How to Surf Better with Matt Pagan and…MrBeast?

On Starting the Surf Club:

“I started the ‘Under Construction Surf Club’ as a way to build a place I wish I had when I was growing up. A place where people could get better at surfing and do it together. It’s the heartbeat of the PAGAN USA brand. The goal is to build a community. It began with an email newsletter giving advice/tips to people’s email inboxes and now I'm in it, 105 weeks straight!

“Growing up, I drove to Huntington for coaching sessions and meeting up with friends to consistently surf, film, and train. The community I had was awesome, we pushed each other but I had to drive almost every day. That’s been the inspo for the local surf camps, weekly coaching, and now a community that lives here in LA.

“The name ‘Under Construction’ says it all. Always reconstructing and always building.”

On the Course:

“I built the digital surf course because most people don’t have access to consistent coaching or the right feedback loop. It’s a four-part series that covers what actually makes a difference in someone’s surfing: wave count, positioning, board choice, and technique.

"I’ve driven in the El Porto parking lot hundreds of times and I’ve seen thousands of people over time just sitting in the lineup, hoping that some perfect wave lands in their lap. This course is a system to help that. It’s the same system I teach at my camps and the same system I used growing up. It’s been boiled down into something people can rewatch and apply anywhere. The goal was to create a tool belt for surfers, and an entry point into the Club that people could always go back to.”

On Shaping:

“Shaping came out of necessity. I wanted to ride boards that matched how I see waves in LA. Boards that work when it’s not perfect. Twin fins, flat rockers, still enough bite to turn and have a high-performance factor. It started with me messing around in my shed making boards for myself. Once I found that rhythm, I wanted to have my friends feel the same feeling. Jon Mangiagli helped me a ton at the beginning.

“Now, I shape boards under PAGAN USA and we have another guy named Goose that helps a ton. He was at Anderson Surfboards for years. These boards are built for surfers who want to improve, have more fun and have a board that looks good.”

"I’ve driven in the El Porto parking lot hundreds of times and I’ve seen thousands of people over time just sitting in the lineup, hoping that some perfect wave lands in their lap. This course is a system to help that."

Matt Pagan

On Life After Pro Surfing:

“After the WQS, I was about 22/23 and I wanted to create surf films. I teamed up with my brother Mike Pagan and we had a few good years of creating content through Vimeo and our blog at the time - One4LA. After surfing for RVCA my contract ended at 27/28 and I went through a weird identity reset.

“Surfing had always been about performance or filming clips and I just didn’t want to surf that much anymore. It was hard to motivate. But what got me back into it was my friends Aaron McManus and Eric Roy. They pushed me to start this brand and the learning curve to shape myself boards sucked but fired me up. It was new motivation. Coaching, shaping, and building a brand from scratch felt like and feels like the next chapter.

“I didn’t want to be ‘the guy who used to surf.’ I love the surf industry and I love where it’s going. I want to still be in it, but in a way that feels real to where I’m at now - being a husband, running a business, raising a daughter, still surfing every chance I get.”

On the Bigger Vision:

“The vision for PAGAN USA and the Under Construction Surf Club is to build something like the Run Clubs you see in LA, NY and Aus. I’ve been super inspired by brands like Bandit Running, Minted Running and MAAP cycling. They create high end, high value products with a purpose. They also build with and into their communities. I want this to be a system and a community for progression - digital courses, surf retreats, boards designed for real everyday waves.

“The goal is to have a physical clubhouse one day where people feel seen, coached, and connected. The goal is to not just be a surf brand, but something people can belong to. We’re starting in LA, but the goal is global. We want to help more surfers stay in it for life and actually get better along the way.”

Get the digital version of ‘Under Construction Surf Club’ – and your chance at a free surfboard – here.