Getting lost amongst the details of surfing’s colourful history is one of my favourite past times and there is no better place to scratch the retrospective itch than the Encyclopedia of Surfing website. The founder and chief curator of the EOS, Matt Warshaw, does a good job of explaining why his site has such an important place in the surfing universe.
“Nothing else does what EOS does, or at least not on the same scale: preserving, archiving, curating, and presenting our shared history; connecting present and past; creating a stage big enough for all the savants, freaks, outcasts, champions, and adventurers who have built their lives around surfing—and have in turn built surfing itself.”
Every sub-culture has its history, but few are as diverse or dynamic as surfing. The EOS delivers invaluable, factual information in entertaining style and is filled with intriguing insights into the people, productions and places that made us all fall in love with surfing. For a few bucks a month you can dive into it whenever you want, and also receive regular updates about newly added material.
The site needs the support of surf fans to remain sustainable. It will be a huge loss to surfing if all that history disappears from the public sphere.
Click on and take a tour. Think of your favourite surfing subjects and drop them in the search box. Chances are you’ll discover something you didn’t know, or read a perspective you haven’t considered. Then chip in to keep your surfing curiosity alive.