I’m interviewing ‘Sick
Nick’ De Wit, world number five and Africa’s number one ranked FMX (Freestyle
Motocross) champion at a coffee shop in Hatfield, Pretoria. I’m asking the 33
year old Joburger if he ever gets scared of crashing while doing summersaults
on his dirt bike and ending up paralyzed or dead. His reply stings like a back
hand klap across the Grim Reapers face.
“If you’re
going to die, you’re going to die, don’t let fear of death stop you from
achieving your destiny.” He pauses to take a sip from his frothy coffee, locking
eyes with me, as if examining if his answer unnerved me somehow…It did, and I
think he noticed. “You have to be extremely cautious and have 0% fear to avoid
crashes.”
He says it
annoyingly, like talking about crashing will jinx his next stunt. His tone
softens while discussing his love for the sport however.
Nick grabbed
his first pair of handlebars at age 13 doing motocross races and never let go,
but he disliked FMX originally. “When I first saw FMX in the late 90s I thought
the riders were insane and I’d never do it.”
Only after winning the FMX competition at Cape Town’s 2002 Woodstock
Music Festival did he discover his FMX calling. He won every show until the
competition’s liquidation in 2009. In 2003, Red Bull approached Nick with a
sponsorship offer that changed his life.
Since then
Nick has been stunting in exotic locations worldwide, barely having time to
hose his bike before getting called to ramp it in another international venue. He’s
also the first African to compete in the Red Bull X Fighters, the boss of FMX
competitions. “I rode at the X-Fighters in Spain and Germany in 2009 and Cairo
in 2010. I’ve also rode in Singapore, Tunisia, Columbia, Taiwan, Japan, Peru,
Dubai, Germany, Namibia and Brazil.”
He also performed at the world’s biggest
action sports tour Nitro Circus at its first tour of Africa in SA this year.
On August 23rd,
Red Bull X-Fighters World Tour will host its finale at Pretoria’s Union
Buildings for the first time in Africa, and Nick loves it. “I’ll have home
ground advantage, and the best thing about it is that I won’t have to sit in a
plane for hours and endure jet lag.”
Preparations
include tough physical training at the University of Pretoria’s High
Performance Centre, and punishing his bike in his backyard motocross circuit,
“I’m lucky to have a big piece of land I could develop into a FMX course. It’s
got landings, ramps and a foam pit.”
Nick knows
he will be up against the meanest FMX riders like feared Frenchman and
defending champion Tom Pagès. To gain advantage Nick
urges South Africans to show up and show love, “bring vuvuzela’s if you want”
he says. But can spectators expect any new teeth gritting tricks? “I’m working
on many new tricks. I can’t divulge my secrets but you’ll be blown away.”
With that the interview ended, and the waiter brought our
bills on one receipt, I requested separate bills, but Nick politely offered to
pay both tabs under one condition, “as long as you promise to come and support
me at Union Buildings.” While rising to leave we bumped fists and I confirm,
“Ofcourse, I’ll even bring my vuvuzela.”
