“The surf community at the Lake is definitely growing.”
That’s Devin Barnett, a surfer bro who’s part of the unique team at The Surf Club at MarineMax, at Lake of the Ozarks. “He thinks he’s a bro,” laughs Marley Simpson, another member of the team. “I am a bro!” Devin retorts. And that’s the chemistry at The Surf Club.
Located in Osage Beach, across from the outlet mall, The Surf Club at MarineMax is a fresh approach to the traditional boat dealership/retail space. You can buy things there — boats, surf gear, water toys, sunglasses — but it’s also the kind of space where you might just want to be, even if you’re not shopping.
Their goal is to build community around wakesurfing, and the team at this new space (it opened in March of 2022) is already finding their approach is resonating. The elements of this place communicate the mission: the club’s large garage doors are opened up on nice days, the music is pumping, and wakesurf videos play on screens at the central hang-out area. Comfortable couches nestled in the midst of boat gear create a space to chill, next to a station where you can build your own Nautique on a computer, using a wall full of color swatches to get a real look at what the paint on your new boat (or dream boat) will look like. A gorgeous Nautique wake boat towering nearby provides the perfect IRL backdrop.
There, Devin Barnett along with Kyle Bargfrede, Marley Simpson, and MarineMax Lake Ozark GM Dale Law hang out, talking about what the club has already become.
“We wanted a high-end ‘ski shop’ vibe,” Devin says. “Still want to be professional, but also a laid-back environment.”
They nailed it. The floor of the high-ceilinged club is punctuated with stands for Smith Optics sunglasses and Pura Vida jewelry, with the occasional clothing rack holding O’Neill and Jet Pilot surf gear, or Swell Surf apparel. House merchandise and boat-branded apparel (Sea Ray, Nautique, etc) can also be found.
It’s a retail space, Dale says, but one where “dudes come in and hang out — they like to talk surfing, they like watching the videos we have playing.”
Down the hall: a surf simulator. It’s a board with a rounded bottom; you download the app, put your phone in, and climb on. As you work to maintain balance and practice carving wakes, the TV screen on the wall plays a simulation of you. Shredding.
The whole space is a labor of love for the small team at this store. Kyle’s been with MarineMax for 10 years. “He’s our Nautique brand champion,” Marley says. Devin came aboard two years ago; “He fit the mold for Nautique and the surf community,” Marley adds. And for Marley, MarineMax is a way of life. She started on the gas docks, then moved into a sales assistant role, and now she handles marketing and “everything else” at this store.
Part of that marketing includes organizing events. Quarterly, they host a wakesurfing morning gathering called “Wake and Waffles.” It’s a chance for surfers to come experience surfing behind a Nautique, which Devin points out is an experience all its own. Though not intended to be “lessons,” the event gives plenty of opportunities for wakesurfers — novice to expert — to give and receive pointers and tips. They head out at 7 a.m. and return by 10 a.m. Back on shore, Marley’s making waffles.
And now for the second summer in a row, MarineMax has hosted the Midwest Coast Wakesurf Open. Held at Ha Ha Tonka in July, the second annual competition brought dozens of surfers out for a “come-one, come-all” event. Plenty of wakesurfers took to the water to show their stuff; plenty more spectators enjoyed watching the action by boat or by land. Marley says the first competition in 2021 brought so much positive feedback, they decided to make it an (here she knocked on a wood surfboard) annual event.
Connected with the Wakesurf Open, and also with the heart of the MarineMax Lake Ozark crew, is Wake For Warriors (W4W). This nonprofit organization was founded by a veteran who saw an opportunity to use wakesurfing to bring healing to other veterans whose lives and mobility had been hit by an injury while serving in the military. MarineMax rallies the boating and wakesurf community in support of W4W, and for the past two years has brought W4W surfers into the Wakesurf Open competition. So far for all of those veterans, this was their first-ever trip to Lake of the Ozarks. Dale reiterates the importance of their heart for this special organization: “[The Wakesurf Open] will always coincide with Wake For Warriors… it’s amazing to hear some of their stories.”
For The Surf Club at MarineMax, the business, of course, is in selling boats and gear (you can buy any of MarineMax’s boat lines at the Surf Club, by the way, not just wakesurf boats). But the work — and the fun — is really in building a wakesurf community. In a short time, they’ve already come a long way, by connecting with boaters and surfers at the store, and also by creating an intentional space and unique events to forge new friendships and foster a love for wakesurfing.
