The Surfboard is Dan Kieran's account of a week he spent in Cornwall building a seven-foot surfboard, even though he had never surfed a day in his life. He did this at a time when he felt he had reached his personal and professional limits: he needed to find a way to break through. Interspersed with the story of making the board - the intricate craft he had to learn, and the clarity of mind that came with that challenge - are the reflections on the obstacles, rewards and realisations he encountered while starting and running a successful business. This startlingly honest book is a finely crafted meditation on the importance of making things for their own sake and pushing beyond our preconceived limitations.

Filled with detailed instructions and time-saving tips, this informative DVD demonstrates the steps required to obtain a flat and square board ready for any number of uses. Before any project can begin to take shape, the raw lumber must be cut, squared, flattened, and made ready to join to any other piece. Many lumber yards offer to process rough stock for their customers, but this expensive service is completely unnecessary if a craftsman knows the trick of preparing his own lumber with simple hand tools. Filled with the patient instruction of an experienced woodworker, this DVD is everything a learner needs to master the thriftier method of squaring lumber with a hand plane.