Here is a mat for my son, Joe.

Joe is a talented skater and has ridden a mat a bit. More recently has got out on the mat a lot more and has really clicked with the more nuanced aspects of riding, dropping his inflation levels and getting on a high line to make fast sections. His current mat, named “Treble”, is a 200/70 Ute with free elastic rocker and wheezy internal venting. Treble has a bungee fitted for a leash attachment and is also gripped with ClearFix.

Having spent more time on his mat, Joe has a clearer idea of what he wants. 2 key things were more grip and to ditch the bungee (they have their place but he never uses a leash and the extended and reinforced front flange is noticeable. With that in mind, Joe’s new ride is the same build essentially but with Sikaflex EBT grip and no bungee. The additional change is that the red deck material is inelastic so we are restricted to either positive or flat rocker. With those options it is nice to put some variety into the quiver so a positive rocker was the way which will support turns off the rail. We often surf wedgy waves and the stable deck, restricted breather and rocker will really support tighter turns.

So on to the aesthetics. As mentioned, the deck is red and the bottom has been acid dyed in red too.

Red goes faster, right?!

In our house we are big Liverpool FC supporters and Joe wanted to honour this, so a red mat with white trim does that perfectly. We also added a small Liverbird (the Club’s crest) on the left rail along the edge of the front corner grip. The name, which came from Becky (Joe’s mum), is “Kopite”. For those unaware, a Kopite is someone who stands in the Kop, the iconic stand behind the goal at the Walton Breck Road end of the Club’s stadium, Anfield. Perfect name! Not everyone is into football (soccer) and football fans are tribal, but for us as a family, our love of LFC is something that bonds us and we have so many amazing memories supporting this Club, so it means the World to me build this mat for my son.

Kopite is a Christmas present so will be boxed up. Here’s to getting some swell over the Christmas period.

Have fun Webbo. YNWA

Cheers

G

El Duderino!

Here's a mat for mat surfer Sebastian Pleuse.

Seb is a German matter hanging out in SW France who got in on this run of custom mats. We took a bit of time to think about what would suit Seb best. Seb was keen on a stable and versatile ride, so we settled on a Ute (that's two Utes in a row)! We went for a wheezer to help with stability (plus always a good option for a wide range of conditions) as well as a 200/70 construction. As you can see, Seb went for an orange deck with blue logo and grip, a navy bottom skin and a bungee to give the he leash option for the more out of control days!

This mat has a free elastic rocker to keep things versatile.

Seb also had a mat bag and a G-Mat Apparel hoodie, which he is stoked on.

I spoke to Seb about his journey into matsurfing, and he said:

“I’m in my early fifties and have been a surfer for more than 30 years. Four years ago I first heard of mat surfing while watching random videos on Youtube. I love to try all the water sports so I could not resist and ordered my first mat. I really loved mat surfing from the first wave on. Being so close to the water on the mat gave me an unknown feeling of speed, which I never had on a bodyboard. And with the mat being so soft and comfy it was so easy on the back at the same time. Just like surfing a sofa, really. Pulling into little close-out tubes I could never have taken on a surfboard, I felt happy like a little kid. It was so good!

When my first mat gave out on me, I looked for a different manufacturer and found G-Mat. I finally made it into one of the slots. Lucky me!

You’ve done a wonderful job building my new „El Duderino. During the process, we exchanged several emails, and I felt really heard with my wishes and questions. My new toy has finally arrived. It looks super cool, and the build quality is outstanding. Unfortunately the ocean is flat at the moment. I can’t wait for the next swell to take this stunning mat for a ride”

— Sebastian Pleuse

Stoked to hear your happy Seb! With swell in the Atlantic now hopefully you'll get some!

As Seb said, he has named this mat El Duderino. Why? Because f*cking cowabunga is why!

Cheers

G

Stinga

Been a little while but Ive been busy with a couple of prototype ideas, a couple of BodyBags and a wee trip away, but I have been cracking on with a couple of custom orders too.

Say hello to "Stinga," a G-Mat Ute lovingly hand crafted for Aussie mat surfer Dany Gruosso. Dany has been riding mats consistently for a while now and has well and truely got the bug. Dany says:

“Riding a surf mat is pure joy, and it’s the camaraderie within our unique brotherhood and sisterhood that makes it even better. I was introduced to mat riding by a local surf legend who turned to mats after being unable to surf on a board anymore. It took me a week or two to get the hang of steering the mat, but once I did, I was hooked. Since then, I’ve never stopped grinning on every wave I catch.

There’s something magical about mat riding—the speed, the connection with the energy of the wave, and the fact that no wave is too small to enjoy. The crew I ride with are all about those early sessions, hitting the water 20-30 minutes before first light. It forces you to tune into your other senses, creating an almost otherworldly experience on some mornings. Mat riding isn’t just about the waves; it’s about the stoke that comes from embracing every moment in the water with like-minded mates.”

— Dany Gruosso

That's a pretty perfect description and sounds like Dany and I favour the same super early sessions. Best part of the day.

So on to Stinga, she's a Ute as mentioned. We went back and forth on models before settling on the Ute. Dany opted for a wheezer to help stabilize the 70d deck. He's also gone for a free elastic rocker to make things super versatile. Stinga really is a perfect all-round lightweight mat.

As you might have noticed, there is a slight bleed on the G logo. AAAAAAARGH! I spoke to Dany about options and neither of us were keen on ditching the skin. I'd have used it somehow but its important to me to be as efficient as I can with these materials. We settled on a free tee. My wife Becky called the blem a birth mark which is a nice touch.

