Inflation Levels Revisited

Occasionally, we get emails from mat riders asking about inflation levels. Sometimes they're experiencing a touch of frustration riding their mat at the softer settings preferred by surfers like George G.

After riding the often powerful and disorganized conditions along the Central Coast of California for the past 7 months, I can relate to their predicament!

The lower inflation levels (a 90 degree bend, or more) that work so well in point surf can be a liability in dumpier surf. If you're lacking the smooth, linear power line of a point break, riding a softer mat can be haphazard at best.

Because so many factors go into the "correct" inflation level on a given day, it's important to keep in mind that the variable nature of a surf mat should be used to it's fullest extent. There are no hard and fast inflation rules!

In point surf, I usually ride a mat which is bent around 90 degrees. But my experiences this winter on the Central Coast have resulted in a 45 degree bend most of the time. Meaning, a lot more air. This is because, in the punchy waves I ride, I don't need the delicate skimming ability generated by a flatter mat. And the extra hold of a firmer mat helps me track across uneven, backwashy shorebreak walls with a lot more authority.

Again, inflation is a personal choice...determined by your experience, mood and the waves you are immersed in. The correct setting is the one that works for you in the moment!

Glide-In Mat Take Offs

Mr. Dirk and I were surfing together a while back, and as I was paddling back after a ride, he executed a virtually perfect glide-in mat take off. It was a delight to behold!

Not limited to conventional surfboards by any means, a glide-in take off is well within the grasp of mat riders. Here's how it works...

The rider aggressively kicks/paddles into position to catch a wave. As the wave approaches, he/she takes a few hard strokes towards shore, then stops paddling just before the wave reaches them. At that moment, they slide forward on the mat, into riding position. As the wave picks them up, their positioning relative to the cresting wave and their forward momentum due to the nose-ward slide allows them to catch the swell....and off they go, already in the right spot on the deck of the mat.

After you practice this move, it's possible to catch waves further and further out before they break.

Great fun!

Childhood...As It Was Meant to Be!

Loading Up The Inside Rail...A Visual Tutorial

George called the other evening, and we ended up talking about mat surfing...will wonders ever cease!

One of the areas we wondered off on is how important it is for mat riders to position themselves towards the inside rail to minimize the wetted surface area. It's better to load up the inside pontoons rather than distribute your weight evenly across the entire width. Of course, there are exceptions to this "rule," but it's a general truth, nonetheless.

This was one of the key elements of George's amazing riding technique, which he developed the 50's and 60's, that unlocked the potential of mat riding. You can see from the older photos of him posted above (riding striped Hodgmans and the yellow Merrin) how far he pushed this concept.

In terms of the design of 4GF mats, one of the things we've always worked on is getting the I-Beam "stagger" correct for each model...the stagger being the difference between the height of the small I-Beams that separate the pontoons and the overall thickness. When the small I-Beams are too short, the mat becomes overly sensitive to the lateral weight shifts of the rider, and makes it hard to find the sweet spot in terms of positioning. If the small I-Beams are too tall, then the rider's side-to-side weight shift produces a lessened positive effect. Which is why George's positioning on the Hodgman's was so extreme. The I-Beams were too tall, making those mats too "stiff" width-wise. Smaller I-beams would have loosened them up a bit and made them easier to ride. (This is one of the many areas of design we were able to address with the 4GF.)

The ideal stagger can only be determined by feel when test riding prototypes. No mathematical formula seems to work...each model calls for a different stagger. Mat designs with the right stagger just want to move across the wall without any fussing around on the part of the rider. You pull yourself up on the mat after catching the wave, and naturally fall into the right spot.

Anyway, I was thinking about our phone conversation from the other evening, and figured it might be a good topic to toss out there.

"Backside" on a mat? How Does That work?

The concept of having a frontside and backside on mats (or body boards or kneeboards) seems absurd to most surfers. After all, you're positioned symmetrically on the craft. So what's the difference between going right or going left?

Lots, IMO...

Whether it be from habit (going in one direction most of the time) or physical tendencies (either your right or left arm/leg dominate your body) most mat surfers have a preference going right or left.

For me, the difference really amounts to being able to "feel" while going frontside, as opposed to having to "think" going backside. Frontside is more instinctive, so it allows me to be more sensitive to the wave shape and texture.

Having a frontside on a mat can also be a boon to surfers who are, say, goofy foots standing up, but like to go right on a mat. This can open up a whole new world of wave riding for them. And even if going right isn't their frontside on a mat, if they go right long enough, it eventually becomes their frontside.

There was a guy who used to ride a mat in Santa Barbara who fits this description. His name was George, from my recollection. A goofy foot on a board, and a "left-matter" as well in the beginning, he just kept going right until it felt correct to him. I lost track of him some years back, when he moved to Australia full time.

But I digress...

I actually think that going backside on a surfboard is easier than going backside on a mat, since you use the same rear foot turn on a board, regardless of which direction you go. On a mat, you have to use the left side of your body to go left effectively, or the right side of your body to go right. This demands a complete physical and mental reboot...at least for me.

Mat Riding Tips From The Pros: Manipulating Your Nose Shape!

Manipulating the shape of the nose of your mat is a great way to generate more "hold" while moving across steep or bumpy sections.

Mike Cundith finds himself behind George G with the wave threatening to pass him by. He pulls up on the outer pontoons to create more rocker and a deeper belly shape in the nose. The added drag in the nose allows the mat to climb back up into the power of the wave and accelerate forward.

It's a case where adding drag adds speed, which is counter-intuitive by conventional surfing standards. You can apply this move riding any wave on any day...try it!

Tips From The Pros ... Hyper Inflation !!!

 

(Mat Max, Hard At Work)

 

The Virtues Of Hyperinflation

 

After months of weak waves that called for low inflation matting, the surf picked up today with powerful five foot tubes. A few sideslip wipeouts prompted me to puff up my 5GF so that it was full but not quite rigid. The squishy, slippy mat was transformed to a form more akin to a rigid bodyboard. Tracking across steep walls and through pitching sections became much easier.

 

There's a comfortable inflation that allows my abdomen to settle slightly between the fully inflated outer pontoons for a locked-in feeling. This is my starting point for high volume settings. I reckon that the amount of bend is about fifteen degrees. Then I fine tune from there depending on how much traction on the waves is needed. After a few adjustments I find an air volume that suits the conditions and then enjoy greater control.

 

I often forget to pump up the volume because of being fixated on glide. One factor is that the inflation zone between ninety degrees bend and twenty degrees bend is pretty much useless for my purposes. So, I often put off pumping up, and suffer needless lack of handling. Then I'll inflate to nearly full volume and rediscover that in powerful waves the drag is not all that severe, good speed is still attainable, and negotiating gnarly surf becomes much more fun.

 

The moral of this story is that utilizing high inflation is a great opportunity to transform your personal hovercraft into a more board-like perch for negotiating steeps and deeps.

 

Cheers M8s!

 

Max