Mr Bubble

Here's a mat for my good friend and mat surfing legend, Andrew Stephen Buck (AKA ASB or "Buck").

Andrew has played a huge part in the evolution of my designs over the years. The Rubber Bucky model was designed based on his feedback over a number of prototypes. Following this the design was further tweaked based on feedback from Jamie McClellan to create the RB-JMC, and this is what Andrew has been riding since.

You may have noticed as well that Andrew is a big fan of animal themed mats and this one is no exception. Andrew was keen to go with a crab this time around and this is the design we came up with. In consultation with his nieces, this mat was named Mr Bubble. Pretty much the perfect name for a mat!

As for all the technical jimbo-jambo, Mr Bubble is an RB-JMC super-free-breather with negative elastic rocker... About as fast and sensitive as possible. We have also gone with a low profile spring valve for Andrew to try, as well as a bungee for potential pool encounters.

Mr Bubble gets collected tomorrow and should be in Carpinteria before the end of the week so going well. Not that there's any surf by the looks of it but hey ho... The waves will be back.

Have fun Andrew.

Cheers

G

Jungle

Here is a mat for Nicholas Wolken and it's one I've really enjoyed building!

Nico is a well known and very talented snowboarder, co-owner of Korua Shapes Snowboards and a very good surfer. He has been surfing a mat for a few years too and very well. He has an RFT and I have built him a Nouveau Racer named San-B for the juicy days, which has seen some heavy waves.

Last year (or maybe the year before), Nico borrowed an RB-JMC named Caligula from Andrew Buck. Andrew is significantly shorter than Nico so obviously the mat he borrowed was... Well... Short!

Nonetheless, Nico was impressed with the speed and glide and ordered himself an RFT2 (the stock version of the RB-JMC) to have a mat that fit him, but then got a deposit in for a custom. So that left us with a question... What to build?!

We considered a few options. Maybe a Chino Racer to add some variety to the all-rounder part of the quiver? Maybe a Rubber Bucky to have a big ol' glider. But after some deliberation the answer because obvious. An RB-JMC Ultralight!

As a 70/40 Super-Free-Breather, this mat feels, and is very delicate. The criminally light grip job only adds to this with this mat being extremodonculously sensitive. I love the slow drifting levitation of these builds. Rarely pulled out of the bag, save for those rare glassy, dry hair, running peeler, under head high days. In those conditions the sensation is incredible! We added 1/4" to the length just to add a bit of lift at the tail. With Nico's other mats, that's some quiver!

And the name of this mat? Jungle

Nico has a trip to Oz planned. He says:

“Hey G,

Really excited to get grooved in on Jungle . Hoping Australia delivers this August — we’ll be taking it on a full East Coast road trip. Mostly, I’m just looking forward to sharing the experience with some fellow mat enthusiasts. Can’t wait to see what it feels like!”

— Nicolas Wolken

I'm really excited to hear about the adventures of Jungle and Nico. Have fun Nico and big up the Jungle massive!

Cheers

G

Last Light

This is Last Light. A G-Mat RB-JMC built for master potter, Gus McDiarmid https://panpottery.com/

This is the second mat built for Gus and is very similar. The key difference is slightly increased venting. Gus rides some fast waves and being able to get on a high line and down the line quickly is a real help.

Gus rides mats well (see my recent post of a shot of Gus by Nashy Surf Photos @nashysphotos), and this construction and venting hands much more fine tuned control to the rider.

Last Light has a negative elastic rocker and Hestered mini-Boston valve.

So, Last Light is heading off to Oz to hit some left hand points.

Have fun Gus!

Cheers

G

Snowflake

Another rainy-day project and the next addition to my monochrome quiver is a 70/70 RB-JMC named "Snowflake".

Showflake is a super-free-breather with negative elastic rocker. I have gone fairly light with the grip as top-ups take about the same time as re-waxing a board, so no bother, and the increased maleability is worth it.

There's not much more to say other than she's the perfect quiver mate for my new Nouveau Racer named Dusty, my 5 Star General and my BodyBag mini-mat. I have a couple more in mind and have a week off with strong winds and rain in the mix so might get something done.

I've just finished a mat for that I'll put up in a couple of days. Colin shares my love of the low-key. It looks slick...

Anyway, cowabunga and all that!

Cheers

G

Horsemouth

Say hello to Horsemouth, a 70/70 RB-JMC built for the super talented Bryce Young.

