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High-tech video that capture’s a surfer’s ride and sends it to a phone before he or she gets out of the water; a wetsuit developed in conjunction with the military; a boardshort brand still at the top of the surf industry nearly 50 years after its founder sewed the first pair of shorts on a kitchen table: All were honored at the Surf Industry Manufacturers Association’s 16th annual SIMA Awards Wednesday March 12.
The event drew about 300 people to the Observatory in Santa Ana to recognize the hottest brands of 2019 and to give a nod to top surf shops around the country.
It was a lighter attendance than last year, but “a very solid turnout and the energy in the room was awesome,” said executive director Sean Smith.
The goal of the SIMA Awards is to identify the surf industry’s most influential companies and products, and to recognize efforts to advance and grow the industry over the past year, according to an event announcement.
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Here are some of the Southern California stand-outs from the evening:
Caught on camera
Huntington Beach-based Surfline.com, a surf forecast company, took home the first honor of the night for its Surfline Sessions, a technology that takes video of individual surfers using its vast live surf camera systems along coastlines around the globe.
The videos, when synced to the Apple Watch or Rip Curl GPS app, can be downloaded and ready to view on an iPhone immediately.
Surfline President Ross Garrett remembers interviewing founder Sean Collins, who died in 2011, two decades ago for a story in Surfer Magazine.
“He told me about a vision he had for how Surfline would live on a watch and give surfers everything they needed to know. Surfline Sessions is our exciting first step toward that vision being realized and we are honored to be acknowledged by our peers as a product that makes surfers lives’ better,” Garrett said.
Surfline Sessions, which launched in July, is the first version of exciting things to come, he said. Future improvements could include better video quality or adding a social layer with the ability to see waves friends are riding.
“There’s a bunch of ways we can see the product and the experience growing over time,” Garrett said. “We just know how much better it can be, and we’re so excited to keep investing and building on it.”
The video begins five seconds before a rider stands up and continues until the ride is finished.
Garrett said the development of Surfline Sessions helps expand its brand from being solely a media company.
“We are a product company who’s often perceived as a media company, and this product award reflects a shift in perception,” he said. “I’m so proud of our team and I’m so stoked our team was able to get rewarded for the effort they put in. It was a cross-company effort, and the Image Awards are such a great way to be recognized for all that great work.”
Warm in the water
This is no ordinary wetsuit.
Costa Mesa-based XCEL earned the coveted Wetsuit of the Year award for its Infiniti LTD, a wetsuit that can only be found at specialty retail shops.
The wetsuit is developed with “radiant rebound technology.”
“It’s like wrapping yourself in aluminum foil after a run — it takes all your body heat being generated and rebounds it all back into the body,” said Lance Varon, design director for XCEL. “No heat escapes and it helps protect from any cold coming in.”
The wetsuit is made with a fiber that doesn’t hold a lot of water – meaning the inside of the suit dries super fast.
“When I was developing this material, I started with the Special Ops forces military,” he said, noting he traveled to Virginia Beach, Coronado Island and Hawaii to brainstorm with troops.
While it didn’t pan out perfectly for the military — it did in the recreational surf market, as the warmth was undeniable, he said.
Being solely a wetsuit company, XCEL is able to dedicate all of its efforts to innovation, Varon said.
“We are 100 percent committed to unique products,” he said. “We also pride ourselves on fit. No matter how good the material, it doesn’t do any good if it doesn’t fit. It’s a combination of materials and design that helps everything flow and be so perfect. That’s why people consider us a surfer’s wetsuit.”
Billabong’s trifecta
Billabong was a big winner of the night, earning the Women’s Apparel Award, the men’s Boardshort Brand of the Year and the Womens’ Apparel Brand of the Year.
Dustin Pettit, global design director of boardshorts and prints for the Huntington Beach-based brand, said the company was proud to win the boardshort category, considering where the brand came from — with Gordon Merchant hand sewing the first boardshorts on his kitchen table in Australia in 1973.
“The humble beginnings of his passion, sewing up boardshorts on the kitchen table — to have it come here and win for boardshorts, it’s really cool and he’s still really involved in the company and helps us curate the line every year,” Pettit said. “To win with him still in the company and to have all that history behind it, it’s a really special award for us to win.”
Especially important is the focus on sustainability put into the boardshorts, made from recycled polyester, he said.
“It’s really nice when we can not only work doing what we love, but we can help out the environment when we can,” Pettit said.
It’s the second year Billabong has taken the boardshort category. “We’re on a little bit of a roll, which is nice,” he said. “We just have to keep it going.”
Other notables
Vissla, a smaller brand that launched a few years ago, took home the Men’s Marketing Campaign of the Year, with Rip Curl winning the women’s version of the award for its My Bikini campaign.
Costa Mesa-based Vans won Footwear Product of the Year for its UltraRange Hi DL MTE, winning the category for the second year.
Roark, based in Laguna Beach, took the Men’s Apparel Brand of the Year award.
Salty Crew, a San Diego brand that focuses on all watersports lifestyles — including fishing and lake sports, in addition to surfing, earned the Breakout Brand of the Year.
Retailers across the country were recognized, with Hansen Surfboards in Encinitas taking home the award for the West Coast retailer. East Coast retailer Island Water Sports, out of Florida, earned honors, as did BC Surf & Sport, in Denver, which won top nod for Inland America. T&C Surf Designs won for Hawaii.
Other wins: The 4ocean Bracelet by 4ocean earned Environmental Product of the Year; JJF12 by Electric won Eyewear Product of the Year; Cymatic by Slater Designs won Shortboard of the Year; and Shadow by Pyzel took home Alternative Surfboard Model of the Year. In the media category, Stab Magazine won for its feature “The Pick Up.”
For more information, go to sima.com
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