Kelly Slater’s incredible Lemoore surf ranch — and the truly harebrained plan he had to kill

Nypost · May 11, 2026 · 543 words · By Nina Joudeh

Kelly Slater's Surf Ranch Innovation and Engineering

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What to know about Kelly Slater's Surf Ranch

Kelly Slater’s incredible Lemoore surf ranch — and the truly harebrained plan he had to kill Kelly Slater’s “perfect wave” nearly started as a surfing merry-go-round.

Claims checked 7

Techniques found 2

Topics 2

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center86%

Right14%

7 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Kelly Slater’s incredible Lemoore surf ranch — and the truly harebrained plan he had to kill Kelly Slater’s “perfect wave” nearly started as a surfing merry-go-round.

Why it matters

Before the 11-time world champ’s famed Surf Ranch became a 2,300-foot rectangular lagoon in Lemoore, California, the original plan was far more bizarre — a circular pool that would churn out a nonstop, spherical wave.

Common ground

The idea sounded like science fiction, but after years of research and development, the team behind Kelly Slater Wave Company had to kill it.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Exaggeration / Hyperbole: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Kelly Slater's Surf Ranch story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that By 2012, Poirot pushed to bring computational fluid dynamics, or CFD, into the process?
How does this story connect Kelly Slater's Surf Ranch with Innovation and Engineering over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/05/11/us-news/mad-scientists-behind-kelly-slaters-incred…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 2 propaganda techniques in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 80% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Exaggeration / Hyperbole 70% confidence

Overstating facts or claims to create a stronger emotional response.

Why it matters: Recognizing exaggeration / hyperbole helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 7 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

info Single Source 5

check_circle Corroborated 2

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Claim 1: “By 2012, Poirot pushed to bring computational fluid dynamics, or CFD, into the process”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm that Alex Poirot introduced and was responsible for Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) in the development of the wave.

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web search NEUTRAL — Your CFD [Computational Fluid Dynamics] wave animations are insane. Is this the potential of what we’ll be seeing in the wave pool space in the years to come? Thank you! In short, yes.
https://www.surfer.com/news/kelly-slaters-surf-ranch-perfect…

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web search NEUTRAL — Alex was responsible for hydrofoil and bathymetry design as well as introducing Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) to their efforts. His knowledge of fluid mechanics and the power of CFD was proven to…
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/crest-surf-clubs_surfpark-cfd…

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web search NEUTRAL — What is CFD? It uses the computer and adds to our capabilities for fluid mechanics analysis.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQHp49OyPn8

info

Claim 2: “by Dec. 5, 2015, around 6:30 a.m., he was on site to see if the thing was actually surfable.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of generic search results for 'Kelly Services' and 'Kelly Benefits', which are irrelevant to Kelly Slater's Surf Ranch. No evidence supports the specific date and time of the visit.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Work with the industry leader who's breaking down barriers and helping job seekers worldwide connect with meaningful, transformative work. Named one of the world's best companies—with good reason. At …
https://www.kellyservices.com/

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web search NEUTRAL — Find jobs, careers, and advice on myKelly! Look through our industry pages or use our robust search filters to find exactly what you want.
https://www.mykelly.com/

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web search NEUTRAL — Kelly Benefits is one of the nation’s largest and fastest-growing providers of benefits administration and technology, broker and consulting services, payroll solutions and other comprehensive tools a…
https://kellybenefits.com/

info

Claim 3: “The circular prototype had already been built when French engineer Alex Poirot joined the company in 2011.”

SINGLE SOURCE

One specific web search result explicitly states that the circular prototype had been built when Alex Poirot joined in 2011. While other sources mention Poirot's role, they do not independently confirm the specific timing of the prototype's existence relative to his start date.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of events that took place in 2014 related to British television.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_in_British_television

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Anime-influenced animation is a type of non-Japanese work of animation that is noticeably similar to or inspired by anime. Generally, the term anime refers to a style of animation originating from Jap…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anime-influenced_animation

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Maaya Sakamoto (坂本真綾, Sakamoto Maaya; born March 31, 1980) is a Japanese actress and singer. She made her debut as a voice actress in 1992 as the voice of Chifuru in the anime Little Twins, and becam…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maaya_Sakamoto

