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Surfing at Kelly Slater’s ultimate wave pool

Surf’s up! This rookie tries out Kelly Slater’s Surf Ranch.

Lexy Savvides Principal Video Producer
Lexy is an on-air presenter and award-winning producer who covers consumer tech, including the latest smartphones, wearables and emerging trends like assistive robotics. She's won two Gold Telly Awards for her video series Beta Test. Prior to her career at CNET, she was a magazine editor, radio announcer and DJ. Lexy is based in San Francisco.
Expertise Wearables, smartwatches, mobile phones, photography, health tech, assistive robotics Credentials
  • Webby Award honoree, 2x Gold Telly Award winner
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Lexy Savvides
2 min read
Lexy Savvides

It's my first time on a surfboard and I'm petrified.

Instead of learning how to surf in the ocean with unpredictable conditions, I'm in a more controlled environment that should, in theory, make it easier for me to catch a wave.

Watch this: Behind the scenes at Kelly Slater's Surf Ranch

But I'm nowhere near the coastline. I'm 100 miles from the Pacific Ocean in a small town called Lemoore in California. This is the home of Kelly Slater's Surf Ranch, where the world champion has helped engineer his perfect wave.

As part of CNET's Road Trip series, Abrar Al-Heeti also visited the Surf Ranch, and you can read her in-depth story about the wave pool and its 100-ton hydrofoil.

But I'm here to experience what it's like to learn to surf in a place that guarantees a wave every time. Kelly Slater himself has just given me tips on what to do. His best advice? "Don't overthink it."

Check out Kelly Slater's Surf Ranch in pictures

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Lying flat on the surfboard in the middle of the wave pool, I hear a high-pitched whirring noise from the hydrofoil get closer and closer. I'm trying to follow Slater's advice but it's hard not to keep thinking about what I need to do when the wave comes. Before I know it, I feel the force of a wave coming from behind me. It's so powerful, it almost feels like I'm being swept up in the momentum from a train.

So how did I go? Let's just say, I'm not going to be the next Kelly Slater. Watch the video on this page to find out more about the technology behind the Surf Ranch and what it's like to ride the waves for a Barney like me. 

This video is an episode of Beta Test, the show that puts you in the front seat with me as I test our crazy tech products and experiences. You can also find the series on YouTube and the first and second episodes here on CNET. Check back each month for a new show!