Six-foot bulges are set to smash on the Thames at an appeal focused to entice the mounting position of urban surfers to tang the “archetypal California surf routine” in the improbable setting of a derelict wharf in the vicinity of East London. News is by 2011, the world’s first outdoor artificial surfing machine is expected to hit the board and counter the established mane of the Atlantic breakers of Devon and Cornwall making use of clean river water.
The idea is to influence surfers to reach to their boards in Tower Hamlets instead of making long drive to the West Country, where the waves are more millpond than Maui. Expected to be the £20mn Venture Xtreme project at Silvertown Quays, it has managed to gain outline planning permission. They are geared up to start their project for converting the former grain dock. This would be supplemented by a synthetic beach surrounded by the palm trees, boardwalks and rentable fire-pits and barbecues for post-surf relaxation.
To enjoy this deal, surfers would be charged £30 ($60) for an hour-long session under which they would be offered at least 10 waves per rider, and each one rolls more than 100 metres as the swell expands from the dock to the beach. The wave machine is being set in such a way to make the surf split right-left from a central peak, enabling surfers to go smoothly accident fear. Against the Miyazaki Ocean Dome in Tokyo that got shut due to the less number of visitors, this is a project with a difference. It is a brainchild of Steve Jones, an adventure sports enthusiast and is backed by David Taylor, a former regeneration adviser to John Prescott.
Via Guardian
