MAT Surfboards the Interview

There are great shapers all over the world but all to often it’s only the ones that have a massive name and can afford the exposure that you hear about. You also may have heard of the local guy, who may or may not be great. There is also your local surf shop that may or may not be any good. These are the sad facts of the limitations of the world we live in.

We thought we would help out with this first world problem and attempt to search out great shapers the world over and give them a platform. A voice, if you like, a way to connect with people all over the world.

One such skilled human is Jacques Marais who shapes under the label MAT surfboards out of The Western Cape in South Africa. Mat uses only the finest materials and his shapes and the quality of his boards look amazing. Jacques agreed to have a chat with us and tell us a bit about his shapes, boards and background.

SB: Hey Jacques, thanks for sparing us the time, how long have you been surfing and shaping now?

Mat: surfing for 25 years and shaping for 7, always been keen on shaped and repairs and various shapes and models from all shapers

SB: Where is you favourite local spot to surf?

Mat: My factory is 200m from the break called "pipe" in strand/ cape town.

SB: What is your favourite MAT model to surf? What is the most popular selling board?

Mat: The Hipkabab model, wider plan shape for 1 to 5 ft everyday kind of waves, I call it the bread and butter board, out of my 1000 handshaped I've done about 500 of them and every one is complimenting this model, ive had high profiled surfers riding them and raving about them.

SB: What do you think about CNC machines and new technologies of board building?

Mat: I think it's awesome, I believe in techno designs but for me and my business it's all about handcrafted/ handshapes, I do about 60 boards by hand each month and I love what I'm doing, from copying good boards and old boards to dialing in good surfers boards by hand keeps ky eye in and sharp, Cnc is awesome if you do huge volumes but my personal preference is handshapes.

SB: Do you have any influences in the shaping world?

Mat:  There are a few, the late Errol Hickman, Thys Rebel my friend, Matt Kazuma Surfboards to name a few, basically all great handshapers that had evolved to cnc yet passionate about a handshaped product

SB: Your DJ Fly Grovel board looks like a lot of fun, how much would one cost me and how long would it take to get one built?

Mat: DJ fly is a top seller and would take about 3 weeks to complete, R3500 to build ($250 us )

SB: Do you ship to Europe, the States and Australia?

Mat: All the time. To ship a board to any off those countries depends on the size of the order, let's say 20 boards for shops would work out an extra 1600 rand. (100pounds etc) To ship one board would probably be around 2200 rand. (135 pounds), Those are freight prices only.

SB: Who do you think is the greatest surfer of all time

Mat:  Parko is the best surfer because off his smooth style yet powerful surfing, he ticks all the boxes speed power and flow and for me that's what I'm going for when shaping a board for someone; For them to perform critical maneuvers with style in the pocket going as fast as possible without getting stuck on bottom or top turns**.**

SB: It's a no brainer really, MAT shapes and surfs very well indeed, he uses quality materials so that the finished product has a reliable quality about it and he knows how to build you the best surfboard you have ever owned. Why not take advantage of an awesome price, be you a shop or punter both. We are itching to have a blast on that Hipkabab model, infact there is one for sale on Surf Bunker right now.

Hit the button to check out pics, prices and specs.