The eat.sleep.surf story
The idea
In 2009 mates Dylan Brayshaw and Rian Cope were two young blokes from the Sunshine Coast who wanted to travel differently.
Both meeting at University and sharing many surf trips down the coast, they wanted to chase waves their own way — on bikes, with boards strapped to the frame, sleeping rough and searching for waves.
Inspired by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman in The Long Way Down TV Show, that raw motorcycle adventure from Scotland to South Africa. It lit a fire. “Why not do something like that,” they thought, “but for bodyboarding?”
One night over a couple of drinks the idea stuck: they would cycle and surf from Banda Aceh right down to Bali — 2500 kilometres across Sumatra and Java. No support crew. No fancy gear. Just two mates, two loaded bikes, and a simple plan: ride, find waves, eat, sleep, repeat.
Back then they had never seen anyone record this kind of trip. No one was out there filming how the waves were found, the punctures in the rain, the laughs when everything went wrong, the quiet mornings paddling out to perfect uncrowded waves, or the nights sleeping rough and sharing meals with locals. So they grabbed a camera and started filming.
Four months later they had lived it all: volcanic climbs, jungle tracks, monster reef breaks in Lagundi Bay, cheap nasi goreng at roadside stalls, and that pure feeling of freedom when it’s just you and your mate on the open road.
From those raw adventures, eat.sleep.surf was born.
It’s not a polished brand. We aren't the best surfers but we want to tell a story of adventure and hope that you should follow through with your ideas, even the wildest one.
It’s the story of two mates who chose the hard way because it felt like the right way. Bicycle touring that tests you.
Empty waves, good laughs, and the kind of memories that stick with you forever.
If you’re the type who wants to travel with a bit more stoke and a lot less comfort, you’re already part of the crew.
You’ll never know unless you go.
2009 - eat.sleep.surf - Indonesia (Series 1) 4 Episodes
Filmed on Sony MiniDV cam corders
2011 - eat.sleep.surf distributed by Ananda Media across Satlite TV
2012 - New Zealand Bike Tour - 10 Days
2013 (Dylan) - Sendiri - Solo bike/surf trip from Bali to Sumbawa (40min film)
2014 - eat.sleep.surf - Taiwan (Series 2) 4 Episodes
2014 (Rian) – “Muru” – Crossing the Australian Gibson & Great Sandy Deserts
2015 - eat.sleep.surf distributed by Ananda Media across Amazon Video and Garage entertainment
Timeline
DYLAN BRAYSHAW
Dylan Brayshaw is a Gold Coast-based graphic designer, surf photographer and video editor. He created eat.sleep.surf with Rian Cope to document raw bike-and-surf adventures across Indonesia and Taiwan, shot and edited all the series, and runs a successful surf photography YouTube channel with 19.5k subscribers.
eat.sleep.surf is a passion project that was brought to life in 2009 with good mate Rian Cope. Inspired by the TV Show Long Way Round Dylan wanted to capture the adventure of getting to remote waves and telling that story. No one was going to help them make the show so they did it all themselves.
Trip planning, producing, sorting out bike equipment, filming, editing and distributing the first DVD sales in 2009, Dylan and Rian did it all.
RIAN COPE
Rian Cope is a photojournalist and documentary producer, working globally across remote-location shoots and human-focused stories. His background spans news, documentary, commercial, and broadcast work, with clients ranging from media outlets and NGOs to brands, government bodies, and streaming platforms.
He first stepped into storytelling through Eat.Sleep.Surf (Prime Video/AppleTV+), a travel-meets-adventure TV series he co-created and hosted, exploring remote coastlines and the communities that live by them. That early mix of culture, travel, and documentary filmmaking still runs through his work today.
Rian’s photography blends cinematic framing with raw, unfiltered moments - often focusing on culture, humanitarian crisis, climate change, migration, conflict and human interest. Whether working with digital or film cameras, his approach is hands-on and grounded in trust, with a strong emphasis on connection and authenticity.
Alongside his photojournalism, Rian continues to work in video, branded content, sport, and travel - bringing the same focus on story and substance to each project. This broad experience informs his shift toward more narrative-driven work: stories that amplify unheard voices, highlight environmental and social issues, and capture life in places often overlooked.
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