Now to really keep it simple. I am sharing with you the simplest truths, hints, diagrams, instructions, metaphors, analogies and other cool things so you can easily build quality waves. So whether you have the ability to built out a fully realised “multiple concentric donuts” FOL or you build out a fractal version for a creek on your property.

This here is really basic. At the end of the article, I will share these words again. “Rollin” “Petal” Cardioid” “Mandelbrot” I hope at that point their symmetry is clear, allowing you to blueprint your FOL Fountain of Life Wave-Pool – the ultimate technology!

“It is not subjective, it’s not art, it’s not philosophy. This is as objective as it gets. This is physics. It either works or it doesn’t. Fluid dynamics give no fucks about egos, SAT scores, Ph.D.s, GEDs, B felonies, or Vidal Sasson. Fluid dynamics knows only one thing. Flow. God gave me that knowledge. How water flows. I can’t spell to save my life. Long division, WTF is that? And after three divorces I’m pretty sure you don’t want any marriage consultation from me. But when it comes to moving water into perfect waveforms. I understand the flow better than anyone on earth. The FOL is to wave pools what Tesla’s AC was to Eddison’s DC, it is that much further advanced beyond any current wave-pool tech.”  – EM

I was also well aware the FOL created a unique wave never seen before in artificial wave technology.

In this series, I will take the time to express the foundations for building perfect waves and the proper perspectives on these foundations in simple terms geared towards the layperson. The reason I’m doing this is that I am the layperson. Even though I have the most advanced wave-pool tech figured out, I didn’t figure it out with conventional methods and I don’t express it in a conventional manner. Whereas the first article was written from a deeply personal narrative with the hope the world might grasp the spiritual importance of this work, this article will allow everyone to easily grasp the simplicity of the physics of the FOL.

My work is unlike any tech currently on the market.

Basically, the way fluids move isn’t that hard to understand if you know what to look for and you know how you want the fluid to behave. Luckily for us, we are dealing with water, not plasma or other more difficult mediums to control.

“When Charles Chase from Lockheed Martin showed me illustrations of the compact fusion generator his team is working on in the Revolutionary Technologies Laboratory it confirmed my belief 100% that the FOL would work and that it was far superior to all other wave-pool technology.” – EM (Photo: Fusion generator, © Robert Mumgaard, CC-BY-SA-3.0)

I will offer some basic technical information that can assist anyone planning on or currently building river waves.

I hope you all enjoy the way I am about to express some basic technical things that have been overlooked or undervalued in the realm of artificial waves.

I will present the basic outline for building ecologically & economically sound surf spots far from the oceans

The key to getting these waves built properly in mass as quickly as possible is an open-source approach to artificial wave engineering.

I am open sourcing my superlative artificial wave technology to accelerate the process of creating world-class waves, in a vast array of configurations throughout the world’s non-costal regions.

I will present the basic outline for how we can bless the non-coastal areas of our majestic mother earth with world-class surf spots, literally millions of perfect waves of all shapes and sizes, all powered by gravity alone, reviving impoverished communities, creating thriving new communities, markets and industry, while salvaging our planets most dilapidated and dangerous civil engineering infrastructure.

FOL technology provides a ”unified wave-pool field theory” bridging the gap between standing wave & propagating wave technologies

Because of my unique perspective & approach to engineering artificial waves, which is rooted in quantum mechanics, my work is unlike any tech currently on the market, the FOL technology provides a “unified wave-pool field theory” and new mechanisms to create the world’s finest standing & propagating wave generation devices, consolidating these currently separate disciplines.

I have translated the universe’s most important non-physical wave function to the physical realm as the most advanced wave-pool technology on earth.

This quantum wave function is the foundation of Nicola Tesla’s unparalleled body of work, that has defined our modern society. So it shouldn’t be any surprise this same wave function is the key to the ultimate wave-pool.

“The day science begins to study non-physical phenomena, it will make more progress in one decade than in all the previous centuries of its existence.“ – Nikola Tesla (Photo: Candle holder, © Amir Tuchman, CC-BY-SA-4.0)

For me, fluid dynamics exist as tangible things in my mind that I can touch, that I can construct and deconstruct

At the age of 44, I was blessed with a rare disorder known as Acquired Savant Syndrome or A.S.S. for short. I find this ironic because I am a polarising individual in both the ocean and river surf communities, so I am sure some people will find this acronym apropos.

Acquired Savant Syndrome refers to cases in which savant-level skills emerge after a brain injury or disease in previously healthy individuals where no such prodigious skills were evident beforehand (Wisconsin Medical Society). There are roughly one hundred reported cases worldwide. Mine is the only reported case triggered by a traumatic emotional experience, which if you think about it could be classified as a brain injury, just not caused by physical damage.

My gift is spatial visualisation ability pertaining to the field of quantum mechanics, aka, the wave mechanical model, which I translate into the field of classical mechanics, expressed in fluid dynamics.

I will express the basic functions of the FOL in comparison to the wave-pool & standing wave technologies to illustrate it’s superiority

Like most savants, of any kind, I didn’t acquire this knowledge in a formal setting, I don’t understand it in a formal manner and I don’t express it in a formal fashion. And like must savants, I “feel” this knowledge. For me, fluid dynamics exist as tangible things in my mind that I can touch, that I can construct and deconstruct. They are as real to me as anything that I can reach out and grab with my hands.

Because of my rapid & unorthodox acquisition & comprehension of the highly technical sciences of fluid dynamics & quantum physics, combined with severe childhood dyslexia & ADHD, I lack the formal vocabulary & mathematical skills to express my work with the clarity I desire.

It’s been very difficult getting my peers to grasp the simplicity of this beautiful realm of fluid dynamics and how it relates to surfing.” – EM (Photo:  Hydraulic jumps)

Follow this link to understand this subject better: An experimental investigation of the stability of the circular hydraulic jump

Fluid dynamics do not exist on paper and the mathematics that engineers rely on to understand & express them are just artefacts of the living, tangible reality of the flow, the flow I feel

This is as much a blessing as it is a curse because the skills to calculate & communicate the science of fluid of dynamics are suited to individuals who use the right hemisphere of their brain, the male side, which moves indirect paths, straight lines. On the other side, the left hemisphere of the brain, the female side, moves in indirect paths, curved lines. Visualize the Fibonacci sequence, the blocks are the male path, the swirl is the female path. I am incredibly left hemisphere brain wired and this is why I feel the swirl but it’s also why I don’t communicate well in blocks and most engineers like neat orderly things that add up on paper. I like flowing orderly things that form perfect surf.

But fluid dynamics do not exist on paper and the mathematics that engineers rely on to understand & express fluid dynamics are just equations on paper, they are fossils, artifacts of the living, tangible reality in my head. So it’s a trade-off. I am content with the cards I’ve been dealt. I would much rather have the ability to feel the flow in an abnormal fashion than the ability to calculate the flow in the normal fashion.

Trying to explain fluid dynamics is difficult enough when you speak it’s mathematical language. Imagine the challenge of trying to translate how you “feel” a force inside your mind when you do not speak this language.