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 4: “Before the 11-time world champ’s famed Surf Ranch became a 2,300-foot rectangular lagoon in Lemoore, California, the original plan was far more bizarre — a circular pool that would churn out a nonstop, spherical wave.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web search results confirm the transition from a circular prototype to the rectangular pool in Lemoore, California, and the involvement of Kelly Slater.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Surf Ranch Pro is a professional surfing competition, currently one of the events of the World Surf League. The competition is held annually at Kelly Slater's Surf Ranch in Lemoore, California. He…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freshwater_Pro

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Gabriel Medina Pinto Ferreira (born 22 December 1993) is a Brazilian professional surfer. He won the 2014, 2018 and 2021 WSL World Championships. In two appearances at the Olympic surfing tournament, …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriel_Medina

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Robert Kelly Slater (born February 11, 1972) is an American professional surfer who has been crowned World Surf League champion a record 11 times. He is widely regarded as the greatest professional su…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelly_Slater

+ 3 more evidence sources

info

Claim 5: “Poirot... came on as the company’s first fluid mechanics R&D engineer, according to SURFER.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence mentions Alex Poirot's role in fluid mechanics and CFD, but the specific title of 'first fluid mechanics R&D engineer' as attributed to SURFER is not independently corroborated by other sources in the provided set.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Alex is a unisex name, employed either as a hypocoristic or a standalone given name, derived from the Greek element ἀλέξειν (aléxein), meaning "to defend" or "to protect."
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — ALEKS is an adaptive learning platform offering personalized education in math, chemistry, statistics, and more for students and educators.
https://www.aleks.com/

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web search NEUTRAL — This collection of easy-to-follow tutorials will help you navigate and make the most out of the ALEX Learning Object Repository (LOR). Each video in this playlist will walk you through the process of …
https://alabamalearningexchange.org/home

info

Claim 6: “The team eventually ran thousands of prototype tests and more than 2,000 CFD simulations before standing with Slater and CEO Jeff Bizzack in the middle of what Poirot described as a “2,300 feet long dry lake.””

SINGLE SOURCE

The evidence confirms the use of CFD simulations and prototype tests and the transition to the Lemoore site, but the specific numbers (2,000 simulations) and the quote about the 'dry lake' are not corroborated by multiple independent sources.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Kelly Slater's Surf Ranch switched from a circular to rectangular pool after extensive R&D challenges. Alex Poirot's expertise in fluid mechanics and CFD shaped the design of the Surf Ranch wave.
https://www.surfer.com/news/kelly-slaters-surf-ranch-perfect…

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web search NEUTRAL — Last December, Kelly Slater, the world’s best and best-known surfer, released a short video on his Instagram feed. It began with a beautifully curling left-to-right wave, seven or eight feet in height…
https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2016-kelly-slater-wave-po…

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web search NEUTRAL — This would become the cornerstone of Kelly Slater Wave Co know how, testing various hydro-foils, beach profiles, dampening technologies and much more. The team also developed computer modeling resourc…
https://www.kswaveco.com/the-science/

info

Claim 7: “At the time, the operation consisted of just four people — Chief Technology Officer Adam Fincham, Chief Operating Officer Noah, lab technician Ken, and Poirot”

SINGLE SOURCE

While evidence confirms Adam Fincham and Alex Poirot were part of the team, the specific list of four people (including 'Noah' and 'Ken') is not corroborated by the provided evidence.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Alex Poirot, along with Chief Scientist Adam Fincham, were the engineers behind Kelly Slater’s Surf Ranch; Poirot talks about the creation of that wave, and the future of manmade wave pools.
https://tech.yahoo.com/science/articles/inside-mad-science-b…

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web search NEUTRAL — In 2006, Kelly Slater shared his vision of a perfect, barreling, human-made wave with Adam Fincham, PhD., a professor at the University of Southern California Viterbi School of Engineering and expert …
https://www.kswaveco.com/the-science/

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web search NEUTRAL — We must remember that this was a test facility first, and a commercial operation later. Over the years, the wave technology design has evolved thanks to people like Adam Fincham and Alex Poirot click …
https://wavepoolmag.com/10-years-on-why-the-kelly-slater-wav…

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.