Peter Cornish – Doyen of the Australian surfing industry.

This morning is like every other morning for Peter Cornish. The first thing he does is check the surf from his southerly-situated balcony positioned at the near top of Big Nobby headland. There’s a clean right-hander rolling through Back Beach or what the locals call it ‘Backy’, unspoiled by the imminent nor-east wind picking up by mid-morning. Peter wastes no time, he grabs his board and makes his way down the man-made bush track to the beach.

“It’s always been the first thing I think of in the morning. From as long as I can remember the ocean’s been a priority,” says Peter Cornish.

All this happens before he opens his surf shop Crescent Head Surf Co. at 10am. When I see Peter in his surf shop he is busy fitting plastic fins into an ‘ElNino’ soft board for a local customer using a coin as a makeshift screwdriver, as he dispenses his advice.

“Just make sure she doesn’t ride the board into the sand, it’ll knock the fins out. Other than that she’s going to have a ball on this board. They’re super easy for kids to learn on.”

He throws in a free surfboard leash and a cake of wax reinforcing his ‘looking after the locals’ mentality. Another happy customer, I thought to myself.

There is the fragrant scent of coconut surf wax lingering in the shop clashing with the aromas of the flat white with a “dash” of hazelnut syrup I’ve just delivered to Peter. As he smiles at me there is a mountain of winter stock jam-packed into boxes ready to be unpacked onto the racks that he dodges past to grab his coffee.

If you recognise the name Peter Cornish, that’s no surprise at all. Peter is a very notable surfboard shaper in the Australia. Hailing from Dee Why in Sydney’s northern beaches, Peter has achieved quite the name for himself in his 69 years. His long and distinguished career in the surfing industry means that he’s experienced first-hand the evolution of surfing and has been at forefront of this with his significant status in surfboard shaping.

Peter’s name remains recognised today as he was one of the earliest members of the Dee Why Surfing Fraternity, the oldest board riders club in Australia.

“Surfing was exploding in Australia at this time and it was a very colourful period. There were lots of great surfers and characters.”

As a student, he attended Dee Why Public School and Narrabeen High, but his main passion in life was of course surfing. He cherishes his upbringing on the northern beaches, reminiscing about his time there and achievements.

“I was a ‘sparky’ [electrician] before I entered the surfing industry. I think my heart just wasn’t really in the trade itself and I kind of gravitated towards the surfing industry. My parents were great influences, instilling many of the basic principles of a good healthy life and work ethic that I still use today.”

Working in the retail industry for Peter was what he considered his “destiny”. His father and grandfather were all hands on tradesmen and this is what Peter believes sparked his “creative flair”.

 “I started crafting surfboards in the 60s at the epicentre of Australia’s surfboard industry in Brookvale, shaping my owns models at Bennett Surfboards.”

Peter Cornish second from left 

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Peter has been dubbed a great craftsman in this line of work and has worked alongside surfing’s most renowned board shapers such as Shane Stedman, Bob Kennerson as well as Kevin Platt, whose business he also managed in Noosa Heads. Bob Kennerson has not only been a pal of Peter’s for most of his life, but also a business associate and friendly competitor in the surfing arena.

“Pete’s always been a great bloke. His boards are being taken out from under houses and being sold online for hundreds of dollars as surfing memorabilia. It just shows how much of a talent and gift he was and still is to surfing in Australia.”

Peter travelled for two years in the 70s where he spent the majority of his time in South Africa. During this time over there he surfed all along the coast where he remembers Durban as having “the most clean and consistent swell out of all the places”.

As we are chatting, Peter turns to his side and I notice a tattoo of a panther on his shoulder. I ask him to tell me the story about it and boy, am I glad I asked because it’s a good one!

“Me and some mates were travelling around Hawaii in the 70s and when we were in Honolulu there was a massive commotion in a nearby pub and we were in need of a safe house. It was probably the early hours of the morning so we were running down the street, trying to escape these guys chasing us and nothing was open except for this dingy little tattoo parlour. As we entered the owner told us we were either here to get a tattoo or we were leaving.And now I have a tattoo of a panther on my shoulder,” he chuckles. “I had to get it touched up over years but it makes me laugh whenever I see it. It’s a vivid memory for me that’s for sure.”

Peter finally decided to settle down in 1976 when he moved back to Crescent Head and started his own business ‘Cornish Performance Surfboards’. Dean Sneddon who also grew up in Sydney’s northern beaches and now lives in Crescent Head knew of Peter through his contribution to the surfing industry before meeting him in person.

“He was part of a pretty fearsome crew back in the day that featured many well-known surfers like Midget Farrelly and Nat Young and that crew pretty much pioneered the new surfing scene. He also appeared in magazines occasionally but went on the make boards and was recognised as an excellent shaper. He adapted skills to craft the ever-changing surfboard design and knew the hydrodynamics of a board when they travel through the water. I have ‘Cornish’ brand surfboards and they are a dream to ride.”

Pete passing on his knowledge to customers.
Photo: Supplied

Not long after settling into the laidback lifestyle of Crescent Head, Peter opened the Crescent Head Surf Co. and now 30 years on the shop is still operating only his “wifey” Kathy Cornish “now rules the Surf Co”.

“It’s been a pretty great business venture. I get to surf in the mornings and afternoons and then come down here and do more surfing industry related things.”

Peter’s lifestyle in Crescent Head is what he describes as “a pretty cruisy” and he relishes in the fact that he has been able to make a living around his one true passion, that is, surfing. By far he says the good times outweigh the bad and appreciates every challenge and opportunity in his life.

“The surfing industry has been a rewarding and challenging one. Most rewarding is seeing people exposed to the joy of the simple pursuit of surfing and its tests. I can’t see myself retiring anytime soon because I still have the opportunity to surf everyday and interact with people who share the same passion.”