Bryce doesn't need much introduction but for those who don't know him, he is the son of Nat Young and brother of Beau. Bryce comes from an impressive surfing heritage and is an incredible surfer.

If people haven't yet seen the Need Essentials film Following The Fall line, then I insist you do! You will see why I was so excited to build a mat for Bryce. The whole thing is mind-blowing, but for me, the section where Bryce is riding his Alaia is the best example of this kind of wave riding I have ever seen. I mean by a long way. This kind of inate talent leaves us normies in a state of confused awe!

So as I say... I was very excited when Bryce hit me up for a mat.

We had a chat and Bryce has been riding a mat that his dad picked up from George Greenough. We were left with a dilemma around the basic model and materials. On the one hand, these Aquaman types just jump on anything and surf it like they've been doing it for years. On the other, we didn't want to build something that felt 'too' different. I hit up George to get some info on the mat that Bryce had been riding and then after some umming and ahing we hit the spot (I hope) with a 70/70 RB-JMC Super-Free-Breather with negative elastic rocker, scaled to Bryce's height and body dimensions but with a nod to his current mat.

Horsemouth will be a big change but I'm hopeful will fit like a glove. Just a different glove.

Onto the aesthetics, Horsemouth (named after reggae legend Leroy "Horsemouth" Wallace) has been dyed with a spruce green acid dye. The process has created subtle aqua and blue streaks across the beam of the mat that look lovely (if I say so myself!). Then we have gone with a green, yellow and red fade logo on the deck. It kinda looks like an apple... Yum yum!

I'm super excited to get Horsemouth and Bryce hooked up. We're just trying to figure where the mat is headed as he is super mobile currently. Oh and Bryce has just had a birthday so the perfect time for a new mat!

It's been a pleasure Bryce! Have fun mate.

Cheers

G

First Light

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

Arrakis

Meet “Arrakis”… New aquatic companion to the surfmat obsessed James Prangnell.

In case you hadn’t picked it up, James is obsessed with surfmats. You might have come across him on social media (@greatestthingsinceslicedbread7 on Instagram) oozing stoke and good vibes. I can appreciate his appreciation… I have been obsessed with mats myself for over 15 years.

James was an early customer of the G-Mat RFT range buying a 200/70 RFT-M during the early runs with the life-jacket valves and deck logo. He has a number of mats and loves his RFT so when he got in on the current run of custom mats he had a clear plan in mind to get an RB-JMC. He wanted his two G-Mats to match and asked me to copy the logo height (smaller than the standard G-Mat deck logo) and also the RFT Series font for the number… Check!

Arrakis is a 70/70 build with negative rocker and free-breather venting. James has opted to Hester the valve as well. Arrakis might look like James’s RFT but is very different. James plans to find some open faced waves to let his new ride fly!

So why Arrakis? James says:

“I had a bit of a think and I’ve come up with the name ‘Arrakis’.

It’s simple really, I like the word itself. I do love the word’s connection to spice, in the story of Dune, and also where the flow state my mind goes into when I am mat surfing. It doesn’t have to be that deep though. I just like ‘Arrakis’!”

— James Prangnell

Arrakis is currently en route to Oz to hook up with James. It’s been a joy collaborating on this build and I’m looking forward to hearing how things work out.

Have fun James!

Cheers

G

Bulgy the Whale

It's Bulgy the Whale Kids!

Surfmat supremo Andrew Stephen Buck is heading over to the UK and having only palmed off protos to him in recent times we agreed it was high time we did something just for him. People who have seen his previous mats (Fluffy Sunshine, Comrade Napoleon and Mick Dundee) will be aware of his penchant for animal pool toy themed mats.

With that all in mind Bulgy was born! Bulgy was an actual toy inflatable whale so the perfect name for this ride!

Bulgy (this one) is a 70/70 RB-JMC with negative rocker and super-free-breather venting. I stepped up the venting in the super-free at the beginning of the year and think Andrew will appreciate it. Bulgy has been painted with acid dye and then mouth, eyes, fins and blowhole stenciled. A time consuming build but I'm super pleased with the result.

You might also notice the bungee up front and be thinking "WTF?! Buck with a leash?!" Don't worry, no such nonsense. Andrew is coming over to the UK and we're meeting up at the Wave pool on July 4th of all dates! Hopefully someone will get some footage.

