1948 – 2019. Vale Ronny Silcock, Australian larrikin legend surfer and artist

Much loved and admired by so many from all walks of life, Australian legendary surfer and gentleman Ronny Silcock died peacefully on Monday morning on the Gold Coast.

A straight-up guy who loved a chat and had time for everybody, Ronny was renowned as a complete and smooth longboarder, and also as a fine portrait and landscape artist. 

Lesser known perhaps was that he was also a talented writer, and we were rapt to publish several of his pieces in print in this magazine over the years, in particular his entertaining takes on his childhood friend Kevin “Head” Brennan in “The Best There Ever Was” and on the formation of the Windansea club in Australia, “The Bold Experiment”. 

The following ran on the Contributors Page in PLB Volume 14 Number One, eight years ago:

A larger-than-life character, you get Ronny Silcock talking and you start thinking that there’s a book in this bloke. Check out his memories of Kevin Brennan this issue. A Bondi grommet, Ronny disarmingly admits to a couple of wrong turns and to doing a bit of time when he was a teenager, to be saved by wife Chris and son Byron.

He’s lived, worked and surfed all over the Oz coast, and what a surfer! Anyone who’s come up against him in an age division will verify. And he loves competitions, but always with a smile.

For the past 20 years he’s lived at Bilinga on the Goldie, and after a double by-pass in 2004 says, “I’m just so happy to be back surfing, doing what I love so much. I also paint a bit in my spare time, I love painting the famous point breaks and portraits of older surfers – the ones with wrinkles seem to finish the best. I’ve been a sales manager for 16 years now, I play golf off a four handicap, and have hit four holes-in-one . . . lucky me.”

Our thoughts are with Chris, Melanie and Byron Silcock, the families and his many friends. Rest in peace Ronny. - JB and all at PLB

From son Byron via Facebook: “Just to let everyone know that we are saying goodbye to Dad next Tuesday the 16th at Somerville Funerals Nerang at 12.30. All are welcome and we have a few bevies after at a joint to be decided (probably Tally Surf Club).”

This Facebook post from old friend Wayne “Crouch” McCleary sums up the thoughts of many so well:

Well I have lost another old surfing mate 
As I have just been informed 
Bloody hell 
It never stops we all know that 
The older we get the more we loose 
To Chris Silcock and all family members and to all the surfing community 
It’s a sad day for our old mate 
Mate mate mate, I wish I could take your place brother 
But it does not happen like that 
RIP Ronny Silcock a LEGEND surfer right up till this day 
His art showed here was AWESOME 
A poem to you brother in arms 
Right from my head no thinking of it, just writing it 

Ronny 
Ronny the surfer, a lad 
A man of principal 
A man of integrity 
A man on a mission 
Always ready to surf 
Always ready to shake ya hand 
when ever we surfed 
my friend 
Right till the end 
A LEGEND at your spot 
In any. Conditions 
Rest upon the palm tree 
Wait for that westerly blow 
And head out 
And go go go 
With Red board in tow 
You will always goooo 
RIP old mate 
See you soon wherever you are 
 - Crouch