Mandos, A Few Days Ago ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

I know, I'm burning a well kept secret secret spot, but protocol be damned. This action sequence of a tandem mat ride is awesome!

R.I.P. Cal Porter

 Cal Porter, 2012.

Cal Porter, legendary Malibu lifeguard and word class waterman, passed away on June 13th of this year. He was 94 years old.

Much has been written about Cal, and by Cal. Here are some samples. They're well worth your time reading...

 http://www.malibutimes.com/news/article_e8ef1642-96b6-11e9-aa4b-a34350c86df4.html

 https://countyrecurrent.blogspot.com/2011/12/in-beginning-lifeguard-by-cal-porter.html

 https://countyrecurrent.blogspot.com/2012/06/lifeguard-to-be-or-not-to-be-by-cal.html

 http://www.malibutimes.com/malibu_life/image_3dcfa690-44f5-11e4-a61f-8f31dca8c256.html

From Mister Dirk

Everything's bigger in Texas!

Schaudenfreude Of The Day

A wave pool in China goes on the blink!


"According to reports, a malfunction at a wave pool in China caused a freak wave to injure 44 people.

The accident occurred at the Shuiyun Water Park in Jilin Province, in north-eastern China. It’s a part of something called the Yulong Bay Scenic Area, which opened in 2015. Also included in the park is a glass-bottom bridge, a theme park, and horseback riding tours.

The park’s official statement is at odds with the tally of injuries being reported. “It was caused by a mechanical fault,” said a park official. “Only around 10 people were injured. “The wave pool was closed for a day for repairs. It’s already been fixed and will be open tomorrow.”

According to the South China Morning Post, five people were sent to the hospital for a variety of injuries, included fractured ribs."

 
No word yet if someone is for hacking into the computer operating system...but if so, my money is on the SCUMM gang as the perps!

From Oily

.

Hey Paul, Greetings..

You asked to keep you posted on my new purchase of the standard so here goes. Friday was a well forecasted swell and all reports from Neal ‘ The Guru’ Cameron during the week it was cranking smoking, but alas in my haste to make an early morning raid and give the ’Standard’ a good old work out I left home without it and yes the SCUMMBags did let me know about it also. luckily the trusty Omni ...haha.

It was a great mat ring session at one of our fav offshore reef breaks and the Omni “Dabolt’ did not let me down so here is a couple of minutes of a couple of hours of that session. We did get mentioned in dispatches later that day about the 4 mat riders apparently dominating the line up… oops and with Pat getting some bombs from out wide he’s stoked with the 4GF there’s some footage of him nailing one.

The swell had backed right off by Sunday morning and an early morning slide at Mat Cove with Phil and Adam was on the cards. So the commissioning of the Standard was in some small peelers but big healers right handers your fav.. Paddled out straight into a small peeler of the reef and took off..bit of a slip sideways first wave thought i had the inflation right but had to let some out anyways it was a fun morning as always. Looking forward to a big day out at Gilligan’s on it sometime soon I hope.

Stay happy and healthy mate many thanks for the speedy delivery you’ve set the “Standard”..

 :-) Oily
SFFS

July 20, 1969

Great collection of Apollo 11 mission pics here ...

Pretty good look back at the confluence of Apollo11 moon landing and Woodstock here ...

Tour De France Off Day

What do Pro Cyclists do on their day off at the Tour??? Why, read a book while readying to go for a surf on inflatable cycling gear!

More From Adam

Hey Paul

Hope you are well and that earthquake did not do too much damage!

Found this nice pic online , always a big grin on the mat riders!

 Last weekend was a buzz, we had a couple surfs Saturday and caught up with my mate Nathan who is riding his Fatty...

 


This was after we spent the morning surfing the Bogey Hole with Paul and Phi



 Stay well mate. Oily is looking forward to his new Standard!!

Adam

From Adam

 

 Pic: Oily

Super small but uncrowded fun!

Adam/SCUMM

From Patrick

In beautiful Mollymook with the Tracker!

Been riding the Tracker in real quality reef breaks so stoked with it...

Patrick

From Chuck

Waiting for the right moment to charge.  In Nicaragua with my Fatty!


Chuck

15 Signs You're Spending Too Much Time In The Water...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From Benoit

Hello Paul,

I ordered a 4th Gear flyer's Omni surfmat last year, just wanted to write down a little feedback.

First, I think I might be the only guy using a surf mat in France SW coast, I have never seen any other mat in the water here. And it is a shame, since it is such a great surfcraft !

