Boy’s head-over-heels deal
Makaia Day-Brown has achieved his scooting dream: he’s got a brand sponsorship in what he calls ‘‘the best Christmas present ever’’.
Now he is one step away from becoming professional – a great leap that could happen in as little as a year.
Earning a brand sponsorship with scooter equipment company Madd Gear was the start of the 11-year-old’s scooting career.
Makaia – understandably – said he was surprised when he got the news.
‘‘It was the best Christmas gift ever,’’ he said as he rested, between practising his backflips, at the Caroline Bay skate park.
His dream was to become professional and get paid to do what he loved: then he could ‘‘meet all my idols and travel the world’’.
His mother, Rachel Day-Brown, said the deal was the culmination of years of hard work and dedication.
‘‘It’s what he has been working for, it’s what every scooter rider aspires to. It’s really exciting,’’ she said.
‘‘He is here everyday after school. He puts in a lot of time and effort,’’ his mother said.
‘‘It is what he has been dreaming of ever since he started scooting.’’
Madd Gear New Zealand team and marketing manager Ricky Malcolm noticed Makaia after seeing a Timaru Herald article about him.
Malcolm said Makaia’s success was the first step towards becoming a pro scooter rider.
‘‘He’s on the first level of sponsorship for us; he is on a flow agreement where we send him free gear to represent the brand.
‘‘After a year or so he may go pro, where he will be on a global contract where he is paid to ride and there is also opportunity for travel,’’ Malcolm said.
Once pro, Makaia would be promoted on a global platform through the Madd social media outlets.
‘‘We have 415,000 followers on Instagram, and around 260,000 subscribers on YouTube.’’
He called Makaia on Christmas Day to break the good news to him and he was ‘‘stoked’’, he said.
Brother Kahu, who was at the skate park practising with his brother, said he was ‘‘chuffed’’ for Makaia.
The two brothers aspire to go professional.