Latitube: Australian-made flow-rider alternative

I was reading a quick article by well reknowned Aussie bodyboarder Eppo a few weeks ago, in which he mentioned an innovation I was honestly really not expecting to see on our local shores, located down in the humble NSW surf town of Coffs Harbour.

The invention is really one you have to see to believe. It’s a home made flow rider, yep, a stationery wave that apparently mimics the feeling of getting a big juicy ocean barrel.  I actually thought this market had already been completely monopolized by the dudes who manufacture the wave machines for the likes of  Wavehouse in San Diego…but it seems that the ‘Aussie battler’ entrepreneurial spirit of Steve Kriticos, in true form, simply doesn’t give a shit about those Seppos and their over-priced toys and decided to have a crack at making something better!

This beast, the prototype Latitube, is stashed away in a secret shed in the Swimplex aquatic complex in Coffs, nestled at the back of a complex more well known for the myriad of chlorinated (or should I say urinated) pools and slides of various shapes and sizes that screaming kids flock to every summer holidays. If only they knew that behind the shed walls something far more exciting (actually, then they’d probably scream and pee even more….not a good idea!)

The story behind the Latitube, is probably best told by the inventor himself, so I’ve included the  original press release below:

STEVE Kriticos says his pipe dream, the Latitube wave simulator, has effectively captured the rush, velocity and intensity of a barrelling wave.The amazing development, stored in the Coffs Harbour warehouse of Swimplex Aquatics, presents massive international possibilities – not to mention a new meaning to the term “tube riding”.

Unlike other wave simulators and wave pools, the Latitube pumps water over a flexible 20mm mat know as “the curtain ride surface”, which is similar in feel to a backyard trampoline. Harnessing the energy of a 50,000-litre water pump, the prototype can change the shape and the type of wave the operator wants to ride.

The electronic settings can throw up left and right-handed barrels and pits ranging from 1.5 to 3 metres high.
All the while, the boardrider floats on water pumped through jets from a large water tank.
“Basically the Latitube reproduces the required liquid energy and velocity of a big wave,” Mr Kriticos said.
“It’s the invention I’ve spent years trying to bring to reality, and here it is.”
Placing total faith in his idea, Steve threw every cent he could muster into the Latitube.
After developing the concept, he reached an agreement with Swimplex Aquatics, the local company which recently completed the upgrade of the Coffs Harbour Olympic Swimming Pool.

“We could see the instant potential and possibilities for this product when Steve came to us four years ago,” company director Geoff Leaver said.
“The Latitube has worldwide potential and it sure has been a long road getting to its launch.”
Tested out by former leading Australian bodyboarder Michael “Eppo” Epplestun, the Latitube got a big thumbs up from the one-time world champion. “He loved the potential of being able to train people to surf on it, and improve their wave riding technique while standing there right next to them.” Mr Leaver said the company has approached the Lands and Property Management Authority over the scope for a wave simulator to be included in an aquatic centre proposal, suggested for the Coffs Harbour Showground. “While it’s still very much just a proposal at this point, we believe it would be a great tourist attraction in Coffs Harbour, where the Latitube has been developed.

“The thing about the Latitube is that two girls, who were first-timers to surfing, were riding the wave simulator at the launch like absolute professionals,” he said.

My take on the Labitube (and I might be misinformed, as I am yet to try one, or speak to Eppo or Steve about it), is that they will be a lower cost alternative to the standard options on the market. The question is, how low is ‘lower cost’?

If the entry cost really is that low, we might be seeing watery gadgets popping up in not only the drab water parks that get over-run with kiddies every Christmas holidays, but maybe even in the backyards of kids-with-rich-parents across the Australia, even the world. And let’s be honest, there is a massive void in the market at this point of time in Australia which I am guessing is due to the high entry costs.

Let’s face it, that Flowrider at Dreamworld requires the equivalent skill-level as riding a kids’ toboggan down a gentle ski slope….and delivers equivalent levels of exhilaration too, so the Labitube would be a welcome addition to any water park.

Kudos, and good luck Steve, I hope to be getting virtual barrels on the Labitube with you real soon mate.

http://latitube.com/