With less than a week until the in-store event at Rip Curl Europe’s flagship Pro store in Newquay, the UK’s first ever national ‘Wetsuit Amnesty’ has been receiving the praise and support of the nations surfing community vowing to join Rip Curl’s commitment to protecting the environment.
Unused wetsuits have already begun arriving at the Newquay store in advance of this weekend’s event which will kick off at 6pm on Saturday (May 2nd) with live music in-store from local band Albenaza and the free giveaway* of Project Resurrection Flip Flops in return for wetsuits brought in throughout day.
Cornwall’s local surfers have been preparing for the Wetsuit Amnesty by digging out their old rubber, including Rip Curl surfer and Eco Ambassador Tom Lowe who spoke on BBC Radio Cornwall last week, saying, “as a surfer, I’ve always recycled and tried to do what I can for the environment, everyone in Cornwall must have an old wetsuit, probably an old florescent one” (which they could bring along). Pro surfer Jayce Robinson has also been dusting off his unused wetsuits and commented “it’s great to have a worthwhile use for these old suits, generally if my old suits are still usable I pass them onto other surfers, but these have definitely had it so they'll make some great slaps! It’s great that Rip Curl are so committed to the environment". As well as surfers and wetsuit owners nationwide, Facebook’s online community has also been mobilized via Rip Curl’s Wetsuit Amnesty event page, with group members posting positive comments about the initiative and pledging to attend the event in support of Rip Curl’s environmental initiatives. Rip Curl’s UK Marketing Manager James Hendy said, “it’s fantastic to see everyone backing this event and getting actively involved with sustainable products. We’re (Rip Curl) really proud to produce the largest range of ecological products in the surf sports industry and it’s great that we can share that with so many people directly, giving the results straight back to them.”
Along with the free giveaway of Project Resurrection Flip Flops for wetsuits brought in throughout the day Rip Curl are also offering free travel journals with in-store purchases and the chance to win a trip to Tahiti for 2 people to see first hand the work of Rip Curl’s Coral Guard activity. In addition to the Wetsuit Amnesty activity in-store on Saturday (May 2nd) there will also be the chance to meet Rip Curl’s pro team and eco-ambassadors, discover Rip Curl’s Planet Foundation environmental initiatives, and a very special Rip Curl SEARCH WCT event announcement to be made directly from Rip Curl HQ at Bells Beach Australia, which will shed some light on the top secret location of event number 9 on the 2009 ASP (Association of Surfing Professionals) World Championship Tour. The in-store event will be followed directly by the official after-party, starting at 9pm, at Newquay’s Koola Bar with the film premier of Rip Curl’s RUBBER SOUL II.
Come along to the store on Saturday May 2nd from 6pm to be a part of Rip Curl’s leading initiatives to protect the environment, and bring your old wetsuits with you!
For more information on Project Resurrection, Rip Curl Planet Foundation, and The Search WCT event visit http://www.ripcurl.com/ and Search for us on Facebook.com (“Rip Curl Wetsuit Amnesty”).
*Project Resurrection Flip Flops will be available in limited numbers and sizes.
END PRESS RELEASE
Event Schedule (Saturday 2nd May 2009):
6.00pm
Live music in-store from Albenaza
6.30pm
Wetsuit Amnesty announcement and Project Resurrection flip flop exchange + giveaways
6.30 to 7.00pm
Pro team and Eco Ambassadors signing session & discover Rip Curl Planet Foundation
7.00pm
Rip Curl Search WCT event location announcement from Bells Beach
7.00 to 7.30pm
Drinks & Store viewing
9.00pm
Official after-party at THE KOOLA BAR with film screening of RUBBER SOUL II
Image credits:
‘Jayce Robinson recycling wetsuits’, photo credit Mike Searle
About Rip Curl:
What started in 1969 as a vision, or “Search,” of two surfers, has grown into an identity, lifestyle and philosophy that have spread and been adopted by surfers and boardsports enthusiasts worldwide. Rip Curl remains a private company that has grown to be one of the world's leading surfing-focussed businesses. Now designing, producing and distributing a huge variety of highly innovative clothing, wetsuits, boardshorts, watches, mountainwear, footwear, eyewear, accessories, and other equipment for the range of board sports through more than 60 countries across the globe, Rip Curl prides itself on its world class roster of athletes including ASP World Champions Mick Fanning and Stephanie Gilmore, yet grounded in the sport we love.
About The SEARCH WCT event:
In the spirit of The Search, in 2005 Rip Curl acquired a first-of-its-kind Floating License to run an annual ‘Search World Tournament’ – a professional men’s contest, part of the World Championship Tour, that will travel around the globe and take the world’s best surfers to many of the world’s best waves. The Rip Curl Pro Search WCT is an exciting and innovative development for professional surfing. It’s about finding the best waves in the spirit of The Search, which in turn is all about discovery and freedom. We feel privileged that Rip Curl has the opportunity to take the world’s best surfers on this journey. www.ripcurl.eu/?aboutsearch
About Rip Curl Planet Foundation and Project Resurrection:
Rip Curl is committed to evolving its company activity towards a more sustainable model by proposing a majority of environmentally friendly products and by supporting those who work to preserve the natural environment and to educate the younger generations. ‘Rip Curl Planet’ is a key development strategy which drives every department of the company. Beyond the environmental progress that this initiative is achieving, Rip Curl Planet is also synonym with cohesion, motivation and commercial success. The ever-rising use of bio cotton, recycled fabrics and linen have enabled Rip Curl to propose the largest range of ecological products in the surf sports industry. www.ripcurlplanetfoundation.com/
In 2006, as the world leader in the production of wetsuits, and in partnership with the “Conseil Régional d’Aquitaine” (South West region of France), Rip Curl launched a research program into the recycling of neoprene to find a use for old wetsuits, and for the production off-cuts, which constituted about 150 tons of waste per year. Following 3 years of research Rip Curl now utilise all wetsuit off-cuts throughout their footwear production sites, re-cycling 150 tons of waste each year, as well as replacing the same amount of raw materials.
The Summer ’09 Collection has a total of 8 models of slaps, which use “Resurrection Rubber”, and development will continue with plans for the Summer ’10 Collection to produce the vast majority of the range with “resurrection rubber” outsoles.
 |