North Shore Chronicles: Big-Wave Surfing in Hawaii

by Bruce Jenkins

In this memorable account of 17 trips he made to Hawaii's North Shore starting in 1974, Bruce Jenkins, considered the Kerouac of surf writers, profiles the area's elite, the superstars who live to conquer Hawaii's deadliest waves. Here are the egoists, stylists, gladiators, and purists of the sport, from big-wave greats Darrick Doerner and Mark Foo to bodysurfer Mark Cunningham and bodyboarder Mike Stewart. Features 77 color photos.

Genres: Sports

230 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Bruce Jenkins, a San Francisco Chronicle columnist twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize, is the author of "Goodbye: In Search of Gordon Jenkins," "Shop Around: Growing Up With Motown in a Sinatra Household," "North Shore Chronicles: Big-Wave Surfing in Hawaii," and " A Good Man: The Pete Newell Story."

A 1966 graduate of Santa Monica High School, he earned a B.A. in journalistic studies at UC Berkeley in 1971 and has written for the San Francisco Chronicle since 1973, writing a regular sports column since 1989. He has covered 27 World Series and 19 Wimbledons, and been named one of the top 10 sports columnists in the nation by the Associated Press Sports Editors.

Reviews

[Jessica Carr · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm most familiar with Jenkins for his brilliant coverage of Mavericks for SFGate.com, but he's also covered the North Shore for decades. He's equally adept at interviewing surfers and getting them to reveal their most personal demons as he is describing the thrilling action in the water. Jenkins descriptions of surfing are so viscerally exciting and terrifying that he's spoiled me to reading other authors writing about surfing.

[Keone Betanzos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have you ever ridden a roller coaster? The feeling you get in your stomach as you are about take that first drop of the ride, that is almost equivalent as the feeling you get when you drop in on a huge wave if not more. In the book North Shore Chronicles Big- Wave Surfing in Hawaii by Bruce Jenkins you get to visualize the experiences of these big waves that these surfers encounter in Hawaii.
This book does not only talk about it but shows pictures of the waves these professional big wave riders chase. It includes big wave surfers such as Darrick Doerner, Mark Foo, body surfer Mark Cunningham, and bodyboader Mike Steweart. Bruce Jenkins profiles these professionals as they take on some of the biggest waves in Hawaii. I have been to Hawaii before and have seen some pretty big waves. From this book these surfers go after the spots that only hold and get the bigger swells. It is pretty cool getting to read about it and see how they do it.
I think that people should read this book because even if they might not be into surfing they can still see and read about the experience of chasing these monster waves. In the end I am able to say that this is a solid book overall and held my interest and will without a doubt captivate anyone else interested in reading about surfing monster waves.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

good stories, sometimes wordy and convoluted