I’ve said before that no one not called JK Rowling makes a fortune from writing books, although I’ve (so far) never run out of food or beer. So I’m not complaining.

But by my humble standards, something phenomenal has happened in the South African publishing industry. No Retreat, No Surrender, which I wrote with Springbok surfskier, kayaker and lifesaver Oscar Chalupsky is the third most popular sports biography book. It’s beaten only by Siya Kolisi and Faf du Plessis in all sales from 2022 to 2024, and locally outperformed international legends such as Andre Agassi and Alex Ferguson.

To put that in perspective, a guy who has spent most of his life on beaches and rivers — hardly the most mainstream sports — is up there with the current South African rugby captain and former cricket skipper. Not to mention that Siya is one of the most iconic faces in global sport today.

So take a bow, Big O!

(I shot that photo of Oscar with Tom Sellick in Hawaii after Oscar won the 1985 Molokai to Oahu world champion race. We were both flat-broke, sleeping on the floor at a friend’s house. It paid for my flight home — so I owe it big time.)