MARTIN SODERSTROM: I would say the most important part
that mountain biking have in my life
is just to get away, zoom out from everything else.
As soon as I'm on the bike, I can't think of anything else
than just riding my bike.
My name is Martin Soderstrom.
I'm a professional freestyle mountain bike rider.
And I've been riding for Specialized for 10 years.
When I think back on my first signature frame,
it's just amazing memories.
First of all, it was such in unreal experience
to be able to work together with Specialized
and make a frame that is just made for you.
And that was just next level.
INTERVIEWER: No, he goes into the truck driver instead.
MARTIN SODERSTROM: I've always liked that metallic red.
And then finally, when I could be 100% in charge,
how I wanted the bike to look, that was the obvious color.
And I think it turned out to be really, really cool.
Definitely it makes me laugh now looking at the frame when
I have those dollar signs on the Soderstrom on the S.
It's also cool to look back and remember that time change
and people change.
The crazy part about the P3 frame,
it feels like it's been around my whole career.
The riders I looked up to were like Birchall,
Matt Hunter, Kyle Strait and all those guys were on the P3 spec
then.
The obvious choice for me that I wanted
to ride the same frame that all my heroes
that I looked up to when I was younger.
I wanted to be one of them.
So when I got the red P3 frame, it
was crazy times, but also probably
the highlight of my life and of my career.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
2012 and 2013 was my best years, resolve wise.
In 2012, I got the second in the world tour.
And in 2013, pretty much put everything on one card.
Did the biggest trick I could at that time on a big step down.
Unfortunately, took a little bit too much speed and overrotated,
and I just snapped my leg right off.
Took me nine months to get back on the bike again.
So that was hard.
It's kind of the first time I could
feel the other side of biking where it was not 100% joy
anymore.
But I did all my rehab and everything worked great.
So I actually had a really good comeback the year
after and got second place at one of the world tour stops.
But it was almost like my body realized then
how dangerous this sport is.
So after that injury, I had small injuries,
some good results.
But it wasn't really the same.
By 2016, '17, I started to do a little bit more video projects.
It's a different side of riding, but with an amazing opportunity
and experience.
Field Tripping is absolutely the one I'm most proud of.
It's the same feeling as when you win a contest.
You're just so happy.
You're with your friends, you're doing high fives.
And you're like, we pulled it off.
And you see almost goose bumps from just thinking about it.
That's one of the reasons why I love this sport so much
to work for something.
And then when you achieve it, it's
just a different level of excitement.
It was pretty hard for me to stop with the slope style
competing.
But then it was cool that on the Crankworx World Tour,
they started with different events
like pump track and speed and style.
Then I could keep doing some competitions.
And then I actually managed to win the whole tour
and become world champion.
And that's kind of when I felt like, OK,
maybe I'm done competing now.
After a while, you just value other things in life.
And for me now, that have been to also focus on
other athletes and not just 100% my own career.
I mean, you gather so much experience
from being out on all these different events.
So it's cool to give that back to other athletes
so they don't have to do the same mistakes as you did.
We have a bike school here in Fallen.
And I had the opportunity to be a coach here.
It's just a whole new world.
Before, it was only about how can you become the best.
Kind of selfish I guess, in some way, when you're a pro rider.
And you have to be.
But this is a new life and very rewarding.
I would say as rewarding, but in a totally different way when
you help another person than when you only focus on yourself
and your own career.
It's easy to get the same emotions
as I had when I was a teenager and learned a new trick.
Now it's usually the kids who's learning a new trick.
But I'm still as happy for them because I
feel like I have been part of their evolution,
or their progress.
It's different but equally rewarding.
Yeah, I guess you can say that I've grown up a bit.
I'm 31 now.
I moved to a smaller town.
I have really enjoyed being at home, being with my family,
being with my girlfriend.
Since we both have been very competitive
and have a quite stressful background,
it's very cool to just now be here in Fallen, go out.
We don't have to push it as much.
We just enjoy life on two wheels and off two wheels of course
as well.
I still really like to push myself, but just a bit
more safe terms.
It's a good life.
Different life.
But good life.
Now 10 years later, Specialized made me this 10 year
anniversary celebration frame.
And yeah.
I'm so stoked on it.
It's metallic red, like my first signature frame.
Fortunately, it doesn't have the dollar signs on it.
But at least it have some gold details on it.
So it's still bling.
And also, it's going to be really cool to look back
at the logo on the C tube that says Martin Soderstrom 10
Years of Greatness.
So sometimes, you just wish that you could look forward in time
and go backwards in time of when I first
walked into the Specialized HQ I would have known this
that I would be part of the family for 10 years
and get a signature frame.
Feels like the circle is really complete.
I can speak for every mountain biker in the world
that when you get a new bike built,
you just really, really straight away when I go out there
and ride.
And you feel like a way better rider straight
away just because you have that new bike.
It's funny, but it's true.
I mean, the first ride was perfect.
Sun, good friends, sick pump track,
everything that I love in one day.
So couldn't have been better really.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
How have mountain biking changed for me?
The joy that come from biking is still the same.
But it's just changed the way I see it, I guess.
Doesn't usually come from landing
a huge trick, and adrenaline, and winning a contest,
and stuff like that, which really
was my thrive for many years.
Yeah, I mean, I've been traveling pretty much all
over the world.
For the first time, I feel like I've found hope actually.
I really enjoy where I live at the moment, where
I am in my life.
After all the experience with injuries and stuff like that,
it definitely given me perspective
to be without the bike for example.
A life without the bike isn't really the life I want to live.