John Durward, 60; radio's 'Juan Grande,' San Diego surf icon
deb...@comcast.net
By Jack Williams
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
October 28, 2006
To surfers tuning in to his morning forecasts on the 91X radio
airwaves, John Durward was the wacky, exuberant oracle of the ocean.
Under the alias "Juan Grande," he broadcast two daily reports and
forecasts on surf conditions from 1983 until the early 1990s, signing
off with his trademark "Gotta go - bye!"
Within moments, he would be back to business as the owner of Canyon
Surf Shop on Abbott Street in Ocean Beach, shaping boards for some of
San Diego's surfing elite.
Mr. Durward, who began a second career in the auto business after
selling his surf shop in the early 1990s, died Sept. 16 at his Point
Loma home. He was 60.
The cause of death was bladder cancer, which he had battled since
October 2003, his daughter Jennie Nelson said.
At 6 feet 2 inches tall and about 200 pounds, Mr. Durward adopted the
on-air Juan Grande moniker as a takeoff on "Big John."
Known for his ersatz Spanish accent and his light banter with on-air
personalities, Mr. Durward tried to entertain as he informed. His 91X
hosts referred to his reports as originating from "the little house
on the jetty."
As Juan Grande, he attained celebrity status in the surf world,
appearing at surfing movie premieres and surfing contests.
"He was more than a reporter; he was a personality with this Juan
Grande persona - a guy from Massachusetts who masqueraded as a surf
reporter from San Diego/Mexico," said Billy Bones, a longtime 91X
personality now with Clear Channel. "He was a lot more intelligent
and diverse than his Juan Grande personality indicated."
A surf enthusiast since his early days in New England, Mr. Durward was
enthralled by the mystique of the West Coast beach culture. "His
dream was to move to California," Nelson said.
After graduating in 1969 with a bachelor's degree in art from Colgate
University in Hamilton, N.Y., he followed his younger brother, Jamie,
west.
He intended to pursue a graduate degree at California State University
Long Beach, but wound up in San Diego instead.
"The story he told my mom was that he couldn't find a parking place
at Long Beach State, so he came to San Diego, where his brother was
attending college," Nelson said.
In 1970, Mr. Durward met Betsy Ingersoll at a concert at what was then
California Western University, and the couple married six months later.
After shaping boards in his garage and working for Gordon & Smith
Surfboards, Mr. Durward opened the Canyon Glass Shop in Rose Canyon in
1973.
Applying Fiberglas to surfboard planks, he cultivated enough clientele
to add the Canyon Surf Shop and sponsor a Canyon Surfboards surfing
team. Pro surfers on the team included such standouts as Peter Townend,
Shaun Tomson and Dave Parmenter.
Mr. Durward's lust for waves often took him to Mexico and Hawaii. To
further express his passion for the sport, he named both daughters
after nautical themes: Genevive, which translates to "white wave"
in French, and Marina. When they were old enough, he gave them surfing
lessons at Dog Beach and introduced them to his "secret trail" down
Sunset Cliffs.
Mr. Durward often started his days with a 5 a.m. surf check and coffee
and doughnuts with buddies at an Ocean Beach coffee shop. Evenings
would often find him sharing a sunset with his wife.
John Gordon Durward was born July 6, 1946, in Middletown, Conn.
"He spent summers at the family cabin in Maine, sailing with his
cousins and becoming an avid surfer," Nelson said. Each summer, he
explored coastal waters in search of waves, once operating a surfboard
rental company out of his van in York Beach, Maine.
Mr. Durward also enjoyed entering model-car building contests in his
youth and developed a lifelong interest in cars.
When he sold his shop and left the surfing business, he began selling
cars at Bob Baker Ford. He was employed by San Diego Volvo as a finance
manager when he was diagnosed with cancer.
"He saw the surf culture changing, and he only surfed when it was
tall and glassy," Nelson said.
Golf became Mr. Durward's favorite recreation, and he played regularly
at Riverwalk in Mission Valley, reducing his handicap to single digits.
Survivors include his wife, Betsy; daughters, Jennie Nelson and Marina
Durward of San Diego; mother, Adele Durward of Falmouth, Mass.; sister,
Nancy Ellison of Mashpee, Mass.; brother, Jamie Durward of Del Mar; and
two grandchildren.
Services were held Sept. 30 at Horizon Christian Fellowship. Cremation
was planned, with ashes scattered off Sunset Cliffs. Donations were
suggested to Horizon Christian Fellowship, P.O. Box 17480, San Diego,
CA 92177.