Carl,

Welcome to an awesome sport. There are many good books on kayaking you could
get, but better yet, find the local club and get involved. Not only will you
learn faster, but you will also enjoy it more. If you really want to get the
information from a website, the one that I recommend is Mariner kayaks.

Consider getting professional lessons. It is not necessary if you have a club
that can teach you, but your learning curve will be steeper.

I strongly suggest you not try surfing your decked kayak until you are
competant in your other kayaking skills. I have seen people rip the coaming
out of the kayak on a surf landing. That's not to say you should never do it,
just you need to learn more about boat control, exiting, and rolling first.

Trust me, you have plenty of other things to learn now if you want to be a good
paddler.

Brian Blankinship