Jul 4, 2026 · 34 min · 9 segments
You’ve Already Won – Simon Dyson (Part One) How does a lad from Coventry end up building a life in Detroit… and why would he choose to ride one of the toughest endurance races on the planet? In this…
Simon DysonGuest
Catherine WilliamsonHostSo, Simon, first of all, I want to point out to our listeners how we got to meet each other.
And there is within this quite an intricate and intimate story of being connected by one man.
And Matt has had the most profound legacy as he's walked the path of motor neurones disease.
So I met Matt when I was, gosh, probably 19 years of age in Solly Hall at Birmingham Rugby.
So we used to hang and run around together for many years until I left to the States.
And when I went to the States, I didn't speak to Matt and it wasn't for the fact that we'd fallen out, but we didn't speak for 25 years.
And it wasn't until I saw on social media that he'd got motor neurone disease that I reached out.
because unfortunately for me and I'm very familiar with it because a friend of mine had ALS in the US and I'd never heard of that until ALS came along and then all of a sudden Lou Gehrig's disease, ALS and I joined the Michigan ALS chapter So I got very involved with it in the US and I was just devastated when I heard that Matt had got motor neurone disease and I wanted to help however I could in whatever little way I possibly could.
And it's not trivial because it worked so incredibly well, but it was the ice bucket challenge that brought us all into the awareness of ALS.
And there's been some significant characters that have raised the profile of motor neurones disease.
It was months after he got his diagnosis and I would suggest Matt was reeling at that point.
And then he came back into the studio and it was a noticeable, significant deterioration.
And with the way he showed up the first interview, it was almost like it was hard to believe.
So, Simon, first of all, I want to point out to our listeners how we got to meet each other.
And there is within this quite an intricate and intimate story of being connected by one man.
And Matt has had the most profound legacy as he's walked the path of motor neurones disease.
So I met Matt when I was, gosh, probably 19 years of age in Solly Hall at Birmingham Rugby.
So we used to hang and run around together for many years until I left to the States.
And when I went to the States, I didn't speak to Matt and it wasn't for the fact that we'd fallen out, but we didn't speak for 25 years.
And it wasn't until I saw on social media that he'd got motor neurone disease that I reached out.
because unfortunately for me and I'm very familiar with it because a friend of mine had ALS in the US and I'd never heard of that until ALS came along and then all of a sudden Lou Gehrig's disease, ALS and I joined the Michigan ALS chapter So I got very involved with it in the US and I was just devastated when I heard that Matt had got motor neurone disease and I wanted to help however I could in whatever little way I possibly could.
And it's not trivial because it worked so incredibly well, but it was the ice bucket challenge that brought us all into the awareness of ALS.
And there's been some significant characters that have raised the profile of motor neurones disease.
It was months after he got his diagnosis and I would suggest Matt was reeling at that point.
And then he came back into the studio and it was a noticeable, significant deterioration.
And with the way he showed up the first interview, it was almost like it was hard to believe.
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