Book description
Surfing in Ireland was once considered little more than a fringe and
slightly lunatic pursuit. The treacherous coastline and ice waters of
the Atlantic did not sit comfortably with the stereotype of surfing as
the favoured pastime of the bronzed and privileged. But with the
discovery in the past few years of the gargantuan Aileen's wave at the
Cliffs of Moher and other heavy waves, the Irish coast has become one
of the worst kept secrets in world surfing.
In Cliffs of Insanity, the Irish Times sportswriter Keith
Duggan tells the story of a dedicated group of surfers in County Clare
whose lives revolve around the pursuit of Ireland's wildest waves. The
book traces the evolution of Fergal Smith, the young Mayo man whose
intuition for big waves has earned him a serious reputation and
explores the world of Mickey Smith, the roving Cornish man who
discovered Aileen's and whose breathtaking surf photography has caught
the Irish landscape in an entirely new and original light.
Bitter cold days, broken bones, busted boards, scars, near drownings
and countless hours in the freezing water trying to read the ocean is
the price they pay for those few transcendent seconds when they master
a wave.
Cliffs of Insanity is about the importance of pursuing what
matters in life but it is also about community and friendship, and the
passionate pursuit of a way of life that flies in the face of
everything championed in Ireland over the last decade.
Keith Duggan is an award-winning senior sportswriter with the
Irish Times
. His previous books which enjoyed great critical acclaim include
The
Lifelong Season: At The Heart Of Gaelic Games
(Town House 2004) and
House Of Pain: Through The Rooms Of Mayo Football
(Mainstream 2007) which was shortlisted for the William Hill Irish
Sports Book Of The Year 2008.
