Looking Sideways Action Sports Podcast

Full episode info and Show Notes - www.wearelookingsideways.comYep, it’s a full mince pie and secret Santa-themed two hour special with the great Tim Warwood and Adam Gendle, universally known as Tim and Gend. I’ve been meaning to get these two giants of the UK snowboarding scene on for months now, and my first ever festive special, recorded over mince pies and Twiglets at the start of December 2018, was the perfect opportunity.If you’re not familiar with the work of Tim and Gendle, then settle in for two hugely enjoyable hours as we take a leisurely look back over their unique careers in snowboarding and beyond.Although the boys first came to prominence as promising UK riders in the late 90s, they really made their name when they produced, directed and edited a series of era-defining UK snowboarding films. It was a peerless decade-long run that celebrated British snowboarding in all its unique glory, setting the tone and epitomising a spirit of UK snowboarding that still holds true today.Naturally, we looked back at this, and also talked about what the boys have been up to in the last few years; which has been pursing their post snowboarding careers as presenters, directors and producers; latterly focussing on their amazing quiz show concept Famous First Words.I love Tim and Gend. I’ve had some of the best times of my life with these boys, and I’ve watched on proudly as they’ve leapt from success to success.As with any good double act, you’re in safe hands with Tim and Gend, which is why I knew they’d be the perfect guests for my festive show. Grab a mulled wine, mince pie or shot of Jagermeister, and get ready for for two hours of tales from two of UK snowboardings’ finest. Big thanks as ever to Matt Ward for the theme tune. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wearelookingsideways.com/subscribe

Full episodes and Show Notes - www.wearelookingsideways.comEpisode 065 and it is the final part of my loose Kendal Mountain Festival omnibus this week as I chat to photographer Dan Milner about his career and life in travel.A truly fascinating story this, as Dan recounts the long, strange trip he has been on since the early 1990s. As a photographer and writer, Dan is equally at home documenting political unrest in South Africa, following Jeremy Jones throughout the making of the Higher/Deeper/Further trilogy, or undertaking pioneering bike trips to North Korea.He’s also an articulate, wry and sometimes spiky presence, alive to the experiences on offer throughout the world, but also aware of the inherent contradictions involved in living such a lifestyle.Naturally, our conversation covered all of this ground, and we also delved deep into Dan’s motivations for following this roving life for so long. This one is also an object lesson in how, if you're lucky, being single-minded, talented and dedicated to a life of experience can enable a career to unfold around you.I always enjoy Dan’s company, and we had a great time catching up and looking back over his career in this one.Big thanks as ever to Matt Ward for the theme tune. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wearelookingsideways.com/subscribe

Full episode info and Show Notes: www.wearelookingsideways.comJust where do you start with the great Jenny Jones, surely the most influential British snowboarder of all time? Sure, these days she tends to be defined by THAT podium in Sochi back in 2014. But this was just one small part of an illustrious, legendary career that has now spanned almost two decades. The fact is that Jenny Jones raised the level of UK professional snowboarding at a critical time during our collective development, set the standard we now almost take for granted, and helped create an environment where feats like Billy Morgan winning bronze is now kinda normal.And yet, when it came to speaking to Jenny for the show, I didn’t want to make this yet another interview about Sochi, and make her cover the same old ground we’ve all heard countless times now. What I was really interested in doing was chatting to Jenny Jones the snowboarder. The woman who has built her life around the sport she loves and dedicated herself to it with utter determination and passion, and who is still the same absolute frother she was when I first met her twenty years ago. The resulting chat covers Jenny’s love of snowboarding, and the joyful life and times it has given her - the trips, the friendships,, the experiences, and above all, the life-altering perspective. This, I would suggest, it the stuff that we all recognise whether snowboarder, surfer, or skateboarder; Olympian or beginner. The power of these experiences, and how they shape you as a rider and a person. This is the Jenny I’ve been lucky enough to know for twenty years now, And that’s the Jenny I wanted to try and capture on the podcast. And happily that’s the conversation we were able to have.Thanks as ever to Matt Ward for the theme tune. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wearelookingsideways.com/subscribe

