Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1898 in Books
• Published on: 2006-06-05
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

Review
`mixture of two things - good travel writing and a successful attempt to explain the fascination surfing exerts on its disciples.'
--Cowbridge Gem, 22nd October 2009

Simon Tucker, four times British Surfing Champion
captures the real thrill of surf travel

Kate Dendle, surfer, GB Women's Team
Both adventurous and exciting... makes you dream about going on the ultimate surf safari

Customer Reviews

Awesome read - whether you surf or not !!!
Riding the Magic Carpet tells Tom's story of growing up as a Welsh surfer with a dream to go and be talented enough to surf at Jeffrey's Bay in South Africa. First he travels to various other surfing destinations at each step growing as a surfer and as a man. The writing is fluent, honest, humorous and surprisingly intelligent, offering fascinating glimpses into both the surfing potential and condition of the countries he visits. From the first page the author pulls you into his journey making Riding the Magic Carpet a very hard book to put down. Not only a book for surfers by any means. This is a tale of obsession (you can see where the Fever Pitch link comes from), and living life beyond the constraints of the conventional 9-5 lifestyle.

Top surf writing.
I had the slightly surreal experience of reading this deep in an African jungle while on a surf trip with 'Ed', one of the characters in the book. Very peculiar sensation to read a book describing, accurately, the chap sitting next to you.

Surf travel is one of the few ways left where you can be a genuine explorer in this connected world, looking for places and waves never ridden, and Tom has captured the feel of always wondering if there is an undiscovered Kirra just around the next point, and the reality of hardcore surf travel - the hours of slogging away in a menial job just to get money for your next fix, poring over nautical maps and bathymetric charts trying to work out where might be the next undiscovered world-class wave.

There are very few genuine surf books out there by real surfers - most are by people imagining what it might be like and getting it just wrong enough to jar. This is spot on, very readable, and very enjoyable, and maybe answers the question surf travellers are always asked..'Why on earth do you want to go THERE?'

Buy it!

A book for the surfer and nonsurfer alike.
A very well written book full of fantastic charecters. Despite being a book about surf travel there is plenty for the nonsurfer for it is as much about the adventure of travel as it is the surf.
An enjoyable and inspirational read, lock up your credit card befor reading or you'll find your self on the next flight out of here.