The Germans have developed a way for wave-deprived people to experience the feeling of riding a wave.  City Wave, as they’re calling it, is basically a fake standing wave formed by fashioning a large wave-shaped conveyor belt out of a special non-sticky material that people can ride with special boards.  It doesn’t require a drop of water and can be moved and setup anywhere.

We’re seeing more and more ways for people to experience the sensation of riding a surfboard without having to get their feet wet in the ocean.   I think it’s great that inventive people, who are passionate about surfing, are developing ways to make surfing more accessible to the masses.  Hopefully, the more people learn about surfing (when they’re on land), the more they’ll feel drawn to the ocean.  That’s not to say I wish the line-ups were a little more crowded.  I do wish people had more respect for the ocean, though, and surfing in the ocean has a tendency to earn people’s respect for the ocean. 

When people start showing more respect to the ocean, hopefully they’ll think more about taking better care of it.  If that comes at the cost of having to ride a wave with 200 other yahoos, then so be it.  I’ll just go and find myself a City Wave that I can ride all by myself.