Burness, Peter (1928 – 1999)

Contest director and organizer, from Durban; sometimes referred to as the Father of South African Surfing. "Peter was always looking to the future," Craig Simms wrote, "and he made a huge difference to the world of surfing."

Burness was born (1928) in Cape Town, the son of a timber company executive who spent much of his time in Indonesia. Burness began riding waves in Durban at age 20 on a wooden surf-ski; for much of his adult life he ran the company his father had overseen, but surfing—al...