From Jeremy

 

 

 Canadian Man. 54, Swims 2,000 Miles In 75 Day By Riverboard Down Alaska's Longest River

 

 

From Ara

 

Hi Paul,

I was just reading your Surfmatters post from Joe in Mass and have a suggestion for him? Over the years I've experimented with the same issue he's describing. For matting cold NE water in the Winter the very best type of mittens are ones that have quality built in sharkskin material for the palms. Hyperflex 6mm or 7mm oven mitts are by far the very best example I have found.

With very best wishes,

Ara P

RI

From Joe

 

Paul. Question for you. I just bought some new mittens because it’s so damn cold here in Massachusetts and they just slide off the Mat. I was using a different brand glove and lobster claw thing before and they gripped fine. Have you ever heard of this?  Any recommendations for something I could put on the mits to help them grip the mat better?  I figured I’d check with you before I went out and bought another pair of mits. FYI I’ve been riding my mat all the time. I love it!  Having so much fun!

 

------------------------------------

 I just ordered 7mm gloves from a diving store. Honestly I think gloves may be better for holding on anyway. If they don’t work I’ll try coating them with something. Thanks 

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Hey Paul. Just thought I’d give you an update in case anyone else ever has the same issue. The gloves I got were a little slippery as well. I have this stuff called Blobb which you have probably heard of. It’s for surf related repairs and it’s a little tacky when dry so i put it on the finger tips and palms of the gloves. I made sure it was textured to help grip. It works great. No problems holding on. Probably holds better than my bare hands. 

Joe

 

From Hal

 

Aloha Paul,

      My good friend and neighbor has been going thru' some old photos and he sent me this pic of

himself with his very first white sea bass.

 The first time I saw it I was busy looking at the fish and I missed

the mats in the background.

Taken at Poche, circa 1955 or thereabouts.

Stay Safe

HF

From Cory

 

Hi Paul,

Just wanted to reach out and thank you for your masterful surfmat craftsmanship. I've been riding my Standard for nearly 2 months now in SF and I just can't get enough of it! Many great sessions already in big and small conditions. I think I've enjoyed the smaller days more, where I can really explore the capabilities of the mat. I'm certainly still a beginner getting the hang of it, and the learning process has been pure joy.

Anywho, yesterday I was out with a friend who was riding a Fatty, so we traded off for a few waves and I got to give it a try. I was surprised by the amount of control it allowed me. I was able to make some cuts and turns I hadn't yet achieved on the Standard. It's possible it was the quality of that particular wave, the low inflation, or any number of variables. After a couple waves I said to myself - that's it, I want another mat...

In all honesty, I'll probably end up with all 3 in my quiver eventually. But I won't get my 3rd mat until I get my 2nd, so I hope you can share some insight on what that should be!

Thanks again! I'm definitely a 4GF lifer now. PS - I attached a clip of one of my first waves I caught on the Standard at Fort Point, hope you'll enjoy :)

Cory

From Josh Edwards and Steiny

 

A panel from the Michael Dormer Hot Curl comics. No idea the date, but maybe late 60's???

More on Dormer here and here...

From Amanda

 

Hi Paul:

I really enjoy zipping down tall, peaky waves that give me a big drop and then let me ride the foam all the way in. I'm stronger kicking than paddling, so I'm most often off the back of the mat to get out, although at times when the swell is calm, I try to paddle as well. I'm open to any model and think, especially with snowboarding season being a bust this year, I could build up a bit of a quiver I've tried a few other mats but none work for me like yours do, so maybe I need to become a collector!

I ride my bike down to the surf each day and never have an audience or a camera, so the only pic I have is of my beloved mat and fins—no action shots yet! I mat with John Webb who also rocks a Standard, so we'll have to find someone to get a shot of us together some morning. 

Thanks again for everything, Paul! 

Joy to you and Gloria,

Amanda

RIP Rob Pollard

Hi Paul,

Hope all is well with you, I’m writing to share some sad news about the passing of Rob Pollard.

He loved your surfcraft, and convinced many of us to give the mat a chance. The ocean gave him peace and hopefulness, and he always wanted to arrange a mat meet to introduce this awesome sport to people. 

I’ve attached a few of my favorite pics of Rob  - hoping to arrange a mat meet and paddle out in the future. 

Chris 

Thoughts from Dirk Brandts...

Rob loved mat riding, that thing which we all share. The ocean and the mats were a source of happiness and elation for him, and he shared it so often with us, his far-flung community of kindred spirits. We mourn his death, while at the same time remember that ecstatic quality that he experienced with his friends, in the waves, the light, the motion, and the overall atmosphere which served to give his spirit a lift.

I don’t like to introduce platitudes, but I often think of the one, "Do not cry because they are past! Smile, because they once were!” Kind of a difficult Stoic point of view, but it’s there for the pondering.

 ---------------------------------------------------

From Jonathan Hess... 

I heard this AM. Had a surf on a morning that went from clear and blue to grey pearl overcast and heartbreakingly sad.

I kept thinking of this sweet, sweet guy who just gushed positivity, joy and gratitude.

