The fashion brand Blue Banana and the automobile company Volkswagen have come together to create a neoprene suit made from recycled rubber tires. The objective, as the brands have stated in a statement, is to bring sustainability closer to surfing and facilitate the practice of this sport in the most respectful way possible.
under the name “Roadcycled Wetsuit” In this initiative, the brands reinforce their commitment to adventure and a more conscious activity. Neoprene is the result of months of research and development with the mission of offering a second life to car tires.
It comes in black and has the Blue Banana logo, in the shape of an X in reflective white, in different places: front, under the neck or leg. Additionally, the suit also features reflective prints around the collar and cuffs, as well as reinforced and watertight seams.
“We wanted to show how a resource like tire rubber, which has completed its original life cycle, can be transformed into a useful and durable product, adapted to the demands of surfing.”, commented Nacho Rivera, co-CEO of Blue Banana. “The Roadcycled Wetsuit not only represents an advance in material innovation, but also gives visibility to a new way of surfing, where performance and respect for the environment can coexist.”.
The suit is now available through the fashion brand’s online store and in its physical stores in Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Málaga and Bilbao. The price is 299 euros.
From the road to surf
To publicize the initiative, the campaign “Born for the road. Re-born to surf”, jointly devised by the agencies BlackFlag and DDB Spainand which features the participation of surfers Nacho Sebastia and Alazne Aurrekoetxea. They have starred in several posts on social networks in which they show off the innovative suit while surfing, like the video you can see below.
The campaign includes the documentary “Pioneers”almost 30 minutes long, in which both athletes travel through northern Spain aboard the Volkswagen Id Buzz electric van. On their trip they reflect on what surfing entails and meet key figures of the sport, such as surfers Eneko Acero, Ibon Amatriain and Craig Sage. They also chat with entrepreneurs like Jose and Stephan, from the Kun_tiqi natural surfboard brand; o Borja Agote, Founder of the sustainable wax company Weareblu.
