Text Louise Southerden Photographers Various

Review © Alison Aprhys, 2008

Published by Allen & Unwin

RRP $32.95 (including GST

This fully-revised edition of Surf’s Up continues to inspire women to get off the sand and paddle out and have fun. This edition also includes new sections on yoga for surfers, stand-up paddleboarding, combining surfing and motherhood, and being a sustainable surfer. Thanks heavens we are no longer content to watch the boys rip it up when we can carve a few waves ourselves.  According to Surfing Australia around 200,000 female surfers regularly hit the coast and over 160,00 girls attended a surf school in the last 12 months – and

Surf’s Up is bound to help those numbers soar.
Southerden, a former editor of Surfgirl magazine covers all the basics of learning to surf. Along with essentials such as surf etiquette, she also tells of the history of women's surfing.  Layne Beachley provided a lovely forward comment where shes says she wishes she’d had a copy of this book before she first hit the waves at Manly!
Fun, inspiring and affordable, Surf’s Up is the perfect gift to get your non-surfing galpals motivated to join up in the line-up.

Reviewer disclaimer – Alison Aprhys appears in this book.

 

 

SURF GIRL ROXY

Text Natalie Linden Photographers Various

Review © Alison Aprhys, 2008

Published by Chronicle

RRP $49.95 (including GST)

 

Surf onshore junk? Your best board dinged? Feeling blue? Boyfriend / kids / boss / the economy / overpaid greedy corporate fat cats driving you nuts?

Chill out surf sista, this beautiful coffee table book is a ray of sunshine, guranteed to give you a boost!

OK, it’s all about the various Roxy surf teams and sponsored surfers, so Roxy gear and product placement abounds – but its also chock-full of beautifully saturated colour shots, SURF GIRL ROXY is a wonderful reminder of how good the ocean is for our well-being. Sure, the gals photographed are all young and gorgeous, but it’s an inspirational read for surfy chicks of all ages.

A great gift for your surfing galpals - or yourself - any time!

 

Kelly Slater – For the Love

By Kelly Slater with Phil Jarrett

Review © Alison Aprhys, 2008

Published by Chronicle

RRP $49.95 (including GST)

 

This coffee table tome could well be sub-titled ‘everything you ever wanted to know about Kelly Slater but were afraid to ask’.

The man who has won more world titles than any other surfer.

(Eight at the last count and its looking good for an amazing 9…)

A surfer who polarises his fellow competitors – they either love him or hate him, but, by ghad, they all respect his surfing.

Co-written with veteran surf journalist Phil Jarrat, KSFTL is an insight into what makes thr man so many regard as a surfing machine tick.

A veritable ‘who’s who’ of surfing give their take on who Slater really is - along with Slater’s friends such as musician Eddie Vedder and the inevitable Pamela Anderson, also add an interesting wist to the mix.

The media flyer accompanying this book says ‘get inside the ehad of the best surfer on the planet’, but I’m not sure this is correct. Sure, you’ll know a lot more about him after you read it than before you started, but the answer to the question – what makes Slater surf the best? - will for me will perhaps never be answered.

But perhaps it’s not meant to be.

It’s enough just to watch him surf.

An interesting and enjoyable read.

 

Always wanted to read a book to your kids that would introduce them to the world of surfing? Well this is it. Not only is my 4 year old learning the letters of the alphabet he is learning the 'drop in' rule and what an ariel is! Its such a pleasure to sit down on the couch, cuddle up to my son and share my passion with him in a kid friendly way. Its a must for all surfing mums and dads!

The book is available at good book stores or through the web site at www.alphabetsurf.com.

Reviewer: Vanessa Thompson

 

 

Layne Beachley: Beneath The Waves – Michael Gordon with Layne Beachley

Reviewer – Alison Aprhys 2008

Verdict – BTW should be compulsive reading for any female considering a career in competitive surfing.

No matter what kind of board you ride, it’s impossible not to be a woman surfer and not acknowledge and appreciate the difference that Layne has made for girls of all ages.

What comes through in BTW is that apart from seven world titles, Layne is really not that different from the rest of us. Like many women we know, Layne’s faced her inner demons where she never thought she was fit, pretty or slim enough. She’s fought and won against depression and chronic fatigue syndrome. You’d think now that she has won seven world titles to her credit, a jewelry and clothing line, set up the Layne Beachley Aim for the Stars Foundation (created to inspire girls and women across Australia to dream and achieve), has regained contact with her birth mother, enjoys a warm and loving family, lives with a rock musician and is still competing at the elite level, often against young women who weren’t even born when she started out, that this would be enough. But it’s not.

