From Desert Waves to Asian Shores: Two Surf Stories Heat Up
Just as the Coachella Valley’s new Wavegarden DSRT Surf is making waves in the desert, in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, a generation of surfers is carving a path to their first Asian Games berth. The two stories may be miles apart, but they share one thing: pushing the limits of where you can ride a wave.
Wavegarden’s Desert Dream Comes to Life
Wavegarden’s latest playground, DSRT Surf, is opening in the Coachella Valley, only about 100 miles from the Pacific. The park can churn out 1,000 waves a day, offering a “catalogue of more than 60 world‑class waves,” the company says. “I never imagined I would be testing aerial waves in the middle of the desert,” says pro surfer Jacob “Zeke” Szekely, who has been riding the 30‑second Twister barrels and air‑friendly ramps for years. The facility is slated to open late summer, with sessions starting at a $60 per hour rate that beats the $100 price tag at Palm Springs Surf Club. Read the full coverage here.
Bangladesh’s Rising Stars Take on the Asian Games
In a nation where cricket rules the waves, 16‑year‑old Fatima Akhter and 25‑year‑old Mohammad Mannan are training on the 120‑km long Cox’s Bazar beach, chasing a spot in the Asian Games in Japan. Fatima’s first wave felt like “a feeling impossible to describe,” she says, while Mannan recalls the days selling seashell jewelry to fund surf trips. Their dream? To prove that surfing can compete with the country’s beloved sports and to inspire other young surfers. Get the full story here.
Whether you’re photographing a barrel in a desert wave pool or capturing a sunrise on Cox’s Bazar, both stories remind us that surf’s reach is only limited by imagination – and a decent camera. Stay tuned, share your shots, and keep riding.
