Bret Howard Pulls Into Puerto
This story is from the personal travel journal of Bret Howard.
With some free time coming up and a series of south swells in the window, I couldn’t help but buy a one way ticket to my favorite beach break! A few things I know I can always count on at Playa Zicatela are stiff offshore winds, warm water and plenty of barrels!
My timing for a vacation proved to be perfect as I walked into 6 weeks of non-stop south swells and perfect weather. The surf was consistently head high to double overhead for the entire month of October and first week of November. The highlight came on November 6th when a monster late season south swell slammed the beach break with triple overhead plus bombs. Out of respect, I have to give it to Rusty and Greg Long as well as Will Dillon for absolutely dominating this day with their paddle-in performances!
Every morning I was putting my 1 mm Matuse BC Vest to use to keep my core warm and my arms free. The vest functioned extremely well as it never gave me a rash or rode up over my head during the routine beat downs.
After this swell dwindled down, the surf hovered in the solid head-high range for the 2nd and 3rd week of November. With the smaller surf and change in seasons came cooler water temperatures which allowed me to break out my Philo 1 mm Jacket. The buttery Geoprene was just what I needed after not wearing a wetsuit for a long time as it did not feel restricting in the arms.
I had to eventually return to work around Thanksgiving and cold water. Luckily for me I had a Matuse Hoplite 4/3/2 on ice at my house ready to tackle the cooler waters of San Diego. I just want to commend the efforts of the team over at Matuse Wetsuits for supplying me the tools I need to stay warm and flexible in the water.
Lots of Respect
Bret Howard
For the month of September I was fortunate enough to do my second stint as a boatman on Tavarua Island. My daily routine included taking the guests surfing at Cloudbreak and helping the Fijian guys with maintenance on the boats. Overall it was a great trip with all types of waves and conditions.
Beach that included ex-pro surfers Ryan Simmons and Jeff Deffenbaugh.
I wore my Matuse 1mm Philo: Jacket nearly everyday. And the Geoprene wetsuit top was insane. It kept the sun off my back so I didn’t get totally fried and kept me warm on those windy days — a pretty common thing out at Cloudbreak. I was able to surf quite a bit while on Tavarua and it was perfect to know that my Matuse gear had such great durability.
Recently, Mikala Jones visited the Kandui Surf Resort in the Mentawai Islands for a two week trip with Surfing Magazine. This trip was for the upcoming Surfing Magazine Surfboard Issue. The idea was to bring 5 surfers, 5 shapers and a boat load of boards to test on a sick barreling wave in Indo. The cast consisted of Mikala Jones and Glen Pang, Phil MacDonald and Phil Byrne, Josh Kerr and Rusty, Eric Geiselman and Greg Geiselman and Pat O’Connell and Timmy Patterson.
Each rider had each of their shapers build 6 or more boards for them to test. Mikala had up to 8 different types of boards. Everything from 4 fins to the new TL2 boards. The location allowed for all the riders and shapers to immerse themselves in the discussion of board design while actively testing those designs in perfect Indo waves.
The Mentawais are a beautiful place with some of the best surf in the world.” You can find out more about the Kandui resort on their website by 
On June 23, 2007 we embarked on a trip to Indonesia. Our goal once reaching Padang, was to leave port en route to Northern Sumatra. Our vessel the Freedom II, is one of the premier charter boats in the area, and capable of cruising at 17 knots.
Matuse is proud to be a sponsor of the newly released surf movie Pipeline Posse: Project 1.
With more on hand to do with surfing, the opening of the Texas Surf Museums’ new exhibit “Surfing through the 70’s” brought out groms and elders alike. Enough attention that even EX-Texan
Launched in August 2006, Matuse is the latest brand to pop up on the wetsuit market radar. Taking cues in design and construction from Japan, CEO John Campbell and Director Of Product Design Matt Larson soft-launched a limited product line—two neoprene jackets and one vest—in late summer and were able to sell in to key West Coast and Pacific Rim accounts. The brand has also garnered the support of an impressive roster of athletes early on.
Matuse brought on Mikala Jones to act as an ambassador of the brand, and Campbell says since signing him, Jones has functioned not only as a teamrider, but also as a recruiter. Jones quickly added fellow North Shore standouts Jamie Sterling, Flynn Novak, and Jason Frederico to the team’s roster. Now Matuse’s product has a strong presence in the water and on retail racks in Hawaii. Oahu’s Drift Surf, Surf Garage, and WRV all carry the line.