Blue Goose!

Say hello to G-Mat 135 (AKA "Blue Goose"). Blue 

Blue Goose is a 70/70 G-Mat Rubber Bucky heading out to Jesse Tuesday in San Francisco. This is a mat built for out and out speed with negative rocker and free-breathing internal venting. Jess was keen on maximising pliability whilst having plenty of traction so we have gone with Puraflex 40 grip. The front corners are fully covered to help with hanging on.

This is the second mat I've built for Jesse. His last mat, Sea Schmoo was a Ute built exactly a year earlier. Blue Goose will certainly open up some bottom end stuff for Jesse but with plenty of crossover, will also offer a different angle on his surfing.

Certainly a different ride to a 200/70 Ute. I always look forward to hearing about the experiences with neg rocker from experienced mat surfers.

Cheers

G

PS. After tats in SF? Tuesday Tattoo is your place. 

---

UPDATE: 08/06/2017

Word from Jesse:

"Hey G,

    Got the Goose in the water and she’s brilliant. Fast enough to make sections and has enough bite take the hi-line. She even accelerates and holds well enough to get into the face of a wave when taking off late out in the crumble zone. Thank you again, your mats are definitely worth the wait!

     Jesse"

G-Mat 134 - Making America Inflate Again!

Meet "Glory", a G-Mat Nouveau Racer heading off to Santa Cruz. Glory is the new steed of Alan Whitsett, a mat surfer with a penchant for big and heavy waves.  Alan asked for a pretty distinctive design which, after a little collaboration, we hit bang on. 

Here's what Alan had to say about the design:

"I'm probably the happiest when I'm in the water and my humor and humanity is reflected most...it seems to me that the world needs to see that America still has goodness in it...the abstract use of the star images rather than rigid rows is whimsical...I want to be the ambassador that makes people laugh and smile, to focus on our commonalities rather than our differences." The name "Glory", ha...well it's kind of complicated...a bit personal and a bit political keeping in mind the current regime in Washington."

"My first waves were ridden on a mat in 1958...I was four. When I first paddled out last year on my 4th Gear Flyer at Steamer Lane...and caught that first wave...I remembered how glorious I felt as a four year old...sliding across the water, laughing, giggling, wanting more. The mat for me is a "new-found Glory", a "coming home" if you will. The flag design came after that realization...it just made sense to combine my sense of glory with our flag "Old Glory"

So there you have it. Pretty distinctive mat for a pretty distinctive fella. Glory is a 200/70 set-up built as a free-breather with free elastic rocker and gripped with Puraflex 40. Down the line speed is the go! 

Alan is heading off on a trip to San Jose del Cabo early next month so a Nouveau Racer seems a pretty good pick if things are firing over there. I'm sure Alan will turn a few heads! Hopefully we'll get some stories and pics.

Cheers

G

Bleddy Kernow bound, innum!?

Yes... She is. Although to an ex-pat Aussie who now resides in Newquay in Cornwall.

G-Mat 133 (AKA "Tilda") is a 200/70 G-Mat Ute built for Bill Topham. Bill wanted a stable and predictable feel to his mat so we settled on building Tilda as a wheezer. We've also gone for quite a heavy coating of Sikaflex EBT in grey as grip to help to stabilise the deck. 

Tilda has a free rocker so she is a real all rounder.

Bill has also gone for a rather fetching long sleeve tee. Nice to see G-Mat Custom Surfmats getting to exposure in "Surf City"! ;)

The thing I like most about building mats for people in the UK is the fact that I get to see them in action. I hope to get to surf with Bill at some point. I surf a few spots around Newquay and it's always a pleasure to see experienced wave riders take up the bag of love.

Cheers

G

G-Mat 131

MASSIVE MAT ALERT... MASSIVE MAT ALERT...

This is Warren Pfeiffer's new mat named "Limp Biscuit". Pretty good pun that.

