https://www.badbillys.com/tags/wetsuit-history/Recent content in Wetsuit History on BadBillys.comHugo -- gohugo.ioenBadBillys.comTue, 04 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://www.badbillys.com/post/rip-curl-billabong-torquay-contemporary/Tue, 04 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://www.badbillys.com/post/rip-curl-billabong-torquay-contemporary/ <h2 id="two-torquay-surfers-one-shaping-bay-and-the-start-of-rip-curl">Two Torquay Surfers, One Shaping Bay, and the Start of Rip Curl</h2> <p>Gilbert Street in Torquay doesn't look like much today, but in March 1969 it was the site of a chance run-in between two surfing friends that turned into one of Australia's defining surf companies. Doug &quot;Claw&quot; Warbrick had just finished a summer shaping stint with Fred Pyke; Brian &quot;Sing Ding&quot; Singer was teaching science. When Warbrick asked Singer if he wanted to start making surfboards together, Singer resigned from teaching within a couple of days, and <strong><a href="https://www.ripcurl.com/pages/the-beginning">Rip Curl</a></strong> was underway. The pair set up in a garage at 35 Great Ocean Road, where Warbrick shaped boards and Singer handled sanding and fin work, and by April 1969 they were turning out four boards a week for Torquay's best surfers.</p>