Matt Fairbrother is a name that almost anyone in competitive mountain biking will have heard by now. Over the past few years, the humble Kiwi has bike packed the 2022 Enduro World Series; “enduro-packed” the entire 2023 Enduro World Cup circuit; tackled Scotland’s 550 mile, 15,240 meter Highland Trail 550 Challenge; cranked out the Tour du Mont Blanc in an unbelievable 21 hours 51 minutes - almost as fast as ultra runner Kilian Jornet; and most recently won the NZ Enduro Rally entirely self-supported, riding between stages and even Kayaking across a stormy Tasman Sea between stages.
If that creative CV’s anything to go off, imagine what’s yet to come from the 19 year old from Christchurch, New Zealand. One thing is for sure, he’s only just getting started. And with some serious feats already under his belt, there’s only one way to go from here.
What motivates you?
I wish I knew! I've always wondered this, I push myself to some crazy lengths at times but why? I've never confidently been able to answer that question. But at this point what I've narrowed it down to is the fear of not reaching my potential, the fear of what it could have been. I want to make the most of my life, I don't want to believe that anything stands in my way. Obviously some things are hard, and that's when the motivation kicks in to help me push forward. I want to be a trailblazer, make my own path, do what I want to do and reach my full potential. That's what I'm chasing and that's where the motivation lies.
Why go after these insane missions?
I've asked myself this a million times, and am still searching for the definitive answer. I think it comes down to proving to myself I can do these things. In the beginning what really fired me up was when someone said that something was incredibly hard or even impossible, or spoke about something someone had done like it was a legend. Being young and naive, I could never understand why some people could do things and why some people couldn't.
I always believed if you wanted to do something just go and do it. So that’s what I did, and I kept going bigger and bigger, proving myself that all these things actually are possible. I'm not some kind of prodigy, I just put in the work and made things happy with pure determination. I've never gotten to the point where I'm not motivated by following someone else's route, I want to make my own challenges, make things bigger, make things gnarlier and harder. Which led to me forming a rule for myself: whenever I think of an idea that I don't want to do, I have to go and do it. Unless it's for a strategic reason I don't let myself back out of anything.
What do you want to communicate to the world by doing this?
You are just like them; those legends you hear about, your idols that you look up to. They made the journey and so can you.
How, why and when did you first get into enduro missions?
I was 17 and had the goal to put myself up against the best. Bought a flight that cost me all of my savings, and another one to get me home 5 months later. I had no car license, no connections outside of New Zealand, and only a few thousand dollars (NZD) to last me that time.
I had my bike and a goal to race all of the Enduro World Cups. There were wheelbarrows of naivety, but I was determined to succeed. After the first race in Scotland I had no way to get to the next race in Slovenia. I couldn't afford a flight, didn't know anyone that could drive me there, but I had a bike. Somehow the bike was the most logical way to get me there. After a couple hundred kilometers a day I made it there in just under two weeks, in time for the next race. 
What do your friends and parents think of your escapades?
Honestly I'm not really too sure, I don't like to talk about it too much at a personal level, about how it makes me feel or other people feel - not to say I don't care though. These adventures push me to my absolute limit, push me right to the edge of what I'm capable of at that moment, and I've found a really good balance of what works for me, and I'm confident in my ability.
If I were to learn that my family or friends potentially disagreed with a decision, idea or anything along those lines it could very easily hold enough weight that it could make me lose my confidence and in turn my performance, and even put me in danger. Even someone saying something as harmless as "woah that was a huge ride" could tip me over that line, as I spend so much of my mental power dumbing down these rides into mentally digestible chunks so that they aren't overwhelming. I'm very happy being by myself with my own thoughts and could live a very individual life especially with something I've dedicated much of my energy to, so I do my best to keep it personal.
Can you tease us on your next mission?
Over the past couple of years I've wanted to complete a full season of the Enduro World Cup Series, without a plane, starting at home in New Zealand. This would mean jumping on a boat from NZ, through to Asia and then biking roughly 18,000 km before arriving in Europe. This is to prove a point to myself but also show the world if you really want something you can go and get it. With my current plans, unfortunately due to the timing of races and season in Asia, I'd be hitting the Tibetan Plateau at the height of winter, which makes it impossible. It's a work in progress but I'm pretty set on this one!
110km+ biked per day across 27 stages. One set of clothing.
During his most recent mission - the six day, self-sustained NZ MTB rally - Matt biked an average of over 110km a day between the 27 stages, ascended the height of Mount Everest twice and kayaked 6 hours overnight. Casual.
Matt only wore one set of clothes the whole time. Naturally, it was made from Merino:
Tarn Merino Bike T-Shirt
Virage Bike Shorts
Unisex Atlas Merino Crew Socks