Full episode info and Show Notes: www.wearelookingsideways.comNew favourite guest alert! I very much enjoyed this serendipitous conversation with climber, adventurer and explorer Leo Houlding, recorded at the Kendal Mountain Festival in November 2018. Leo was at the festival to promote his film Spectre, about the expedition of the same name that saw him and companions Mark Sedon and Jean Burgun kite ski across Antarctica before attempting to climb Spectre, a peak deep in the Transantarctic Range, before kiting back across the continent to get home. This hugely ambitious project is an example of what Leo calls ‘21st century exploration’, and as we chatted I realised that through such expeditions Houlding is quietly reinventing our notions of adventure by marrying the scale and ambition of traditional exploration with a modern action sports sensibility. It’s a completely innovative approach that raises some rather interesting ethical questions about the whole business of polar exploration and the very notion of adventure itself in the modern era, something we discussed at entertaining length during our chat.We also explored one of the great over-arching themes of the Looking Sideways podcast: the relativity of risk, and the ways in which athletes like Leo justify risk in the face of the danger they voluntarily place themselves in, amid the wider arc of encroaching maturity. Leo is a great conversationalist, transparent and honest, and as all great conversations do this one took on a life of its own as we explored his recent adventures, inner motivations and utterly unique viewpoint on the current state of adventure. Thanks as ever to Matt Ward for the theme tune. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wearelookingsideways.com/subscribe

Full episode info and Show Notes: www.wearelookingsideways.com‘Please get more skateboarders onto the show’ is definitely one of the most common bits of feedback I get here at Looking Sideways Towers. Which is why it was such a pleasure to welcome Nottingham’s finest, Mr Alan Rushbrooke, onto the show for episode 062. Alan is one of the key figures of 90s/00s skateboarding, with a career that perfectly mirrored the wider trajectory of UK skating as the scene stepped out of the shadow of the Cali-centric US skate industry and proudly embraced its own unique identity.He was there during the heyday of Radlands, was a fixture in RAD and Sidewalks for years, was part of the seminal Unabomber team, and put something back into the scene by running Cide skate shop in Waterloo. Naturally, our conversation covered all this and more. As is always the case whenever I see Al, we also ended up geeking out on music and taking a proper old trip down memory lane as we discussed a much-loved period of UK skateboarding, If you enjoyed my conversations with Don Brown and Peter Hellicar, you’re going to love this one with one of the scene’s stalwarts and a proper flag waver for UK skate culture. Big up to Al for coming on the show. Enjoy! Thanks as ever to Matt Ward for the theme tune. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wearelookingsideways.com/subscribe

Full episode info and Show Notes: www.wearelookingsideways.comLongest ever episode! Yep, settle down for two plus hours of chat between myself and the great Dave Mailman, my guest for episode 061. It’s a roving, freewheeling conversation with one of the great movers and shakers of the surf and snowboarding industry which splits neatly into two segments. In the first part, we cover Dave’s incredible three-decade long career during which he’s taken held every conceivable job in the industry - marketing guru, broadcaster, team manager, journalist, editor, distributor, webcaster - and on it goes. For listeners wondering how to get into the industry (and there are quite a few listening to this show), this one is an object lesson in kicking down every door you face. Then, in the second part, we discuss the biggest struggle of Dave’s life: his 2013 leukaemia diagnosis. It is unflinchingly honest stuff and probably one of the most important chats I’ve ever had on this show, as we discuss how he coped physically and mentally, the support he had from friends and family, and the new perspective he has on life as a cancer survivor. As you’ll hear, Dave has a huge heart, enough stories for ten episodes of this podcast, and a huge appetite for life that verily leaps from the headphones. I’m so glad he came onto the show to share his story, and I hope you enjoy this epic conversation as much as we both did. Salud Dave! Thanks as ever to Matt Ward for the theme tune. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wearelookingsideways.com/subscribe

