On a small stretch of coastline as powerful as a man's will, Rick Kane came to surf the big waves. He found a woman who would show him how to survive, and a challenge unlike any other.
The Peak... The Dream... The Ultimate Test.


In this youthful surfing adventure, a hot young surfer wins a wave-tank contest in his native Arizona and decides to temporarily abandon his studies to hit the fantastic waves of the Hawaiian North shore pipeline. Once there, he is derided by the other surfers because nobody believes that a boy from the desert could possibly know anything about surfing real waves. Fortunately, an aging hippie (and supremo surfer), who designs boards for a living, believes in him and so teaches him the ropes. While learning about the sea and preparing for an international surfing competition, the boy also learns valuable lessons about life and love.


The movie plot is the narrative for the song "Hui" by the Christian swing/ska band The W's on their CD titled Fourth From the Last.
Part of the plot is parodied in Surf's Up.
During a concert in 2010, Tegan Quin of Tegan and Sara admitted that their song "Northshore" was entitled after this movie after Tegan had an experience similar to that of Rick Kane.
The movie is mentioned heavily in the Sarah Vowell book about Hawaiian history, Unfamiliar Fishes.

Release Date: August 14, 1987


Distrib: Universal


Boxoffice: : $3,832,228 2013: $7,889,900