BTW tells how Layne was conceived from a rape, was adopted by a family mad about the beach and her grit and guts that saw her develop from a sports-mad tomboy to one of the most recognised, driven and dedicated world champions. Layne was often swamped by lack of confidence, money to get to contests and the fact that surfing then treated women far worse than it does now. She faced up to all the challenges and pitfalls and kept of fighting. Not only is there that peak level of fitness to maintain, there’s the head-games from other competitors, demands from sponsors and the constant, fractious body-image pressures, stresses trying to juggle family, friends and some kind of ‘normal’ life. This revealing story gives a perceptive insight into the woman whose single-minded approach has been admired and emulated, even while it’s also caused her grief on a personal and competitive level.

Wisely, Layne has taken a ‘warts-and-all-approach’ to her biography and avoided the temptation to whitewash any perceived criticism of her ability, actions or decisions. Instead, Layne admits to family, social and competitive instances that often show her impatience or a lack of empathy. But for all her admitted and supposed faults, she always been a good sport. We may love winners, but we hate poor losers, and while she may beat up on herself, Layne shows her graciousness when coming second-best. A recent newspaper report showed Layne surfing in Mexico with current number one Stephanie Gilmore, sharing surfing techniques and tips as part of their preparation for this week’s Rip Curl Pro in France.  Not many champions would be prepared to train alongside the person they most want to beat!

Multi-award winning journalist Michael Gordon has done a sound job with BTW. He tells a terrific story of a surfer and a champion. But most of all, it’s about a woman whom at the end of the day, you’d like to have as a friend out the back, laughing in between catching good waves.

 

Random House $34.95

 

http://www.aimforthestars.com.au/

 

Surfing- Women of the waves

Author – Linda Chase

Photographer - Linda Pepin

Publisher – Gibbs Smith

Reviewer – Alison Aprhys 2008

RRP $39.95

 

“In the chilly pre-dawn, women the world over struggle awake and make a whispered calls, an urgent single-minded question: is it good today? And the whispered answer comes, joyously, eagerly: today it is good”.

How can you not love a book that opens with these lines?

Buy two copies, one for you and one for you best surfing galpal!

Surfing – Women of the Waves is a must read for women of all ages skill levels and board preferences, be you a longboarders, shortboarders, body-boarder, knee-boarder, stand up paddle surfer, natural, goofy, young girl, teenager, surfer mum, whatever. We all know that as the counterculture sport of the 1960s, surfing was not just a sport but a lifestyle, supposedly one long sun-drenched beach party with endless waves and music, as well as an unapologetically blokely-macho culture. Well the waves being the guy’s-only domain has been busted apart like a wave at Bells as  generations of gutsy female surfers have carved their rail on the sport. Women of the Waves highlights some of these extraordinary women of surfing, from Linda Benson and Joyce Hoffman in the 1950s and 1960s to seven (so far) times world champion Layne Beachley, Sofia Mulanovich, Bethany Hamilton, and the great Lisa Andersen, four-time women's world champion whose Surfer magazine coverline ‘She surfs better than you’ caused a wave of controversy. There’s heaps of practical as well as general surfing wisdom and information here. Other inspirational surfers featured  are mix of pro and soul: Jessi Miley Dyer, Melanie Redman-Carr, Megan Abubo, Emilia Perry and Alana Mock Monyca Byrne-Wickey, Kristen Steiner, Melanie Bartles, Kim Hamrock, Jennie Useldinger, Ashley Lloyd, Jamilah Star, Savannah Shaughnessy, Katherine Carter. Author Linda Chase and photographer Elizabeth Pepin have produced a fabulous book that should be on the bookshelf of every wahine. In fact, forget the bookcase – this should be on the couch, ready for you to delve into when the surf is not up. Highly recommended.

 

Sister Surfer – A woman’s guider to surfing with bliss and courage

Authors – Mary Osbourne & Kia Afcani

Lyons Press / Globe Pequot

RRP $31.95

Review © Alison Aprhys, 2008

Amidst a sea of blokey surf books, SISTER SURFER is a much needed breath of fresh air. Co-written by longboarding champ Mary Osborne and avid surfer Kia Afacani, this inspiring books is a must for every wahine – no mater her time in life and surfing ability. Along the usual suspects of choosing a board, wave catching and tips and techniques, SISTER SURFER includes interviews with surfers of all ages, shapes and abilities and shows how you can find fun, confidence and inspiration out on a wave. It’s not only written in a warm and accessible style, the photos show real women having a great time ripping, and it’s great to see a wide range of body types and ages represented, rather than the usual models. SISTER SURFER is the perfect gift for you to reward yourself for getting through the winter surf or your surfing galpal. And it’s sure to be a popular read with your local surfing mums posse! Recommended.

