OUR TEAMS
We are proud to be associated with a growing number of individuals and teams who have all excelled in one way or another, and who all use DZ gear:
Bear Grylls
Bear is a high achiever in every sense - in 1998, at just 23 years old, only 2 years after breaking his back in a horrific parachuting accident, Bear Grylls became the youngest Briton to Summit Everest. In 2003, Bear led the first team ever to cross the Frozen North Atlantic in an open RIB. In 2005 his pioneering Paramotor expedition explored one of the last frontiers on earth: the isolated and foreboding plateaux of the Amazon’s Lost world. He is a bestselling author, motivational speaker and TV survival expert; he says about us:
"I have used DZ gear all over the world - from the arctic to the jungle to high mountains … Light, strong & 120% watertight when it matters."
To find out more about Bear, visit [ www.beargrylls.com ]
Everest West Ridge 2006 – The British Army on Everest
Attempting the highest peak on Earth, and attempting to be the first British team to do so by the more difficult West Ridge, this expedition was big news. The team responsible for capturing footage and images of the expedition was led by Keith (we'll preserve other details for security purposes), Chief Instructor at the Army's Adventure Training Centre in Bavaria. With him were 3 young soldiers from the Army's Technical College, Harrogate, and two world-renowned cameramen: Simon Atkins and Claudia von Planta.
The expedition faced prolonged bad weather, meaning confinement to tents, which in turn meant the cameras, satellite transmission, communications and other electronic equipment (valued at around £50,000) became exposed to increasing levels of humidity and condensation inside their tent.
Dryzone's Pro-Technic multi-purpose dehumidifier and dryer became worth its weight in gold, protecting all this equipment from moisture ingress, and enabling the film and documentary process to run smoothly. Team Leader Keith described the DZ gear (Dryzone products and Kompressor Dry Bags) as "awesome"; it is now a staple part of his kitbag.
Links: [ Claudio von Planta's site ], [ Simon Atkins' site ], [ Army "Be the Best" website ]
Royal Navy & Royal Marines Everest Expedition
Not only attempting the highest peak on Earth, the Royal Navy and Royal Marines took over 60 Service Personnel to Base Camp for acclimatisation training and the first phase of building the next generation of Great British Climbers. They all took Dryzone Boot Dryers and DZ Dry Bags with them. The need for dry feet up there is a no-brainer, and our super-light rip-stop dry bags meant that gear stayed dry and warm, safe from the elements and condensation.
We also sponsored an individual Royal Marine on this expedition.
"Trev"
Trev (we'll preserve other details for security purposes) has repaid our Everest sponsorship many times over. Working in the training section of the Royal Marines Commando Training Centre, Trev has been invaluable in assessing our prototypes, suggesting improvements and changes so that our gear meets the stringent requirements of our many Military customers.
He also recently did some promotional work for us - 15,000 feet above California, on an Accelerated Freefall course! One of his mates told us he has now been nicknamed "the Crazy Frog". Trev is on the left of your screen - you can see why this nickname stuck!
Links: [ Royal Marines official website ], [ Royal Navy Official website ].
Team Stelmar
In the 2005 Global Challenge Yacht Race, we were honoured when Team Stelmar chose our DZ range of Dry Bags and Dry Accessories to protect them and their gear from Arctic Seas and Tropical Oceans alike – and all the weather that goes with them!
We are very proud of this sponsorship – to know that our gear is up to the demands of circumnavigating the globe, under sail and in race conditions tells us that our high standards are worth the considerable extra work.
Big thanks to Kate Stainsby for getting involved.
Sebastian Pintar, Austria
Sebastian is our Austrian Mountain and Snow Sports Distributor, so it's not surprising he's a DZ fan! During our meeting with his father Ernst at the Friedrichshafen Outdoor Exhibition in Bavaria this year, Sebastian phoned his Dad to say that he and his pals had just summited the Matterhorn, and were down safely. We later learned that they had done 2 other 4000-metre peaks in the same day! This created a real buzz for all of us - and the word "dude" was definitely over-used!
Guess how they dried their boots out …?
Priya Kaur-Jones
Now the face of Channel 5 news Broadcast, we were fortunate enough to meet Priya when she worked for BBC East Midlands, and broadcast a news story about DZ's success following our global Innovation Award at ISPO.
A few months later, Priya and two friends were attempting a Himalayan trek for Charity and needed some dry bags to ensure their gear stayed dry and protected from the volatile Himalayan weather.
We were delighted she chose to take DZ dry bags with her - and thank her again for her pictures.
[ www.priya.kaur-jones.co.uk ]
Alexandra Tolstoy
Alexandra Tolstoy is one of the greatest Equestrian Adventurers in the world. Author of "Lost Secrets of the Silk Road", Alex has trekked across the Kara Kum Desert, the Steppes of Russia, Kazakhstan … all along the ancient trade route of the Silk traders. It is likely that in her quest Alex has experienced the greatest climatic contrast of all our sponsorships - from temperatures of 40 C in the desert to arctic-style white-out blizzards in the mountains. She is now married to her Russian guide, Shamil, who is of Kossack descent, and who is also a Russian Equestrian Olympian.
Alex wrote to DZ's MD as follows:
Dear Guy,
We can't thank you enough for your fantastic equipment - it has really excelled all our hopes, and made the most huge difference to our expedition.
We were in such a hurry before we left that we didn't really have time to look at the bags properly, but as soon as we got out here we realised how lucky we are!
They are amazing: we use all the big bags for equipment - everything from horse rugs to sleeping bags etc - and the little ones for laptop, cameras etc. Shamil is particularly thrilled with the map cases and has been showing everyone!
The weather has been nightmarish so far - 40C of heat and then terrible rain/winds and snow so it has been particularly important to protect our equipment.
They're also invaluable when we're crossing borders, because we always seem to have to lug our kit backwards and forwards for hours and hours as the border guards have a field day.
I'm so glad we got in touch and sorted this all out as I can't imagine how we coped before!
Thanks again
Alex
You can check out Alex’s adventures - and excellent adventure riding holidays - at [ www.alexandratolstoy.com ].