Merlyn Surf Mat Mini - Green
$60
$60
Great little surf craft - just had my first session. It catches and rides anything, even the smallest, weakest waves, and gives lots of speed, even over flatter sections. Also, it can easily be duck dived under larger waves. It didn't feel like it needed extra grip but i will probable add some anyway. This will have a permanent place in my beach bag.
I received the mini mat via UPS just one day before heading to Brazil, so the timing was absolutely perfect. I’ve been testing it out at a few beaches in the Northeast (like Gunga and Cruz das Almas) and it honestly works great in the shorebreak. During high tide, when the waves dump heavily right on the sand, this mat is ideal and absorbs a lot of the heavy impacts. The material feels super durable and tough.
As a piece of constructive feedback: I really think the mat should come with factory grip. Without it, trying to paddle out to the outside break or dealing with low tide gets uncomfortable for kicking, and it makes it tough to duck dive larger waves. Because of this lack of grip, it ended up being much more useful right near the shore and in the hands of my daughters. Definitely, the closer to the shore, the better the performance.
I still haven't tested it on bigger drops or paddling out to the second break to catch mushy waves (I think it could work well there), but I absolutely need to add some grip to it before I try that. I'll be putting it to the test in the cold Argentine ocean over the next few months.
Thanks for the solid gear!
This mini mat is way more fun than a hand plane. My only question is what do I use to add traction on it? And was thinking of putting a fin leash on the valve to avoid losing it in larger surf.
Overall build quality is great and it’s fun to adjust the pressure to see what’s fastest.
Now all I need is a mini point break like sand spit near me to try!
Thank you for the review, Rich! We're happy to hear you're enjoying it. For traction, we like to add Sikaflex. We have a video on our YouTube where Starky shows you how to apply it. (Link: https://youtube.com/shorts/HpElTTNm2iI?si=9rW0-09J-HhaSP3J) If you have any other product specific questions, send them over to info@yuccafins.com and we'd be happy to help. Enjoy chasing that mini point break near you!
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