There are multitudes of wave generating devices that can be created from the core principles of the FOL

I have mapped out the basic blueprint, or what I like to call the sheet music for perfect surf and over the years I’ve picked up enough of the scientific terminology to explain the physics of the FOL so just about anyone can understand it. Luckily, because the FOL is derived from the primary universal wave function there are multitudes of wave generating devices that can be created from the core principles of the FOL, offering a multitude of ways to express the technology.

Let’s begin

1. I will sum up my work in three words. Circular Hydraulic Jump/Mandelbrot X. This is the key to the ultimate wave pool.
2. I will address the two basic problems in the majority standing wave technologies. I will illustrate how the FOL solves these problems.
3. I will address the problem in all wave-pool technologies. I will illustrate how the FOL does not suffer from this problem.
4. I will express the basic functions of the FOL in comparison to the wave-pool & standing wave technologies to illustrate it’s superiority.

Barreling River Wave Dec 2014 Colorado State University – “The level of wave progression that happened over that week at CSU was amazing. My guess is there has never been a week in wave design that had moved river surfing further into the future.” – Ben Nielsen

Ok, let’s sort out the two basic standing wave tech problems.

The first issue we are addressing is a force. It is critical to artificial wave engineering.

It is critical to the universe. In my Perfect Path article I state, “the FOL is born of the atom, not the sea”. That isn’t entirely true. Even before I started surfing in the ocean at age eight, my father was a dedicated ocean surfer, so it is without question that the ocean has had a massive influence on my wave design work. And to say the FOL isn’t born of the river would also be untrue, as I have spent almost 20yrs now riding river waves all across the world and my early wave design work was focused strictly on standing waves. But the symmetry is of the atom.

This force is what sparked my spatial visualisation ability, radically changing my life spiritually, opening my eyes to the sublime beauty of the quantum realm that defines my work and to the sublime beauty of life itself, the product of this non-material realm.

“Waves are universal. I just happened to connect the dots. From atoms to oceans to solar systems, there is a unified order to the flow.” – EM (Photo: Helio, ©NASA)

Even though this force is the foundation of my work and the backbone of the FOL, it wasn’t until I started to write the provisional patent that I realized the full scope of this force in the symmetry of the FOL tech and an unseen wave-type hiding right before my eyes in the FOL the entire time.

With each surge, the knowledge builds inside me and even when the feeling recedes the new broader understanding of the flow remains.

As I started sketching out the first drawings for my provisional patent in the fall of 2017, I was already aware the FOL offered the ideal way to create a perfect standing wave(hydraulic jump). I was also well aware the FOL offered the ideal way to create the perfect version of a unique wave never seen before in any prior or existing artificial wave technology. As I continued to draw out the first detailed diagram I realized there was this third wave-type hiding in plain sight and this wave was the best representation of this force.

“Look inside yourself to find the answers to forming perfect waves.” – EM

I instantly felt it’s waveform. The flow washed over me with the same intensity as the very first time I felt the “flow” back on 9-21-13 while watching the film Thrive. Since my initial exposure to the flow almost six years ago, the intensity of the “feeling” has ebbed & flowed many times.

Sound waves peel off perfectly all around us all the time.

The surges always correlate to the right action periods of my life. When I focus on being kind, compassionate, honest, diligent, hopeful, faithful, loving, when I meditate, pray, visualise, practice the law of attraction, when I abstain from drugs and alcohol, when I’m celibate, and when I spend a lot of time in the waves, these are the times the feeling is the clearest & most powerful.

“If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency, and vibration.” – Nikola Tesla (Photo:  Cymatics, © Jordi Torrents, CC-BY-SA-4.0)

With each surge, the knowledge builds inside me and even when the feeling recedes the new broader understanding of the flow remains. In the months after my revelation of the third wave-type, I would experience two more massive surges in the flow both bringing with them profound advancements in my understanding of the physics of the FOL.

The FOL works like a musical instrument playing tones of perfect surf.

The final surge would complete my work, offering me the ability to understand how the FOL is, for lack of a better description, a musical instrument that systematically forms water into a symphony of majestic waves. Which isn’t odd at all, as sound waves peel off perfectly all around us all the time. I recommend everyone look into cymatics.

Before we go further into this force, let’s talk about the second problem with standing wave tech. Curvature.

Why is curvature crucial to artificial wave design?

Elijah – Munich 2007, ”Going to Munich was one of the greatest trips of my river surfing crusade but it had everything to do with the community and nothing to do with the wave.” – EM

Curvature is 1/2 of the equation that creates the force I’ve been eluding too. Curvature is king. My perspective on curvature defined my work for MWDG.

When Ben & Rick met with me to discuss my ideas the first thing I said to them was, “Everyone is using straight angles in their whitewater park design. WTF is up with that?”

In my mind using straight angles to form river waves was like putting square tires on a bike.

Ok, to be honest, at that time I didn’t know the names of these straight angles, I thought they were called “right angles”. Regardless of the name, I knew that they had no place in the fluid dynamics of artificial waves.

Why is curvature crucial to artificial wave design?

In my mind using straight angles to form river waves was like putting square tires on a car.

“Who the hell would put square wheels on a bike?” – EM (Photo: Square wheels, © Alan O’Rourke, audiencestack.com, CC BY 2.0)

It’s fluid dynamics 101, whether it’s a liquid, gas or plasma, straight angles create disturbances, so in the case of river waves, these angles shatter the flowing symmetry of the water, like breaking a piece of glass, or feedback through a guitar amp.

Straight angles, if drastic enough, will totally destroy a wave or if they are mild, give a choppy texture to the wave. Ocean surfers refer to this texture as “blown out”, as the main cause of chop in ocean waves is wind.

The bed-form at your local river wave-park should have the same exact shapes you see at your local skatepark

Standing waves, on the other hand, are blown out by the shape of the river bottom, not by the wind. We see this phenomenon all over the word on rivers, it is the norm, not the exception because of the rocky irregular shape of natural riverbeds.

If you are building river waves remember this. The bed-form at your local river wave-park should have the same exact shapes you see at your local skatepark.

“Look at your local skatepark to understand what the bottom of your local river wave-park should look like.” – EM (Photo: Davide Costanzo Davide Costanzo, CC BY 2.0)

Now if you look at the river wave setups in Bend & Conovo or The Citywave & The Wave Unit standing wave machines in Germany, you will see they have straight angles but none of these waves exhibit any chop, this is because their straight angles exist on the sides of the bed-forms, where the walls intersect with the bottom, the water is flowing “straight” down the channel along these straight angles, not into them. If water moves straight along a straight angle there is only a small amount of disturbance and the straight angles on the kickers are not super noticeable because of the amount of water, but they are there.

The truth is Munich fucked up standing wave design.

The word “straight” is key here and it’s the root of the first problem in the majority of standing wave tech.

This brings us to the reason why I believe so many river wave designs are configured in this straightforward manner. It is a direct result of where river surfing originated. Munich. Now let’s be very German about this & not mix emotions with science. I love Munich, the Eisbach and my friends there.

But the truth is Munich fucked up standing wave design the same way the ocean has fucked up wave-pool design.

