Product Description

In little more than thirty years, since the first crude prototypes in the 1970s, snowboarding has exploded into the winter sports scene. Since then, snowboarding has come into its own, with a pantheon of icons and distinctive music, clothing, and art. The Way of the Snowboarder, the newest edition to Abrams' "The Way of' series, which includes The Way of the Surfer and MX - The Way of the Motocrosser, looks at the history of snowboarding by profiling the people who have been instrumental in shaping this sport that has come of age in so little time. Beginning with the early innovators, such as world-renown Jake Burton and Tom Sims, this history acknowledges the big-mountain influences of Tom Burt and Craig Kelly, the first female riders such as Tina Basich and Tara Dakides, the dynamic new generation of freestylers such as Terje Haakonsen and phenom Shawn White, as well as the visual documentarian Mike Hatchett, whose inspired celluloid vision has fueled snowboarding's evolution and popularity. With contributions from the best photographers in the industry, The Way of the Snowboarder is the most comprehensive view of this vibrant cultural and athletic phenomenon.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #62318 in Books
• Published on: 2005-10-14
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 192 pages

About the Author
Rob Reed is a freelance writer living in Santa Monica, California. Formerly an editor at Powder and Bike magazines, he is a frequent contributor to Outside, Men's Journal, Ski Press, National Geographic Adventure, Stuff, Cargo, SKI, and Future Snowboarding, among others.

Customer Reviews

Perfect presentation of the sport's history!
I was impressed reading this book, mainly because there are so many bad and skin-deep books on snowboard out there, that I could not expect much in advance... Having seen more than 30 movies that have to do with snowboard and read much more magazines, a skin-deep presentation of my favorite sport would have been extremely boring for me.

But the author has done some excellent profiles on the right persons, from the inventors of the sport (Jake Burton, Tom Sims and even before), to not so famous contributors (like the director of Standard Films' TB series), and from influential riders such as Craig Kelly, Shaun Palmer, etc all the way to today and Shawn White. Very nice pictures, some of them are very rare, and very good overall layout .

I would suggest this book to any snowboard fan. Personally, I have just found a sureshot present for many of my friends!

Excellent book...
Beautifully illustrated and informative book. But it should be made clear, than although it looks very much like a standard coffee table book, there's a lot more text and there's a lot about the history of snowboarding in the book, and the photographs reflect that focus. Anyone looking just for lush photography of fresh powder, big mountains, and big air tricks may be a little disappointed (but only a little).

Overall a great book for anyone with more that just an immediate or superficial interest in snowboarding...i.e. anyone who wants to know more than just tips and trick for current use, or to see more than just beautful inspiring photography from recent times (though those are both great too!)