Tony Burica

Tony Burica has always loved boats and the sea. Having grown up on the Island of Šolta near the shores of the Adriatic Sea, boats and sailing came naturally to Tony. As a child, Tony worked the family farm along with his parents. At age 20 he was drafted into the Yugoslavian Army. When his enlistment was up, he returned to his home village, but could not stand to live under Tito’s communist regime. This led to the amazing five-year journey with his friend Ivan Raos described in his book. After arriving in Los Angeles, Tony and Ivan got together on weekends in 1956 to write a summary of their travels while it was “still fresh in their memories.” They spent months writing and editing a draft manuscript, but in spite of their best intentions, it was never completed. Tony went to work for Schock Boats in Newport Beach in 1959. He worked there for 20 years until 1979, when he started his own business building and repairing small boats in Newport Beach. Tony continued his education while living in Newport, first auditing classes to improve his English and then taking courses in drafting and pre-architecture studies at Orange Coast College. At long last he undertook to complete the unfinished story of his trip. Members of the Newport Beach sailing community have nothing but positive things to say about Tony. Debby Benedict, former secretary of the Sabot Association, commented that Tony “is a legend in our community. Everyone goes to him to get their boats fixed.”