As an instructor from Corky Carroll’s Surf School gave 9-year-old Maya Madden a gentle push into the whitewash at Bolsa Chica State Beach, her mother snapped photos. It was Maya’s first surf lesson.

Let’s face it. Most surfers are hot. And they don’t get that way from being in a stuffy gym mid-summer. They’re out there riding waves, cutting through water, and enjoying every minute of being ...

There is something magical about that very first time you successfully get to your feet and ride a moving surfboard on an ocean wave - even if that “wave” is more of a ripple, less than two feet high.

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Allison Olmsted covers lifestyle for active women as The Gear Diva. With the first huge storm of the season paralyzing the East ...