Easily one of the best books read in 2025, The Oom: The Biography of John Whitmore, researched and written by Miles Masterson, unfurls the legacy (and the life) of one of South Africa’s keystone figures in shaping surf history across the continent and even across the globe.
A must-read for any surf history buff, Masterson carefully recreates the lifelong passion John Whitmore embodied for surfing and other watersports, weaving into the narrative a look at the landscapes, personalities and politics across the South African divide. Fascinating in its historical backdrop set against the rise of John Whitmore’s surfboard shaping evolution, his collaborations with Grubby Clark of Clark Foam, Hobie Alter of Hobie Cat fame and other seminal figures including Bruce Brown (The Endless Summer), Dick Metz (whose chance meeting with Whitmore on the beach one day set in motion a series of events that changed the trajectory of surfing forever) and includes a look into South African professional surfing paragons like Anthony aka ‘Doc’ van den Heuvel and Donald Paarman.
The writer, Miles Masterson, says it took him ten years to write this book. Once the reader dives into the development of Whitmore’s surfboard shaping business (and later, Hobie Cats and Morey Boogie Boards), gets mesmerized by the meticulous descriptions and homage paid to South Africa’s variety of surfscapes and becomes caught up in the relationships, adversities and triumphs of Whitmore’s - the Oom- deep involvement with Africa’s nascent surf scene, it is easy to believe that this biography is a labor of great respect and love that took time to create.
Whitmore himself is painted as a great, yet flawed, character through it all. His vision and vigor for the rise of professional surfing, Hobie Cat racing and bodyboard championships launched South Africa on the worldwide competitive watersports scene even while the rest of the world resisted due to the stories and constraints of apartheid. John Whitmore fought his way through at every turn, believing in the vision of South African athletes competing on the global stage. Bitter disappointments juxtaposed with telling triumphs, great storytelling paired with dynamic character development, humor and despair all exist within the pages of The Oom: The Biography of John Whitmore.
If you love diving into a great surf story combined with a rich history lesson and carefully deconstructed details around several of the world’s most iconic surf breaks, their discovery and history plus a perspective on the lions who rode those first waves, then this book is for you.
Honestly, The Oom hits similar to Barbarian Days (high praise from this editor). It is a book that will stay on the shelf to be pulled out and revisited, quoted and recaptured from time to time. Thank you Miles Masterson for keeping the stoke alive.
Book Specs:
- Cover: Softcover with gatefold
- Publication Date: July 2025
- Pages: 332+ pages
A percentage of net proceeds go to South African environmental NPO Protect the West Coast.
International Orders: For orders outside of South Africa, please contact the author directly for shipping options and costs.
