The Art of Surfing: A Training Manual for the Developing and Competitive Surfer

This book is a general overview of all the important aspects of the sport of surfing. I think every surfer should read it, cause it's really helpful.

The Art of Surfing: A Training Manual for the Developing and Competitive Surfer is a very informative read and manual for those interested in starting out in the sport-whether it be for career choices or even recreational purposes-to those looking to advance competitively and improve their performance. For anyone interested in the basics of surfing, or for anyone looking to advance in competition, this book does not dissapoint. Worth every penny.

some of the review are too critical. The author does a great job of breaking down surfing etiquite as well as providing beginning, intermediate and advanced tips that can be used for all surfers. I have checked out other books and while they are good I find this book to be a great reference for those of us who try to surf as often as we can. the conditioning tips are very progressive and opened new facets of training for myself and some friends.

I feel some of the other reviews were a too harsh. I first read the book at Borders and really liked it :) Obviously no book or video compares to time spent in the water but I found the book to be very good and informative. Most "learn to surf" books always seem to contain the same basic info (paddling, popping-up, duck-diving) but this book goes far beyond and can be appreciated by the advancing-beginner & intermediate surfers looking to improve. I'm hoping to teach a surfing class at the college I work for & would seriously consider recommending this book for any surfing students. The other book I really liked was Taj Burrow's Book of Surfing but I believe is for more advanced surfers and contains too much surf jargon & slang for the beginners.

I have been surfing for 20 years and I have yet to read a book that breaks down the essentials of surfing as well as this book does. It's very easy to read and contains a lot of helpful photos. I picked up numerous tips on technique and cross-training that have already improved my surfing!