How could Munich be responsible for the near-sightedness of countless river wave engineers? Well, it boils down to perspective. The majority of river surfers started surfing on a river, so that means for many of these individuals, Munich has been their Mecca, their North Shore, their main source of inspiration for all things river surfing, including wave design.

A good comparison is this is, prior to the first surfers traveling to the North Shore in the 1950s, Waikiki was the most coveted destination for surfers worldwide. But nowadays we know there is no comparison between the waves on the North Shore & Waikiki.

Elijah – Zambezi River 2005, “Rivers saved me from making the same error all my peers made in the wave-pool field.” – EM

And that brings us to the most important aspect of river wave design or any type of wave design for that matter. What force separates Rapid #11 and Munich? What forces separates The Banzai Pipeline from Diamond Head Cliffs?

Angular Momentum.

There it is. Angular Momentum. Simple. Crucial.

But oddly overlooked by the majority of individuals building artificial standing waves. It should be right beside the terms “headwater” “tailwater” “hydraulic jump” “sheet flow” “subcritical” “supercritical” in the “how to build river waves” articles on Riverbreak, but it isn’t.

“River Surf Systems are creating the best standing waves in the industry. They are so far ahead of everyone else there really isn’t any comparison.” – EM (Photo: River Surf Systems)

Before we continue on to standard wave-pool technologies I want to take this time to address the only work I see as cutting edge in the standing wave realm. Tanner and his team at River Surf Systems have the best scale models of the best standing waves in existence. Their work is beautiful and it is rooted in all the right concepts and their work and my work share a number of similarities, which isn’t surprising as the ocean is a primary influence in both technologies. I was filled with joy when I saw their work first appear here on Riverbreak. Tanner gets the importance of angular momentum. Please check them out at https://www.riversurfsystems.com/

Let me explain how the ocean fucked up wave-pool design

Now that we have dealt with standing waves let’s deal with my statement about wave-pools. I think the current wave-pool technologies are outdated. Wait, let me rephrase that. I know the current wave-pool technologies are outdated.

How can I make this claim? Especially, when we have the KSWC, The Cove by Wavegarden, we have Perfect Swell, we have the plunger wave in AUS(my favorite at the moment), and soon we may have The Webber wave-pool, which if you didn’t know is the best iteration of a solitron wave-pool, it’s Kelly’s wave-pool done the way it should be done and don’t lose sight of the fact that Kelly’s wave-pool is basically a supercharged version the original Wavegarden tech.

So we have all these amazing wave-pools now right? Yes, they are the best we’ve ever had.

But does that mean they are the best available? No.

Elijah – Pacific Ocean 1988, “The ocean saved me from making the same errors the majority of my peers made in the river wave / standing wave machine fields.” – EM

All of these wave-pool technologies originated from the same common misconception regarding the best way to form waves. This misconception stems from the same thing I addressed regarding how Munich fucked up river wave design.

Let me explain how the ocean fucked up wave-pool design. All the wave-pools to date stem from the idea that ocean waves offer the best mechanisms to form artificial waves. This is dead wrong. Why?

“Wavepools, as we’ve known them, are as outdated as Disneyland. The form is correct but the formation process is flawed.” – EM (Photo: © Rleslievideo, CC BY-SA 3.0)

Pushing or pulsing a waveform through water isn’t efficient & doesn’t offer much control of wave shape, frequency or amplitude.

All current wave-pool technologies create waves by ”pushing” or ”pulsing” a waveform through water.

“The form is flawed but the foundation of the formation process is correct.” – EM

“Flowing” a current of water into a waveform is the most efficient way to create waves, so standing wave technology is the ideal approach to artificial waves. In this manner of wave generation, when done correctly the momentum of every water molecule is controlled, offering total control of wave shape, frequency, and amplitude.

But the current standing wave tech is not done properly.

“It just made sense that using the pool itself to form the waves would work best for a number of reasons and non-linear forces were at the top of the list. I love big waves and I knew of the current wave-pool technologies, not a single one would ever create waves over 8ft on the face.” – EM (Photo: © Nicolas Douillet, CC-BY-SA-4.0)

And this is where the FOL unifies standing wave & wave-pool technologies, blurring the line between ocean & river surfing and radically reshaping the landscape of artificial waves forever.

The FOL is the first & only wave-pool technology that controls all the properties that define a current and it is the first wave-pool to use a fully malleable or partially malleable bed-form as the mechanism to create surf-able waves.

Flow rate, velocity, lateral angle, vertical angle, origin point, exit point, width, depth. In this manner of wave generation, the momentum of every water molecule is controlled, offering total control of wave shape, frequency, and amplitude.

Even in the less dynamic, rigid iterations of the FOL, the ability to control the shape, frequency, and amplitude of the waveform far exceed that of today’s “pulse” style wave-pool designs.

The FOL is the first & only wave-pool technology that creates a ”traveling standing wave”. This traveling standing wave is unlike any type of wave in the wave-pool world but feels and rides exactly the same as a pulse wave-pool waveform. Even though it starts as a standing wave, once it starts to move in either direction, it assumes the characteristics of an ocean wave breaking over a reef.

The FOL is the only wave-pool technology that creates a ”released standing wave”. This released standing wave is the closest to a pulse wave-pool waveform.

“In this first drawing, I hadn’t come to the final conclusion on what I should call these new wave-types. I imagine there is a proper scientific name for them but since I was the first to figure out how to generate them in a wave-pool for surfing I figured it’s like find a virgin surf spot that you get to name. I also call the traveling standing wave - Tesla’s Reef & the released standing wave Fibonacci’s Point.” – EM

I’ll explain where I found the answer to the complex of the riddle of creating the perfect wave-pool.

The Torus

Both the ocean & river are crucial to the process but they are only 2/3 of the equation. The final piece of the puzzle comes from the Torus. The Torus tells us two things about wave formation.

By moving the crease laterally the stationary standing wave becomes a traveling hydraulic jump(#2-Traveling Standing Wave). Bingo!

First, a cylinder is central to the perfect waveform. Spinning horizontally around the zero points of the Torus is the perfect endless tube. Ocean.

Second, flow is central to the perfect waveform.t Spiraling vertically through the zero point is the perfect contracting & expanding current, flowing endlessly. River.

The Torus is the perfect standing waveform & propagating waveform in one. The FOL translates the quantum mechanical language of the Torus into the classical mechanical language of the perfect surf spot.

The Torus is the bonding agent that unifies propagating & standing waves.

“The great Torus. For me, it is the most beautiful form there is.” – EM

Now let’s look at a few ways to the FOL forms waves and a simple explanation of its core processes.

The first wave-type to form is a simple stationary hydraulic jump(#1-Stationary Standing Wave), this happens when the water flows through the crease in a deflated subsection of the bladder and impacts the back-pool of water below.

The second wave-type occurs when we move the crease either to the left or right, the current of water moves laterally in the chosen direction. The crease is moved by inflating and deflating the interior subsections of the bladder. By moving the crease laterally the stationary standing wave becomes a traveling hydraulic jump(#2-Traveling Standing Wave). Bingo! Now we are onto something. This is the first time in the history of artificial waves that we have this type of wave.

