Interview by Lee Ridefar.

Full Throttle. Full Power. Full Aggression. MAXWRIST has made a name for himself on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, etc by excessively speeding, pulling wheelies by fast cars, and being the rider that breaks all the rules. So why is he such a fast rider? Why hasn’t he crashed? Why haven’t the police taken his license away? Honestly, I don’t know. Before any of that happens I wanted to chat with him. Great riders encompass all different types of riding, so let’s find out what MAXWRIST is made of.

DISCLAIMER. The riding MAXWRIST does is an insane amount of risk. Don’t be another stat. Please listen to his advice on taking it easy and finding a safe place. MAXWRIST or I don’t want to see you get hurt or worse. If you are going to stunt your motorcycle, find the people in your riding community that are doing it safely. Can’t control the excessive speeds? Get to a track. You’ll see just how fast (or slow) you really are.

***Shortly after this QA was posted, MAXWRIST was sentenced to 720 days in jail in Italy.

How long have you been riding for? How did you get into it?

4 years and I taught myself. When I saw the Honda Fireblade it looked me in the eye and I had to have it. I jumped on it and practice, practice, practice. It was continual progression. I never had someone to ride with so when I followed someone I watched. I used to race BMX bikes so that helped too. [That is a key element in learning motorcycle quickly. Riding bicycles helps a lot or any form of two wheeled riding].

What is one skill or technique that changed your riding?

Awareness. Being aware on the road. Knowing where I am and where my skill is. Knowing the power of the bike too. You have to get used to those speeds. The car in front of me going 60 is going to come up fast since I am going 150. You are not used to that speed right away. If you are not paying attention, you will get surprised. I have had cars pull out in front of me and you’re in a crazy situation. You gotta follow through and be confident but not overly confident. There is a fine line.  A lot of people back off when you should be pushing forward. That is when you avoid wrecks. If a car brakes hard in front of you, the rider will focus on the car and hit the brakes hard. You should be hitting the throttle and moving around the hazard. Knowing the road is important, if I want to be the fastest rider I need to know the road. I will practice the road until I am in tune with it. When I went to California to ride the snake in Mulholland, I spent a morning learning every corner, every divot, every crack. You need to ride these roads regularly to know everything about them.

The BMW S1000RR is your favorite motorcycle. What would be your 2nd or 3rd choice?

The Honda Fireblade as I am very familiar with it. The R1 is not as smooth of a ride. The GSXR is a heavy bike. The Fireblade is a light one. I don’t like the choppy feeling of the Ducati and those engines. I am a big fan of the inline 4. I don’t see myself getting on a better motorcycle than the BMW S1000RR. The power and electronics, there is nothing else like it.

What is the best $100 or less item you’ve bought.

GoPro accessories. Memory cards, batteries, mounts.

What do motorcycle manufactures get right?

The seating style of the BMW S1000RR. You sit more upright in it. I like how you can tuck your legs into it. When you are in the wheelie position, you can move the bike around easier than the others. [visit http://cycle-ergo.com/ to see different seating positions of all the motorcycles]

What do motorcycle manufactures get wrong?

Where the power comes from. How long it carries that. The BMW has such a smooth power band going up into the high RPMs. The other bikes have more of a jagged power band. This has more to do with pulling wheelies. The BMW S1000RR has the biggest comfort zone for wheelies.

Who are the great riders out there?

Marky Marquez! Number ONE. The people I respect the most are the ones that ride their cars (and motorcycles) and don’t give a shit about them. I love seeing the Ferrari owners crash the shit out their cars. There are too many billionaires and millionaires pussy footing their nice cars around. It pisses me off more than anything in the world.

Who are the great riders out there that shouldn’t be?

Those people? I usually pass them before they do something stupid. For my own safety.

What were some of the mistakes you made?

Power going out of the corners. The Fireblade doesn’t have traction control. Coming out the corner I was high in the RPMs and I laid a couple Fireblades out. The traction control on the S1000RR is a beautiful thing.

Do you have any favorite books, documentaries or movies on motorcycling?

The first Mad Max film with Mel Gibson. There hasn’t really been a good one yet. I will hopefully create something spectacular. I am working on more of a back story about where I came from this year.

How many fast street riders like you are out there?

There is a handful of people that ride like I can. They just can’t record or edit video like I can. They can’t do quality and put out quality.

Do you have any eating or exercise habits to ride at the level you do?

Definitely NOT. It’s a mental game. Staying in a good mental state of mind. I grew up on two wheels. Racing BMX bikes taught me focus.

Knowing what you know now what would you tell yourself when you first learned to ride?

Nothing different. I am glad I came up the way I did. Maybe get the S1000RR first, I could have avoided a few crashes.

Why do you have mirrors on your motorcycle if you’re the fastest?

The cinematics! I like when I am going into the corner and you can see my helmet, visor, body positioning. Wheeling past cars you can see the car in the mirror. It makes great video.

What bad advice is out there for motorcycle riders?

Any advice given on the brakes. I don’t like braking. I’d rather downshift into corners. Learn to work the throttle so that the engine controls the bike. Not the braking. It is all about carrying your speed through the corners. Hammering the brakes can upset the bike and cause you to lose focus. You gotta be aware. Obviously there is a time a place for brakes but people rely on them too much.

Are you social on rides? Do you stop and chat with other riders?

I am not down to chit chat. If it is a nice day I want to be out there riding. I’ll spend six hours straight riding a road.

What are some of the best roads you’ve ridden on?

The Costo in Italy is a beautiful road. The Snake [Mulholland Highway] is pretty good. Azusa has an incredible road [#39 San Gabriel Mtn Rd]. It’s near Glendora mountain road. Those are good ones. I still have a lot of exploring to do.

Since you’re breaking all the laws, how do you deal with the police? 

I don’t and if they do talk to me I will not say a word.

If you had $25,000 to spend on motorcycling where would you spend it?

I would get another S1000RR and ship it over to Germany and get on the Nurburgring. That is a hot spot for super cars and fast racing. It may even happen this year.

What do you tell riders looking for advice?

Progression, progression, progression. Keep confident, but if you’re not meant ride a motorcycle you are not meant to ride a motorcycle. If you are, life is short so give it your all. I started on 1000ccs but most shouldn’t do that. If you do and you want to learn how to wheelie, be comfortable. Go somewhere safe. Go somewhere you can progress. Get used to the wheel coming up and your heart racing. If you are not comfortable with it STOP doing it. It is not for everyone. I don’t tell everyone to do that and I probably should. I live by the throttle and will die by the throttle. That’s how it is going to be. Life it short and bikes are really fast. It’s all about being comfortable with your heart racing. I am most comfortable when my heart is more than 100bpm. It’s where I want to be.

Check out Dianese Motorcycle Gear at Fortnine. Canada’s motorcycle gear and accessory store.