Miscellaneous
I always thought one of the coolest things about BMX freestyle is that you could be different, and still be accepted. You could be yourself and it didn't matter. The term freestyle literally means, do whatever you want, and that’s exactly what Matt Beringer has always done. In the mid-2000s at a time when the X Games was on the come up, growing bigger and bigger each year, and sponsors were more and more concerned with gold medals and tv coverage to create relevancy, amongst the factory superstars was a rider with a completely different mindset. Not only was Matt unique, he's one of the only guys who could have a flatland session, then blast the biggest dirt jumps, find one of the most unique lines in the skatepark, and hit the gnarliest handrail he could find, all in one day. In the recent S&M book release, there was a quote that was used back in the year 2000 when Matt was first asked by Chris Moeller to ride for S&M. QUOTE "S&M Bikes is proud to sponsor Matt Beringer. No rider past or present has done a better job of representing everything this company stands for. Here's to acting like a kook, horses that puke, and hot pants stuffed with sausage. Let's hear it for heavy metal, grinding on the pedal, and rocking a mullet. On a pit bike, in a full pipe, or in an idiotic ad that rhymes... it's all about riding bikes and good times". We caught up with Matt the other day and talked about his numerous appearances on Props and Road Fools during the mid 2000s, competing in X Games dirt, how he became known as the front flip guy, his section in the Little Devil video Criminal Mischief, the first time he saw Dizz Hicks, riding and growing up with Tim Fuzzy Hall, his backyard ramp setups, riding for S&M bikes for almost 20 years, coming up with crazy tricks, his background as a machinist, and Dave Mirra riding his signature S&M Beringer bars. So get comfortable, crank up your speakers, and get to know one of the most fun riders to ever do it on two wheels... Matt Beringer!