The third wave-type forms as a result of the momentum of the second wave-type. As the traveling standing wave moves through the back-pool it pushes out a propagating wave. I call this wave-type a released hydraulic jump (#3-Released Standing Wave)

The ultimate FOL configuration uses magnetism

Now just to cover the bases here. The most realistic way to build the FOL is with a fabric of some type with inner subsections that are inflated and deflated to control the shape of the bed-form. But the ultimate way to build the FOL is with magnets, utilizing magnetism to create the bed-form.

“It is not surprising that the ultimate version of the ultimate wave-pool tech is created using the same magnetic technology of “free energy”, as the film Thrive is what sparked my spatial visualisation ability.” – EM

One last thing to ponder about why creating waves from a current of water with angular momentum is superior to pulsing waves through in a pool.

We once again go back to the term “perspective”.

The concept of the best waves being the ones that travel through water comes from us watching waves marching across the ocean and peeling off along beaches around the world.

This offers us full control of every drop of water in real time, offering us an almost infinite array of wave shapes.

These waves & the human imagination created surfing. But what creates these waves?

Please pull up a satellite image of a cyclone marching up from the Antarctic towards Australia or a winter storm careening down from the Aleutian islands towards Hawaii or a Hurricane smashing into the east coast of America.

What do you see?

Gravity and Curvature.

Angular momentum.

“From the one comes the many. We must start with the fundamental form.” – EM

Now let’s dig deeper into these wave-types & the different ways to create them.

Examples

#A When the FOL is formatted with three inflatable concentric rings, two spines(top outer half of bladder), with one channel(bottom inner half of bladder)in between the two spines, we have the ability to contain and control the three wave-types inside the channel. We create & control the wave-types by manipulating where the crease is located on the two spines and the channel. This offers us full control of every drop of water in real time, offering us an almost infinite array of wave shapes.

#B By replacing the original outer spine with a shallow spine that sits below the water level in the channel, wave-type #3 will propagate out and peel over this submerged spine just like a standard wave-pool style wave.

#C By adding a second channel and third spin in concentric order to set up #A we can “catch” the wave in the first channel and “throw” it into the second channel. This action can be repeated as many times as there are concentric spines/channels.

#A2 We can achieve similar results with rigid bed-forms by controlling the entry angle of the water from the spines and using valves in the channel to control the water level. But with rigid bed-forms, it is best not to use a full ring. Using any fraction of a full 30 ring allows for much easier back pool manipulation.

#RW These same actions apply in rivers but it’s redundant to illustrate it. Basically, any fractional version of the full ring set up can be used in a river. Most likely the channel would be the rigid river bottom and the two spines would be inflated. But many river wave-parks are just big concrete canals, so in the case of these, it’s simple to install all three sections in inflatable form.

#FB A really simple build-out for a rigid bed-form iteration of the FOL is to simply lay a fan blade or a boat propeller…a really big one… horizontally in a pool of water and pump a current water up through the center so it flows down the blades. The tips of the blades should be partially submerged in the pool. At the tips of the blades, hydraulic jumps will form. The blade can be fixed or the blade can spin.

“Onyx doing his best to help me figure out how to attach a water tube to a fan blade. This boy at the age of 6 held conversations with me about complex concepts related to fluid dynamics. I imagine the younger we are the better we feel the flow.” – EM

The FOL isn’t just a wave-pool, it is a completely new approach to generating artificial waves.

“This video shows a rough example of how two currents meet to form a wave. For the FOL one current is feed into the channel from the inner ring and the other current is fed into the channel from the outer ring. In the channel, the wave can be controlled to form an endless array of wave-forms including the type you see in the video which has two ridable waves that share one crest.” – EM

The FOL has many applications beyond generating waves for surfing. The obvious being a variety of applications related to propulsion, from the simplest such as boats and submarines to the complicated such as aircraft and spacecraft to the highly complicated and yet to be perfected such to anti-gravity, nuclear fusion, warp speed, & time travel.

“My method is different. I do not rush into actual work. When I get a new idea, I start at once building it up in my imagination, and make improvements and operate the device in my mind. When I have gone so far as to embody everything in my invention, every possible improvement I can think of, and when I see no fault anywhere, I put into concrete form the final product of my brain.” – Nikola Tesla

With that said.

“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex… It takes a touch of genius – and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction.” – Albert Einstein (Photo: Albert Einstein, © Vintuitive, CC BY 2.0)

“I believe in divine forces and energies.” – Richard Pryor

Ok now that I’ve dealt with how my work is redefining how surfers look at, scientists think about, and engineers build artificial waves.

Let’s look at how my work is redefining how investors profit from artificial waves.

This aspect of my work is powered by a force that is the foundation for angular momentum in classical mechanics.

Gravity.

Gravity + Curvature = Angular Momentum

But unlike curvature, there is no need to explain this force in relation to the technical aspect of the FOL. Beyond gravity’s key role in the FOL wave formation process, it also holds the key to the biggest issue faced by all wave-pool technologies. Power.

“Although wave-pools are now creating epic waves, they do not achieve the primary goal sought by the surf industry, they do not create surf communities.” – EM (Photo: © Damian Gadal, CC BY 2.0)

The amount of power it takes to operate wave-pools is ridiculous and that is putting it mildly. And it is this issue along with something in fluid dynamics called “non-linear forces” that prevent wave-pools from creating economically viable waves over about 6-8ft on the face. To illustrate how bad this issue is, Kelly’s wave is powered by, and don’t hold me to this exact number, eleven diesel engines … big ones.

Just as gravity is the key to the FOL forming the best artificial waves on earth, gravity also is the key to powering all the artificial waves on earth. There is no reason to ever use a pump again in relation to artificial waves. There is no reason to ever use a combustible engine again in relation to artificial waves.

“The potential energy in the world’s dam infrastructure to create new world surf-spots is mind-boggling.” – EM (Photo: Dam discharge, © Qurren, CC-BY-SA-3.0-migrated)

And now I will finalize this outline on how to create thriving world-wide surf communities far from the oceans.

There are 100,000 dams in the USA & 1,000,000 dams worldwide The amount of untapped potential energy is our world’s dam infrastructure is mind-boggling. Water + Gravity = Power & Waves Utilizing the potential energy is medium, large and major dams combined with the FOL tech allows for waves in excess of 100ft. Do the math.

It is my mission to get perfect wave-parks and wave-pools built into our world’s failing dam infrastructure.

“The amount of high hazard dams in the united states is terrifying. The integration of wave generating devices is the solution to this civil engineering nightmare. When you look at this map, each dot is a potential surf spot.” – EM (Photo: Dam failure,  © WaterArchives.org, CC BY-SA 2.0)

The current business model in the wave-pool industry is as outdated as the wave tech itself. The river-wave industry kinda has it right but only because of the way whitewater parks have been built for the last twenty years.

It’s clear now that river surfing wave-parks are the only artificial waves creating vibrant surf communities & markets

It works like this, a group of kayakers convinces a city that a whitewater park would be great for the local economy, and they were right in most cases but not because a bunch of people started kayaking after the whitewater park was built, but rather because the river-side redevelopment that almost always accompanies the construction of a whitewater park is what brings people to the river.