Limp Biscuit is a 70/70 Rubber Bucky with negative rocker. Unsurprisingly, Warren has gone for a free-breather. She is based on Warren's current favourite ride named "Doppleganger".

There is a bit of experimentation here with every dimension across the mat being blown out a little but with I-beam heights being left. Also, a little more length.

What this means is that Doppleganger has more volume. Also, all of the contours are exaggerated so the stagger is increased, the corners a little squarer and the concave a little deeper. All in all, more lift and less grab at the corners means Limp Buiscuit has the potential to fly!

Certainly not a mat for your average matter, but Warren is far from your average matter.

A real experiment this one and has a lot to live up to following Doppleganger but lets see how she fares.

Cheers

G

Grip News

A little update on grip. First off, I've stopped using Sikaflex 11FC+. It's a good sealant and for people in the parts of the world where it's all you can get it's a good option for top-ups but my move to Puraflex 40 means it has become redundant.

Now on to other news. I mentioned a while back that UK DIY chain Screwfix were stocking Sikaflex EBT+. Good news for UK mat surfers because I personally think this is the best sealant for top-ups, whatever your base sealant. I don't know if Scewfix will export but if anyone outside the UK wants to have a go then here is the link:

http://www.screwfix.com/search?search=Sika+Sikaflex+EBT

You'll see that Screwfix are also stocking a wide range of colour too so EBT grip jobs are now available in black, white, grey, beige, brown and clear. Great news!

I'm really please with both of these sealants. They offer good grip, are resilient but not more resilient than a wetsuit (something has to give) and are both VoC free so reduce the environmental impact significantly.

G-Mat Nouveau Racer with Sikaflex EBT+ Clear Grip

Grip jobs can also be pigmented for those looking for other colours too of course.

Any questions please feel free to ask.

Cheers

G

Och Aye! It's Wee Jock McAye!

This is G-Mat 130 (AKA "Jock McAye"), a Nouveau Racer making her way north to the classy reefs and slabs of the Scottish North Coast.

Jock has been built for Steve Griffin, an ex-pat Welshman who it seems has a taste for heavy surf.

I love building mats for people like Steve. He is one of those highly experienced surfers who have given mats a go and really made the commitment to learn the art. In with both fins if you like!

So a bit more on Jock McAye. She is a 200/70 construction with positive rocker to help add a surety to turns in the pocket. Being built with glassy waves in mind, Steve has gone for a free-breather to enhance the sensitivity and responsiveness.

Steve has also opted for a Hestered valve to help to protect his boyish good looks (or that's what he said anyway). The grip is Puraflex 40 and the front corners have been covered to give that extra bit of security during duckdives, punchouts and maulings.

Steve has also gone for a cap and sweatshirt. Getting the design for these nailed nearly took as long planning the mat! Hopefully we'll get to see Steve modelling his new outfit.

I'm really looking forward to hearing about Steve's adventures with Jock McAye. This project has been a real pleasure.

Cheers

G

---

Update: 14/08/2017

Update from Steve:

Jock McAye flies! Doing the job he was designed for in head and a half clean faces. Truly amazing. I'm a very happy man. Two barrels, on one wave and making it out onto the shoulder, I think you could say holding a line. 😁

Thanks Graeme!

Great to hear. That's why I do this. 😊

Bodybagged

Great video from Ozzie Adam Williams (AKA "King Waka") 

I recently did a couple of these for UK Mat  Surfers which went really quickly. More to come down the line. 

Cheers

 G

Bodybags go Fancy!

People may have noticed that a small batch of Bodybags went through to the UK Mat Surfers store recently.

Anyway, they have had a bit of an upgrade. Firstly, I went for some colours other than plain black. These two both had orange decks and one had a black bottom and the other navy. 

The other change is the addition to a bit of grip to the front corners to help to hold on to the mat. The original proto's had canvas decks but 200d decks seem to go better. However, they do get a bit slippery so this grip should fix that.  

