BigMatt | Athlete
BigMatt
Phone: +61 474 506 090
Reviews
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23.01.2022 So much of this resonates with me after my first ultra event, the GSUC, in November last year and as my focus is fully on next week's start in IndiPac 2020. I'm not scared, you're scared Life is simple riding ultra distances, eat, sleep, ride, repeat! #IPWR2020 #IndiPac #IndiPac2020 #BeMoreMike #BigMatt #AussieMatt #LifeBehindBars #HuntBikeWheels #InfinityBikeSeat #CurveGXR #ShouldHaveGoneToMidlandCycles #Area54AdventureOutfitter #StarPhysiotherapy #Rapha #Rapha_Australia #CurveCycling
23.01.2022 Hi everyone, first sorry for spamming all of you but this is the page I have set up to write my 'daily' (depending on how exhausted I am) blog post while riding the IndiPac that starts in a couple of weeks. Watch this space, the blog posts I do are really cathartic for me and let me keep my friends and loved ones up to date with how I am doing (I am very honest and share the highs and lows) and allow me to digest the day, put it in a box and move on to prepping myself for the... following day. In the mean time, training is all but done and prep is pretty much complete and as the start day approaches I am getting mildly terrified about what I have got myself into. The thing about riding ultra is you never think about the event as a whole, for your brain to cope you break it down into smaller bits, like riding to the next town or servo or the distance you plan to do each day, those 50km legs or 280km a day chunks are acceptable to the brain, I can do that, 5500km is just ridiculous right? As I check my gear and plan I am looking at the whole picture and my brain is just melting thinking about it so roll on the start so I can get back to thinking about the smaller chunks! See more
21.01.2022 IndiPac 2020 Day 1 278km 2563m elevation gain in 13h 46m moving time, total time out on the road 15h 31m Booking an Airbnb in Freo was a great idea and meant I didn't have to wake up until 5am, the bike was packed and loaded so I just had to wash and eat and roll down the South Mole to the lighthouse with Pip, Jess and Geo strolling down. The dawn was amazing and the atmosphere was electric for us riders as we did the photos, it was awesome that some friends came down to see ...Continue reading
14.01.2022 IndiPac Day 2 - 171.5km - 795m elevation gain in 7h 41m Well the alarm went off and I was out cold, it seemed like I had only laid down minutes before. My alarm is the theme tune to Russell Coight's All Aussie Adventures and I vaguely remember thinking where is that music coming from as I started to move from unconscious to awake. Usually I am wide awake at the first note, clearly 4 short hours sleep wasn't enough but that's the life of an ultra distance racer. I got sorted, ...Continue reading
14.01.2022 Hugely disappointed to let you all know that with the news of the borders being closed and anyone crossing getting 2 weeks isolation I have decided to make the mature decision, not something I am renowned for, and head back to Perth. Hugely disappointed as I feel really good so far, but it's the smart thing to do. I will be at the South Mole Lighthouse on the 3rd Saturday in March 2021 to give it another red hot crack. I did manage to cover 450km in a day and a half, can't grumble at that. #IPWR2020 #IndiPac #IndiPac2020 #BeMoreMike #BigMatt #AussieMatt #LifeBehindBars #HuntBikeWheels #InfinityBikeSeat #CurveGXR #ShouldHaveGoneToMidlandCycles #Area54AdventureOutfitter #StarPhysiotherapy #Rapha #Rapha_Australia #CurveCycling #SydneyOrValhalla
13.01.2022 Final prep, my Curve GXR, I call her Marilyn, still isn't in one piece, last minute panic changes, only myself to blame, I want to say a massive thanks to my good mate Mark at Midland Cycles who has put up with me stressing out for a couple of weeks now and hasn't punched me in the nuts! The whole CoVid-19 thing is more annoying than worrying, the way it turns normal people into morons is staggering. I witnessed some dreadful behaviour in Woolies the other day and I can't wai...t to step out of everyday life and not be around for that. I will be following the advice of the infographic below. Fingers crossed they don't close the State borders, I'll have to sneak across 4 otherwise #IPWR2020 #IndiPac #IndiPac2020 #BeMoreMike #BigMatt #AussieMatt #LifeBehindBars #HuntBikeWheels #InfinityBikeSeat #CurveGXR #ShouldHaveGoneToMidlandCycles #Area54AdventureOutfitter #StarPhysiotherapy #Rapha #Rapha_Australia #CurveCycling See more
13.01.2022 Wish I had been organised and got this on a t-shirt
09.01.2022 If you fancy an early morning in beautiful Freo come on down and enjoy the spectacle of a bunch of idiots setting off on their odyssey to race their bikes across Australia! Freo has good coffee too.
06.01.2022 Finally got Marilyn back from Midland Cycles, huge thanks to Alex and Mark for giving her a full beauty treatment, lubing her up and replacing a couple of bits for her. She's ready for IndiPac, I think I am, just got to fit my bags and head to Freo tomorrow for the start on Saturday. #IPWR2020 #IndiPac #IndiPac2020 #BeMoreMike #BigMatt #AussieMatt #LifeBehindBars #HuntBikeWheels #InfinityBikeSeat #CurveGXR #ShouldHaveGoneToMidlandCycles #Area54AdventureOutfitter #StarPhysiotherapy #Rapha #Rapha_Australia #CurveCycling #SydneyOrValhalla
05.01.2022 I will get round to sharing a blog post soon, day 1 was a long day in the saddle, around 14 hours, 16 hours in total including stops to cover the 278km. Sleep was the priority. Day 2 was spent riding 170km then getting home and today I have been unpacking and trying to manage my feelings on the abrupt ending, bare with me. *** I do know it was the right thing to do but I still feel down and empty after all the prep and getting mentally ready to spend 3 weeks on the bike and suffering where I needed to ***
05.01.2022 I decided to mix up my training yesterday and do a long trail ride, there is only so much of the same roads a bloke can take. I've been prepping for IndiPac sin...ce October, even the Great Southern Ultra was prep and learning for it. So with over 8000km in the bank in 5 months and under 3 weeks to go I am like a cat on a hot tin roof waiting to get going and motivation to train is low. So I decided a 200km trail ride to Northam and back was in order on the Heritage Trail and Kep Track. Wow! Just what I needed a change of scenery and riding style, I put my 650b wheels on Marilyn (my Curve GXR) with 52mm tyres and had a ball, even got a visit from my bestie Daz at Bakers Hill on the way back as he had changed the dilithium crystals in the flux capacitor, or something, on his Aprilia Millé and needed to give it a test run or it was an excuse for a Bakers Hill pie Anyway a great day out and the ride, by the numbers, 201km, 1500m of climbing in 9h 40m, oh and Daz and I realised we are crap at selfies #IPWR2020 #IndiPac #IndiPac2020 #BeMoreMike #BigMatt #AussieMatt #LifeBehindBars #HuntBikeWheels #InfinityBikeSeat #CurveGXR #ShouldHaveGoneToMidlandCycles #Area54AdventureOutfitter #StarPhysiotherapy #Rapha #Rapha_Australia #CurveCycling See more
05.01.2022 And so the adventure begins
02.01.2022 In case some of you were wondering, here is the route the IndiPac takes with the profile below it, 5474km ish, you can see the final week is going to be brutal through the Australian Alps!
