Customer Reviews

Surf Science

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I've never surfed in my life but read this book as a scientist with an interest in fluid mechanics. The book introduces a wide range of concepts and models, starting from large-scale climate patterns, to storms and generation of waves, to their propagation and evolution, taking the reader step-by-step through some rather complex phenomena. The writing is plain and accessible to a non-physicist, yet scientific, making this book a pleasure to read. My favourite section was probably the one on climate patterns, which discusses the atmosphere as a non-equilibrium, dissipative system driven by the energy of the Sun and coupled to the rotation of the Earth - and manages to do it quite well without introducing a single equation. For those wishing more mathematics, there is a list of references for further reading. I did find one or two minor blunders, such as the statement that "the equator is warmer than the poles because it is closer to the Sun" (the reason it is warmer is, of course, in the different incidence angles of sunlight), or equations with no units. Another warning is that this is a book about the physics of *waves*, not the hydrodynamics of surfing. But overall, this is a great piece of popular science. Any teacher who values problem-based learning will appreciate it - as, hopefully, will any surfer who wants to know why waves behave the way they do.

This book is written for the layman and has great illustrations to back up some very complicated topics ranging from climatology and atmospherics to answering the "simple" question: what makes a good wave?

If you have never studied weather patterns, buoys, or local surfbreaks, you stand to learn a lot from this book. It covers all aspects of wave science without the heavy textbook feel. Those with a formal science background will find this an easy read and be tempted to look into the references for a bit more of the equations behind the science.

One point that it did not cover was the physics in the surfing of waves. It hits hard on "what makes a wave" but doesn't touch the "what is surfing" question. Reading this book will not make you a better surfer but, it will teach you how waves form and yield some insight into wave prediction.

If you want to see waves and surfing, buy a magazine. If you want to learn about the surf and waves, how they are formed, and what affects their size, form and period, buy this book. It takes complex concepts and explains them in simple, understandable terms with good graphic illustrations. If you want the mathematics behind the concepts, those are available too in the back of the book. I found the section on earth rotation and winds very good. It helped explain why the waves aren't any better where I surf.

Two words... "Surf Science".
And this is absolutely the best title for this book. A must have for all the surfers that are interested not only in surfing good waves, but for all of them that are interested in knowing how and why the waves break so well or so bad. Wind, wave perfection, cost line, sandbars, reefs, rocks, wave frequency, channels, hollowness, etc... every aspect that affects the wave is explored in this book with great depth.
Everything is very well explained in this book and in a language that is very accessible to all people.

I always lived in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and this is a very large "surf city". I have surfed recreationallly for about 20 years now, and I can say that this book should be read by anyone who likes surfing of any kind, or fishes by the ocean, or lives by the ocean, or just plain likes the ocean and live in a landlocked place.

Very easy reading, very good graphics, and very understandable for a very complicated issue. I'm buying almost all the book that the authors recommend.

Great book for those who want to understand the ocean more. There are some really science heavy concepts in the book that the authors explain well. It's a bit like condensing physics, oceanography, meteorology, and math (among other disciplines) into a short book. A big task. For those wanting to understand the ocean more, it's a great book. Great illustrations, and written much like a college level textbook.

One last thing. This book is about the science of waves, not a how-to book about surfing. If you want to surf better, go surf more. If you want to understand the science behind how waves form, then this is a great book.

If you live on the west coast of Australia, you won't need this book. (Although you'd learn why). Most other places this book is a MUST read for planning out and getting better sessions. I'm 40ish and just really starting to figure out where and when to score great waves. Don't waste your life missing the best waves of the year because you're unaware or uninformed.

Nice Book. Definitely a good read. Does not go deep into mathematics of the waves or coriolis forces, but yet is lucid to understand and get an idea of the soup of elements at work to produce surfable waves. I am an engineer and could appreciate more math had it been there but I do not regret its absence. There are plenty of reference mentioned at the end which can be followed up for more curiosity.

Must have for the scientifically inclined surfers.

This book is interesting for anyone thta likes water or has wondered about why waves do what they do.This is a must buy for any sea loving person

I had som scientific knowledge of weather systems and tides prior to reading the book so some of it was simply going over stuff I knew. The rest filled in some blanks and the penny dropped on a few points. I will certainly change a few things when I head out for a surf now and it will certainly aid in predicting surf. I think I will read again in another six months and will probably take on some more info.

What really disappointed me about the book is it's construction. The book has been poorly constructed. It was designed to fail. As soon as you open the book the cover separates from the spine and the segments of pages have begun to separate. I have only read it the once but I can see that by the end of the next read I will have a bundle of loose sheets.