Caught Inside: A Surfer’s Year on the California Coast

“Caught Inside” is Daniel Duane’s account of a year spent surfing in Santa Cruz, California. Following the turn of the seasons, it is also the story of a young man’s deepening knowledge of his native landscape and its history. Interspersed with the narrative of days passed on the water are good-humored explanations of the physics of wave dynamics, the intricate art of surfboard design, and lyrical, sharp-eyed descriptions of the flora and fauna that inhabit the Pacific wilderness. In Duane’s company are cormorants, herons, gulls, sea lions, whales, and dolphins; with him we learn about the physiology of a pelican’s dive, the mating habits of otters, and the obscene contents of a shark’s stomach. In a wryly entertaining parallel narrative Duane traces the cultural history of the sport and the settling of California. From Captain Cook and Mark Twain to Robinson Jeffers and Jack London, from portraits of famous (and infamous) surfers to an analysis of the perverse significance of Gidget movies, Duane expertly uncovers the myths and symbols bound up in one of our most vibrant and recognizably American subjects.