It’s clear now that river surfing wave-parks are creating vibrant surf communities & markets that develop around the river wave and unlike kayaking, these inland surf cultures across the world are is spreading like wildfire.

So once the billionaires and millionaires who are investing in this artificial wave “space race” realise there is way more money to be made from …”

The one primary factor that must not be overlooked regarding this river wave-parks is that they are free for the public to use at will. No entry fees. Just like local skateparks. Totally inclusive. If you can come up with a surfboard or bodyboard, your in.

This is why the only true inland surf communities are developing around river wave-parks, not wave-pools. And a thriving surf community/market is of far greater monetary value to the surf industry than any money that can be made from building waves or from charging people to surf them.

“It’s clear that individuals such as Adam Neumann are committed to creating perfect waves for the inland regions of the world. It’s up to us who live in these regions to provide these individuals with the information needed to get these goals executed properly. I suggest instead of writing to your senator, you write to Adam or others who share our passion.” – EM (Photo: Adam Neumann, © TechCrunch, CC BY 2.0)

So once the billionaires and millionaires who are investing in this artificial wave “space race” realize there is way more money to be made from everything surrounding these “new world surf-spots”, like real-estate, hard goods, soft goods, services, tourism, etc, they will shift their focus & checkbooks from building waves for profit to building waves to create emerging markets to profit from.

These inland river surf cultures across the world are spreading like wildfire.

And they will understand that getting quality waves built as quickly as possible is the key to all of this.

“The beauty of people will always outshine the power of profit.” – EM

Once again, open source is crucial. to illustrate how important this approach is I want to highlight an experience I shared with @stevelejeunebelgium. Just before publishing The Perfect Path article I saw a post from Steve on IG with his son related to a science project. I reached out to Steve and offered to connect with him and his son to work on waves. He accepted. A few weeks later we had a video chat where I learned his son Dylan is the smartest kid his age in Belgium and I also learned where this young man got it from. As I was explaining how the FOL works in relation to rivers, Steve offered an idea that totally reshaped the format for how the FOL tech could be applied in rivers.

Over the course of developing the FOL very few people grasp it, the lawyer who wrote my provisional patent did, Evan Wolf from Half Moon Day did, both of these individuals even knew how magnetism was the ultimate iteration without me offering up that insight. But Steve was the only person I’ve ever met who brought a thought I hadn’t considered yet. A thought that simplified so much it much simpler to create portable inflatable “Wave Weirs”. This single call reinforced my faith in the concept of sharing information for the greater good rather than hoarding information for individual profit.

“Love binds us all. This force is greater than any other. Let us not discount the importance of how love flows, because just as it takes intention & effort to form perfect waves, the same is true for love. Be mindful that we are all one family. Love each other, just do that one thing and I promise we can repair our world” – EM

I will leave you with something to ponder. Envision water as the lifeblood of the earth, the rivers being half of the vascular system, which is clogged and weak, barely able to do its job and let’s consider the land as the body and oceans as the heart and the atmosphere as the other half of the vascular system. This entire system works just as I’ve laid it out. The oceans are the heart and the atmosphere and rivers pump the blood through the lands, the lands we call home.

“It is my spiritual & scientific belief that everything is interconnected and the highest form of human existence is interdependence. To truly thrive as a species, and Shepard all the species of the earth, we must accept the ultimate truth, that we are all one. And we must accept this fact soon” – EM

Each of us must be aware of what we have to offer the world and focus on that. You wouldn’t hire a roofer to lay the foundation slab for your home. The FOL technology and my concepts related to integrating artificial waves into the world dam infrastructure is what I have to offer. I do not believe it’s a coincidence the FOL tech comes directly from God and that it ties directly into a course of action to repair the world’s rivers.

Thank you for looking into my work. I offer this work openly with the hope it will help repair our world and bring us all closer to God.

Aloha
Mack

P.S. I didn’t forget that I said I would share the key to creating perfect river waves. :)

Now I’ll share with you the KEY to easily creating perfect river waves. Every 3rd grader has done it

The KEY to creating perfect river waves is super simple and I’m stoked to share this with the world.

I love the word symmetry, I always have, even when I was young decades before I thought about creating waves, its just a magical word. So it is no surprise that bilateral symmetry holds the key to engineering hydraulic jumps. I knew this key existed early on in my work but I didn’t figure out how easy it is to express until recently, as in about two weeks prior to publishing this article. To explain how this works I have to address a name I have given this phenomenon, I had to give it a name because I can’t find any reference to this phenomenon in any fluid dynamics literature anywhere let alone any literature related to artificial waves. I call it. The uneven forces of the bilateral symmetry of sheet flow and hydraulic jump standing waves. I have been able to explain it like this since entering the lab with Ben Nielsen way back in 2014- “If you take the same shape used by the Flowriders to create their sheet flow standing waves all that is needed to create a hydraulic jump mirror image of the sheet flow wave is this.

“Just flip the script. It’s that easy. Say it with me… The uneven forces of the bilateral symmetry between sheet flow & hydraulic jump standing waves.” – EM (Photo: Flowrider, © U.S. Navy)

1. Reverse the direction of the flow. This means you would change the origin point of the flow from the bottom of the front of the wall to the back of the top of the wall.

2. Decrease the velocity. The FlowRider shoots water up the wall at about 33mph, want to slow this down to about 11-15mph.

3. Increase the flow rate exponentially. Based on Tanner’s calculations at River Surf Systems we should assume the flow rate should be multiplied by thirty. This means the depth of the flow should increase from about 1″, the depth of the water on Flowriders, to about 1′-3′.

4. Create a back pool at the bottom of the wall.

Now with this simple formula, you can create the exact same shape seen in the original configuration as a sheet flow standing wave, as a hydraulic jump standing wave.

Here is a video that expresses how simple this fact of fluid dynamics is. Every child that has ever folded & cut a piece of paper to create the shape of a butterfly or a string of snowflakes has unknowingly held in their hands the solution to a problem that has stumped all the whitewater kayak park, standing wave machine, and river surf park, engineers to this day.

“Truly I tell you unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” – Matthew 18:3

Huge Alohas go out to Phil and Kirk for always offering me a platform on Riverbreak and Landlocked Surfing.

*ADDITION-

This article has been ready to publish for over a month but we have held off due to some logistical constraints. Well, this is a blessing. In the past few weeks, two things have transpired.

So therefore, I will share a little more.

1. First, an article in the Wall Street Journal stated these guys want to charge 135$ an hour to surf! A big mega Las Vegas amusement park resort in the desert! So yes these dudes just proved my point. Machines of mass consumption chlorinated water pumped in from Colorado. This is insanity.

Reno NV is where the first world-class wave park should be built. The Truckee river will have perfect waves that range from 3-15ft all year are fresh river water with minor mods to the existing 14 million dollars white water park built-in 2003. Inclusive. Free to the general public. Just like a beach in California.

The surf industry is one of mass consumption, waste and extremely hazardous materials. WE have yet to see a positive environmental shift in manufacturing despite viable eco-friendly economic options. We guzzle gas, spewing exhaust and guzzle energy drinks.

