SIMA Announces Waterman's Honorees, Image Award Nominees
The Surf Industry Manufacturers Association is gearing up for a busy summer.
This May, SIMA will present its fifth-annual Image Awards during its annual Surf Summit conference in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
“The awards underwent a lot of changes this year—adding more categories and revising the nomination process—and we’re happy to see this has allowed a wider variety of companies to be recognized for their successes in the past year,” Dick Baker, SIMA’s president, said in a statement.
Billabong USA, Electric Visual, Quiksilver, Vans and Volcom are competing for the Company of the Year award. Firewire Surfboards, Insight, Mada, Sanuk and Vestal Watches are nominated for the Breakthrough Brand of the Year. The Men’s Apparel Brand of the Year nominees are Billabong, Mada, Matix, Quiksilver and Volcom.
Women’s Apparel Brand of the Year nominees are Billabong Girls, Lucy Love, O’Neill Girls, Roxy and Volcom Girls. Billabong Swim, L-Space, O’Neill Girls, Roxy and Salinas are nominated for Women’s Swim Brand of the Year. A complete list of nominees can be found on the SIMA Web site at www.sima.com.
On August 24, SIMA will hold its annual fund-raiser, the Waterman’s Ball, at the St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort in Dana Point, Calif. The event raises funds for the SIMA Environmental Fund, a charitable foundation that awards grants to environmental groups dedicated to preserving and protecting the world’s oceans, beaches and waves.
This year, SIMA will honor women’s surf icon Lisa Andersen as Waterman of the Year; musician, surfer and environmental activist Eddie Vedder is Environmentalist of the Year; and North Shore pioneer and surf contest guru Randy Rarick will accept the Lifetime Achievement award. Surfers Kelly Slater and Layne Beachley will also be honored for their recordbreaking world-championship title victories.
Tickets to the Waterman’s Ball and the 2007 Waterman’s Golf Classic on August 23 will go on sale in July.—E.B.
