What a night! From tears of joy to roaring laughter and everything in between, it was the perfect night to recognise and honour three amazing people and an iconic event. It was the first of many Surf Industry Honours Nights, and it exceeded all of our expectations thanks to all of you legends coming together to support our industry!
Held at The Sands resort in Torquay, Surf Industry Honours Night saw over 180 surf community peers gather for an evening of celebration, camaraderie and raising money for some significant causes. The event honours four extremely-deserving recipients for their different contributions in elevating the surf industry.
The 2023 Surf Industry Honours event was sponsored by many generous brands and organisations, making our live auction possible. A HUGE thank you to Rip Curl, Patagonia, Ted Grambeau, Quiksilver, Yeti, SurfAid, Surfing Australia, Left Bank Art Group, Stryker Media and The Hidden Sea, who kept us “hydrated” all night. Our MC’s for the evening were the very talented duo, Ronnie Blakey and Rosy Hodge.
After the delightful shock of kicking the evening off with a surprise flash mob, we moved onto the presentation portion of the event. Ava Warbrick (film producer) and Damian Campbell (Head of Sales, Boardriders / SBIA board member) started by asking 8X world champion, Stephanie Gilmore, to join them onstage to receive her trophy for Surfer of the Year.
The Environmentalist of the Year, presented by Nathan Omodei (CEO, The Leisure Collective / SBIA board member) and Josh Kirkman (CEO, Surfers for Climate), was awarded to Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia. Unfortunately, as Mr. Chouinard is USA-based, he wasn’t able to attend, but Dane O’Shanassy (Country Director, Patagonia ANZ) and Jason McCaffrey (Global Business Director, Surf Division, Patagonia) were there as his proxy and relayed some very grateful sentiments from Mr. Chouinard.
Mike Di Scascio (owner, Strapper Surf / former SBIA board member) and Jessi Miley-Dyer (Chief of Sport, WSL) honoured “60 Years of Bells” with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Accepting the trophy on behalf of the iconic competition were the legendary Brooke Farris (CEO, Rip Curl) and Adam ‘Robbo’ Robertson (CEO, Surfing VIC).
And last but not least, Shayne Patterson, who has given unwavering support and provided exceptional customer service to the surf industry over more than four decades, was called to the stage by longtime colleagues and friends, Alison Thomas (GM, Volcom ANZ / SBIA Vice President) and Anthony ‘Macka’ Wilson (Managing Director, Wilson Retail Co / SBIA President) to be honoured with our Service to the Industry award.
Following the formalities was our live auction, led by David Cortous. We had incredible items up for grabs this year including multiple signed surfboards, an iconic print from Ted Grambeau, a skateboard guitar signed by Hockey Dad, Tom Curren’s JBay purple back wetsuit replica, a priceless customised wetsuit experience with renowned shaper, Sparrow, a 7-night surf trip at Latitude Zero in the Telo Islands, a winter wetsuit package, signed jerseys and more! This auction was immensely successful and we were able to donate over $20,000 to our charity partners; Ocean Mind, Surfers for Climate and Women’s Safety Services of Central Australia. Thank you to everyone who donated and everyone who participated.
To cap the night off, our surf crews danced the night away to the incredibly entertaining musical stylings of the one and only, Scotty Sax! And lasting memories were made by all…
PLEASE REMEMBER TO SHARE YOUR PICTURES FROM THE EVENT ON SOCIALS AND TAG US:
@sbia.com.au
#sbiasurfindustryhonours2023