Now they want to build huge surfing Disneylands. They want to build waves pools in Malls or in the middle of the desert. They want to build wave pools in airports. They want to build wave pools in stadiums. WTF!?

2. Second, Surflakes AUS, the revamped “plunger” wave has inspired me to share a bit about the FOL wave tech I was gonna hold back to see if anyone could figure it out themselves. I figured it would be a mathematician who would make the connection. From the moment I saw the Surflakes tech I was excited that they were clued into the truth of 360′ and they get “arc” but the set up was too weak. But now that the plunger wave is kicking out some legit size and epic shape I figured I would share with the world why their wave rivals Waco and The Cove tech. I will share what is beyond the arc. It is because of the cardioid.

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

Mandelbrot. Yes, fractals. Now you need to throw in timetables. And You need to understand “rolling” & “Petals”.

Surf lakes produce a small portion of the momentum called the Cardioid, this roll, and petal process is happening in a very remedial form. The water rolls off the arc of the plunger. There are a vertical arc axis and a horizontal arc axis to the plunger. The moving momentum of the water rolled by the plunger, naturally self organizes into self-similarity petal shapes as this is the natural course of the mathematical waveform in water. This self-similarity is identical to the Mandelbrot FOL produces the complete momentum of the cardioid. The FOL is to water what the computer is to MandelBrot imagery. The Mandelbrot timetable are the blueprint. Marko Rodin’s mapping of the Torus skin ties directly yo the Mandelbrot. Weaving the Rodin code to the interior of the torus is key.

*** This is really important ****

Here is a video that explains this momentum. The video is showing you this in 2D.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=436&v=qhbuKbxJsk8

3. Oh, wait there is a third thing, the new Boise wave. There is an article that speaks about how the design was inspired by the Munich wave or one of the new Munich wave knock-off machines and this 100% confirms my case about how Munich has inspired these flawed waves. I was excited to see this new wave. What a letdown. I rest my case.

Oh, Shit!!! Ken Hill. He is the most unsung wave designer ever. His patent is what AWM used to build their Surfstream. He has been dreaming up, patenting and designing perfect waves for years!!! So grateful for your work brother!

“Love is the perfect waveform.” – EM

Aloha
Mack

The post An Idiot’s Guide To Wave Building appeared first on Riverbreak.

[embed_instagram_without_header]

IG

[/embed_instagram_without_header]

Follow Riverbreak on Instagram: www.instagram.com/riverbreakmagazine

The post Innovative Wave Technology – Applicable in Rivers? appeared first on Riverbreak.

We are absolutely stoked about River Surf Systems challenging the limits in wave building! Tell us something about your background Tanner.

Great to hear from you guys and thanks for spreading the stoke. I’m excited to get my info out there. My quick background is 30 years ocean surfing and three years of wake surfing. I’ve also have 25 years in commercial construction, seven of those as a construction project manager and a Certified Project Management Professional (PMP). Three years of physics in college.

What is your relation to the ocean or rivers surfing community?

I am an ocean surfer with a strong desire to be a river surfer. 2ndlight.com is my local forum for news, photos and stoke. But living in Orlando, I can’t claim to have a real surf community.

River surfers have been dreaming of a barreling river wave since forever. How could River Surf Systems make this dream come true?

Through exhaustive prototyping and experimentation, we are improving the formula for the most economical and feature-rich river waves possible. Barrels are not the end game. A static perfect barrel is an amazing step forward, but variety is the spice of life. These river waves also need variations if they are going to be compared to ocean waves. I have surfed so many perfect ocean waves that I want to bring to river surfing.

Where does your idea to build a barreling river wave come from?

For me this was not a quest to make a barreling river wave specifically. My overreaching goal is a more economical man-made surfing experience whose waves are on par with good ocean waves. I found that river surfing has a distinct advantage over wave pools. No pumps or machinery are needed to move the water. This is a large cost savings over traditional wave pools. The never-ending aspect is a nice bonus too.

Showcasing the many waves the Reef Pass system is capable of is a critical step to gathering support, especially the barrel. Barrels mesmerize people. Including me. I am elated that you guys like the look of the barrel and have given me this opportunity to speak about it.

How does your wave design differ from other wave designs? What are the components that your design is built on and how are they related?

I think current river surfing wave designs take inspiration from their environment. They mimic existing natural river waves and improve on them. I am approaching from a different point of view. I’m asking myself how can we make river waves shaped as good as any ocean wave.

My goal in prototyping was to make waves that looked like ocean waves.

Almost all man-made river waves use a bedform that is perpendicular to the flow. As such the wave is perpendicular to the river and mostly uniform from left to right. Some are hydraulic jumps and many are thick sheet flows.

The Reef Pass system has a deep channel on one side and a shallow curving sand bar on the other. It relies solely on the hydraulic jump phenomenon. On the deeper side of the channel the hydraulic jump is subcritical and a mounded clean green face. On the shallow side the hydraulic jump is a supercritical foamy whitewater. Where the two meet is the lip of the wave. Just like an ocean wave pealing down a point break.

What factors are responsible for the wave to barrel? What is the bottom contour like?

The bottom contour is modeled after a reef pass ocean surfing wave. Reef passes are some of the best ocean surfing waves out there.

To create the barrel, a hydraulic jump is controlled and caused to happen in the appropriate place on the Reef Pass bedform and roughly aligns with where a wave would break on a reef pass in real life. In more scientific terms, I am causing a hydraulic jump to simultaneously have all of its incremental depths (phases) and causing it to happen at an angle to the flow. The end result is a vortex known as a barrel to surfers.

How high will the wave be when you scale it up to full size? Can the wave be designed in different dimensions (small to overhead)?

The bottom contour is modeled after a reef pass ocean surfing wave. Reef passes are some of the best ocean surfing waves out there.

Wave size is completely dependent on flow. I am targeting a location that has excess of 4,000 CFS for at least a week out of the year. This will give us a 5 to 6 ft barreling wave at prime season.

River discharges often vary, usually depending on rainfall, dam releases, seasons, or other factors. How can this type of construction deal with changing river flows?

Dealing with variable flow rates and maintaining a surfable wave is a tough technical challenge. Luckily the answer is in the Reef Pass bed form. Some ocean reef passes break for a wide variety of wave sizes. A great example of this is Cloud Break. This world renowned south pacific reef break can be surfed from 2 ft to 20ft.

My prototype shows similar characteristics. At full flow it’s a nice five foot barrel. At half flow it’s a knee-high peeling long boarders wave. At ten percent flow it’s a young beginners long board lump.

So, this is actually an adjustable river wave?

Yes, the wave can be adjusted by manipulating the water flow. Using gates upstream and downstream can change the depth, speed, and direction of the flow, aka vectoring the flow. Depth and speed can control the hydraulic jump. Flow direction changes the angle of incident with the bedform thereby changing the slope the flow passes over.

Deeper, slower water gives softer waves. Faster, thinner water gives us square barrels. A good balance is needed. Synchronising these gates creates smoothly morphing waves of great variety.

A barrel can come to a close and give a tube spit. A racetrack wave can have a lip section for blasting airs or floaters. One moment the wave can be the deepest heavy square tube the next it can be a large soft mounded party wave with 5 SUPs hanging out and passing beers around. All while the river flow provided hasn’t changed.