 

 

Surf Culture – The Art History of Surfing

By Colburn, Finney, Stallings, Stecyk, Stillman & Wolfe

Review © Alison Aprhys, 2008

Published by the Laguna Art Museum in association with Ginko Press

RRP $65.95 (including GST)

 

OK surf sistas, this is just the thing to read when it’s pouring, there’s no swell and you’re going ape with surf withdrawal.

Surf Culture takes a fresh look at the themes that unite art, surfing and popular surfing culture, from 1900 to the present day. Stecyk, a long-time contributor to The Surfer's Journal and writer and co-producer of the excellent skate documentary  Dogtown and Z Boys pulls the book together and in a fascinating manner and showcases the artifacts and icons of surfing culture in a way that will interest the grommet and hard core surfer alike. Containing hundreds of color images and six significant essays, Surf Culture offers some interesting insights to the relationship between myth-making, mass marketing (and how it high-jacked surfing from an outside to a mainstream culture), kitsch and social commentary. One of the strengths of the book is that the artists who contributed material also identify themselves as surfers and the surfers who contributed ideas and examples identify themselves as artists. There’s a curious and satisfying symmetry from this book which takes its focus from a major exhibition at the Laguna Museum in California. Illustrations range from life covers to automobile adverts, Art Brewer photographs of Takuji Masuda at Yokohoma Bay to Gidget stills and every kind of medium – painting, multi-media installations, cinema, magazine writing and music – relating to and about surfing is represented. Don’t balk at the price! With legropes at $35+, new paperbacks around the $29.95 mark and some mega-surf-company t-shirts prices at $70 +, Surf Culture is terrific value. It’s not a book that you flick through when you are in a hurry because you’ll fall in and get caught up in the information, illustrations and writing – all are of a high quality and it stands repeat readings.

 

Alison Aprhys
Freelance Journalist & Photographer
Surfing, Lifestyle, Racing, Business & Book Reviews

www.shewrites.com.au

 

 

Best of Surfer Magazine – Reviewed by Alison Aprhys

Edited by Chris Mauro and Steve Hawk
Foreword by Dave Parmenter

Distributed by Hardie Grant

RRP A$39.95

 

There’s an old saying that ‘the worst day in the surf, is better than the best day at the office’. But for the days when there’s no surfable waves anywhere along your coast, then The Best of Surfer Magazine is a darn good second banana.

The publisher’s blurb says that ‘Since 1960, Surfer magazine has been chronicling a pastime that confounds description’. A cheeky comment, because for a pastime that defies explanation, Surfer magazine is still writing about it over 40 years later, and this little tome contains much of the cream. Inside you’ll find 25 articles selected by Mauro and Hwks, two past editors and hat they feel best reflects an eclectic array of surf journalism. They include articles and raves by well known surf writers including John Witzig, Wayne ‘Rabbit’ Bartholmew, Gerry ‘Mr Pipeline’ Lopez, Drew Kampion and Matt Warshaw. The writing ranges from way out 60s editorials to tall travel tales of surfaris in wild places, as well as great fiction and humor. Each of the 25 articles is introduced by the editors and accompanied by a small colour cover of the Surfer issue in which the article first appeared. Editors Chris Mauro was a professional surfer before becoming editor of Surfer; Steve Hawk is a former editor of Surfer and the author of Waves and Dave Parmenter's work has appeared in Surfer, Surfing, and Surfer's Journal. Reading this is the next best thing to surfing and it’s a good gift for any surf sista, no matter the size of type of board they prefer.

 

 Review – Surfing Greatest Misadventures © Alison Aprhys 2008

 

Title - Surfing Greatest Misadventures: Dropping in on the unexpected

Editor – Paul Diamond

Publisher – Casagrande Press

RRP A$28.50

Reviewer – Alison Aprhys

 

Living vicariously is something all surfers know how to do. From watching a fellow surfer perform a beautiful hang ten, fantasize about making that wicked drop turn that Layne Beachley, Chelsea Georgeson, Stephanie Gimore or Claire Finucane make look so darn easy, or during a frustrating flat spell, reading about the turquoise waves of Indo, we all love to imagine ourselves surfing magic waves in perfect conditions.

