G-Mats 73 and 75

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I'm VERY proud to have had the opportunity to build a couple of mats for one of mat surfing's truly great guys.

Tim Ciasto Photo: Mike Holland

Swede, Tim Ciasto is a great film maker, Photographer and a very solid mat rider. If you don't know him, UK Mat Surfers published a Here & Now interview with Tim last year which is well worth a read:

http://www.ukmatsurfers.com/tim-ciasto

Tim recently asked me to build him a mat to film from, asking for a bungee fitting for leashes and, perhaps, to hang stuff off. After some discussion, Tim opted for a Rubber Bucky. And then one became 2, because Tim is a solid mat rider so why have a leash on those days when you're not filming, eh?  And so it was that Geburtstag Bonus and FunWell were born.

Both mats are 200/70 free-breathers and, as you can see, Tim is a fan of black on black for grip and logos.  Geburtstag Bonus has a blue bottom skin. Very nice fabric this. Super pliable. FunWell is the same but all black which has a slightly denser weave and has the bungee fitting..

Tim is coming over to see us and get some waves so will be grabbing these in person. I always love surfing with people on their maiden voyages of mats that I have built so I'm pretty stoked. 

Cheers

G

Objet Volant non Identifié

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There have been some strange events afoot of late. First off, the sighting from mat grom Joe Webster of the Matsquatch in South East Cornwall, UK.

Then, as if that's not enough, an OVNI (French for UFO) has been sighted heading south from the area towards South West France.

We have our best man, Peter Mission on the case.  He's going to take a good look into what's what with this phenomenon. Photo evidence seems to indicate that the OVNI looks very similar to a G-Mat Chino Racer. 

Who'd have thought it!!!

So,we await word from Pete for more info.

Believe...

G

Soixante Neuf

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Double Entendes are go!!!!!!!!!!

Here's Peter "Chiledub" D'Ewart's latest mat, a 200/70 Chino Racer with a Hestered valve and Sikaflex 11 FC deck grip.

This is G-Mat 69 (ooh er!) whom Pete has named "Fast & Bulbous" (yuk yuk!).

Pete tells me that he's planning to slip it into some glistening tubes (fnar fnar!!!) in So Cal in a week so the Courier is under strict instruction to GET THE MAT TO PETE IN TIME!!!!!!!!!

Anyway, that is the double entendre mat out of the way.

[The world breathes a collective sigh of relief]

Onward.

Cheers

G

Tees and Hoods

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I'm really stoked to say that customers are now able to add a quality tee or hood to their order when buying a mat. 

These tees are top quality Gildan garments with the G-Mat logo individually cut and vinyl printed by the good people of the Cornish T-Shirt Factory. What this means is that you can pick your colours for both the garment and the print.

Custom exclusive clothing!

Bar a couple of pressies that have gone out, the only way to get one of these is with a custom mat. 

Cheers

G

G-Mat 70 - Keep the Faith

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Here is my first mat of 2015. I'm honoured to have been able to build G-Mat 70 for So Cal Surf Photographer, Joe Ewing who has named his new ride "Faith".

G-Mat 70 (AKA "Faith")

Faith is a 200/70 G-Mat Ute. Joe wanted an easier paddle so she has a flat rocker to help on that front and will also see this mat get down the line in a hurry.  The grip is Sikaflex 11FC+ in white with a grey logo. 

Joe has opted for a bungee leash attachment too.

Anyway, back to Joe, those who know him lill be aware that he's a talented surfer great photographer. You can see his work here:

http://joeewing.printroom.com/pro/ewing/default.asp

Have fun Joe.

Cheers

G

 

An Unexpectedly Low Bottom

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Word has come in from Warren Pfeiffer that his Chino Racer, named Trax, is finding good lines in some weaker surf. Although not having quite the bottom end glide of his other 2 G-Mats, Trax is finding her way through  some weaker inside sections, getting far more water time than expected in over the Aussie summer.

Warren Pfeiffer - G-Mat Chino Racer

I've found similar results over the last couple of sessions. I've ridden my Chino Racer, Turd Surfer, in some of the recent solid swells and found myself getting into a good glide as waves backed off on the inside. I initially put this down to the experimental rocker profile that Turd Surfer has has, but Trax has a full on elastic rocker. The conclusion, then, is that this model actually has a much better bottom end than we initially thought. As a result, I've edited the Slide Guide to reflect this.

With our solid run of surf continuing in the Northern Hemisphere, I'm looking forward to testing the top end a bit more over the coming weeks.

Cheers

G

Introducing - THE CHINO RACER

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You will have seen pics of the latest model before, I'm sure. I'm pleased to announce that this 4-Pontoon model has now been tested thoroughly. The verdict... It loves good powerful waves (hence the pun on "Rhino Chaser" for which I make only a moderate apology). Here's the blurb:

G-MAT CHINO RACER

The 4 pontoon Chino Racer is the “gun” of the G-Mat range, being the choice for waves overhead and bigger, or heavier and hollow smaller surf. Tested in solid conditions, the feedback has universally been that this mat needs a decent wave to get going but when it does, it is really quick from the off, giving a very assured and predictable hold. Warren Pfeiffer has described this model as “feeling like it is locked on rails”.

The mat is relatively narrow and the 4 pontoon design reduces the overall volume making it easier to get under waves.  The I-Beam configuration through the middle pontoons features 2 lower I-beams with a slightly taller central I-Beam giving a concave through the bottom and increased stability through the centre line.

200/70 configuration (200 denier deck and 70 denier bottom skin). 

Pretty much all conditions covered then.

With a number of models of mat now in the G-Mat range, I've knocked out a wee diagram to help customers to think about what might best suit their needs. I call it the "Slide Guide".

Happy New Year!!!

G