At a meeting Monday, a few hours after announcing their 2017 State of the Sport report, Open Water Planet announced that it had joined forces with several new sponsors, the most interesting being dryrobe®, a company that makes changing robes for changing in and out of suits or wetsuits outdoors. The dryrobe® is an interesting new category of product. It’s not a parka. It’s definitely more than that. It has a waterproof & windproof exterior shell fabric and a lining that dries you & keeps you warm. But unlike a parka it also has room to pull your arms in through the sleeves & get changed inside it. You can get a wetsuit, a racing swimsuit or tri suit, on or off, easily, while staying warm. As swimmers that’s something we’ve all tried to do though many of us have embarrassingly failed.
The founder of dryrobe®, Gideon Bright, shared his story of the first dryrobe® which he explains “was based on an idea my mum had when I was younger. He explains the concept came about “while living in Cornwall, England where we surfed year-round and it gets cold in the Winter. Mum was handy with a sewing machine and decided to do something to help me. She gave me this homemade ‘thing’ one Christmas. Years later that involved into the product we produce today. The best change robe on the market.”
Dryobe® joins Open Water Planet as the official comfort partner of their Triton Series, a series of open water events aimed at creating new and interesting race course configurations. The Triton series will continue adding additional challenges to their courses both in the water and out. Open Water Planet and dryrobe® had been in behind-the-scenes negotiations for the past 6 months.
“We’ve known about dryrobe® for a long time,” said Open Water Planet CEO Bobby Brewer. I’ve always been a fan, but we typically don’t do partnership deals unless we know it is a product we could never match on our own. It has to be something unique that we truly believe in; something we know will give our customers a better experience. As Open Water Swimmers, our workouts are more akin to a surfer’s experience than a competitive swimmer’s experience. We swim in wild places. There aren’t always changing rooms available and we deal directly with the elements. We need to get changed and we need to stay warm. The dryrobe® product covers that.”
“The OWP Board of Directors, swimmers, event directors, and staff are all extremely supportive of the relationship,” said Casey Taker, OWP Chief Operations Officer. “Just like the athletes, we are out there before dawn in and out of the water battling the elements. This is a game changer for our staff.”
At a time when the adventure sports and obstacle course market is booming, water based challenges are sure to be the next challenge. And with that comes new, innovative products specifically addressing these athletes’ needs. The dryrobe® line of products targets outdoor sports and is especially suited for aquatics.
“What an exciting time for open water swimming,” OWP swimming and water safety ambassador, Alissa Magrum said. “This is important for the sport and for open water athletes to see a company like dryrobe® support the idea of getting out of the pool and into the open water. We are all so passionate about our sport and have given so much to create new opportunities and safer open water events. We have finally made it to the place that we’re attracting people of all ages, even families to join us. Everyone, including longtime open water swimmers and champions of the sport, will benefit from companies like dryrobe® taking note of our ongoing growth. It’s an exciting time for open water swimming.”
The current endeavor between OWP and dryrobe® will be immediately evident in the 2017 event calendar. Overall Winners at OWP events will receive a top of the line dry robe as part of their prize package. And custom OWP dryrobes will be available for order along with the opportunity for teams, families, and travel groups to create their own custom dryrobe® designs to show their team spirit and support. The next event in the series is the ‘Triton Boulder’ on August 26-27 followed by the ‘Triton Austin’ September 23-24 and the ‘South Padre Open Water Festival’ November 4-5.
About Open Water Planet
Open Water Planet (OWP) was created to provide the open water sports community a place to call their own. We are spread all over the world but we are alike in so many ways. We work hard, we play hard. There is always an excuse to travel and the thrills are all the reward we need. Our pools have no walls and the lanes are ever-changing. OWP spreads it’s core message of never fearing the unknown through the company’s series of open water events, clinics, swim travel, training programs and custom gear. All specifically aimed at helping those passionate about the water to get where they want to go.
Swimming news release is courtesy of Open Water Planet, a SwimSwam partner.