of Crazy, inside the advanced wave at Palm Springs Surf Club. Snapt5

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

Derek Rielly

By

“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?

Suck it, wind!
Suck it, wind!

Rhode Island’s core surf community revolts against proposed offshore wind farm!

Chas Smith

By

Raised fist.

There is one name in core and that is Sid Abbruzzi. The Package has done it all from creating Rhode Island’s surf culture through his shop Water Bros to fighting the man to protecting the coast and ensuring access for all.

When Sid speaks, it is well worth a listen and now he is lending his voice to the growing protest against a proposed offshore wind farm.

Monied interests are planning to erect 1000 turbines, each 850 feet tall, some 12.9 nautical miles off Rhode Island’s gorgeous surf-rich coast. These will be both the largest turbines ever built and the greatest concentration anywhere on earth.

The field will be built on Coxes Ledge, a geological formation that supports a variety of marine life including whales and delicious cod. Not only will construction damage the area but hundreds of miles of underground cables will also be installed sending sediment plumes into critical breeding grounds. Long dormant toxic lead deposits and heavy metals will also be dredged right back into the system.

While wind is generally seen as clean, these turbines are made from dirty Chinese steel and, also, the blades cannot be recycled ending up in ugly blade cemeteries.

Etc.

There is much naughtiness about the plan though the surf core is getting behind a legal effort to stop it all.

Would you like to lend your dollars?

Donate here!

Layer (pictured) in need of a little 80mph puff. Photo: Instagram
Layer (pictured) in need of a little 80mph puff. Photo: Instagram

Surfers smack lips after Ventura declares “State of Emergency” as freaky air wind, monster waves pummel coast!

Chas Smith

By

Rotation time.

Surfers are odd creatures, relishing weather anomalies much, much more than the next man. Swell events, for example, pushing big ol’ barrels toward shore. The next man might be worried about his house, but surfers are there, boards waxed, ready to ride straight into infamy. Or wicked winds licking the sky, bending palms like toothpicks etc. The next man could be worried that his house will become crushed, but surfers are there, boards waxed, ready to stick an elusive double, even triple rotation.

But let us hurry quick to Ventura, California where a “State of Emergency” has been declared over barrels and airs.

Per the local ABC affiliate:

Strong winds whipping across Southern California are bringing dangerously high surf to beach communities once again Thursday.

The conditions prompted the city of Ventura to declare a state of emergency due to severe high surf events. The order allows the city to receive emergency funding from the state and speed up any needed disaster response.

The National Weather Service said: “High surf and coastal flooding are possible through Friday at west and northwest facing beaches.”

This comes after recent damage to the Ventura Pier during high tide events.

I would very much like the think that one Albee Layer is, currently, on his way to Silver Strand. The Maui-San Diego surfer has been really cursing himself after almost, but not quite, landing a 2x spin. Taking to Instagram, he wrote, “After thinking about this section instead of sleeping for most of last night I decided I hit it a half a second early and didn’t stomp hard enough on the landing. Good news is I probably hate myself enough to land it today if I get another chance which the odds are pretty low on. Fuck.”

I think the odds will very much improve with Ventura’s predicted 80mph winds. I think, even, a 4x spin in the cards.

Huzzah.

Breaking: Palm Springs Surf Club shutters indefinitely due “technical challenges”

Chas Smith

By

"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."

Less than two weeks ago, Southern California’s surfers rejoiced with the opening of the region’s first commercial wave tank. The Palm Springs Surf Club, tucked into the magnificent Coachella Valley, promised glorious on-demand thrills for an altogether reasonable price. 200 U.S. dollars guaranteed an hour of joy in Hollywood’s playground.

Our very own Com Turren opened his pocketbook and made the trip, recently, sharing, “What is the experience of a public session like for your average peasant of average surfing ability? Pretty fun, just so long as you recognize that this is not surfing—it’s riding waves in a pool.”

Though he was not allowed to enjoy the “slab setting” as it was broken.

The month of January sold out almost as soon as it was posted.

Alas, sad news is trickling out from the desert. The tank is being shuttered indefinitely due “technical challenges.”

“In recent days,” a missive to those who had booked began, “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.”

Further information is included regarding refunds, booking in the future etc.

But did you have a slot pre-paid and a trip all planned?

Where were you going to stay?

The Parker is always a wonderful choice and I’d recommend you keep to your schedule, minus the surfing bits of course. There are two bocce courts on property as well as tennis and oversized chess.

Still, still, though hopefully issues are worked out and the waves pump in February.

David Lee Scales, who has surfed the place twice, and I did not discuss this bit of misfortune during our weekly chat though did delve into the origin story of Kelly Slater’s obsession with turtles. It is as whimsical as it is shocking.

Have a listen, won’t you?

Koa Rothman almost killed at Pipeline
Lifeguards stabilise a concussed and bloody Koa Rothman on the beach at Pipeline.

Surfer Koa Rothman says “Pipeline almost killed me!”

Derek Rielly

By

“His battered face was red, swollen and grotesque.”

It’s little secret Pipeline is a wave that will throw itself on a man like a demented animal, turning its prey into something that no longer looks human.

Rarely does rhetoric (“You can die out there”) and reputation match reality but in the case of Pipeline, at least this season, it fits.

What is it…five…major casualties?

Peruvian Joaquin Del Castillo had to get his hip bolted back back together at a cost of one hundred gees that he don’t have, Teahupoo kingpin Eimeo Czermak just wants to feel his legs again, world number four Joao Chianca is in rehab after belting his head, a tourist was pulled unconscious from the water on a four-foot day and beautiful Koa Rothman, he face-planted the reef and, in his own words, “Pipeline almost killed me.”

In a video of the brutish incident, we see the wave from the Surfline cam, the rescue, the ambulance ride, Koa’s face red, swollen and grotesque, and the very relieved son of Fast Eddie explaining the brush with his fragile mortality.

“You guys, I’m alive!” says Koa Rothman. “For those of you who don’t know what happened, I actually had an accident out here at Pipeline…on the very end on a wave you’d never expect it to happen on. I hit my head on the bottom, got twenty stitches in my face… and had a pretty bad concussion… I don’t remember ten minutes of it… What I do remember is, the whole session up to it, I caught a wave and straightened out on the wave. When we straighten out, which we do a lot, we give a little hop before the wave hits you… I remember jumping a little bit…I came to on the beach on a stretcher and in a neck brace.”

Jon Pyzel and Matt Biolos by @theneedforshutterspeed/Step Bros
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