What do you think will be the challenges when scaling up your model from the lab to the real world?

I think the biggest challenges for me are funding, permits, and living in Orlando. I would like to be involved in the construction process, but that’s hard to do from a thousand miles away.

Depending on the flow the surfing maneuvers would be large and world class.

You may have been asking that question from the point of view of technical wave challenges. With proper prototyping and accurate flow information, I don’t foresee any problems. My work on remodeling theme park rides and hospitals has given me a lot of experience overcoming technical challenges in fast paced sensitive environments.

What are the minimum flow requirements (cfs), drop etc. for your wave to work?

The Reef Pass system wasn’t designed to compete with existing low flow waves. If it is to make a barrel that can be squeezed into, it probably needs about 3,500 cfs. But more experimentation is needed to firm up that estimate.

Have you heard about the prototypes by McLaughlin and fresH20? What similarities or differences compared to your approach do you see?

I talked to Ben about his and Elijah’s wave, and mine, but we didn’t get into specifics of how each design works. We mostly ponder on why the ocean surf community doesn’t see what we see as an opportunity. We also talked about basic parameters of construction and flow. I don’t know the specifics of their wave. Their wave is a hydraulic jump and a barrel.

My goal in prototyping was to make waves that looked like ocean waves. I am happy with the way my waves look. They resemble ocean barrels and lines I want to surf.

Do you think the tube will be big enough for a surfer to actually hide behind the curtain?

A resounding yes … given we can build it at a location with enough flow.

What would be the main difference for a ocean surfer? What kind of maneuvers you think would be possible?

Compared to ocean surfing the main difference is ride time. Most ocean surfing happens 5 seconds at a time and then your ride is over and you’re looking for another wave. River surfing is near perpetual with respect to water flow. As long as the water is flowing, the wave is standing tall and steady. I anticipate the same maneuvers you see in ocean surfing will immediately adapt. Within a season or two, the groms will likely surprise us with never before seen maneuvers. It’s just what kids do.

How much would such a wave cost?

There are so many variables. The variable I am most interested in is how much flow is it being designed for? More flow means bigger waves, bigger overall installation and higher cost.

A nice steep racetrack wave with a lip would allow for more maneuvers than Eisbach currently does.

If this were to be installed at Riverports Rapids in Oklahoma it could be done for as little as $50k. Most of the whitewater kayak parks already have the infrastructure, especially the pumped ones. This would give us a wave similar in size to Eisbach in Germany, but with better shape. With this small of a water flow the barrel would be too small to squeeze into, but a nice steep racetrack wave with a lip would allow for more maneuvers than Eisbach currently does. This would be a great proving ground for the Reef Pass system.

If this were to be installed at the Ruins Wave in Ottawa I expect it would be closer to $5 million but would give us a stand-up, arms wide barrel. This is the dream. With this much flow the surfing maneuvers would be large and world class.

What other services do you offer? Wave design, feasibility studies, permitting, safety … ?

We excel at wave design and prototyping. We are pretty good at engineering, hydro physics, feasibility studies as it pertains to available flow, and construction project management. I believe Surf Anywhere and McLaughlin Whitewater would be better resources for Permitting, Construction Resourcing, Safety, and many of the other tasks needed to undertake and complete a project like this. Experienced teammates are an important resource.

When will we see this wave being built in an actual river? Any time soon?

I’m busting my ass to make it so. Any advice, help, or connections are appreciated.

Every river surfer dreams of a barreling wave in his backyard. How can people get in touch with you?

Send an email to Tanner@RiverSurfSystems.com

For more details on the prototype and technology please visit my website: RiverSurfSystems.com

Thanks so much for your time Tanner and keep the stoke alive!

Thank you too – really happy to talk surf with you!

The post River Surf Systems: River Waves Shaped As Good As The Best Ocean Waves appeared first on Riverbreak.

Wave designers from Austria, Germany and the US have teamed up with the goal to create one of the best river waves in Europe. The project site is located at the river Traun, in the beautiful Salzkammergut region in Austria. The location at the Miesenbachmühle in Ebensee was chosen due to the stable annual discharge levels and the natural drop, which makes this spot the ideal location for a river wave that can be surfed year round.

The Concept Behind THE WAVE

To maximise the number of surf days, THE WAVE will be installed in a separate canal, running parallel to the river: A portion of the river Traun will be channeled through an artificial canal in which the wave structure will be placed. This approach allows the engineers to design and build the wave under controlled and stable conditions. While operating the wave, the canal approach will allow wave operators to adjust the flow to different discharge levels in the main river Traun and create wave shapes for different kinds of surf styles.

THE WAVE’s mission is to make the stoke of surfing accessible to a landlocked community.

The canal concept has been proposed and discussed a number of times (e.g. at the River Wave Forums), but this is probably the first time it will be implemented. The approach is also promising for other communities, since discharge levels of most rivers vary significantly throughout the year, depending on precipitation, temperature and the time of the year (e.g. higher winter/spring runoffs).

Working Prototype

In wave construction prototype testing is one of the most rewarding phases. Developing a prototype of a river wave allows the team to bring the wave to life for the first time, test the wave in action and identify opportunities for improvement and fine-tuning. Wave prototyping gives the project team the opportunity to gather feedback and make changes that will eventually maximise the surfability of the wave.

The results can be seen for themselves, with the 1:8 scale model of THE WAVE looking pretty damn good. Will this canal approach be a game-changer in wave building? Check out the videos and photos below and find out yourself!

Videos From The Prototype Site

This is what THE WAVE prototype looks like at the lowest expected flow level:

[html_output]

A post shared by Benjamin Di-Qual (@killahaase) on Nov 11, 2017 at 7:16am PST

[/html_output]

Experimenting with different wave shapes:

[html_output]

A post shared by @nu.art_surfstuff on Nov 8, 2017 at 6:36am PST

[/html_output]

Steep face setting:

[html_output]

A post shared by @nu.art_surfstuff on Nov 15, 2017 at 6:12am PST

[/html_output]

More Impressions

Make It Happen!

Impressive work on the prototype testing, let’s make this happen! Can’t wait to see THE WAVE operating in full size, best of luck with the next steps!

The post THE WAVE: Prototyping A World Class River Wave appeared first on Riverbreak.

Can’t wait till spring to build a bigger one!

This is definitely a promising approach to build a river wave in your backyard. Anyone fancy fine-tuning this idea and giving it a go? Listen to Daniel, one of the wave builders: “We built a river wave in a small river here in northern Sweden this fall, was so stoked that it worked so well! Can’t wait till spring to build a bigger one!”

The post Homemade River Wave appeared first on Riverbreak.

The post An Inside Look at Leinewelle’s Wave Technology appeared first on Riverbreak.

For us flow, hydraulic drop, currents, eddies, obstructions and numerous other factors are the difference between driving through our next carves or not. My passion (and job) is designing waves that not only deal with these dynamic factors but optimises them to create high performance surf waves. How do we do it? One key aspect is adjustability.

