UltraLight G-Mats

So then, having taken time to test Ultra Lightweight mats myself and under the bellies of some highly talented riders I have come to a decision about these things.

I’m going to start with clarification of what I mean by Ultra Lightweight. There are two iterations of these:

• 70/40 construction - 70 denier deck material with 40 denier I-beams and bottom skin.

• 70/70 ULW (40) - Standard 70 denier deck material with 40 denier I-beams and a 70d bottom skin with a ‘lick coat’ of TPU giving a very lightweight material similar to overall weight (or GSM) of the 40d.

Just to clarify the GSM stuff above, that stands for Grams per Square Metre which is accounts for the weight of the nylon and the thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) coating combined.

The conclusion from riding these mats is that they feel lovely for low inflation riding but are very differnt from standard 70/70 lightweight mats:

Firstly, you feel everything and the mat has a higher top-end speed than the same design built with slightly heavier materials.

Secondly, they have a slower action due to the elasticity of the fabric than standard 70/70 mats so you get a real pelican glide feel in a straight line, however they are less responsive through turns.

Thirdly, the material is weak and therefore durability is low.

So what does all that mean then? Well, it means I will make them available to customers but there are some important considerations. Firstly, unless you are very comfortable riding a lightweight 70/70 mat at low inflation then this wouldn’t be for you. Also, if you are looking for an everyday mat then these aren’t that. The UltraLights will be lucky to last a year being hauled under waves, repetitively death-gripped and bounced around in chop.

However, for small to medium sized surf with smooth faces, long walls and dry hair paddleouts these can’t be beaten in my opinion and as those days are a rarity for most of us, an UltraLight mat is a good addition to the quiver that should last a while if cared for properly.

Unlike my other mats though, I will not be offering the 2 year warranty. These are what they are. Also I’m not into making disposable mats so these really do need to be kept for what they are suited to.

Wonderful things though…

Cheers

G

Caballito!

A quick post to show off G-Mat 242 (AKA "Caballito") a RB-JMC built for Steve Halpin @fringesurfing

Stevo is heading to winter in Peru and is going to be living the highlife surfing a right hand point break for months on end. With this in mind, he wanted a mat with a bungee for attaching a leash to deal with the very strong winds as well as avoiding a really long swim if he let's the mat go. He needed a mat in a hurry so I took advantage of a bit of down time to crank this number out quick!

Caballito is a copy of Stevo's previous mat named "Mat Le Blanc" but with 2 tweaks. Firstly, cutting in a negative elastic rocker and secondly increasing the venting inside to make Caballito a super-free-breather. Stevo has been riding a mat for a while now so time to step up. 😎

The initial ride report sounds good. Looking forward to hearing more and seeing some pics/footage.

Have a great winter Stevo!

Cheers

G

Cardiac Abnormality Express

This is a mat for Mariah Ernst. Mariah got in on the last round of orders and probably for the best. You might remember that a while back, Mariah lost hold of her favourite mat Jamu Jamu leading to her ride taking a trip across the coral at Uluwatu. I did some serious surgery at the time which held up for some time but alas the leaks just crept in.

So on to this mat named Cardiac Abnormality Express. Mariah had a bit of a health scare a while back. Don’t worry, she’s fine, but a significant event in her life. What better way to mark that and the journey moving on from that experience than to get yourself a new mat! And Mariah is the perfect mat surfer… Keep it simple, have fun and spread the love. Perfect.

Cardiac Abnormality Express is basically a rebirth of Jamu Jamu. Given the waves Mariah surfs in Indo a Nouveau Racer is ideal. The free elastic rocker keeps things moving but stretches cleanly into a smooth curve for turns and the combo of 200 denier deck and wheezy venting inside keeps things stable when things get bonkers. The Nouveau Racer design offers a lot of hold so all in all, hollow powerful waves are covered. Mariah has also gone for a mottled pink deck that I do think looks perdy.

Cardiac Abnormality Express is on the way to Indo now. Have fun you two!

Cheers

G

Bucca Dhu

Wazzon ‘ere then bey?!

Bucca Dhu is the Cornish God of the winter and the dark. So what better name for a mat for the Cornish Lord of Darkness himself, Ian “Piskian” Wraith. Ian is a fine mat surfer and one of my oldest mat riding friends. A mentor to me when I first started out in the journey of flaccid flow. Bucca Dhu sports Cornish black and gold colour scheme with the 15 balls of the Cornish coat of arms on the rail. All in all, pretty Cornish this mat!

Ian is a fine mat surfer and one of my oldest mat riding friends. A mentor to me when I first started out in the journey of flacid flow.

So what’s the deal with Bucca Dhu? Well, I’m building a handful of prototypes to send to a few people to test. Two in Oz and then Ian. These are 70/70 ULW (40) construction; Standard 70 denier deck, 70d ultra lightweight bottom skin (very thin TPU coating) and 40d I-beams. Also a super-free-breather with negative rocker.

