The author, left, and his self-published book. Photos; Courtesy Tony Butt
“The whole point of this book is to try to make people aware that the ocean is really a wonderful, natural playground,” said Tony Butt, author of Waves (For Surfers and Ocean Lovers). “How it can enhance your daily experience and make you a happier person. Having some background knowledge about the waves can give you a richer experience of surfing, in and out of the water.”
In terms of ocean experience, it’s hard to find someone richer than Butt. The 63-year-old Englishman has spent the better part of the last four decades surfing big waves in his adopted home of the Spanish Basque Country, and further afield in Madeira and Cape Town.
In between paddling some of the meanest, coldest, and biggest waves on the planet, Tony has gained a degree in Ocean Science and a PhD in Physical Oceanography. He has worked with the Coastal Processes Research Group at Plymouth University and written books covering surf science, sustainability, and climate. His pioneering academic work has been accompanied by thought-provoking journalism and acknowledgement as a surf forecast guru. In four words, Butt knows his shit.
One of his primary goals in life has been to demystify ocean science. His new book does a better job than most at that. The format helps; it comes in 34 chapters, each one a bite-sized exploration of a different type of wave or surf spot. It doesn’t have to be read in any order, just pick your wave poison. From the basics of backwash and beachbreaks to the Kelvin-Helmholtz wave cloud or the Zygomorphic wave (a perfectly symmetrical wave you may have drawn on your school pencil case) every aspect of waves is explained in plain language and in ways that surfers will get.
“It’s for the surfer who wants to understand why that perfect barrel forms, but can also be read by anybody who spends a lot of time on the coast or in the ocean,” said Butt, “and anyone who’s ever stood at the shore and wondered, ‘Why does the ocean do that?’”
I liked the chapter on Faja waves, found in volcanic chains like the Azores and Madeira, where the cobblestone reef isn’t formed by rivers, but from rocks that have fallen from the top of the cliffs over thousands of years. The bigger the rocks, the bigger the waves they can handle. And the bigger the bastard it is to get over them into the lineup on the way out, and back onto land on the way in.
It was a faja set-up that William Finnegan describes in his Madeira section in Barbarian Days. “Even after timing it carefully, waiting for a lull, letting a shorebreak wave expend itself, then running recklessly with your board over wet boulders, you sometimes didn’t make it to water deep enough to paddle on before the next wave slammed you, banging you backward across the rocks — board, body, dignity all battered, sometimes severely.”
Butt has self-published the book, so it doesn’t come with any bells, whistles, color, or surfing images for that matter. Like the man himself, it is rather understated and focused on the science. Don’t expect double-page spreads of Kelly Slater. Simple, and easy-to-understand, black and white graphs and illustrations help explain the concepts.
At a local spot, surfers will know exactly where a set of six waves will break consistently in one spot and might be able to predict why the next set will break in another spot. Tony explains the science behind that instinctive, almost unconscious knowledge surfers gain through time in the water.
“Call me a romantic if you like, but surfing is all about connecting with nature, Butt said. “The book helps focus on this connection by giving a deeper understanding of the ocean’s dynamics.”
He reckons this can bring a real depth of enjoyment to any surfer, no matter what the conditions. Instead of focusing on that same dude always paddling on the inside, or how you butchered that last wave, you could find yourself absorbed in the waves themselves, and know why there are behaving the way they are. Well, assuming that you aren’t looking at a landslide Tsunami or infra gravity wave, that is.
“Waves aren’t random occurrences – there’s fascinating science behind their formation,” concludes Butt. “Understanding these patterns will transform your perspective on the waves you ride.”
