Waco Surf, once a struggling wave pool in Central Texas, has become a year-round sold-out destination, according to co-owners David Taylor and Luke Schock in the latest episode of The Building Texas Show, published May 27, 2026. The episode, hosted by Justin McKenzie, details how the park flipped its customer base from 99% professional surfers to 99% Texas families, with 99% of current surfers never having touched an ocean wave.
The transformation began with a 2018 pilot of American Wave Machines technology at the original Barefoot Ski Ranch under Stuart Parsons. Taylor and Schock acquired the facility in 2021 and have since expanded its appeal. Their next move is Desperado, a 400-acre surf-anchored ranch community featuring a second surf pool, a 13-hole golf course, a hot springs resort, pickleball courts, and dirt-only roads. The development aims to capitalize on Waco's central location between Dallas, Austin, and Houston, repositioning the city as the heart of a new Texas surf culture.
Schock emphasized the community's inclusive vision: "It's a community for people that want high access but not high walls. That's because we believe that the magic happens when you're sitting on the beach talking to the guy that, you know, it's his bucket list to come there." Taylor noted that deposits on Desperado homes are overwhelmingly from Texas-based families, with one exception: a Hawaii native whose family lives in New York and wants a centrally located meeting place.
The episode also explores Waco's broader resurgence, including the impact of Baylor graduates staying to open restaurants and buy real estate, alongside the Magnolia-driven effect of Chip and Joanna Gaines. Taylor recounted how Tony Hawk quietly shows up at the local skate park at 7 a.m., draws 200 people within fifteen minutes, and leaves without fanfare. The pair discussed Waco's history, including the 1952 tornado that derailed the city's bid to become Texas's financial hub, pushing that growth toward Fort Worth. They cited the Hippodrome on Austin Avenue, where Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin once performed, as evidence of the city's pre-tornado vibrancy.
By refusing to copy the private, gated model used by other surf communities, Taylor and Schock are betting on an open-access approach that could redefine surf culture in Texas. For more details, the full episode is available wherever podcasts are heard.