So Stinga is headed down-under and I'm excited ti hear how Dany finds her.

Have fun Dany.

Cheers

G

Loligo

Meet "Loligo". A G-Mat Ute built for Mark Garcia (not to be confused with Mark Sheridan Garcia who had a mat recently).

Mark has been riding mats for a long time and I'm proud to say that he has been riding mine for years now. I built Mark a Ute back in 2016 named Narwhal. More recently Mark has been surfing a 200/70 G-Mat RFT-M and has really settled into that size of mat so we agreed to scale his new ride around that.

Mark loves his RFT so has opted for a Ute (the mothrr of the RFT) to expand his quiver, rather than replace his mat. Mark wanted Loligo to give a different ride though, so with that in mind we went for a 70d deck and upped the internal venting to make Loligo a free-breather. We also went for a negative elastic rocker.

Loligo is named after a species of squid native to the waters around Mark's Californian home. A pretty apt name then on several levels!

Loligo should land with Mark any moment. Have fun Mark!

Cheers

G

Ruby

Ruby Ruby Ruby Ruby! Aaahahhahahharrrahhgh!

Yes this is Ruby, a G-Mat Ute built for Newquay based Neale Bergman. Neal won the raffle at the recent Fringe Film night hostel by Stevo and Helen from The Temple of Fringe Surf Shop. The night raised stacks of money for Stoked Stroke Survivors and I was honoured to play a small part in that.

So on to all this... Neale doesn't have a ton of mat surfing experience but he's an absolute hunk and body surfs as well as riding bellyboards so has what it takes. With that in mind a mat that is relatively straightforward to jump on to and get going was the best bet and a 200/70 Ute was the perfect choice. The Ute is the basis for the stock G-Mat RFT that Tom Jennings builds and is a perfect all rounder working well in pretty much any conditions. Like the RFT, Ruby is a wheezer which helps keep things feeling stable.

Of course being a custom, Ruby is built to be a perfect fit for Neale. The red deck, white bottom, white grip combo looks super clean too. I really like this mat.

We were hoping to do a personal delivery and get a wave but the surf looks appalling so Ruby is in the post. I'm going to be down in Newquay at the beginning of August for the showing of Innermost Limits of Pure Fun being hosted by Andy Fielding, so plan to get in with the Newquay area mat crew then.

It's been a fun build this. Hopefully Neale's partner Hayley will grab an RFT now 😎

Have fun Neale!

Cheers

G

Yin Yang Glider

Say hello to "Yin Yang Glider", a custom G-Mat Ute built for Aussie mat surfer Richard Sandilands.

Richard lives around Byron in NSW and over the years had shared several sessions hidden from the hoards in the less crowded corners. This is where he first saw GG riding a mat. Like many of us Richard bought a mat, got hooked and then suddenly realised that he hadn't ridden a board in ages!

Richard says:

“There was a small coterie of other mat surfers that gathered at Wategos most mornings in George’s orbit, a loose entourage of older eccentric guys, refugees from the more crowded Byron breaks. Sometimes Warren [Pfeiffer] would come up from Yamba and it was always fun to share the waves with him too.

And the year Jamie [McClellan] was living up the coast and would come to Byron to surf from time to time.”

— Richard Sandilands

There is a strong crew of good mat surfers around that way on the better breaks too so I always like sending a mat that way.

So on to Yin Yang Glider. This mat is a 200/70 Ute. Richard was interested in a stable and versatile mat so she is built as a wheezer which can be useful in choppy conditions and also on bigger days.

Richard says:

“I have chosen what I believe to be a versatile and durable set of specs for this mat, leaning on the more conservative side perhaps to allow for a mat that will surf in a variety of conditions here including bumpier surf especially on cross-shore days at the Pass that can confound the longboard riders and create opportunities for mat riders in what would otherwise be impossibly crowded and competitive conditions.”

— Richard Sandilands

The name came to mind for Richard based on the colour. I really do love monochrome mats. Seriously.... I proper love 'em and Yin Yang Glider is the first in a run of three of them. 🖤🤍

So Yin Yang Glider had embarked on her journey down under. I'm excited to hear how this adventure pans out.

Have fun Richard!

Cheers

G

Cliodnha

Meet Cliodhna, a mat for the final of the three very local people in this run.

Mags Harding (mother of Joe Harding whom a good number of readers will know) lives pretty close to me and is a regular long-standing fixture at the local South Devon surf spots. Mags has ridden mats a bit in the past but these have usually been too big for her (most recently borrowing a XL G-Mat 5 Star General from Alex Williams  which is basically a camp bed for Mags!)

We talked about what Mags was after and she said she wanted an all rounder that would work well in surf around 2-3ft having mulled over the options we settled on a G-Mat Ute as this will cover everything and comfortably accommodate bigger surf as Mags develops her mat riding.

We went for a 200/70 build with a pink acid dyed deck and navy bottom. Mags asked for grey grip and I was wondering how it would look with the pink... Great is eanswer!

Internally we have restricted the airflow. "Wheezers" retain their shape well offering stability, along with the 200d deck, so offers Mags the opportunity to get by the inflation down.

As for the name, Mags tells me that in Cork Cliodhna is known as the Goddess of love and beauty.. She was also a Queen of the Banshees in Irish folklore and seems a perfect name for a mat that will be screaming down the line!

We said we really must have a South Devon matmeet so putting the call out to any mat surfers hiding out there!

Have fun Mags! It's been a fun build and I'm looking forward to seeing you out there!

Cheers

G