A surfer on a FlowRider machine does not have to worry about sharks

Turku company provides surf pools for "luxury cruise liners with everything"

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By Venla Pystynen in Turku
     
      On the RMS Titanic, the ultimate luxury cruise liner of its day, the well-heeled travelling gentlefolk in 1st Class could work up a sweat or an appetite on the squash court, plop into an indoor pool, or relax in a Turkish bath.
      There was an orchestra, dancing, and gala dinners in sumptuous chandeliered surroundings.
      And yet the level of attractions that were on offer on the White Star Line flagship that foundered on a North Atlantic iceberg on the night of April 14th, 1912 would have looked positively spartan when set alongside the plethora of allurements and activities available on the present-day cruise giants.
     
The latest crowd-pullers on today’s luxury vessels include indoor ice skating rinks, golf simulators, miniature golf courses, climbing walls, roller-skating arenas, a full-size basketball court, and massive spa complexes.
     
“These modern ships are floating multistorey amusement parks”, affirms communications director Leena Poutiainen of Finland Travel Bureau Ltd.
      According to Poutiainen, luxury cruises that stop in several ports have in recent years increased their popularity also among the Finnish travellers.
      Comfort-loving adventurers value forms of travel where one gets to visit new places easily without having to drag the luggage around.
      Poutiainen also believes that cruises have become more popular thanks to people’s increased environmental awareness.
      “Many consider sea travel more environmentally friendly than flying.”
     
The latest craze on luxury cruise liners are the FlowRider artificial surfing pools.
      One manufacturer of this new fad is the maritime technology company Mobimar based in Turku, which supplies under licence the FlowRider equipment for the latest ships of the Royal Caribbean International fleet.
      These are cruise vessels on a vast scale, like the 150,000-ton Freedom of the Seas, launched a few years ago from the Turku shipyard of Aker Yards (now STX Finland Cruises, part of the Korean-owned STX Europe).
     
Waves roar in Mobimar’s cheerless industrial hall in Turku’s Pansio, as high-powered pumps spout a sheet flow of water onto the eight-metre-wide and ten-metre-long surf ramp.
      Soon technician Phil Hogsten from the Californian company Wave Loch Ltd, which holds the patent for the invention, jumps on the wave on his wakeboard.
      Admittedly the sun, the white sand, and the palm trees of Waikiki or California or the Gold Coast of Australia are all decidedly absent here, but on the other hand the surfer does not have to worry about sharks, either.
     
Mobimar will shortly be handing over the surfers' delight for installation in yet another Royal Caribbean cruise vessel being built in Turku.
      This one is even larger - the Allure of the Seas, sister vessel to the Oasis of the Seas (due for completion and delivery later this year), weighs in at 220,000 GRT and is 360 metres from stem to stern, meaning there's plenty of room for a surfing slope or two amongst all the other attractions.
      When completed, the pair of ships will be the largest passenger vessels afloat (by a long way) and will accommodate 5,400 double-occupancy passengers.
      The Allure of the Seas is scheduled to make her maiden voyage, with surfers, in late 2010.
     
Helsingin Sanomat / First published in print 6.8.2009


Previously in HS International Edition:
  World´s largest cruise liner launched in Turku (24.11.2008)
  Ownership of Turku, Rauma, and Helsinki shipyards falls into new hands (23.10.2007)

See also:
  State takes on heavy responsibility for new giant cruise liner (20.4.2009)

Links:
  Mobimar Press Release from June 2009
  Wave Loch - Case study: Royal Caribbean International
  Wave Loch website
  FlowRider (Wikipedia)

VENLA PYSTYNEN / Helsingin Sanomat