As 2023 comes to a close, we look back on some of our favourite moments from the past year.

Here at dryrobe®, we’re incredibly lucky to work with some amazing people and partners, as well as supporting some inspiring charities and non-profit organisations all over the world. Their hard work truly motivates and inspires us.

It was hard to choose, but here are just a few of the things that made this year special for us…

Launching the dryrobe® Adapt at the ISA World Para Surfing Championships

We were stoked to sponsor the 2023 ISA World Para Surfing Championships in Huntington Beach, California and launched the new dryrobe® Adapt at the event, a product we developed closely with the para-sports community.

In the competition, the event's inclusive atmosphere and perfect conditions were matched by some incredible performances in the water. France claimed their first Para Surfing Team World Championship title. Brazil also celebrated significant wins, including Roberto Pino's perfect score and Felipe Kizu Lima's record-equaling six gold medals. Team England secured their first ISA team medal, helped by Charlotte Banfield bringing home her first world title!

Read our full report from the event

Find out more about the dryrobe® Adapt

Lukas Skinner becomes a World Champion!

To say 2023 has been epic for 15-year-old dryrobe® ambassador Lukas Skinner would be a massive understatement!

In April he won the 2023 Rip Curl GromSearch International title, at Bells Beach, Australia, becoming the first British surfer ever to win this competition. In December he made English surfing history by taking home Silver at the 2023 ISA World Junior Surfing Championships in Rio, narrowly missing out on gold.

The future is bright for this young shredder!
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Read our interview with Lukas

Protecting surf breaks across the world (and close to home!)

This year we teamed up with Save The Waves Coalition to support the protection of two incredible surf breaks - Santa Cruz World Surfing Reserve and our local break North Devon World Surfing Reserve, through the dryrobe® Warmth Project.

The World Surfing Reserves represent a global network of designated surfing reserves identified by the Save The Waves Coalition’s (STW) flagship programme. STW works in partnership with other organisations and communities around the world that share the same mission to protect surf ecosystems and ensure there are waves for everyone.

Find out more about North Devon World Surfing Reserve

Find out more about Santa Cruz World Surfing Reserve

The ‘Ice Mermaid’ sets records in Antarctica

In water temperatures of just 2.2°C, dryrobe® Ambassador Bárbara Hernández Huerta took on the most extreme swim of her career, becoming the first person to swim more than 2.5km in Antarctic waters!

Her amazing accomplishment has earned her the Guinness World Record for the longest polar swim ever in Antarctica or the Arctic, adding to her many impressive swimming achievements.

Read the full story

Surfers Not Street Children’s trip to WSL JBay Open

This year the Surfers Not Street Children (SNSC) crew headed to South Africa’s world-famous surfing capital to make memories of a lifetime. The kids had access to watch the world’s best surfers and the opportunity to meet some of their greatest inspirations, helping to boost their confidence in the water and gain invaluable surf insights.

The trip to JBay was made even more special as it perfectly coincided with celebrating 25 years of empowering street children at risk in South Africa and Mozambique through surfing.

Over its 25 years, SNSC has played a major impact in the response to the street children phenomenon in Durban, and has changed how society perceived and treated street children in South Africa.

Find out more about this inspiring charity

OCR World Championships

The world’s best Obstacle Course Racers hit Mammoth Mountain in California, for the 9th edition of the OCR World Championships (OCRWC) and the action was as spectacular as the location!

We were thrilled to be able to return to the event again, producing the official OCRWC changing robe, helping to keep athletes protected from the elements before and after racing.

Since 2014, OCRWC has been at the heart of the global OCR community, showcasing not only the very best in elite obstacle course racing, but also demonstrating the camaraderie of everyone involved with this unique sport.

Read our full report from the event

ÖTILLÖ, The Swimrun World Championships

A truly unique endurance race, ÖTILLÖ is both the figurative and literal mother of all swimruns!

The 17th edition of this extraordinary event did not disappoint; there were epic performances from the world’s elite swimrunners, inspiring camaraderie between teammates and a strong sense of community from competitors who had travelled from all over the world to take on one of the wildest sports out there.

Read our full report from the event

The dryrobe® Community

Every single day we’re tagged in or sent something truly inspiring by members of the dryrobe® community. From taking on huge challenges to raise money for charity, to someone doing their first cold water dip, it’s all #dryrobeterritory.

Get involved by tagging @dryrobe using #dryrobeterritory on social media, we always love seeing what you get up to with your dryrobe®!

#dryrobeterritory

Published on December 29, 2023