Bajan Surfing Stalwart Alan Burke carves his legacy in the waves
Although Barbadian ex-pro surfer, Alan Burke may not be competing at an international level anymore, he’s still making some monster waves in the sport of surfing. As the owner of Bajan surfboard brand, Burkie Boards and current President of the Barbados Junior Surfing Club, Alan has been influential in coaching and developing next-generation surfing superstars: Josh Burke, Andrew Rose, Chelsea Roett, Chelsea Tuach, Jacob Burke and Dane Mackie to name a few.
Adrenaline Sun speaks with Alan about his many experiences during his 33 years of surfing.
Where are your favorite spots in Barbados to surf?
I love surfing anywhere, exploring the island as there are many good surf locations here, however I have a special place in my heart for Brandens (Drill Hall Beach) and Soupbowl, Bathsheba.
Outside of Barbados, what are your favorite countries to surf and when is the best time to visit for the biggest waves?
Definitely Australia and Oahu, Hawaii. You can go to Australia anytime of the year to surf and in Oahu Hawaii from December to April are the preferred months for surfing.
When did you turn pro?
My first Pro event was in 1988, however my first big event was The 1986 World Surfing Games in Fistral Beach, Newquay Cornwall England, I got 7th in the world in the Juniors and this started my surfing career!
When did you decide to focus on coaching? Why?
In 2002, I decided to offer surf lessons for local kids only on a Saturday morning and in a few weeks it became my full-time job!! Surfing made my life,without it I doubt I would have made it through life, coaching and teaching surfing is a source of giving back!
Alan and Josh with surfing legend Kelly Slater
Can you list 2 of your most memorable moments in both surfing and coaching?
Surfing: In 1985 at 15yrs old, I won the Junior Division and got 3rd in the OPEN at the Orchard International Championships held in 10ft surf at Soupbowl, ten countries were represented, this is when I realized I had a chance in Professional Surfing and in 1998 at the World Surfing Games in Portugal I won the Bronze medal in the Long Boarding, I actually was not eliminated during the event and won the Final, but with a repercharge format the Grand Final is the one that is counted, a friend of mine that was on the trip with me still says I was the World Champ! It was always a dream of mine to stand on a podium and hear my National Anthem, I even travelled with a copy in case the organizers did not have our anthem.
In coaching anytime a surfer that I am coaching gives their best effort, I am proud, however my most memorable to date is when Josh Burke got 3rd in the MENS Pro at the 2011 Ron/Jon Easter Surf festival, Chelsea Tuach won the 2010 NKF Womens Pro and Jacob Burke finishing 4th in the U-12 at the 2011 ECSC(East Coast Surfing Championships) a week after being released from hospital for Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever.
Which do you enjoy more surfing and competing or coaching and seeing your prodigy?
Used to be Surfing and Competing,which I still enjoy, however it’s all about the kids now, so therefore I prefer Coaching!
Burkie Boards on display
Why did you decide to start Burkie Boards?
Having a surf school, it became a regular occurrence when students progressed. They needed to switch from a learner board to a fiberglass. So it became time to have my own label surfboard and my good friend who happens to be one of the best shapers in the world and responsible for shaping my personal competition boards since Nov 1985, Rich Price of RP Surf Designs and I got together to make this a reality since 2005. This was a no brainer!
How does this generation of surfing (with the fast pace of the internet and global communication) compare to when you were coming up?
In the 80′s and 90′s when I was full-time professional,it would take weeks before the public would know the results of an event,months in the case of the leading International surfing magazines. Nowadays, it’s almost immediate and most events actually have live webcast, so you can watch it as it’s happening.
As the president of the Barbados Junior Surfing Club, what can we expect from the Junior Surf Team in 2012?
Alan's younger son, Jacob Burke
We have been focusing on Junior surfers for 3 years now, I expect to see our surfers making international headlines in 2012, the international surfing community already knows that Barbados is back!!
If you weren’t surfing/coaching what could you see yourself doing?
I always enjoyed competitive Football(soccer) as much as surfing, however I got my break in the sport of surfing! Definitely not an office job!
Any last words?
In Junior sports, in particular surfing, I would like the parents, especially the ones that know very little about the sport and the history, to be there in support!
