quotations about surfing
Waves are not measured in feet and inches, they are measured in increments of fear.
BUZZY TRENT
Surfer, March 1965
If you don't understand the wave, you can't respect it. And if you don't have respect, it's only a matter of time before the ocean teaches you to get some.
LAIRD HAMILTON
Force of Nature: Mind, Body, Soul (And, of Course, Surfing)
you watch the boys go surfing
just shut your mind out for a while
you watch white brakers crash
on the palm-lined beach
an easy way of life
life by the ocean
now she turns on her charm
the way you like it
you make it all the time
and watch the sun go down
BEACH BOYS
"Eggstone"
I could not help concluding that this man felt the most supreme pleasure while he was driven on so fast and so smoothly by the sea; especially as, though the tents and ships were so near, he did not seem in the least to envy, or even to take any notice.
CAPTAIN JAMES COOK
first written documentation of Hawaii's surfers, The Voyages of Captain James Cook, Volume 2
Surfing is not easily defined. To be sure, it's a sport with requisite athletes and tournaments, prizes, and prestige. Equally, it embodies the mystic and poetic in the human spirit that fosters an atypical lifestyle with cultlike vigor.
ELLIOTT ALMOND
Surfing: Mastering Waves from Basic to Intermediate
In a moment I might be under the wave swallowing seawater and small jellyfish, but right now I am an ancient princess of Hawaii, I am a bikini model, I am a goddess before the crest of a monster billow.
WILMA JOHNSON
Surf Mama: One Woman's Search for Love, Happiness, and the Perfect Wave
As for my own surfing, let's just say that when the waves start pushing 10 feet, I get this tremendous urge to make a sandwich.
BRUCE JENKINS
North Shore Chronicles
Let's go surfin' now
Everybody's learning how
Come on and safari with me
BEACH BOYS
"Surfin' Safari"
Hey Honolulu, we're going to happy Hawaii
Alice has been there, she said it was fun
Swimming and surfing, enjoying the sun
ABBA
"Happy Hawaii"
Some surfers won't surf during dusk or dawn in places known to have an active shark population. Many prefer to have a buddy with them while surfing, as being the only bait out at a surf point is just a little too creepy.
BETHANY HAMILTON
Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family and Fighting to Get Back on the Board
From the muscles in your back to the happy chemicals in your head; eating better, sleeping better, feeling better. Life's just better when you add surfing to it.
BEN MARCUS
The Surfing Handbook: Mastering the Waves for Beginning and Amateur Surfers
Gone surfing, tell the world I'm out
Here in the sun, here in the sun
Back in the sea, all's good with me
THE WHITLAMS
"Gone Surfing"
Surfing is a way to be free.
LISA ANDERSEN
Surfer Magazine, June 30, 2017
If in doubt, paddle out.
NAT YOUNG
"The best surfing quotes of all time", Surfer Today
Lex surfed wicked, like the devil. He wasn't afraid of anything, seemed like. He grinned at West as the waves came up toward them like towers of green glass, an emerald city. We're off to see the wizard, he shouted. He whooped. His body crouched ready to fly. He shone against the sun.
FRANCESCA LIA BLOCK
Wasteland
Surfing on the bluest wave, I'm ready to go
Reaching for the shiny eye that swims below
Try to catch one, only the best one
I'm looking for the bluest wave
BLUE WAVE
"West Indian Girl"
The best surfer out there is the one having the most fun.
DUKE KAHANAMOKU
attributed, For Extreme-Sports Crazy Boys Only
For many of us, surfing is a passion, something our lives revolve around. We owe it to the ocean and to our groms, present and future, to give something back. Be aware and proactive in its protection.
NIKKI HORSMAN
"Celebration in film of women's surfing", Gisborne Herald, June 21, 2017
There's nothing quite like surfing by yourself in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, but unpredictable weather patterns, below deck accommodation, sea snakes, coral cuts and packs of reef sharks make it a trip for the committed seadog.
MARK THORNLEY
Surfing Australia
Surfing forces your insecurities--about your abilities and your body--out into the open where everyone can see them, but it also makes you come to terms with your imperfections. It's nearly impossible to care about cellulite or a wedgie when you're voluntarily putting yourself through what feels like the world's largest wash cycle.
VERENA VON PFETTEN
"I Survived A Terrible Surfing Accident--Here's What I Learned", Women's Health, June 19, 2017