Waves Are Extremely Sensitive

A wave is a single point on a spectrum. Above this point is a range of breaking waves and below this is a non-rideable green wave and below that further is a hole (see previous article The Two Types of River Waves on Riverbreak).

For a given set of flow/river conditions there is one specific wave “sweet spot”. This is why some waves only work at very specific flows. You’ve maybe looked at the micro flow effects at your local wave and perhaps noticed the delicate dance the water makes. A small boil or seam from an upstream boulder or a curved current that carries through the wave making it break more or less. Bottom line, waves are extremely sensitive.

Check out how the wave sweet spot is a single point in the video below. This sweet spot is super sensitive.

To further complicate the issue, we want to surf most of the year, at various flows, not just a few weeks a year. And, oh yeah, we surfers are pretty picky about wave shape too. Adjustability allows the wave to change in order to find the sweet spot, stay in it and create the wave shape we need to surf. I’ve designed waves that work with no adjustability but my experience has led me to include adjustability of some kind in all designs.

What Does Wave Adjustability Look Like?

I’ve used several types and have seen countless others. Adjustability typically manipulates one or more of these factors: flow, drop, angle, or bottom contour. Adjustability falls into two categories: real-time and static.

Real-time Adjustibility

Real-time allows adjustment with water flowing whereas static adjustability requires flow to be turned off or diverted around the wave. Examples of real-time systems include The Wave Shaper in Boise, Idaho which adjusts the bottom using pneumatics and hydraulics, or the Alm canal which uses a mechanical screw system to move a plate on the bottom.

In the video below, you see Ryan Richard, the Wave Shaper operator, making the adjustments remotely from the middle of the river on his laptop. Pretty cool right? Even better having Gerry and Tao from Munich in Boise slaying it.

Static Adjustability

Static systems typically attach blocks or other shapes to the river or canal bottom. Although the wave can be adjusted to changing conditions, the flow must first be turned off or diverted around the wave before. Most of the rivers however, are not designed in a way that the flow can be turned off or diverted spontaneously.

The photo below shows Columbus Georgia – this is a “static system” not a “real-time” adjustable feature. We actually never had to do anything to it after it was built worked right away (lucky or good? – who knows a bit of both probably).

Spot: Columbus Wave, Georgia

Pros and Cons

There are pros and cons to each system. Real-time adjustability is typically more expensive to construct initially but reduces costs during tuning and is a good option in rivers or other situations where flow varies (like a river) and flow can’t be turned off. It can also achieve very fine adjustments difficult to do with a static system.

A static system tends to be less expensive up front and is a slightly less complicated design but can require a lot of iterations during tuning to get the wave right. So how do you know which system is best? That’s a tough question. There isn’t a one size fits all system. It needs to be evaluated project by project based on site, budget and performance expectations.

Does Adjustability Guarantee Wave Building Success?

No, but it does improve the chances for success. You can’t compensate for a bad design with adjustability. There have been wave projects built with extensive and costly adjustability that don’t work well. Adjustability will never replace a good, fundamentally sound design that is already near that wave sweet spot.

It is usually cost prohibitive to make waves excessively adjustable or the site doesn’t allow drastic changes to the channel after the wave is constructed, so you have to be close to begin with. Knowing where waves are sensitive and which characteristics are needed is the key to successful adjustability. My approach is to design adjustable features with the precision needed for a non-adjustable wave then build in the adjustability from there at sensitive locations to dial in the wave.

River Waves are a beautiful thing. Let’s keep progressing surf wave design to bring quality river waves to a town near you. Include adjustability in your next wave project, trust me it’s worth it.

To health and high water. See you on the river!

The post The Case for Adjustability in River Wave Design appeared first on Riverbreak.

The balance of headwater and tailwater is what matters in river wave construction.

By giving a basic introduction into river hydraulics, Prof. Aufleger emphasises the importance of the fine balance between headwater and tailwater. If this balance has not been calculated precisely, the formation of a river wave is likely to fail. Here, fine-tuning is absolute key to create surfable river waves. To account for the naturally varying levels of headwater and tailwater, Prof. Aufleger teamed up with the company “Dreamwave” and proposed an adjustable river wave system. Recently, Prof. Aufleger has been involved in a number of feasibility studies and assumes that the implementation of the “Dreamwave” concept in a larger project is only a matter of time.

Learn more on the basics of river wave construction and read the full article here.

The post A Scientific View on River Wave Construction appeared first on Riverbreak.

What Makes this Wave so Special?

The power and speed of the wave is key but what truly makes a stationary wave great is the shape. Everyone has been trying to make the perfect stationary wave in rivers or wave pools. The truth is that the only way to create waves that big, perfect and powerful is to make the perfect wave canal. This new approach makes it possible to scale waves easily from 3ft to several ft in height. From 3ft tall with a soft not very steep wave face to a 12ft tall freight train grinding extremely powerful perfectly round barreling wave. Eli explains that these barreling waves are to river surfing what the North Shore winter waves are to Florida waves. This wave will feel like perfect glassy powerful ocean waves.

River Surfing Versus Ocean Surfing

A perfect barreling wave is still lacking in river surfing. Without this shape river surfing always has a certain feel that is much different than ocean surfing. Only on these perfect thick glassy tubing river waves will you find it hard to feel much difference between this wave and a perfect tubing ocean wave. It is still brand new to the world in a certain sense. The broader goal of the surfing industry is to create new surfers and the only way to do that is to create waves that are rippable.

The Future of Surfing

Eli is not shy when he proudly says that this is the most important video you will ever see concerning the construction of river surfing wave parks as extraordinary economic & cultural center piece to cities around the world. For Eli this is not only the future for river surfing, wave pools or wave machines. It’s the future of surfing.

More on fresH20

Elijah Mack’s fresH20 Consulting is dedicated to innovative concepts, designs, materials and craftsmanship devoted to the advancement of river surfing. You can get in touch with them at their at fresH20 website or simply hit Eli on the phone at #503-754-4764.

The post The Perfect Artificial Wave That Barrels in Rivers and Wave Pools appeared first on Riverbreak.

During the first week of Dec 2014 Elijah Mack (fresH20 Consulting) flew to Denver Colorado to meet up with Benjamin Nielsen from McLaughlin Whitewater Design Group. Their mission was to built the perfect river wave. The combination proved to be groundbreaking. Eli’s and Ben’s work in the lab will forever change the way river waves are built.

This is going to change the way ocean surfers think about river waves.

Truly perfect surfing waves in rivers are no longer a dream. What once was thought to be only doable in wave pools with pumped waves or artificial indoor wave machines will soon be implemented in an actual river. A number of publications around the world will cover their story in depth throughout 2015. We at Riverbreak are proud to give the world this first brief look at the future of surfing. Check out the first video of the barreling river wave right here on Riverbreak.

More on fresH20

Elijah Mack’s fresH20 Consulting is dedicated to innovative concepts, designs, materials and craftsmanship devoted to the advancement of river surfing. You can get in touch with them at their at fresH20 website or simply hit Eli on the phone at #503-754-4764.

Elijah Mack and Benjamin Nielsen designing the perfect river wave.

The post The Future of River Surfing: Barreling Waves appeared first on Riverbreak.