Gwahir

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Meet Gwaihir, a G-Mat Nouveau Racer built for New England mat surfer, Ryan Kleinert.

I'm sure people are aware of Ryan, but in case you're not, he absolutely charges on a mat. Gwaihir is the third mat I've built for Ryan with his first two (Starchaser and Starchaser 2) being RB-JMC's. Starchaser was blown out to sea when Ryan was surfing solid 10ft barrels, hence the second coming. So you see what I mean when I say Ryan charges on a mat!

With these days in mind, Gwaihir was born..The Nouveau Racer is my gunniest model and with the 200d deck and restricted breathing will feel much more stable. It is a design that gives you a lot of confidence on big days, so is perfect for those dredging winter New England waves. Although the Nouveau Racer definitely had a bottom end to it, in bigger and more powerful surf it's a very fast design so I think naming Gwaihir after the King of the Great Eagles in Tolkein's Lord of the Rings is apt.

As you can see, Gwaihir is in Ryan's trademark hot fuschia with white grip. We've Hestered the valve too so all in all a pretty good looking mat. I showed Gwahir at the Fish Fry in Crackington Haven, North Cornwall, so thank you so much to Ryan for being kind enough to let me show Gwaihir there before shipping.

Finally, people might be wondering how Ryan has got in on the order book so regularly. Well, he said that after missing the first email of two when I opened the order book last, he just sat on his laptop all night ready to pounce on the second email! With dedication like that I'm stoked to build Ryan a mat!

So as I say, I'm excited to show Gwaihir at the Fish Fry on Saturday (it will be great to see people and both Tom @rftsurfmats and I will be there). Following that, Gwaihir will be flying off to the US East Coast to get into some winter swells.

Have fun Ryan!

Cheers

G

El Duderino!

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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

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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

First Light

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This is a G-Mat RB-JMC named "First Light" built for Aussie mat surfer and super-talented potter, Gus McDiarmid (see Pan Pottery).

Gus one of the crop of talented Noosa mat surfers. He is a tall fella and is also of a relatively streamlined build so we had to think carefully around scaling his mat to match his height; not be too wide for his frame but retaining an aspect ratio that allows the mat to still be an RB-JMC. In short, simply whacking a bit of extra length on isn't enough to achieve these things! Nonetheless, I'm very hopeful we got there in the end. There is only one way to find out of course!

Gus has spent a bit of time in South Devon, UK (where I now live) and it was at my South Coast local that he first got into mats. He said:

“Jim Newitt pulled a mat out and surfed the left corner of Chally in 2008. When I got back home to Australia, I ordered one straight away. It’s been ecstatic joy ever since.

There is so much to say about the mat, but ultimately it’s the feeling of pure joy and the fun I get when matting, that is what I love most about it. The Noosa mat crew is dynamic and most sessions are comedic. Five mats on a set wave is the highlight of this year!

Ben (Zubkevych) and I live on the same street and we like it to hit it early. The time we like to get in is 20 minutes before first light, hence the name.

Thanks G, and thanks for stretching this one out! Long live “First Light.”
— Gus McDiarmid

Long live indeed! First Light is a super-free-breather with an elastic neg rocker so built to go very fast. She is perfect for those long Noosa rights. Gus was inspired by James Tanner's mat named Crumbs colour-wise and I think it's a fine choice.

I'm really excited to hear how things work out with First Light. Have fun Gus!

Cheers

G

Loligo

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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

Ellie 2

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Here is"Ellie 2", a G-Mat Nouveau Racer built for Aussie matsurfer, Peter Abbott.

I agreed to squeeze Pete in for a mat a while back after his first mat from me, Ellie, fell victim to the seemingly increasing peril of talentless loggers getting in the way and either going belly up right in front of someone riding (if you're caught inside paddle for the wash and take what's coming to you) or letting riderless lumps plow through the line up because they "don't need a leash"!

Sorry for the rant but take responsibility for yourselves you f*cknubbins!

[exhale]

So... Onto Ellie 2. She's a 200/70 wheezer built to feel like a trustworthy r stable ide on critical waves. Pete surfs some bigger hollow surf and has found that the Nouveau Racer design fitted this perfectly. He was keen to go with a red deck again. The material I have now is different to the stuff I had before with this red being a deeper kind of cherry colour. It really is very nice. The original Ellie had a black bottom skin but having chatted with Pete we agreed on navy. It's much a little more malleable (a more apt word than "flex" which I've seen a bit lately) and therefore faster.

Other than that we haven't changed a thing.

Ellie 2 is en route right now and Pete has some travel planned so I'm looking forward to hearing about Ellie 2's adventures!

Have fun Pete fun Pete and watch out for the kooks!

Cheers

G