Django Pour Cloclo

The latest out of the workshop is an RB-JMC for Clovis Donizetti. This mat has all the sexy speed and glide ingredients with a neg rocker, 70/70 construction and super-free-breather venting. She has a Hestered valve to protect Clovis’s rugged looks too.

You might notice that Django looks a little familiar, She was inspired by a mat I built for myself named Night Rider. In reality this similarity is a bit of an illusion. The studio pics of Night Rider make her look like she has deep red grip, it is actually pink.

Not so with Django. Django is full on red. That’s taken a lot of pigment so a slow cure but looks very nice.

On to Clovis briefly. I was introduced to Clovis by mutual friend, Andrew Buck. ‘Cloclo’ is an extraordinarily talented longboarder hailing from Biarritz in SW France. He is noted for having a super smooth style, not wasting an iota of effort. The epitome of functional style and stylish function.

I was honoured to hook Clovis up with one of my Raft G1 mats for promo shots which came through courtesy of Thomas Lodin. Unsurprisingly, when Clovis jumped on a mat he looked like he’d been at it for years.

Clovis riding a Raft G1 Surfmat - Photo by Thimas Lodin

People often think bodyboarders are the natural cousins of mat surfing but the reality is that coming from bodyboarding is a steep learning curve with a lot to unlearn. Talented longboard/mid-length surfers tend to make the transition far more easily and when you think about it that makes sense. Attention to nuance, micro-management of trim, finding flow and working with the wave rather than working to impose yourself on it.; So when you’re talking about a longboarder with Clovis’s talent, no wonder he has found a home on the mat.

Clovis riding a Raft G1 Surfmat - Photo by Thimas Lodin

Django is en route to Biarritz as I type and should be there by the middle of next week. Let’s hope she and Clovis get some swell.

Bon voyage!

G