Phil and I got to know Tony quite well in the early 1970s when we purchased a few pieces of memorabilia (including an original Endless Summer poster with advertised showing dates at the Dendy Brighton) and manufacturing aids (sash clamps) from him as he closed the South Melbourne store. It is with great regret that we never saw him surf, but there is no doubt he was an absolute gun with very little fear of those giant ocean swells. He must have been extremely fit with a huge lung capacity to even tackle the paddle out when Bells Beach unleashes those massive sets that can shut down from Rincon through to Winky Pop. Tony, affectionately known as "The Big O," had a reputation in Victoria as a big-wave rider, not too dissimilar to Greg Noll, one of Hawaii’s pioneers who surfed the monster swells that hit the North Shore at Pipeline and Waimea.

Photo: Images used with permission from Barrie Sutherland (©), WaterMarks Gallery

As you can see below in Barrie Sutherland’s magnificent photograph taken at Torquay Point in 1964 for the very first Victorian Surfriders Association Competition, Tony was a highly organized person with all his team riders (with one exception) wearing matching competition shorts.

Photo: Images used with permission from Barrie Sutherland (©), WaterMarks Gallery

On closer inspection of this photograph, Tony can be seen as an extremely powerfully built athlete (fourth in from the right side), not unlike his famous footballing brother, Rod.

The Big O was a larger-than-life character, well-educated, and an excellent speaker. He and his offsider, Colin Turner, were a major influence in the promotion of surfing and skating in Victoria. They ran most of the early surf movies at the Dendy Brighton, where Endless Summer and many others had a generation of surf groms frothing. Colin, in fact, went on to produce three good surf movies: Ecstasy in 1971, covering the Australian titles of that year held at Bells Beach and Johanna; his second movie, All Time Bells, which covers Simon Anderson’s win in the giant waves of 1981 on his inspirational Thruster; and his third movie, The Legend of Bells in 1982, which takes a look at the history of Bells through the eyes of its pioneer group, though it is a little repetitive with footage from his two earlier movies.

By modern-day terms, Colin was a great networker, mixing with the stars and trying his best to put surfing and skating into the limelight.

Colin Turner with screen actor James Mason and his Australian-born wife, Clarissa, at the Menzies Hotel, 1979. Colin chauffeured James around Melbourne for almost a month.

In the late 1960s, while involved with the ASA and helping at the Bells contest, Colin came up with the idea of a bell as a trophy for the competition. He purchased three from a Melbourne shipwright and, with the help of an 18-year-old apprentice chippy (and Victorian Surfing Champion) Rod Brooks, they made the first “Bells” trophies in 1967, a tradition that has continued to the present day.

With the help of a budding young Brighton talent in John Law (a Victorian champion of both surf and skate), Colin’s marketing of GT Skateboards was so successful that Tony added a GT Surfboard to his range at the Melbourne Surf Shop.

All three Trigger brothers had GT skateboards, and our older brother Peter was the one with the most tricks. On a visit to Tony’s South Melbourne store in 1967 to buy a pair of red Hang Ten boardshorts, Colin and John Law (who later co-founded Quiksilver) invited me along to the Webcraft factory in Footscray where the GT skateboard decks were made. Upon arrival, I was quite shocked to see literally hundreds of coffins lined up. I was a little apprehensive, having just met Col and John for the first time some 20 minutes earlier, but it turned out the skate decks were just a small sideline to a prosperous business in the dearly departed.

Original GT Skateboard with clay wheels

Triggs riding his GT in the servo carpark across the road from the Chelsea Shop

As the sport of surfing exploded in popularity in the 1960s, so too did The Big O’s store. In addition to his own brands, he had taken over Max Gill Surfboards. As a result, he had to enlist the help of Victoria’s king of surfboard production, the highly organized George Rice, to manufacture most of his boards.

Like his brother Rod, Tony was also an excellent sportsman. In fact, as a track and field athlete, he narrowly missed out on selection for the Australian Olympic team. Becoming a leading figure in Victorian surfing, Tony rose to be president of the Australian Surfing Association (ASA). With the help of a hard-working Stan Couper and family, they pulled off a massive coup by having the 1970 World Titles held at Bells Beach. A great frontman for the sport, the smooth-talking Tony even convinced the Premier of Victoria, Sir Henry Bolte, to financially support the running of the event.

Tony “The Big O” Olsson sadly passed away on May 14th, 2011. Colin, now in his early eighties, resides in Geelong.

Tony Olsson, Mick Peirce, Ted Bainbridge Photo: Keith Platt

Tony during the Bells contest 1965

Photo: Images used with permission from Barrie Sutherland (©), WaterMarks Gallery