Wavehouse Ocean City, MD????????????

The only way for it to be profitable enough to stay open would be to serve alcohol, and have a food menu. A mirror image of the Wave House in mission beach would be the best way to go. As for the seasonality, If you make it indoors or have a roof that opens for the summer and closes for the winter you could draw in more people during the off season. Think about how many events the wavehouse hosts in San Diego, given they have a way larger population, but if you could start something like that here it would do good, especailly during the summer. The alcohol and the people using the flow rider would have to be completly seperate, almost like having a resturant that has a front view of the flowrider that would draw people into watch and spend money.

 

Why not make one up here in Jersey? ALOT OF TOURISTS IN SUMMER especially Seaside, Pt. Pleasant, and Belmar, and I bet that with the surfing/bodyboarding community up here that'll have enough $$$ to pay expenses through 5-6 months. Plus there's more land I'd think compared to OC (never been down there)?

 

Might want to talk to these guys if you can get the capital for and investment like this.

http://www.surfingthemag.com/news/surfing-pulse/virginia-flowrider-122607/

 

It seems to me a little like batting cages, it would be cool to use it as practice for the real thing, but the novelty could definitely wear off after a while. Its a bit of a risky idea, ie. how much will it cost to maintain & possiblle liability but weighed against potential popularity and an utter lack of competition it may not be a bad idea. Venture capitalists would go for it, so what are you?

- Food for thought, micro-brewery in OC would do awesome! maybe combine the two and you're golden. the nearest brewery is in what Rehoboth? Dogfishhead does incredible business all year round. granted the crowd from rehoboth is mostly d.c., the oc crowd is more Bmore/Pennsylvania. There is most definitely a growing crowd that would be interested in locally brewed beers.

 

Alternative

If you've got 5 mil to burn, why not put it into artificial reefs? Then the city could put meters on all 145+ streets and even institute mandatory beach ankle tags (pay as you go) like they do in Jersey? http://www.flowrider.com/ sounds attractive, but why would anyone want to pay for what should by its very nature be free? Moreover, once you introduce the "pay" factor, it's unlikely to ever be free again. And honestly, how much can you expect to reap from your 5m investment, and how long with that take to come to fruition?

Typhoon lagoon at Disney (a surge wave rather than a standing wave) runs somewhere around $63 per day (normal hours) and considerably higher for the early hours surf session (still restricted to before 10am) when you are allowed a certain wave count, and no more. And honestly speaking, the wave's not much to speak of either.

 

Check out surfparks. apparently they are building one of these in NYC when they get the one in FL going.

http://www.surfparks.com/

 

I have to agree with a few others. I would love to see this happen,and so would alot of others. If you can make it indoors during the winter, it would be a significant boost towards making OC a year round place.

 

This is a good idea. The wavehouse in Japan only closed because they built it right across from the beach i thought. which would kind of happen here but when the swells don't come through it would be great. I would go with the idea of adding it on to Jolly Rogers or something.

 

To have a seperate area for this is never going to work because it won't make enough money. It will for 3 months, but for the rest of the time your screwed. There are not enough locals for this to work out in the off season. The only way that it would work would be somewhere like Jolly Rogers. Maybe they would put it as a seperate thing. So it would be part of the park, but a seperate fee. I love the idea and know I would use it alot. I have never tried it, but it looks like alot of fun.Hopefully this all can happen

 

Truitt, are you saying that a ocean dome style surf park is planned for ocean city, md? When and where? And Jolly Rogers(Buddy Jenkins) is puttng in a waveloch like the wavehouse or a flowrider?

 

man i love to have on i would use one everyday if i could and in the summer time i am sure plenty of tourist would use it so get enough money from there but man i would be on that everyday

 

absolutely. you should look into space in west ocean city around the marinas... any property in town is most likely going to be cost prohibitive. have you looked into the insurance required on a venture of this magnitude?

anywho, good luck. if it goes through, i'll be there to support

brasco

 

Truitt: when and where? what paper? don't remember seeing anything like that. I don't think Buddy is that risky either.... I used to work for him

 

If you make it successful then you can turn it into a franchise and I'll buy one up here in Jersey. I don't have the time to start and develop another business, but I would buy a well oiled franchise. Just make sure you give it a really cool name.

 

Cool. I was just interested. I hadn't heard anything about that. If Buddy Jenkins is that far ahead on developing a project of this caliber..... then I would say that anyone else that wants to build one is going to have a real run for his money.

 

Build it, they will come!

 

I surfed a Flow Rider!

It's not that fun. I surfed the opening to the Flowrider in mission beach years ago and when I first got on it felt like I was snow boarding. Rattling, thumpy and at first, nothing like surfing. After I got dumped a few times and I figured it out, I had fun, but it was like skimming. Anyways, it will not survive in OCMD. Places with hi population could hold such a thing. Not around here. No way at all. Your better off opening a Piggly Wiggly. That would rock all of oc!

 

And would make it easier to give directions.

Just go down the road a piece, make a left at The Pig.....