Then there is the dark side; the guilty pleasure of reading about some other poor bugger suffering. And there’s also the fact that often we’d rather run a mile from than admit we wouldn’t have the guts take off on that wave or risk surfing a break that could result ending up in welter of blood, board and bodies. This is where Surfing’s Greatest Misadventures come in. Just looking at the cover of some hapless surfer about to get wiped and scraped along some reef with no doubt, a biff o nthe head from his board, makes me wince in sympathy. We’ve all been there. But hopefully, the only experience we will have from some of the other horrors you are about to encounter here, will all be second-hand.

Diamond has compiled some compelling and he swears, true tales that range across terrifying wipeouts, shark attacks, big waves, bad decisions, crazy surf companions and tsunamis. These 30 tales include contributions from Buzzy Kerbox (who has to have the best moniker) who relates how he and Laird Hamilton planned a paddling trip that went haywire from the start, leaving them stranded in Europe; leviathan surf writer Matt George has no less than four entries, all wonderful; Joe Doggett’s story ‘Baptism with Bradshaw’ about surfing with the mighty Ken made me glad that as a women surfer, I can look at the surf and say, ‘no thanks, too big for me’, rather than have to prove my cojones, and of course the inevitable shark stories that send a pleasurable shiver down your spine and put you off surfing alone for at least, oh, two or three days.

These ripping yarns slide from the slightly scary to truly terrifying, humorous to flat-out weird. The writers range from surf journalists, filmmakers, magazine editors, watermen, and everyday surfers and they often illustrate about how we sometimes take that ‘iron eagle’ or ‘I’m invincible’ approach just a little too far. But then, when you have a life committed to surf, what’s a few broken bones, a shark scar or a fabulous tale about the wipeout from hell, other than a badge of honour?
With stories about the big names such as Greg Noll, Tubesteak, Miki Dora, Brad Gerlach as well as many unknown surfers, this is a great book to buy now and enjoy while winter rain and freezing closeouts force us to stay out of the water and off the beach.

Don’t torture yourself with surfing DVDs showing sunshine and immaculate surf, instead, revel in your inner sadist and feel relived that it’s not you in the maelstrom. So throw another log on the fire, pour a large glass of wine, put the kids to bed, the answering machine on and prepare to indulge. Highly recommended.

 

 

Why Lawyers Should Surf

Authors – Tim Kevan & Dr Michelle Tempest

Publisher – XPL

RRP A$25.00

Reviewer – Alison Aprhys 2008

 

Here’s a great book for the surfing mums who take their day job a bit too seriously! Written by a barrister and a psychiatrist and with an introduction by a champion boxer, Why Lawyers Should Surf (WLSS) appears to be the love child of a self-help, motivational guide for success in work and life and a marketing exercise to encourage waveriding.  

Crime writer PD James once said, “Lawyers are intelligent people whose profession is argument”, and authors Kevan and Tempest seem to agree. They quote a John Hopkins University study, which found that lawyers in the US suffered four times the average depression rate. Deciding that the cynicism that lawyers use so successfully in their professional lives was too often pouring into their private time, causing unnecessary stress, unhappiness and depression, Kevan and Tempest use the metaphor of surfing and the ocean throughout this book to discuss methods in which they can better communicate and improve their lives through employing the glass ‘half-full’ approach. This is often referred to by surfers as, ‘there’ll be another wave in a minute mate’.

Recently Australian chapters of Surfing Lawyers, an organisation founded in the US in 2002 which bills itself as ‘a non-profit organization of attorneys who promote and preserve the lifestyle, causes and concerns of surfers around the world’, so there’s probably a market in Australia for the book. But if groups like this can change life for the legal profession as we know it, or whether WLSS will cause a flood of solicitors and barrister forgoing golf and buying up longboards is debatable.

However, they take lessons before paddling out, don’t get agro or drop in, and if it leads to a few more relaxed people in the line-up, well, then that’s got to be a good result for all boardriders.

 

 

Surfing Photographs From the 1960s and 70s by John Witzig

$34.95

Reviewed by Alison Aprhys

 

A perfect affordable book for a friend or yourself is John Witzig’s gorgeous ‘Surfing Photographs From the 1960s and 70s’. Like a TARDIS, this small book proves that size is deceptive; it’s chock full of glorious images that capture the spirit, beauty and innocence of Australian surfing during a more innocent time. The black and white and colour images illustrate a time when surfing was still a subculture and before it was hijacked by rapacious marketing campaigns. Witzig who co-founded Tracks also published the book, so the quality of photographs is excellent. This instant collector’s and at $34.95 it’s an excellent value.

