OF ALL the hundreds of surfers who regularly ride waves around West Cornwall's rugged coastline, Sennen's Sam Bleakley is the one who seems to have cracked it.

A soul-surfing longboarder who has won two European titles, his talent has earned him professional contracts and enabled him to compete against the best in the world at some of the most exhilarating breaks around the globe.

Trying to transport longboards around a developing country, in this case Panama, is one of the challenges of visiting remote areas.
Shipwrecks litter parts of the coast of west Africa; here Sam is in action on the Ras Nouadhibou peninsula in Mauritania, on another surfing adventure. Photo: JS Callahan/tropicalpix
Surfer and author Sam Bleakley in his element, this time in South Korea. Photo: JS Callahan/tropicalpix

If that wasn't enough, his sponsorship money has enabled him to pursue his dream of searching out some of the most remote and exotic surf locations in the world.

A Cambridge geography graduate, his academic background has enabled him to supplement his income as a professional surfer by writing freelance travel features for surf publications.

Adventures

Now married with a three-year-old daughter, Sam can look back on a decade of adventures and achievement that most weekend surfers can only dream about.

The co-editor of Roger Mansfield's history of UK surfing, The Surfing Tribe, Sam has now gone into print on his own account, having published Surfing Brilliant Corners, detailing some of his more extreme surfing forays.

The title is inspired from an album by the jazz pianist Thelonius Monk and, running as a thread through the book, Sam argues that being a talented surfer is not that different from being a top jazz musician – years of practice are needed to master the basics before controlled and stylish improvisation can be achieved.

His choice of locations for surf expeditions means that he has been able to write a highly entertaining surf-travel book.

Including superb pictures by respected surf photographer John Callahan, the reader gets taken on a ride that takes in Haiti, The Philippines, China, Oman, West and East Africa and points in between.

Written with the same elegance with which he rides a board, Sam has a host of stories to tell – meeting surfers on a remote Indonesian island who have never seen a Caucasian face before, getting up close to a 12ft tiger shark in murky Kenyan waters and surfing in southern China under the watchful and benevolent eye of a huge Buddha are just three.

But no matter how successful his expedition has been, Sam says he is always happy to get back to Cornwall.

Familiar

"Travelling has taught me that there is nothing more special in surfing than being a local," he writes. "I have never tired of the vaulting granite cliffs at Gwenver, the bright skirt of sand, the changing seasons and the familiar faces that keep me sane."

Now in his early 30s, he told The Cornishman he intends to carry on competing in major European competitions and will embark on a handful of expeditions every year to relatively unridden surf spots.

Sam hopes that the trips will encourage countries around the world to preserve and maintain their own coastlines. Indeed he and his crew are gaining a reputation as consultants, advising countries on what areas could be suitable for surf tourists.

"Surfers are generally very interested in preserving the environment and by finding new areas to surf, we might encourage governments to look at a light-footed approach to tourism rather than destroying the coastline with new development," he said.

Surfing Brilliant Corners, by Sam Bleakley with photographs by JS Callahan, is priced at £15; e-mail the publisher, Alison Hodge on info@alison-hodge.co.uk, visit her website at www.alison-hodge.co.uk, or check out local bookstores and the Chapel Idne surf shop in Sennen.