The Author
Steve Hawk began his writing career as a newspaper reporter. He would go on to spent eight years as editor of Surfer, six years as executive editor of Sierra (the magazine of the Sierra Club), and five years as editor of Stanford Business.
He also worked as a writer and consultant on the fictional HBO series John From Cincinnati. He is the author of Waves, a coffee-table book about the aesthetics and physics of ocean waves, and recently ghost-wrote a book (due out in the summer of 2027) for his brother, Tony, that celebrates the history and culture of skateboarding.
He has been surfing for nearly 60 years, and is one of a one of a handful of people to have ridden waves on all seven continents. He lives with his family near Half Moon Bay, California, where he spends as much time as possible frolicking in the ocean.
Other Work
SURF ARTICLES:
Just One More A decade ago, Mike McCune refitted an old fishing trawler and began running Alaska’s first long-distance surf charters. The man resurrected a boat, and the boat resurrected a surfer. [Surfer’s Journal]
Duke’s Ulcers How surfing’s central icon and Hawaii’s most famous son stomached a lifetime of token jobs, promotional exploitation, and racist overlords. [Surfer’s Journal via Surfline.com]
Maverick’s: Something Massive This Way Comes [Alta Journal]
STANFORD BUSINESS MAGAZINE:
Transforming Homes and Saving Lives How a singular focus on one basic thing—floors—could help billions of people in Africa and beyond.
With Grace In his quest to cure his daughter’s ultra-rare disease, Matt Wilsey might also be changing the way drugs are made.
SIERRA MAGAZINE:
The Cost of Coal The world’s dirtiest energy source damages lives at every step: when it’s mined, when it’s burned, and when it’s dumped.
Fury Road Is there an environmental message at the core of George Miller’s new high-octane “Mad Max” film?
My Environmental Vice I surf.
View from the Vortex Why photographer Clark Little risks his neck to share a vision of the natural world that few ever see for themselves.
Wilderness Diplomacy Can photos of America’s natural wonders inspire a cultural cease-fire?
Photo by Art Brewer
Photo by Sara Luckey
Photo by Thomas Campbell