We're hoping we'll get some actual real waves whilst he's over. Maybe a flight down to Newquay airport is in order

Anyway... Bulgy is a thing now.

Have fun ASB

Cheers

G

Pilot Pyle

Here's a mat built for Clarence Martin.

Clarence is a 12 year old who surfs boards well and is looking to expand his quiver. His mum said:

“Clarence surfs Rincon and Malibu First Point. He loves to boogieboard and wanted to try a mat that would allow more speed and mobility. Watching Buck ride a mat on days that Rincon was too big to log was the biggest contributor to his interest. Andrew [@aslbuck ] and Chet [@chet.taylor.chet.taylor] made it look too fun, he couldn’t resist wanting to try one.”

— Jen Martin

They certainly do make it look fun! I'm hoping to spend a bit of time surfing with then this summer!

So on to the mat. Clarence and Jen spoke to Andrew Buck who knows Clarence well and felt he is ready to jump in the deep end so the mat (which he has named Pilot Pyle) is a 70/70 RB-JMC super-free-breather with negative elastic rocker. Given Clarence's age, we have scaled a little large to give some growing room.

I'm really excited to see a young lad coming to the mat and am excited to see how Clarence develops as a mat surfer.

Have fun mate!

Cheers

G

Florence

A mat headed to Oz for the super-mat-stoked and very skilled Johanna Brebner. Jo is a Kiwi who frequents the breaks around Byron and Noosa and surfs boards and mats to a very high standard. Jo took Derek Hynd's mat, Donald Campbell out for it's maiden voyage and texted full of joy, particularly because she was on the list to get a mat herself. Certainly made the design job easier... Just build that!

OK...

So this is Florence. Like Donald Campbell, Florence is a 70/70 RB-JMC. She has a negative elastic rocker and is a super-free-breather. In other words, an unrestricted, highly responsive mat designed to fly like a dementor guided by the subtle manipulation from an intuitive surfer... Perfect.

Jo was particularly taken by a mat named Selin built for Helen Derici and opted for the same colour scheme. A lovely choice for sure.

I stopped short of signing off with a daisy and in the name of individuality opted for a fat Yellow and white mats just seen to demand such things.

Anyway, Florence and Jo will be hooking up soon. I can't wait to see how they get on.

Have fun Jo.

Cheers

G

Black Pearl

So here's the third in the run of three monochrome mats; a G-Mat RB-JMC named "Black Pearl".

This badgeresque beauty is a 70/70 super-free-breather built for California based matsurfer Johno Ross who lives around San Clemente.

I asked Johno about his journey into mats and he said:

“I got into surf matting because I like to go fast! The quality of ride seems to be in the 8-10 point range all the time. An eighteen inch wave is essentially overhead. You can fly on the water and still do extreme maneuvers. It is cheating! I have never had a bad session on my airbag; I believe that is impossible to happen. You can still feel the speed and glide from simply going straight. Hydroplaning in big waves is incredibly fun. I love riding my mat, it’s the best!”

— Johnathan Ross

It is the best mate. No argument there.

Johno is a good mat surfer and was keen to get on a RB-JMC. We have gone for the neg rocker set up to maximise speed. A lightweight and technical ride.

He's up to it.

As I've said before I really do love the clean lines of monochrome mats. Reminds me of my days as a black wetsuit, white board kinda guy.

Black Pearl is in transit as I type. I'm looking forward to hearing how Johno goes.

Have fun mate. Arrrrrrr!

Cheers

G

Patronus

My good friend and mat surfing veteran Matt Pierce got in line for this run of mats. I'm stoked to finally be able to hook Matt up with an RB-JMC and when he said he wanted all white my monochrome vibes got all tingly (I did say I liked it). Matt didn't just want a white mat to paddle out in hardcore lineups, cross his arms, avoid eye contact and never smile.

No...

He wanted a white mat to attach LED's and light that fecker up like a bleddy UFO for night surfing!

Lovely stuff!!!

With that in mind Patronus has a gap in the grip on the central pontoon so a strip of lights will go down there. Matt is going to attach velcro for this. He has already done this a bit with an orange Ute I built him named El Gnaranja and it looks bonkers, particularly in some of the river waves Matt surfs.

Apart from that though, Matt is a really good matsurfer so I'm super excited to hear what he makes of the RB-JMC. He's one of those reactive, controlled-chaos looking watermen who just pull rad shiz out of nowhere and brings a lot of fun to his mat surfing. I have had the honour of sharing waves with Matt and James Sowell at Doho and it was a real laugh.