Available at all good bookshops or via

http://www.johnwitzig.com.au

Review – Switch-foot ©Alison Aprhys 2008

 

Title – Switch-foot: Surfing, Art, Music

Editor – Andrew Crockett

RRP $50

Available at all good bookshops

 

OK surf sistas, this book comes with a warning – do not loan it, no matter how good your surfing gal pals are at returning your favourite surfboard, CD or surfing DVD, you’ll never see Switch-foot again if you let it out of your sight. With a who’s who of contributors that include Alby Falzon, George Greenough, David Rastovich, Jack Eden, Peter Crawford, Nigel Arnison, Laurie Mcguiness, Dan Merkel, Harry Daily, Andrew Kidman, Neal Purchase, Nat Young, Beau Young, Bob Mctavish, Dick Van Straalen, Tom Wegener, Peter Drouyn, Chris Brock, Jim Banks, Rabbit Bartholomew, Terepai Richmond, Gary Birdsall, Steve Cooney, Anthony Colas, Dick Hoole and John Pennings, Crocket has pulled together a very special book that will be treasured for years to come.

Switch-foot turns its view away from the crassly commercial side of wave riding, instead focusing on the non-competitive side of surfing. It’s a beautiful 210 page treat, a real keeper and an instant collector item. Inside you’ll be mesmerized by some of the instantly recognizable and immortal surfing images from the golden era in surfing from photographers such as Albe Falzon, George Greenough and Jack Eden.

The opening story is the wonderfully reflective and respectful ‘the tribal elders’ – Bob McTavish, George Greenough, Peter Drouyen, Nat Young, Peter Townend, Chris Brock, Mark Richards, Jim Banks, Wayne ‘Rabbit’ Bartholomew, Dick Van Straalen and Midget Farrelly – acknowledging the remarkable contribution of these surfing legends. “This book is one man’s vision and you can feel that when you hold it in your hands, a publication that hasn’t been changed due to editorial correctness or time constraints”, says Crockett who worked for over two years coordinating the efforts of over 50 contributors whose experience spans three generations of surfers. “Switch-foot also encourages young surfers/artists who are interested in more than competitive surfing”, adds Crocket.

Stacked with dozens of marvelous images, many brought together for the first time, Switch-foot is impossible to put down.

 

 

Surfing The Manual: Advanced

Auhtor – Jim Kemption

Publisher- Wavefinder

RRP $49.95

Reviewer – Alison Aprhys

 

For anyone wanting to imporve their bottom turn, cutback or mater the simnple art of duck-diving, STMA is a one-stop shop. An excellent skills and coaching manual, it clearly communicates knowledge in an insightful manner. Compiled by the former editor of Surfer magazine Jim Kempton, this is a great instructional guide for intermediate and advanced surfers looking to improve their skills in the water.

Kelly Slater, Andy Irons, Taj Burrow, Joel Parkinson, Shane Dorian, Mick Fanning, Dave Rastovich, Tom Curren, Shaun Tomson, Brad Gerlach, Mike Parsons are a few of the surfers who share wisdom and advice on how to nail a manourve or overocme an obstacle to improving your surfing.  
The bulk of the text is given over to specific techniques and manoeuvres, with supporting chapters covering topics as diverse as oceanography; diet and fitness; survival in extreme conditions; and turning professional.

It contains over 600 images drawn from the archives of respected surf photographers Jeff (Surfing and the Meaning of Life) Divine and Tom Servais, STMA’s excellent step-by-step photographic sequences are matched with intuitive training captions, covering every manoeuvre in detail.

Curiously, it lacks any contributions from female surfers. Surely, surfing has progressed enough to concur that women may surf differently, but still brilliantly – and that we make up a huge percentage of the market for surfing lessons, surf fashions and accessories. It is a real shame, because it would have been great to include advice from veterans such as Layne Beachley, Gail Couper, Phyllis O’Donnell (the 1964 women’s world title holder who at 71 still swims 6-8 km a day), and Lisa Anderson, as well as dynamos Stephanie Gilmore and Sally Fitzgibbons.

 

 

 

Surfing and the Meaning of Life

Photos, Jeff Divine and edited by Ben Marcus

VBoyager Press

RRP $ 21.95

Reviewer – Alison Aprhys

 

A good antidote to give that person who is always asking ‘what makes you surf?’. SATMOL is a nice little hardcover, chock-full of colour photos, quotes and maxims about surfing. Although there’s not many images of women in the water (apart from that classic ancient Hawaiian illustration and a few Gidget-like poses), this book explains the meaning of life as only surfers can understand it, quoting the wit and wisdom of living for the waves. My favourite is Martin Potter’s “if you can’t have a spectacular ride, have a spectacular wipeout”.