It took me a few sessions to get used to the mat dimensions and to find the right degree of inflatation (looow) but now it is 100% fun. It is fast, it is safe, I can "charge" waves that I wouldn't dare to charge on a paipo, I can slot myself into some fun micro barrels....

Here is a video of my latest session, a little shaky cause the gopro was attached to my hand, but I guarantee the rides were smooth :)

Thanks again for making these mats,

Benoit

Tips From The Pros: Spotting A ''Deep Fake" 4GF Knockoff !!!

As trade tensions rise between the USA and China (which is all Obama's fault, BTW), it stands to reason that Australia would somehow weasel their way into the melee. As a country said to be, "A sunny place for shady people," Australians have attracted an increasing number of fake 4GF surfmats to their shores. The collapsing economy (which is all Labor's fault, BTW) combined with the unprincipled beach-going population is a petrie dish of corruption.

Initially, Mexico answered the siren call of the Australian market, producing crummy knockoffs under the revered, time-honored 4th Gear Flyer label. Seeing a gold mine, China then got into the act, knocking off the Mexican knock-offs...in effect creating the first "Deep Fake" surf mats.

So how do you, one of the 3 or 4 honest surfmatters left Down Under, spot a deep fake?

Let's look at the simplest approach, shall we?

Study a real 4GF Surfmat. Note the deft hand used to inscribe the flange. Note the high quality silver ink used in said inscription. Note the proper spelling...

Now analyze a deep fake, Chinese 4GF. Of course, the handwriting is sloppy, the ink is splotchy, and the alleged builder is one "P. Gonzales." But more importantly, the phrase "Made In The Mexico" is a dead giveaway that, not only is it a fake, it's a deep fake...translating Spanish into English, by way of Mandarin!

One last thought...

Any import routed through, around, over, or under the SCUMM crime family is a sure tip off!

With Old Age Comes Regret ...

 

Hi Paul,

My mate Mason just ordered a mat not to long ago and I tried it at 3 foot table tops in Solana Beach. I’m Hooked!

I’m 17 years old but I wish I would’ve started earlier. They’re unreal!

Thanks again.

Jackson

Expose' : The Dangers of "Getting Stoked"

From Oily ...

 

 

Gday Paul,

Well here I was rummaging in my desk the other day and came across a blast from the past.  Shortly after the legend that is SCUMM evolved  (circa 2011) Eric ‘Matman’ Bridges (RIP) had conjured up an application form to join the  realms of the SCUMM fraternity. This   was when he was still working and running under the radar as a mild mannered insurance salesman by day. I thought knowing your soft spot for him you may get a laugh out of the application all in jest of course. 

On another note here is a short sharp  video taken on  the first day of winter as usual Adam and I had a blast this morning.

Take care , be safe and keep on sliding..

Oily

SFFS.

Seventh. Best. Scumm. Video. Ever.

 

This is from Monday at Salmon Bay, shared a few with Neal and bumped into Peter Horton ( riding the green mat).

 

Before we went out I noticed a foil stand up rider in the lineup, zooming around etc , and by the time we got changed and down to the beach he came in , I overheard later that Horto gave him a mouthful about riding thru the pack, and ordered him to the beach! funny considering it came from a big guy riding a blow up green air mattress!!

 

I film everything in 2.7k , check out all the salmon swimming underneath us, such a great morning!

 

Adam

Best. Scumm. Video. Ever.

 

Howdy mate

Its the Queens Birthday long weekend down here, so Happy Birthday to her and my Mother who turns 93 today!

After surfing some nice waves on the Friday , Saturday turned out to be a alltime cracker, solid 6ft + swell and offshore winds all day. I started at Gilligans at 6am, paddled out in the dark and surfed for over a hour before the crowd became crazy, jumped into my car and drove bush to another favorite reef , with just 4 other mates out, surfed there for over 2.5 hours , big long loopy lefts and plenty of smiles.

Back down the bush track again for a quick food recharge and surf check, paddled out at another favorite right hand point break with just one other and surf for over 2 hours again, landed back on the beach at 4pm , sore all over and feeling my 57 years.

Home time and cold beers

Good to be alive!

adam

Blown I-Beam Blues!!!

 

Nothing used to bum us out more than blowing out the I-Beam of our surfmat, especially if summer wasn't over, and we knew Mom and Dad wouldn't hear of a new one before next year. ("The surfing season is almost over, son. Why don't we wait 'till next spring?")

The only solution was to carry on with our busted mat as those miserable "Back To School Sale!" signs started appearing around town.

But, personally, I never recall being all that unhappy with a damaged mat...if it still held air. As evidenced by these kids! Both are riding their bloated mats with aplomb...