Tom Curren and Kelly Slater are surfing’s most important figures in the last 20 years. Both surfers dominated their eras competitively: Tom in the 80s Kelly in the 90s. Both exhibited innate natural ability and wave knowledge and between the two of them, they amassed an unprecedented nine world titles. In so doing, Curren, then Slater, lifted American professional surfing to peak from the self-doubting doldrums imposed by the brassy Australian and South African dominance in the 1970s. As World Champion, Curren was a shy and elusive yet hugely influential figure who let his brilliant wave riding do his talking. In contrast, while Slater's surfing defined a new era, on land he transcended the surf scene to become a pop culture icon on magazine covers and the world's most-watched TV series, "Baywatch."This volume of the Surfer's Journal Biographies reviews both surfers' careers with intimate perspectives that help us understand who they really are as human beings as well as great wave riders.