Given the change, I am happy to add grip for anyone who had one of the last batch for free [customer pays shipping both ways], or I can coach people through the process of adding grip and will cover the cost of the sealant to do it.

More Bodybags will be along... The best way to get an early heads up if you missed out is to get on the UKMS Mailing List.

Cheers

G

A Tale of 4 Pontoons Pt 2

Ladies and Gents, please say hello to "Pocket Goblin". She's a 200/70 free-breathing Chino Racer, built for highly talented San Diegan, Mark Miller.  

Mark wanted a mat with good hold, but a bit more bottom end. Pocket Goblin should rock these boxes nicely with the easy breathing and also free rocker to allow that balance between down the line speed and responsive turning. 

Pocket Goblin has landed but the SoCal run off means there is a little delay in her maiden voyage.  

Soon though!  

G  

---

FEEDBACK: 23/04/2017

Mat goes great! rode some bombs yesterday.  Nearly ripped off two fingernails holding onto fabric while getting a set in the head paddling back out.  Definitely has a low end but not a top end yet in terms of wave size.  Draws surprisingly stable lines in larger waves.

Mark Miller

---

FEEDBACK: 02/12/2017

This mat works great!  I lent it to [name withheld] a great bubble rider and he loved it.  Watched him fly around on it like the happy silverback he is, by the time I got it back a few months later the grip was smoothed down perfectly for my mobile style.  Riding inflation levels between 90 and 180 degrees and it’s really hauling ass, holding in steeper waves & in bigger waves it really shines.  Stoked! 

Mark Miller

A Tale of 4 Pontoons - Pt 1

Say hello to "Gino the Chino"! She is the first in a bit of a run of 4 pontoon mats and has just set sail from G-Mat Towers to hook up with Graham Gidden on Vancouver Island.

You might remember Graham from HIS TIME WITH PHILEAS.  Graham was the perfect host.

So, moving on to the mat, Gino the Chino is, as you may have guessed, a Chino Racer. He is built with a 200/70 construction, is a complete free-breather and has a free elastic rocker so has a mind to find a line and to commit, giving Graham a secure and dependable ride in those solid, Northern Pacific conditions.

Graham fancied a bit of colour with a brilliant blue bottom and blue logo. The colour of the logo is misleading in these photo's. It is much more blue than it looks.  The deck grip is Puraflex 40 in a pattern of Graham's own design.

Graham has also gone for a bungee fitting to add a little piece of mind should his bear hug fail.

I'm a huge fan of cold water surfing so can't wait to hear about Gino The Chino's adventures.

Bon voyage!

G

Fun Sessions with Bryn and Tim

I had a really good time with with Tim Ciasto and Bryn Dampney on the South Coast of Cornwall near the Devon border. Tim had his camera. Saturday was a session with just me in the water (and a crowd of about 5895)  on my Chino Racer. It had a little grunt (although I was pretty over-gunned). It was also super busy and hugely frustrating. Still, I managed to snag a few away from the pack on my favourite left which was bumpy but fun.

On Sunday, Bryn joined me on the same reef. The waves were really nice early doors and beautifully quiet when we arrived. 

The waves dropped a bit in quality as the tide pushed and Tim turned up with his camera so he definitely missed the best of it but I'm still pretty pleased with what he got. ☺️

It was nice getting the Bodybag out for a couple at the end, although Bodysurfing is probably best done before, not after a 2 1/2 hour session!  

All good fun. Tim has been sniffing around Cornwall of late and will be back. It would be good to get a few more mat riders together for his return.

Cheers

G

A Bit More Noir

Jamie McClellan is something of a connoisseur of surfmats. The UK Mat Surfers king of Social Media likes them light, sensitive and low key. So here's his latest...

G-Mat 126 (AKA "Angela Davis") is a 70/70 Rubber Bucky with negative rocker and a Hestered valve. The grip goes over the corners to help Jamie to hang on which might be handy because this mat is gonna be quick.

She set sail on Tuesday so should make it fit the weekend. 

