Curitiba will be home to the world's first heated and indoor wave pool. The Surf Center technology is 100 percent Brazilian and will open in the second half of 2024.
Curitiba, the capital of the southern Brazilian state of Paraná, is more than 100 kilometers away from the coastline.
But after a lot of technological exploration, brothers Luiz Pexe and Vilson Balioli have finally realized a longtime dream alongside a group of like-minded specialists in project development, engineering, and business professionals.
It took eight years to develop a human-made wave system that would compete with third-generation technologies on the market.
They called Surf Center's wave generator GT3K. It is the first 100 percent Brazilian artificial wave-making patent, and it is powered by Siemens.
It features intelligent technology, flexible options to create different types of waves and custom-made rides for each surfer.
Furthermore, since the mechanism for making waves is out of the water, the structure has low operating and maintenance costs.
"We managed to produce our own technology, with an average sales cost 1/3 lower than competitors around the world," explained Fabricio Stedile, co-founder of the Surf Center.
Expandable Pneumatic Technology
The wave pool can be replicated anywhere, for instance, in an area similar to a small football field - 40 by 90 yards.
Also, "there is no maximum area limit, as our technology allows more modules to be added to extend the length of the waves and, consequently, surfing time."
Accessibility and lower implementation costs have generated interest in Surf Center's wave pool in other locations.
The pneumatic technology adopts an air chamber placement and bottom contour that maintains the size of the wave for longer and only loses 20-30 percent of its height.
"We are negotiating in places like Brasília, ABC region, São Paulo, Mato Grosso do Sul, inland Paraná, and the Northeast, with the expectation of opening 20 new surf clubs in the next five years, throughout Brazil and also abroad," adds the co-founder of Surf Center.
The development stage relied on the feedback of professional surfers to improve the technology developed according to their visions and experiences, both for training and for offering surf competitions.
In January 2023, Surf Center welcomed world surfing champion Adriano de Souza to its research and development center to see the 1:10 scale prototype and analyze the quality of the waves in Brazil's first homemade surf pool.
Customizable Surf
Waves can range from half a meter to one meter, lasting 8 to 12 seconds, with up to 240 waves per hour peeling for up to 40 meters and a one-minute break between sets.
The original Surf Center will feature more than 1,400 square meters of waves for all surfers, from children to adults of all ages, from beginners to advanced riders, plus 2,100 square meters of facilities.
Ten people with different skill levels can be in the pool at the same time.
The new technology identifies the surfers, produces the wave according to their skills, and notifies them the moment that the perfect wave for them will enter the pool.
In addition to the surf lagoon, user members will have access to a training center with a surf-oriented training and fitness program, a skating simulator, a bodybuilding gym, a surf-skate park, and pilates, among other practices, as well as a surf shop, cuisine, locker rooms and a space dedicated to the family.
The sports structure is located four minutes from Parque Barigui, inside Parque Damasco, in Curitiba.
Democratizing Surfing and Wave Pools
The club has already started pre-selling titles to those interested in joining. In three months, the company sold 50 percent of the quotas available to user members.
The concept of the Surf Center is based on the democratization of the sport, which explains why the generated wave is relatively small.
Also, to keep costs low, the pool uses less than 10 percent of the water needed, for instance, in a Wavegarden Cove lagoon.
The new venture will exclusively offer Brasil Surf's teaching methodology, which has already trained more than 4,500 students over the last 20 years.
With the experience gathered in regular swimming pools, it will now be possible to train and simulate basic and advanced movements, learn techniques, and develop conditioning in an authentic and safe surfing environment.
Brasil Surf offers in its methodology technical and physical training with internationally certified coaches, video teaching material, physical assessment, apnea classes, training on a skateboard simulator, and an exclusive app for scheduling classes.