Freshwater Cowboys at NLand Surf Park

Whether you love it or hate it, the era of the wave pool is very much upon us. Kelly Slater is holding events in his new-and-improved Lemoore facility, Wavegarden’s Cove design will soon be exported to various locations around the world, and the future of surfing looks like it’s bound to feature much more freshwater. At the moment, however, the best artificial wave that is currently open to the public sits on the outskirts of Austin, Texas at NLand Surf Park. We recently traveled to NLand with Hawaiian rippers Albee Layer and Torrey Meister to see just what Austin’s best (see: only) wave is capable of, and to investigate whether or not surfing can thrive in a landlocked community.