Onto Patronus, she is a 70/70 Super-Free-Breather with negative rocker. I think Matt will notice and love the completely free spot movement in this mat. It's not for everyone but I really think it will be for him. He has gone for a deck valve. The grip is clear to maximise the light up factor.

As for the name a Patronus is a mythical protective creature from the Harry Potter stories. Matt says his animal is a pelican so again, perfect colour scheme.

Light shows aside, Matt is due to take a trip to hang out with a lovely long right hand point break later this year and Patronus is just gonna love that! Can't wait to see it.

Have fun Matt! It's weird shipping a mat to Idaho!

Cheers

G

The Prone Ranger

Say hello the "The Prone Ranger", a G-Mat RB-JMC built for musician a prone surfing obsessive Kris Simeon. Kris lives in Oxnard, California and has got into mats over the last couple of year.

When I say into mats, I mean REALLY into mats.

What's more Kris is quickly picking up the art of riding at lower inflations and when he got onto the list for this round he was immediatly on to me with waht he was after... A 70/70 Super-Free-Wheezer RB-JMC.

Before we get onto The Prone Ranger though, I asked Kris about his surfing and journey into mats but bofore that, about his brand Los Boogiemen. Kris said:

“I got into bodyboarding late in my 20’s. I kinda stopped for years. I was never that good. Mostly just terrified. The pandemic was the best time to get back into things or learn new things. I was inspired by that documentary series 100 foot wave on hbo. I figured if they could surf 30-40 ft regularly, I can probably handle 2-3 feet at my local breaks haha. Dug out my old equipment. Was paddling with some buddies. Kinda came up with a joke name called Los Boogiemen. I made the art, and that art resonated with the bodyboarding community. I started making shirts and sending them worldwide.

Being the curious person I am, it’s become more than a brand to me. It’s more like a blog where I get to share my adventures in the water. I got a mat and was pretty frustrated for months. I swore it off for half a year. Only this past summer did I get back into it and commit to it fully. Loving the journey in the magic towel itself.”

— Kris Simeon

So then onto The Prone Ranger and Kris wanted an acid dye burnt orange and a few added stenciled decals. I'm pretty stoked on the finish. I think it would have been easy to overload the mat with all of these but they sit well.

The build itself was the real challenge. I remember Dale Solomonson telling me about sub-zero temps in the Pacific North West where the ambient temps led to surprise under-cooked welds. I thought we were immune to this in the UK South West but we had a stint of -7C mornings and The Prone Ranger became the first mat I have built to suffer this fate! I always test my welds and when I heard the dreaded PING! PING! PING! I new there were wobbles afoot.

NOOOOOOOO.....

Fear not though. 3 hours of surfmat surgery top up welds with the hand iron and The Prone Ranger is ready for action! Kris was good enough for me to add my own secondary name and this mat is now known as G-Mat 286 (AKA "The Prone Ranger" (AAKA "Survivor of the Ice Age")).

Go well Prone Ranger. God speed.

Have fun Kris!

Cheers

G

Tiddler

So this run is an interesting one with 3 people from fairly local to me getting a deposit in. Cue cries of "fix" but it really wasn't. I shift around the timings that I send out emails each time and I think this batch just landed right for them.

Anyway, this mat is the first of the ones staying local and is an RB-JMC built for South Devon surfer, James Borne who people might know as @fringe_devon 

I see James around our local spots and he has been talking about mats for a little while. Here's what he has to say:

“So I’m very fortunate to have a few pretty decent waves close to home; one of those waves being Bantham - with its strong longboarding community. Mat surfing has been in my peripheral vision for years, with a few friends dipping in and out of riding them. But it’s only been the last few years, I’ve really begun stepping off the foam more and trying to pursue different types of surf craft as a way to avoid the crowds and alternatives to get some speed and glide.

I can clearly remember a session a few years ago, at one of the local spots, G was out on his mat. I just remember how fast he seemed to be going on a fairly average day of waves and how much I was struggling on my chosen equipment that day. Decision made, it was time to explore mats. With that, Tiddler is here.”

— James Borne

And yes this mat is named Tiddler! Named after Jamie's kid's favourite bedtime book (that time of day really is magical as a parent).