Kept thinking the word "guileless". A lot of men keep their enthusiasms muted to seem "cool"... surfers are really hung up on "cool". Self included.

Rob didn't have that lame filter, not a bit of it. He FROTHED. He was a new surfer who I think started on Paul's mats. He was STOKED. And Grateful. He wrote to Paul it seemed like after every go out, raving with unbridled joy, emphasizing himself with capitals- "Thank You for your Vehicles of Joy". And he often signed off with "Sending Lots of Positive Vibes and Healing Energy!"

He said "Yew!" a lot in his letter, and in the water too, after a ride:

https://surfmatters.blogspot.com/2017/11/from-rob.html

He went from full beginner to a successful Tube Rider pretty damn fast. And he got to where he was going for it in pretty big surf too:

https://surfmatters.blogspot.com/2018/09/from-rob.html

He was STOKED on what he was feeling on Paul's mats and he was evangelical about sharing it. From what I can gather he bought mats just to have to share. This is all from what I've been re-reading in his posts, but he obviously cherished his friends and did dawnies all the time with his crew.

His valued friend Chris captured numerous sessions beautifully on film. Tons of little lime-green tubes. The most humble little waves, but they looked magical, partly because of Chris's skills, but certainly because of the sheer stoke emanating from them.

I just love that Rob stoked Paul to put together an appreciation of Chris:

https://surfmatters.blogspot.com/2018/03/chris-falzone.html

It says so much about what Rob thought most important: his friends. The Mat Community.

I love the photos Chris put together as a tribute, especially the one of Rob grinning at the view as he heads into the approaching closeout. Oh man. Oh Brother. Paul I hope you might find the one you labeled "Best Mat Surfing Pic, "Mystical Experience" Category" in 2017, the one with the sunrise behind the wave, and Rob trimming. (Posted below...PG)

Sending lots of Love and Healing Energy to the people Rob left behind.

Jonathan

 

 -----------------------------------

From Jonathan Steinberg...

Dang! Such a sweet guy. Every communication with him had joy. 

I know he struggled but he always managed something positive. Life is short and precious. 

Harmless Neighborhood Eccentric

-------------------------------------

From George Leone...

I'm so sorry to hear about the passing of Rob. I mourn his loss as a teacher to me...someone who has surfed for almost 60 years. He held onto that 15 year-old's total stoke about matting and being in the surf.  He reminded us of why we started and why we should always be grateful to ride the ocean's amazing waves.

May your days be glassy, peeling and sunny, Rob.

George

 

.................................................

From Cher and Steve Pedarvis...

Chris, Thank you for sharing. We are so sorry for your loss.

We are so sorry to hear of Rob's passing. He was a genuinely nice guy and so full of stoke! We never met in person, but enjoyed commenting/conversing with him online. We are grateful to meet him via the mat surf community, and share the love of the beautiful Ocean and wave riding with him. 

Rest in Love, Rob.

Warmest Aloha,
Cher and Steve 

 -------------------------------------

And He Has His Own Pair of Duck Feet ...

 

From Surf Sister

 

From Jim

 

Pushing the limits of low inflation!

From Cher and Captain Dave

 

Here is a little vid of our good friend Captain Dave a few mornings ago, riding his 4GF.

Dave says: “Tell Paul thank you for making my mat!! Endless source of entertainment!!”

 

Cher

From Werner

 

Paul thank you for making these mats this year has been a big fun mat surfing. I will be ordering a new mat as soon as I get my stimulus check. I love the mats and go about 4 days a week, let me know whats best. 

Me with my friend Ava she is 8 years old and just got a wetsuit and boogie board for Christmas so we went for a surf session out at Stinson Beach. Her mom just got a wetsuit too and we all went out

Again thanks so much for all you do.

From Jared

 

Can't tell you how much I love that thing man. So amazing. I'll check in soon about a new one for good Santa Cruz days!

 

Jared

From Lloyd

 

Hi Paul 

Trust all is good for you !

Fantastic day at Urbansurf Melbourne on the air mat yesterday first real surf since March - thought you like the photos ...

Cheers Lloyd

More From Lou

 

G.day Paul..

There seems to be a yearning these days for a much simpler life...! Note the SMILES.😎

 

Lou

From Lou

 

From Geoffrey/Instagram

 

pacificoffshore

There’s been large swell running for the past week. Our trip to Santa Barbara Island was bumpy and dive conditions questionable. But what we found in light of this was a wonderful surprise: surfing sea lions! None of us had ever seen such sustained and enthusiastic wave riding from pinnipeds before. It was a joy to watch! 🎥 by @lawofthelandnsea

 

Video here ...

From The Wahine Kai International Surf Club Newsletter

 How Riding a Bag of my own Air Transformed my Surf Journey

By Julie Benn

It was the summer of 2020 and I was knee-deep into months of physical therapy following surgery in 2019 to replace a ruptured ACL, repair a torn meniscus, address a large piece of cartilage that had broken off and tend to a fractured femur. Whew! All from surfing big waves at Waimea. Yah, uh, in my dreams. It was actually from doing a “football move” of jumping over a pair of stray Birkenstocks that weren’t where they were supposed to be (read: the closet, not the middle of the bedroom) and landing wrong.

