Martin Söderström

Interviewed by the Boy Next Door

Words by Mats Romblad. Photos by Jonas Arvidsson.
Date: 2009-03-04

Martin Söderström, soon 19 years old, has always been my best friend and has always lived next door, so writing this out of a bigger perspective might be a bit difficult for me. Also, my English isn't perfect. But hey, I'll give it a shot!

A long time has passed since Martin, me and the third musketeer, Jonas Arvidsson, were at the same point of progression. We did all those things with a mountainbike any beginner would do, only Martin did them ten times smoother. As time went on, he became that guy who did not "try" a new trick - he just did it. And he did it with great style. Looking at his riding style, one might think he has been riding bmx for a long time before moving on to a bigger vehicle. He's got that really smooth touch that many bmx riders have. But in fact, Martin has always been riding 24" and 26" mountainbikes.

How are you feeling right now Martin?

- I’m great, thanks. It feels really good to start the season without injuries or bike-related problems. This winter has so far been a great time for me, riding in Barcelona, Berlin, Leogang and various skateparks.


 Bad weather has kept Martin indoors a lot lately. Here he's riding in the garage of a local mall.

Your bike is very lightweight, what can you tell us about it?

Haha, yeah it’s light alright. It weighs in on about 10kg (22 pounds). It’s actually become a hobby of mine to build my bike as light as possible without compromising its toughness. Since I’ve gotten all these sponsors, it made that hobby a lot easier. NS made a lighter frame, the Majesty, which suits me perfectly. Hope makes my brakes and Tune makes super lightweight hubs for me. That makes me a happy Marty.

I’ve seen you hit really big jumps and big drops in the international contests, can your bike really handle all of that?

Well, yeah, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to compete. I do feel that a heavier bike would be better when going for the big stuff, but it’s kinda nice to only have one bike-setup. And a lighter bike makes park and street riding easier.


 Martin nailing a 360 tabletop in the park that actually is situated at his current school.

What are your plans for 2009?

My main goal is to avoid injuries and to still have fun riding. It seems like the Qashqai series has been cancelled, so maybe I’ll go across the atlantic this year for competiotions like Crankworx.

Tell us something about this short video.

Well, it’s basically what went on during three different days in three different parks. I learned a few new things and had a great time and I hope it’ll bring inspiration to some of you out there. 

Interview by Mats Romblad