I have already built myself one of these proto’s (see G-Mat 238) and it goes great. Feels similar in weight to a 70/40 although a little crisper but also so far, no leaks at the seams although it is early days.  This is why I am sending out a handful to different riders who ride mats well but also very differently and in different conditions.

Ian is coming back to the UK from Japan where he lives with his family in early November so he can grab Bucca Dhu in person and we can share a few waves. It’s been too long so I’m looking forward to that!

Cheers

G

Red Rider

Here’s a mat for US East Coast mat surfer, Joe McEachern.

Joe has been riding mats for around 2-3 years. He says he has nurtured a developing interest in riding waves in different ways or late. When we were designing Joe’s mat he went on to say:

“There are very few mat surfers in New England that I’ve seen.

The first time out on the mat was demoralizing, but fortunately, I’d say things progressed to fun pretty quickly. As I started catching waves regularly I was absolutely loving it and full on committed to mat surfing as much as I possibly could year round. I really like the sensation I get on the waves but also the satisfaction of learning all the nuances of it. I feel like New England it’s a great place to ride a mat because sometimes the conditions aren’t great and the waves are inconsistent but I can always make the best of things on the mat.

Can’t wait to try out the Red Rider! The hurricane swells are on the way and it should be a great all around mat for the conditions here!”

— Joe McEachern

So on to Joe’s mat then. Joe was keen on an all rounder that would manage all that the New England coastline will through at him. After some discussion we agreed on a 200/70 Ute. Joe has gone for red and white (which pleases me as a Liverpool FC fan) and has named his mat “Red Rider”.

Red Rider is a wheezer with free rocker. The combo of a 200d deck and restricted air flow will make for a mat that holds it’s shape in choppy conditions, even at lower inflation levels.

Joe has had Red Rider for a couple of weeks now and I was pleased to get some feedback and a photo from him after his first go out:

“Just got out of the water. 4 hours! The mat is fantastic! Very happy with it. Could do anything I wanted. Caught lots of waves, could hold a nice high line, and could go fast. Awesome!

Fits great. It’s interesting. One of the other mats I have looks to be almost the same size. Very close. But the Ute feels bigger/wider in a very good way. And much lighter feeling. Very happy.

Thanks very much! ”

— Joe McEachern

That really is the kind of feedback I like to hear.

Thanks Joe!

Cheers

G

Prototypes

R&D - Proto 1 of 2. 70/70 ULW RB-JMC

Following on from the seam failures of the 40d material after heavy use I am experimenting with 70 denier nylon Taffeta with a lick coat of TPU. The feel is very light and very pliable. The intention here is a base material that will remain airtight but will offer highly pliable material for riding at lower inflation levels.

Too early to tell if it is a success yet but looks extremely promising and rides great!

---

Prototype 2 of 2. 70/70 ULW (40) RB-JMC.

This mat is identical to the last apart from the colours. It has the same 70d deck and 70d ULW bottom skin. The big difference is this one has 40 denier I-beams. The feel is noticeable. I've put a couple of experienced mat surfers on both but blind to the difference between the two and the feedback on feel has been consistent. This one feels very light and ever malleable.

The run of surf over here has been appalling so not had a proper test yet. Fingers crossed soon. Right now this feels like a win but time is needed for testing.

UPDATE 11/09/2022

Having ridden both the 70/70 ULW is definitely a lighter option than a standard 70/70 and a nice step up between a 70/70 and 70/70 ULW (40)..

The 40d I-beam mat is super light. Easily feels as light as a 70/40 and is amazing to ride!. The job now is to ride this mat a lot to see how it goes but so far, holds air.

Cheers

G

Jambo

Say hello to “Jambo”, an RB-JMC built for mat obsessed Scotsman, Gary Villa.

Gary got into mat surfing a couple of years ago or so along with his partner Helen. A very experienced surfer of many years standing, Gary is a man after my own heart… Find something really hard to do that you know other people do well and then commit hard to learning it.  It is a route to fulfillment in the end to my mind. Picking the high-hanging fruit.

I’ve surfed a few times with Gary as he lives in Cornwall these days. Each session I’ve had with him I have noticed a significant improvement in his mat riding ability and when he managed to get in with a deposit after several attempts it was clear that there was an obvious choice of mat for him. To be honest, had Gary got in earlier he would have had a less advanced mat than he has now so maybe fate (but more likely luck!)

So, then onto Jambo.

We discussed what Gary was after and a burgundy(ish) dye job top and bottom was the go. The end result was more purple but that’s the joy of acid dyes! The photos took a fair bit of editing to get the colour right. I don’t know what it is about this colour but it was hard to photograph. This is a close  enough match. With Gary’s level of ability now it was time to step up from his 5 Star General.

Gary rides his mat with low air and likes the sensitive feel so a 70/70 was the go. Gary was initially being a bit cautious but I talked him into going all out with a super-free-breather and neg rocker and when we met to get him and Jambo together (all be it in very small waves) he had no problem getting Jambo going and he really noticed the difference.

Always stoked to build a mat that I will see ridden in the flesh. Have fun Gary. Let’s hope we get some proper waves soon!

Cheers

 G