Surf Park Summit is the most exclusive and largest networking and insider event for the booming surf park industry, with a heavy focus on the latest wave technologies, park developments, and the future of surfing. This year, the event runs from October 16-18 at Scripps Seaside Forum in San Diego, CA, and it’s on track to be our biggest event yet as interest and activity around surf parks and wave technology companies continue to grow.

This year’s lineup includes panels on marketing, park development, project feasibility, technological advancements, and much more. Talks with leaders in the industry will also focus on creating world-class experiences for surf park visitors and innovation and progress surrounding sustainability.

Speakers from this year’s event include big-name surfers like Shane Beschen and CJ and Damien Hobgood, as well as industry leaders like Paul Chutter of Endless Surf, Damon Tudor with URBNSURF, Seán Young from Wavegarden and more. 

Surf Park Summit kicks off Sunday, October 16, with an exclusive VIP event, followed by two days of panel sessions and technology showcases. Here’s a look at some of the session highlights  taking place this year:

How core do you go? Contemplating the depth and scope of how much surf marketing and branding you need in your surf park.     

This panel, moderated by Bryan Dickerson from Wave Pool Magazine, focuses on the intersection of surf brands and surf parks. How does the surf industry view wave pools, and more importantly, how are surf brands working with (and not working with) surf park developers? Our panelists represent a wide variety of surf park/surf brand relationships at work.



    Moderator: Bryan Dickerson, Wave Pool magazine

    Panelists: 

• Jessica O’Leary, UNIT Surf Pools
• James Miles, URBNSurf Melbourne 
• Chris Grow, Firewire 
• Skip Taylor, Surf Park Management 
• Zoe Pfeiffer, Alaia Group

---

Lessons learned in Surf Lagoon Operations –

A small cadre of early adopter operators and technology companies hold most of the world’s first-hand knowledge about surf park operations. This panel brings together the finest minds among this elite group of industry pioneers to discuss what’s worked and what hasn’t. Speakers in this panel will discuss the trials and tribulations involved in surf park operations, including what are the important KPIs to manage long term. 

    Moderator: Blake Hess, Beach Street Development & Operations 

    Panelists:  

• Carlo Pettina – Alaïa Group
• Damon Tudor, URBNSURF
• Michael Schwaab, Waco Surf

---

Best Practices in the Development of Surf Parks 

Real estate development is an incredibly complicated process – imagine the added complexity of creating a new surfing community and profitable business on top of that! This panel brings together some of the top minds in surf park real estate development to discuss challenges and personal wins in this exciting area of surf parks. Moderated by Doug Sheres from Beach Street Development & Operations, this panel brings real lessons learned with practical and time-saving advice.

Moderator: Doug Sheres, Beach Street & Development & Operations

    Panelists:  

• Aaron Trevis, Surf Lakes 
• Doug Coors, Advisor at Beach Street Development 
• Ray Lauenstein, Aquatic Development Group
• Fernando Odriozola, Wavegarden 

---

Spotlight on Sustainability in Surf Parks and How We Can Make Waves for Generations to Come

Surfing has always been a traditional sport that focuses on the natural world, so with the growth of human-made waves, what are the key issues that need to be addressed when it comes to sustainability? This panel will look at the technology and steps that we can take to create a better energy, water, and physical footprint while still providing world-class waves. 

    Moderator: Carl Kish, STOKE Certified 

    Panelists: 

• William Duncanson – BAR Architects 
• Diego Alessi, AO 
• Kevin Whilden, Sustainable Surf
• Chris Goody, Sea Engineering

---

Evaluating the Feasibility and Potential for Surf Park Investments  

Surf Parks are a niche category for investors. This panel brings together some of the most experienced leaders in evaluating surf park projects to discuss what they’re seeing in trends, lessons learned, and how entrepreneurs might best prepare with surf park investments. The panelists will cover the impact of geography, regulatory trends, master planning, team development, construction costs, operating expenses, and many other topics relevant to investing in this high risk, high reward industry. 

    Moderator: Matt Hyslop, Colliers 

    Panelists: 

• Alex Bergman, Beach Street Development & Operations 
• Ryder Thomas, ProSwell

• Connor Fushs, Gast Clearwater
• Andrew Limbocker, Lagniappe Capital Partners
• Seán Young, Wavegarden 

---

Planning and Designing Best-In-Class Surf Pool Experiences

Design and construction of the inland surfing experience requires a deep focus on the physical space design as well as the physical user experience design. This panel explores the nuances involved in master planning and designing for surf parks to help early-stage developers consider best practices that can help evolve and enhance their plans. 

Moderator: Cate Thero, Surf Park Management

Panelists:

• Baptiste Caulonque, Endless Surf 
• Rob Budetti, AO 
• Nick Neuman, WTI 
• Noel Dempsey, Pico Play 
• Mike Oswald, ProSwell

---

How Innovation in Surf Parks Will Shape the Future of Surfing 

Surf parks are one of the most innovative industries imaginable, bringing together leaders from dozens of sectors including technology, analytics, aquatics, construction, real estate development, and action sports. This panel explores the perspectives of companies pushing the envelope of innovation within the surf park space, how they think differently about surf, and what the future of technology and surfing might look like.

Moderator: Paul Chutter, CEO, Whitewater West, Endless Surf

Panelists:

• Luca Oggiano, Nabla Flow  
• Pete Jozsi, Surfline, 
• Kevin Ashley, Microsoft 
• Kevin Gast, GAST Clearwater

---

Surf Pools and the Progression of Surfing  

Just imagine how surf parks will open up access to more types of surfers than ever imagined before. Surfing is one of the fastest growing sports, and with the addition to the Olympics, surfing is on its way to becoming as common as soccer for young athletes. Brandon Lowery, CEO of USA Surfing, leads this panel with some of the most progressive names in surf and action sports.

Moderator: Brandon Lowrey, CEO of USA Surfing

Panelists:

• Christian Glasgow, High Performance Psychologist
• Ryan Simmons, USA Surfing
• Jason Baldessari, PUSHparks
• Dave Stow, Olympic Training Teams
• Circe Wallace, Film Producer

---

Special VIP Feature: Breakfast with Surfing Legends

Moderator: Chris Cote

Speakers:

• Shane Beschen
• CJ Hobgood
• Damien Hobgood
• and more!

For more information and to register to attend Surf Park Summit, click here.

For media inquiries or possible passes to attend the event, please contact [email protected]. No filming or recording will be permitted during the panels or speakers. There is only a limited number of press passes available, and interested outlets must guarantee media coverage. 

Main Image by Elke Mai