Each spring in Georgia there are traditional reminders of the new season, including the plethora of criterium events that blossom in the southern US states in unison with azaleas, daffodils and other flora to signal a time for pollen, and racing, season. It is at USA CRITS and Speed Week events where the Crabbe family can be found, an easy car drive from their Buford, Georgia home.
Matthew Crabbe is the oldest of three boys for Jennifer and Ryan Crabbe, who introduced their trio to a variety of team sports, including basketball. swimming and soccer. He earned his seventh stars-and-stripes jersey this summer, this one as the junior men's 15-16 criterium champion, a year after he won a gold medal in the Ominium Scratch race at track nationals.
In between, the teenager prefers his off-road racing and recently scored a pair of victories in European cyclocross races, his first competitions in Europe. He heads into this weekend's US Cyclocross National Championships with three consecutive junior titles, now defending his junior 15-16 title in Louisville, Kentucky in a 77-rider field on Sunday.
Father Ryan Crabbe, a team director for Matthew's junior road team, Mission Devo Cycling p/b Tyler Perry Studios, wasn't worried if his sons took a non-traditional sporting path. He has been an avid cyclist himself and isn't shy about sharing his passion with others.
"One of the differences from team sports is there are no substitutions, unlimited playing time. But also it’s a life skill,” Ryan Crabbe told WXIA-TV during the Curiosity Lab Criterium in Peachtree Corners in May, where middle-son Mason won the junior boys 13-14 race.
Life skills are part of the education for all the brothers, from performing well in school, spending time with family as well as chasing dreams on the bike. As Matthew prepares for a fourth cyclocross national title at the age of 16, he shared with Cyclingnews the path he has taken so far to succeed on the bike and keep him grounded with his family.
Cyclingnews: You live in Buford, Georgia, which is north of Atlanta and near lots of riding in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. Do you enjoy riding on hilly terrain in that area where the Tour de Georgia used to go?
Matthew Crabbe: I really love riding up in the mountains. One of the best routes in the 'gaps' [Tour de Georgia climbs - ed.] is only an hour away, so it’s really accessible. All the climbs are around 20 minutes long so they’re perfect for some solid training rides.
CN: If you could only ride (not race) one of your bikes, which one would it be and where would you go?
I would choose my cyclocross bike because it can do a bit of everything. It can fit big enough tires for some gravel and is stiff enough to train on the road. I’d use it to do a bit of everything all around.
CN: You have won national titles as a junior on the track, on the road and in cyclocross. But you had a concussion this summer and were off the bike for long time.
MC: The latest one [championship], 15-16 crit nationals, is the most special for me. It was after a really hard season with lots of setbacks. I spent a month off the bike with a concussion and went into the race not expecting more than a top 5, so coming away with a win was super special. It also wouldn’t have been possible without all the help from Mission Devo.
CN: Tell me about your younger brother Mason. He's two years younger and won a junior State Championship in cyclocross this year. Do you both ride together a lot? Who is more competitive?
MC: Yeah we ride a bit together on the road. It’s really nice to have someone like that to ride with, but I’m for sure more competitive. I also have a younger brother, Owen (12), who races a bit and mostly plays soccer.
CN: What do you like to do when you are not on a bike?
MC: I run a bit in the fall before the cyclocross season, and crochet a lot in the winter months when there’s a lot of down time. I really like making blankets and hats. Cotton is probably the best material, and a heavy or light thread is good; doesn't really matter to me. My grandma taught me how to when I was pretty young and I still do it whenever I have time.
CN: Your first trip to Europe for races turned out to be very successful with the EuroCross Academy, a win in Belgium followed by a win in the Netherlands. How rewarding was that?
MC: Emmen was a lot of fun because it was the second win of the block. It was a nice way to back up the first result as well as cap off the trip. The race was super exciting from the start and I was able to move up quickly. Then I took the front on the second lap and it was a matter of not making any mistakes until the end.
CN: You used a final lap sprint to out-distance Bas Vanden Eynde of Belgium for the victory in the men's U17 race Saturday at Parkcross for your first European victory, which was also the provincial championships held in Hever. What do you recall the most?
MC: The racing is especially hard. I was not expecting a win, but the last two laps got very hard and I recalled all the work I put in over the last five years, it gave me motivation.
CN: Tell us about your first experience racing in Europe.
MC: One of the biggest takeaways for me is being more aggressive and punchy in races. All the guys there attacked really hard out of every corner, and once I got used to that the racing got a lot easier. Taking that back to the US would be a huge help.
A lot of the things were really great, but a lot of the small things were my favourites. All the nights in the house with the other guys and the cafe stops on the rides were really great. Getting a team experience like that was new to me and I really enjoyed it.
CN: Now you are back to focus on US CX Nationals riding for your FinKraft junior cyclocross team, where you won the 15-16 national title last year. Tell us about the Louisville course and your preparations for another junior victory.
MC: This would be my fourth [national title], which is a really great thing to say. The course is similar to last year, but is looking like it adds a little more elevation. The next week is a lot of high intensity, low volume work to sharpen the knife and stay fresh. I’m looking forward to my second nationals with FinKraft and we’ll see how it goes with a lot of stiff competition.
CN: Who is your role model for cycling?
MC: This is a bit cliché, but Mathieu van der Poel is someone I’ve looked up to for a long time. His dominance since he was a first-year junior is something I think is really cool and something I’d like to emulate.
CN: What is your dream event to ride, or to race and win?
MC: For a really long time, Paris-Roubaix has been one of my favorite races to watch. I think winning that one day would be really awesome. On the 'cross side, Hoogerheide is a super legendary course and I’d love to win there.
CN: You still have two more years in high school, but so far, what do you like about school and having a focus outside school to race bikes rather than be part of a school sports team, like baseball or soccer. Do team members ever get to meet Tyler Perry?
MC: I really like the racing environment of a team like this because there’s a lot more shared interests than a school team. It’s also smaller than a traditional sports team so everyone is really close. No we’ve not met Tyler Perry, but that would be cool.
Right now math is probably my favorite subject. I’m not too sure about school yet, I’m only in 10th grade, but I’ll go to college after I’m done racing.
CN: You do a lot of criterium racing with Mission Devo Cycling p/b Tyler Perry Studios. What races are you targeting in 2025?
MC: Next year on the road, I’ll be racing with Hot Tubes Development Cycling Team. The biggest races for us will probably be nationals, as well as a few European races.
CN: After US Cyclocross Nationals in Louisville, what do you look forward to doing in the winter at home?
MC: Watching cyclocross is definitely my favorite thing to do on Christmas break. It is during the 'kerstperiode', so there is racing almost every morning.
