Sea surface elevations, or pressures, and velocities were measured at closely spaced (wavelength or less) locations in a line extending from 10-m depth to inside the surf zone at Torrey Pines Beach, San Diego, California. Intercomparisons of local pressure, velocity, and sea surface elevation spectra for the wind wave frequencies (0.05--0.3Hz) were made by using linear wave theory. Errors in both total variance an denergy density in a particular frequency band are less than 20% both inside and outside the surf zone, except in the immediate vicinity of the breakpoint, where larger disparities are observed. Surface elevation spectra calculated at 10 m were shoaled by using linear wave theory. The total variance of stations between 10- and 3-m depth are typically predicted with less than 20% error, although harmonic amplification and other nonlinear effects can lead to significant errors in the prediction at particular frequency bands. Observations inside 3-m depth significantly departed from the predictions of linear shoaling theory.