I’m a surfer who’s ridden longboards, egg boards, body boards and my favorite, knee boards. To be told by my surgeon that it would be a year before I could get back to surfing was a tough reality to face. But I did it, grinding through months of intense physical therapy and endless home exercises. One day, as I was watching surfers on YouTube (a frequent activity—living vicariously through others), a video popped up on something I’d never even heard of before: mat surfing.

I clicked on the link and watched (for hours) video after video of surfers riding an inflatable bag of air and just absolutely flying across the face of the wave at speeds I never thought were possible on a non-motorized watercraft, let alone a freaking raft!

I was mesmerized.

A trek down history lane reveals that it was 1934 when a physician from Sydney, Australia invented the first surf mat. They became incredibly popular and by 1938, the surf mat had already its own division at the Australian Surfing Titles. In the 1940’s mats made their way to American beaches (and New Zealand, Hawaii, the UK and South Africa) and thrived as the mainstay of wave hungry kids and even older folks who used to rent them at local beaches for like 50 cents a day.  It wasn’t until the advent of Tom Morey’s Boogie Board in 1973 that signaled the (almost) obliteration of the surf mat. It faded from surf culture and line-ups until recently.

Today this “lost art” of wave riding is making a comeback in underground (or, underwater, more appropriately) pockets around the world. World-renowned surfer and inventor of the modern surfboard fin (as well as huge contributor to shortboard design, kneeboarder, cinematographer, and all-around amazing waterman) George Greenough has said that his wave-riding vehicle of choice is actually the surf mat.

“The funny thing about mats, is that they’re the easiest thing to ride on a beginner level, but the hardest thing to ride on an advanced level. I’ve been riding mats for over 40 years, and I’m still learning things,” says Greenough.

One of the most challenging things about transitioning to riding mats is that you almost have to forget what you know about board riding. The nuances, the way you position yourself on a wave, where you put your hands and even how you move your fingers can affect your trajectory. After all, it’s a bag of malleable air you’re on and it’s as changeable as it is the sea itself.

It seems like it would be just like body boarding, but it’s really not. You can feel every bump and ripple as you are intimately connected to the ocean, riding at eye level, in some ways learning the dance all over again from the perspective of a sea-foam bubble! I am on a steep learning curve myself, but I love being a student in the School of Ocean.

Some days I get clobbered, other days I find the sweet spot and just soar. Every paddle out is different, and, as is true with other kinds of surfing, it feels like freedom. Yet this time out, there are no tangled leashes and no cumbersome fiberglass, just a small mat filled with your own air bouncing around in the wild as you giggle your way onto shore. And, when you’re done, you simply deflate your surf craft and throw it in your backpack. Easy peasey.

Another thing that is missing from the surf mat experience is ego. Honestly, this is hard, but you really have to check that at the car door. You may be the best board surfer in the world and have all kinds of street-cred in your local line-up but when you paddle out on what is akin to a camping air mattress, that all fades away. You’re not competing against anyone anymore. You are risking looking like a kook (and you probably do), and you are simply having fun—riding the wave faster than you ever thought possible, making section after section and squeezing every last droplet of momentum out of what was possibly just the longest ride of your life. Epic!

As many surfers do, I got into riding mats due to an injury. However, as Paul Gross of Fourth Gear Flyers custom surf mats says, I will likely stay a mat surfer due to the pure joy of it.  Plus, due to its convenience and lower injury risk factor, this is a form of surfing that I can likely continue into older age.

I am amassing a quiver of mats and happily getting others into it with me. I have extra fins and wetsuits to outfit my friends and am also looking forward to bonding with others who are much more experienced than I am. (I heard there is a 7 to 9 am bodysurfing and mat surfing group that convenes daily just north of the pier at San Diego’s Ocean Beach—planning on checking that out soon!)

There are a handful of surf mat makers out there. Some located in the UK and Australia, and there’s the aforementioned California local Paul Gross who handmakes each mat to order. Every builder has a distinct styling to their mats and it’s just a matter of trying them out to see which one feels best to you.

If any of this piques your interest, I encourage you to check out the list of videos and websites below. And, if it looks like something you’d like to try out, hit me up if you’re in the San Diego area. Would love to paddle out with you and am happy to share my mat collection with friends looking for another way to fall in love with the sea all over again.

 

Julie Benn

thewordnerd@yahoo.com

 

Useful links:

www.matsurfers.com

www.surfmats.com

The Mat Professor |Surf Simply

What is a surf mat? (surfertoday.com)

Videos:

This is the video that first stoked me out on surf mats: (245) SURF MAT TURBO TIME II : NEXT LEVEL - YouTube

Cool portraits of mat surfers: https://youtu.be/ocDDmYHLBU0

https://youtu.be/3HX_-KxJ3Bg

https://youtu.be/e47awSo6Vfs

Fun mat surfing video at Huntington Beach: https://youtu.be/q40r69mDDp8

The ultimate magic carpet ride: https://youtu.be/wxx-ag8d6Lg

Nice POV angles from Imperial Beach surf mat session: https://youtu.be/rVXHbkVlKP4

More from Surf Sister ...