Let's see how they go. 😀 

G

Going off Grid

I'm off grid until Monday. I'll reply to any emails when I'm back.

 Cheers

G 

Bodybags Are GO!

You may remember a little while ago I built a mini-surfmat called The Body Bag. Here's my post at the time:

https://customsurfmats.com/blog/2016/7/12/a-haaaaaaaand-bag

Following my initial apprehension, I sent that first mat off to be tested by Sean Starkey over at Newport Wedge. His feedback was positive but we both thought that a little more length would be a good idea so that's what came next.

I've built a few proto's using an open weave 500d fabric for the deck and 70d for the I-beams and bottom skin. Unfortunately, the 500d isn't reliable enough but the mats go great! I'm going to be sending these prototypes out to some mat and body surfers to get their heads around but will also be doing a batch of four 200/70 Bodybags for the UK Mat Surfers store.

Here's an edit of a session I had recently with mine.

I'm really excited about these. First couple of go outs, I had it fully pumped. Now I'm finding that 90 degrees is about right. Less than that and it's hard to manage the inflation as you are not covering the mat with your whole body, but who knows where we'll wind up with this. I'm sure better watermen than me will really push the boundaries of what these can do.

Exciting!

Anyway, keep an eye out. These will be for sale via the UK Mat Surfers Store very soon!

Cheers

G

---

UPDATE - 06/01/2017

Bodybags are in stock now and going FAST! Get one from UK Mat Surfers:

https://www.ukmatsurfers.com/warehouse/g-mat-bodybag-minisurfmat

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

It's about that time of year and I'm getting ready to undo all my hard work losing weight so just a quick one to say MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Love to all  

G

Here Come the Vikings!

Ladies and Gents, meet G-Mat 125 (AKA "Oselvar") She is a 200/70 G-Mat Ubercat heading to David Hoke on the East Coast of the US. Oselvar has a positive rocker to help with turns and Sikaflex EBT grip wrapped around the nose to help Dave to hang on in heavy surf.

About the name, Dave told me:

"I am naming the mat "Oselvar" after the Norwegian wood boats that are fast, agile and bend. My Grandfather was an off the boat Norski (Fritz Heede).   I keep in touch with my cousins. 

When I visited last year I got to mat in Hoddevik at Midnight and then go spear fishing.

I got to row a vintage wood boat in Fjaerland. It was used by a minister who rowed among his congregations in the 1920s."

Mat surfing a Norwegian fjord sounds amazing. Spearfishing in Norway?! F*ck that!!!

So where are Dave and Oselvar planning to surf. Dave lives in Pennsylvania and doesn't see much in the way of surf at home. The answer is... Costa Rica. Big, peaky reef waves a long way from dry land to be precise.  

This explains the rocker and the nose grip and Dave's choice of a low volume mat. His Viking ancestry probably explains his attitude to surfing though, I cant wait to hear about this trip!

Cheers

G

The Madgoose!

This mat is a 200/70 G-Mat Ubercat named "The Madgoose". She is the new friend of Hawaiian mat surfer, Dave Monasevitch over on Kauai. You may remeber Dave from his adventures with Phileas.

View fullsize

You'll see in the following 2 shots that Ubercats have pronounced rail hooks and a deep concave up the middle of the bottom. The canting that achieves this also offers an enhanced sense of structure.

As you can see here, The Madgoose sports an elastic rocker to work with the stretched out profile and aid turns, particularly off the bottom in heavy Hawaiian surf.

View fullsize

Dave has also gone for some grip on the front corners. Given the waves he has in mind, who can blame him. Here's his first bit of feedback:

View fullsize

View fullsize

"Aloha G!

