Matthew Fairbrother is a 17 year old boy (born in 2004) from New Zealand who is participating in the EWS arriving at each location by bike: this is his first time ever outside of New Zealand and he is in Europe alone.
For obvious budget reasons, Matthew will not compete in the three North American rounds, but after Pink Bike "has targeted him", we have the feeling that this young boy may be able to do it, also because slowly many small sponsors are approaching that they are helping him to accomplish the feat.
In the last EWS by Petzen Jamnica, Matt entered the U10 Top 21 with a dislocated finger "It was fantastic but I had more to give, I had to stop twice in the last stage because physically I couldn't resist with the pain in my hand".
Now he is preparing to leave for Italy with a journey of "only" 366km towards Canazei.
INTERVIEW BY PINKBIKE
So Matt, this is your first time traveling abroad, and you did it yourself, what did you tell your parents?
Ah I don't remember exactly, it seems like months ago when it happened. I told them what I wanted to do. They sure thought it was a bit silly, but I made my intentions well explained. They also trusted me and I trusted myself. I would like to make the most of the money I have in Europe for this season and experience some adventure.
What is the goal of this season?
I invest my money in learning that, in this case, it is not necessarily about winning races but about learning life skills, cycling and seeing places. And also see where the adventure takes me, that's what it's all about.
According to yours Strava, your longest run was 348km during Everesting in Christchurch last year. How did it go?
This was the first ever of several days: I really went deep inside. I didn't know how it was going to go, I didn't know how my body was going to fare and I didn't know it was going to work exactly.
How did the physicist respond?
The first two days were tough: right from the start when I left Scotland. I didn't sleep and was covered in mosquito bites after the first night because I wanted to be efficient and went to sleep for an hour without unpacking. But then I found out it was near a lake, but in the dark I couldn't see it. I honestly wasn't enjoying myself. But once I arrived in the Netherlands I was able to find positive feelings again.
You left at 18pm right after finishing the Tweed Valley EWS, can you tell me about this move and the following night?
I finished the race [editor's note: Matt finished with an impressive one 11th place in the U21). I had a mechanical problem on the last stage: I broke the dropout and damaged the gearbox, all due to a rock. It was a big problem because I couldn't pedal but I solved it thanks to the SRAM team. The next problem was that I didn't have bike packing bags. Fortunately, within 30 minutes of the end of the race, the owner of Diverted he bought me bike bags, a tent, kitchen equipment and things I needed. So by 17:30 pm everything was fine.
I had only committed to pedaling all the way on the Monday of the week before. I then ordered the equipment on Monday evening, it was supposed to arrive on Wednesday but it didn't. Then the UK had a two day break (Thursday and Friday) for the Jubilee weekend which meant my bags would arrive on Monday.
And didn't you want to wait until Monday to start pedaling? It was only a day.
Ah no, I couldn't afford to waste a day and wait, also because I wanted to see Short Track XC in Leogang on Friday.
So you cycled through the night to catch the ferry. You told us you called your parents at 3 in the morning ...
Yes, I showed up at the ferry and the person at check in said I was not allowed to board the ferry as I was too young and had to be 18 to board. They said my options were either to speak to his manager or just forgo the ticket. So I spoke to the manager who said I had to call my mom and dad and ask them by email for a photocopy of my passport and written permission so I could get on board. I tried, but I had trouble finding them as it was 3am in New Zealand and I had no data on my phone so I started calling anyone I could. Eventually I got the data of someone in the ferry line and connected to them to send the passport and written consent. It arrived 10 minutes before the boat left, certainly the most stressful time. If I missed that ferry, I would have missed a whole day and had trouble sleeping.
Then 5 days passed from the ferry, tell us where you slept. Looks like the ferry wasn't the best sleep ever.
Yes, but the worst was the nights in the wet. I would say I slept an average of 2 - 4 hours each of those nights. I had a bit of a mix. Some nights I was offered a bed and was able to take a shower, which was a luxury. It was only two nights, but it was perfect. It was actually embarrassing, because I would arrive at like 2am soaked and tired, and then leave before they even woke up. I didn't even get much sleep before I landed in Europe because one night I was battling midges and seasickness on the night boat I had planned to sleep on. The other nights I was in the bushes, and only one night in a tent. Oh, and one night on Pivot's bus, but it wasn't a great sleep.
What did you eat?
I was careful enough because I had my whole life on a bicycle, I only went to gas stations in small towns. I lived on food from small gas stations. Which consisted of Coke, chocolate and gummy bears. And yes, that's it.
So wait, 74 hours of driving in 6 days with gas station food alone?
Yes, on day 4 I struggled: I ate sour lollipops with sugar on the outside and then I switched to gummy bears with sugar only on the inside. But I wouldn't change it: it's so hard to eat while cycling. They take up little space and it is the best solution for me when I spend many days in the saddle.
Tell us what and how do you transport the necessary on your bike? And what have you changed since the race?
The only thing I changed from the race setup was the tires: I took off the mountain bike tires and put on slicks. Apart from that, the set-up is exactly the same as the EWS version bike. For the bags, it was just what I was given. To be honest it was a good set up, even though I didn't have much of a choice. Everything about the bike. Nothing on my back. This is essential.
Do you have GPS with you?
No, I take out my phone at every intersection.
What is the weight of the loaded bike compared to the unloaded one?
The race-ready bike is 15,5kg while, when loaded, it is around 31,5kg / 34,5kg.
Deviate is your sponsor?
Yes, a little bit, Deviate sponsored me the frame, but all the components I bought in New Zealand at a discount and I assembled the bike myself.
Can you tell us about the support you have received since you started pedaling?
The support was crazy. In Leogang, people fed me. People offered me beds to sleep in. Many people left me their contact details if I needed help. I couldn't ask for more, it was great.
Anyone you would like to thank in a particular way?
The SRAM team here, especially when I wrecked my bike in Tweed Valley. And the entire biker community. In doing so, I discovered how welcoming the community is. There is not a single person who does not want to help each other. The biggest thanks goes to the people in sport who make it what it is.
What are your goals after this season for years to come?
I wanted to go abroad soon so I could learn how it works. I have a few more years in the U21, but I hope to start doing well also in terms of performance. The ultimate goal is to get enough support so you don't have to pedal every time to go racing 🙂
Do you want to follow Matt? Here is his account Strava or your account Social media coordinator. We wish Matt all the best.
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