We talked about design and James was keen to jump straight in with a 70/70 RB-JMC. Tiddler is. A free-breather with negative elastic rocker so James really is going all out from the off. Fair play! He's also gone for a bungee for the wave pool option. After the last couple of summers we've had that's not a bad idea.

James stopped by to pick up Tiddler and is looking at an outing in local onshore junk tomorrow. I'm excited to hear how he goes!

Have fun and let's get a few waves mate!

Cheers

G

Football!!!!!!!!!!!

Say hello to a G-Mat RB-JMC built for Poem Surf craft shaper, Jimmy O’Brien.

Jimmy hails from Far Rockaway in New York and is a skilled mat surfer so came with a clear sense of what he was after. I always enjoy building mats for people who build surf craft. I really enjoy building mats for everyone but it is fun to talk through the concepts behind mats and the hydrodynamics with someone who spends their days thinking about it.

Jimmy came up with the name "Football" for his mat. Here why:

“Okay G, I’ve been thinking about this all day. I’m really proud to say that my wife and I are expecting a child, and we just found out yesterday that it’s a girl. I am absolutely thrilled and can’t wait to be a girl-dad. Up to this point we didn’t know what we were having, and we hadn’t really told anyone besides close family, so we referred to her as “Football” as a sort of code word and because, quite frankly, we had no idea what the hell to expect! Well, that moniker isn’t really necessary now, but we’ve grown quite fond of it anyways, so in honor of our daughter-on-the-way, I’d like to name the mat Football. Mat surfing has brought me immense joy—pushing me to unlearn things, relax, and embrace subtlety and nuance over brute strength and flash. I have a feeling fatherhood is going to be much the same. I hope the name will remind me to relax, soften myself, and keep my eyes open to whatever lies ahead—whether it’s riding a wave or living the life I am so blessed to have.”

— Jimmy O'Brien

Beautiful stuff. Congratulations Team OB!

So back to Football the Surfmat, the mat is a 70/70 RB-JMC with negative elastic rocker. We settled on a free-breather in the end as Jimmy surfs some bumpy waves at times so the slight restriction compared to the super-free will help the mat keep its shape.

That said, this is still a free-breather and football will be a super-sensitive fast ride that will get down the line quick!

I can't wait to see Jimmy and Football in the water.

Cheers

G

Adam Has Found His Mojo

So then, mat 2 of 2 for Adam Goldin named "Mojo".

Mojo is a G-Mat RB-JMC. As you can see Adam has gone for a bit of colour with a fade to a lighter coloured tail. In terms of all the gubbins, Mojo is a 70/70 super-free-breather. She has a negative elastic rocker (as opposed to her quiver mate Yaroomba's positive rocker) so is prime for those points around Adam's part of the world.

All in all I would say Adam has a really balanced quiver here. Solid hold , stability and responsive rail to rail mobility with Yaroomba and balls out frictionless down the line speed with Mojo. I'm really looking forward to hearing how he goes with Mojo. I've already had some feedback on Yaroomba which made me a very happy man!

It's been a fun project working on these. Have fun mate!

Cheers

G

Stealie

Here's a mat for Jim Freeman.

As you may have guessed, Jim is something of a Grateful Dead fan and he came with a pretty clear idea of what he wanted. An RB-JMC Super-free-breather with negative elastic rocker and a bungee. He also had some pretty intricate acid dye work in mind.

You might remember I recently posted a mat called Pinliner trying out a new method of creating boundaries with sealants? Well now you know why I tried that out.

Preparation is everything.

I asked Jim a bit about his matsurfing journey and he said:

“I started “lying down on the job” around 60 after breaking a hip. Have a wonderful mat guru in Steiny who showed me the ropes. Got hooked. Been lusting after RB-JMC after the viral Andrew Buck video. I love the Grateful Dead and put “Stealie’s” (Steal your Face) logos on my boards so when G was up to that challenge….”

— Jim Freeman

We're both pretty pleased with how Stealie has come out. I was a little anxious about using the Grateful Dead artwork but a quick Google showed that they are pretty casual on that. Nonetheless I felt uncomfortable taking money for their design so did the Stealie logo gratis.

Despite his Instagram handle @jimmy_cant_surf Jim is a decent matsurfer and I can't wait to hear how he goes with Stealie.

Have fun Jim!

Cheers

G

Pinliner - Trying New Things

TRAVELLING BACK IN TIME!!!