Got to try it today, 2-4’ Hawaiian surf. Occasional breakers to 3rd & 4th reef. 1st wave was a  late drop, and I didn’t feel back of the mat soon enough to stay in the pocket and trim the face. It didn’t slide out in the flats though :-D  Once I negotiated the forward-aft through the drop, I felt the open highly evolved form of your Smooth Hold design. But what is the most unique and enjoyable aspect, so far, is it’s ability to climb; even a steep feathering face, and get over the top and out the back.. It was sizable, and kind of a thrill.  Thankfully, do to that hold/climb ability, I managed to stay outside long enough to catch a few good waves…That’s impressive.  I caught an insider and the next clean up sets drove me in past the second reef and then the first reef. The constant hammering to get so far back out to the breakers, indicated that I was done for the day. Didn’t lose her in all that energy, though! Good fun!!! Hope there’s a few waves left tomorrow. :-D

Many Thanks You da Mat  man!,

Dave"

View fullsize

Talented mat rider... Good waves... Pleasure to build...  Have fun Dave!

G

Mat Professor??? Fetch me my Mortarboard!

I recently had some fun doing this article with Mat Arney at Surf Simply.

Many thanks to the photographers who donated shots and also to those who offered shots that weren't used. There were just so many thanks to the huge generosity in our community that they couldn't all be used. 

Cheers

G

Deep Brain Stimulation

Ahoy ladies and gents, this is DBS (Deep Brain Stimulation) a 70/70 Rubber Bucky built for Pete D'Ewart in Washington State in the US of A.

I always enjoy building mats for Pete. He is a real connoisseur and this is his fourth custom G-Mat. You can see the others here:

https://customsurfmats.com/blog/?tag=Chiledub

Pete was actually my first ever customer so it is always a pleasure to build a mat for him.

So back to DBS. As mentioned, she is a Rubber Bucky. 70/70 free breather with a free rocker. Being a Rubber Bucky there is a deep concave up the middle which provides good lift, with the mat being designed to ride on the wide inside pontoon in trim.

The bottom skin and I-beams are made from the very last scraps of the beautiful green 70 denier fabric from my role so Pete is in for a quick sensitive ride.  I can already hear the cries of anguish from those who have fallen in love with the green fabric. Please rest assured that I will get some more when I can.

It looks like the run of good swell continues for the US West coast so Pete should be getting plenty. DBS is more minded towards subtle sensitive low inflation glides than keeping life together in hectic conditions but she will certainly have a prime spot in Pete's quiver, I'm sure.

Cheers

G

---

UPDATE - 03/12/16

Word from Pete:

"DBS, double bag and T landed today.  G-121is a beauty, another fine design realized with obvious attention to detail.  Can't wait to get it wet.  In the meantime, I've inflated DBS well beyond riding hardness to admire the contours indoors.  Thanks.  Your mats more often disappear when I'm on a wave, full body flying."

Happy so far it seems.

G

Not So Iron-Clad

This is a USS Monitor, a G-Mat Rubber bucky built for Carpinterian, Matt Herman.

View fullsize

Matt surfs the waves in the Santa Barbara region, which means points... Lots of points! The locals are also very open to exploring different ways to ride waves so it's a pretty great place to be a mat rider!

View fullsize

View fullsize

This mat has been named after the Iron Clad war ship. Monitor was a high performance, marine craft too, but that's where the similarities stop as G-Mat 122 isn't armour plated! She does have a 200 denier deck with Sikaflex EBT grip though to offer some stability (comparitively).

The original USS Monitor

The Rubber Bucky design was developed with a lot of testing at Rincon so it kinda feels apt whenever I ship one over there. We know the design goes well in those waves!

It sounds like the US Pacific post is doing well for itself at the moment too so she should get her maiden voyage pretty soon!

Cheers

G

View fullsize

---

UPDATE - 24/11/16

Stokes to hear from mat that Ironclad it going well for him. Matt says:

Literally just got out of water now- the mat is all speed.  The negative rocker just pulls you over the face of the steepest drops supper late, giving me tons of speed but also keeping me in the pocket. 

Thanks to @tate_larrick for permission to share the shot of Matt at Rincon.

G

View fullsize

PHOTO: Tate Larrick