Bumbarreler - Getting Deeper...

Say hello to my 150th custom mat!!!

This is a 200/70 G-Mat Ute named Bumbarreler by her owner, ex-pat Maddie Gordon. 

Maddie hails from the sarf eas' of the England but has given up her life as an Essex Girl to move to the US West Coast. Specifically, Santa Barbara. 

(Disclaimer, G-Mat Surfmats has no idea whether Maddie is actually from Essex, has ever lived in Essex or has ever visited Essex).

So, why Bumbarreler? Well, Maddie seems to have the bum-barrel really nailed down and felt that the name might spur her on to going deeper. 

mADDIE GETTING A bUM bARREL AT HOME. pHOTO BY wILL aDLER

Bumbarreler will be setting sail for the US dreckly and will be Maddie before the end of the week. Loks like some decent surf over there at the moment so it shouldn't be long at all before we see some head barrels from Maddie!

Also, people might not be aware but Maddie is a super talented artist. Take a look at her work via her Etsy shop here:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/maddiegordonart

Cheers

G

Important G-Mat News

Hello again all.

Another update on the waiting list. Unfortunately, the complexities in my life are ongoing and it doesn't really look practical to keep building custom mats commercially, at least for the foreseeable future. Given that, I will need to wrap up the waiting list and won't be taking new custom orders for the time being. I am going to build mats for the 10 longest waiters on the list.

Beyond this I will be focusing on building the 5 Star General and Bodybags for UK Mat Surfers. I can just work on them as and when I have time and they are MUCH quicker to build using templates and also saving time on collaboration and design from scratch.

My plan is to build these in 3 scaled sizes to cover riders between 5' 7" and up to 6' 4" which covers most people and means people can get a perfect fit.

The 5SG is basically a Ute with a teeny bit more length to extend the bottom end of it's range. I am really proud of it. It's fast with great hold and covers pretty much all conditions. I sold the last one I owned and have missed her ever since! The construction is exactly the same as with custom mats. Ask Adam "King Waka"  Williams from Scumm if you want more info on them.

http://kingwakaskorner.blogspot.co.uk/2016/09/officer-on-deck.html

In time I'll build them in 200/70 and 70/70 construction. I'll be doing some different colours too.

If you want to get a 5 Star General then get on the UK Mat Surfers mailing list:

https://www.ukmatsurfers.com/mailing-list/

I'm really sorry for any disappointment caused to anyone missing out on a custom mat. Hopefully a time will come where I have the space to get back to doing them commercially, but with my day to day work being stretched between employed work and self-employment plus needing to make time for increased family demands that's not practical right now.

Cheers

G

Boogie Woogie!

Say hello to G-Mar 149 AKA "Boogie Woogie". Boogie Woogie is a G-Mat Chino Racer built for Vincent Ulmann. Vincent is lucky enough to live in South West France, close to Biarritz. 

Lucky Vincent!

Sooo... He was after a mat that would see him right in most size waves but with a penchant for hollow waves with power (remember where he lives!). Given that, we agreed that a Chino Racer would be a good fit. 

Vincent has gone for a 200/70 build with free rocker, a Hestered valve, and leash bungee fitting.

In addition, he has opted to go with restricted venting (ie. Boogie Woogie is a "wheezer") to keep things stable.

She set sail today so should be there early next week. The Western Coast of Europe is full of waves right now so hopefully Vincent will be able to get into some soon!

Cheers

G

Waiting List News

Hello all. 

First off, I want to wish everyone a happy new year. 

Secondly, I have a bit of news. I need to close the waiting list for  custom mats for a while so won't be able to take new orders.

People who have been waiting for a custom mat for a long time will already be aware but the waiting time for a Custom G-Mat is currently around 2 years! This is due to having a various and increased demands on my time plus just having a really long list! (and needing to resist the urge to sacrifice needed down time) 

I'm blown away by the demand but it is a long wait by anyone's standards and I can't give any clear time scales to people waiting. As a result, I am going to have to close the waiting list whilst I catch up.

Once I get the waiting list back under control then I can work out where I am and how to manage things. Maybe a first-come-first-served set-up. Anyway, that's something to think about down the line.

I will still be building 5 Star Generals and Bodybags for UK Mat Surfers periodically so you can still get hold of G-Mats.

Thanks for all the support and have a great 2018!

Cheers

G 

Tangerine Dream

Say hello to G-Mat 148 (AKA "Tangerine Dream"). She is a Ute built for Matt Cox over here in the UK. 

Tangerine dream has a 3 tone acid dye dip with clear Sikaflex EBT deck grip. The front corners have black EBT to help when dragging her under sets. Matt has also gone with a Hestered Valve to protect his beautiful face.

Tangerine Dream is a 70/70 construction. Free-breathing ventilation in combo with the lightweight construction and free rocker means this gal is gonna be pretty quick! 

Matt riding his old G-Mat - Pic by Kana Wraith

Matt will hopefully get a go out at the end of this week. We have some swell on the way and a windo of favourable wind (although that's more changeable than words can say these days!)

Anyone interested in getting together for that should get to the Black Rock end of Widemouth Bay Nr Bude for first light this Friday. Looks like a few mats might be getting together!

Ride report coming soon...

Cheers

G

Shearwater - Custom Surfmat Taiwan Bound!

This is Shearwater, a G-Mat Ute built for Chris Goodwin. I'm sure people will remember the classic shot of Chris riding his Chino Racer The Onion on a Typhoon Bomb in Japan.

Photo by AJ Goodwin

A Shearwater glides over the open ocean. Pic By John Harrison

Shearwater is a 70/70 build with free rocker and complete free breather. Chris was keen to add some range to his quiver so we figured a lighter mat with an all round configuration would be a perfect addition.

I'm really stoked to have been able to build another mat for Chris. He and his wife AJ are a cool as it gets. Living the dream and travelling around East Asia, soaking up the culture and introducing the lineups to the joy of Surfmats.

Currently they are in Taiwan. I have to admit, I did enjoy the irony of sending a custom surfmat over there!

Chris is a really solid (or floppy?) mat rider and I really value his feedback. I'm really excited to hear about the adventures he has with Shearwater.

Cheers

G

Rattler... Ozzie Ozzie Ozzie!!!

Say hello to G-Mat 145 (AKA "Rattler"). Rattler is the third mat I've built for UK based Ozzie, Henry Marfleet. I was over the moon to build this mat as Henry's previous mats have both been built for solid waves. He goes on annual trips to Indo so you can see why.

So back to Rattler; she's a 200/70 Rubber Bucky. Henry wanted to get in touch with his Ozzie roots so opted for a bit of colour... Green deck, yellow logo and yellow bottom. We went for clear grip to to add a touch of frosty goodness and let the green really show through.

Rattler has a subtle neg rocker to work with the deeper concaved of the Rubber Bucky design to make what is going to be a fast and slippy mat. Perfect for Henry's frequent trips to Cornwall. (We always prepare ourselves for a week of onshore choss when he says he's coming down!).

Henry has also ordered a sexy green tee with a yellow logo. That's currently in the works so will be sent on later. Looking forward to getting in with Henry and Rattler next time he's down.

Cheers

G