No... Not really but the eagle eyed among you might notice that the numbering on this mat is out of sync. The reason for this is that I number mats as I design them and this one was designed a while back and then other things took priority.

So what's the deal here? Well this mat is a bit of a prototype. It's a 70/70 RB-JMC super-free-breather with neg rocker, but with a much squarer tail. The RB-JMC design has a squarer tail then nose anyway, but this mat has that taken to an extreme. The squarer tail of the RB-JMC releases more readily giving less drag, thus more speed. This also encourages the tail to drop slightly allowing the mat to sit in its naturally faster position on the high line. This mat is taking that concept to its extreme to test its limits.

I have actually already built one for Andrew Stephen Buck and he has surfed it once. The feedback is that it might be too much with the hard corner possibly inviting cavitation but as Andrew said himself, one surf isn't enough. Also I really believe that as a builder it is important to test designs myself to get live feedback.I have left space between the end of the grip and the corners on both Buck's mat and mine to re-shape the tail if this really doesn't work.

The other part of this experiment is the aesthetic. I have had an idea about using sealant pinlines and stenciled designs to create a barrier for acid dye. Hard edges are pretty much impossible with acid dye on nylon. When I got an order for an intricate design (that one's on the way) it was obvious that it was time to try it out. Not really "pin" lines on this mat but I had the idea for a name in mind as tribute to the legend of Moonlight Glassing, Peter St Pierre who's internet handle was "Pinliner". My efforts are not a patch on anything Pete does so maybe more of an insult. Sorry mate!

Anyway, Pinliner is going to be my new mat. Whether this new iteration is what I stick with or I just reweld the tail back to what already ain't broke will have to be seen.

Cheers

G

Nepenthe

This is a mat I've been really excited to build. Chris Cravey is a super talented surfer and mat rider hailing from Santa Cruz. You have almost certainly seen him in the Jack Coleman mat flick, Circum Vehicle. Check the opening few waves of Chris riding his VPT mat

Chris is also a very skilled surfboard shaper so knows what's what. I always love building mats for shapers/designers. They share my nerdy interest in all the hydrodynamics and technical aspects of design. They also ask the kind of questions that prompt reflection and new thinking as well as sniffing out bullshit so you have to be legit.

Anyway, on to the mat. Chris has gone for an RB-JMC 70/70 Super-free-Breather with neg rocker. Not really a surprise given his talents. Chris wants as much control in his hands as possible (including the decision to let go). We had a lengthy discussion around the scaling and tinkering which I'm fairly certain we have right. We shall see!

Chris has named his mat "Nepenthe" saying:

“As far as the name goes, it’s pretty hard to have a mat session and walk away without a smile. As I’ve ridden more of the lighter weight/free breather ones I’ve had these feelings on waves that no other surfcraft has offered and it’s totally consuming. Nepenthe is known as a mystical drug that wards off sorrow or pain and somehow thats stuck in my head lately so it seemed like a good fit. How can you think about anything when you’re blissed out of your mind flying across a wall of water on an air bag?”

— Chris Cravey

Perfectly put. What a name! I can't wait to see how Chris and Nepenthe get on. Chris has a trip on the horizon so let's see how they go.

And finally if you haven't, do watch Circum Vehicle on YouTube. And if you have, watch it again!

Cheers

G

---

FEEDBACK - Sept 2023

Unburdened & Becoming

Here's is a mat for Mark "Tom" Underwood that I built during a week off in February.

Tom has been after a mat for a while and with the upcoming Wave meet coming up on April 16th (still a slot or two available by the way. Advanced level, 11am on the right) he was keen to get a mat with a bungee set-up for a leash. Also handy for long-swim avoidance on some of the sketchier reefs on big days. Tom is a big fan of the 70/70 neg rocker RB-JMC having been riding one exclusively for some time. He's a fine mat surfer (fine everything surfer to be honest) and really does fit the performance of the RB-JMC.

Tom has called his mat Unburdened and Becoming saying:

“It’s a song lyric line by Bon iver. A band that me sons all went to see live. It resonates with me. It’s positive and life affirming, like matting.”

— Mark Underwood

Tom has been out and about with Unburdened and Becoming in his local area of South Devon and South East Cornwall on the seemingly endless run of swell we're having. With this cold snap the Arctic camo grip is pretty appropriate!

Have fun Tom!

Cheers

G