Full episode info and Show Notes: www.wearelookingsideways.comNow this one has been a long time coming. I get a lot of requests to feature specific guests from listeners to the show, and one name has been coming up consistently since I started: Neil McNab. Why? Because among the European and global snowboarding community, Neil McNab is a legend, respected as a rider and above all somebody who has always trodden his own path. From the early days bashing gates as a racer, to the progressive decision to set up his freeride-focussed company McNab Snowboarding back in the mid 90s, Neil McNab has always been a visionary, shaping his lifestyle to enable him to concentrate on what has really been his life’s work - a dedicated quest in pursuit of the purity of the turn. And in a way there’s another theme at work on Neil’s story - how your relationship to action sports and the pursuits you love changes as you get older. And about how, if you’re lucky, that relationship will deepen and mature with each passing season. As you will hear, Neil seems to have it figured out. It is why he’s such an inspiration to so many people, and why he’s my guest for episode 060. Thanks as ever to Matt Ward for the theme tune. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wearelookingsideways.com/subscribe

Full episode info and Show Notes: www.wearelookingsideways.comActual legend alert! I have to admit, the first time I heard of Ross Edgley’s plan to swim around the coast of Great Britain I thought he had absolutely no chance of completing it. Swimming six hours on, six hours off - for over 1500 miles? It just seemed too vast an undertaking to contemplate, let alone actually complete. Then, like many thousands of others, I became hooked on the whole crazy story, following Ross through his regular vlogs and cheering him on as it became clear that he was going to finish - and in his trademark inspirational and positive style.Naturally, I had to try get him on the show - so on the eve of his big finish in Margate I jumped aboard Hecate, his home for the past five months, to meet the man himself and find out exactly how he was got though one of the most celebrated physical and mental feats of recent times. The result is a brilliant, poignant and hilarious conversation with Ross in which we unpick the whole thing. It was a real privilege to spend some time abroad Hecate with Ross, Matt Knight and crew, and the sense of achievement and camaraderie among everybody was brilliant to witness. Huge thanks to Ross, Matt, Euan Godon, Robbie Henderson and everyone else who made this happen. Thanks as ever to Matt Ward for the theme tune. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wearelookingsideways.com/subscribe

Full episode info and Show Notes: www.wearelookingsideways.comHossegor omnibus! Yep. I headed to France for a quick 48 hour Quik Pro trip, and ticked off three podcasts while I was at it. This first instalment is with somebody I had an inkling would be a great guest, and he didn’t disappoint: the great Todd Richards. The word ‘legendary’ doesn’t really cut it with Todd, who during his 90s heyday helped set the standards that continue to define snowboarding to this day. Todd’s what you might call an action sports lifer - somebody who has been immersed in skateboarding, snowboarding and surfing since he was a kid and who is showing no signs of slowing down now he’s nearing action sports senior citizenry.He’s also brilliant company, and we had a great time trading stories and gossip about the sports we love. As I soon realised, Todd knows that ultimately our whole thing is a completely frivolous waste of time that also happens to be the greatest thing in the world, and his chat is that of a person who has spent a lifestyle becoming increasingly comfortable with this essential truth. He is also full of great one-liners and brilliantly opinionated on everything from Terje’s boycott to the state of snowboarding today. Yes snowboard geeks, your ship has come in. Grab the popcorn, and settle down for an enlightening 90 minutes with one of the greats. Big thanks to Todd for this one. I really enjoyed it and I hope you do too. Thanks as ever to Matt Ward for the theme tune. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wearelookingsideways.com/subscribe

Full episode info and Show Notes: www.wearelookingsideways.comIts always great when the legends live up to the hype - and that was definitely the case when I welcomed Rob Machado onto the show for episode 057. Rob was in town to promote Momentum Generation, the new documentary that catches up with the iconic Momentum crew 25 years after they first came onto the scene via Taylor Steele’s classic film of the same name. It’s a compelling watch, and the film doesn’t shy away from tackling some of the great surfing talking points of our time: Rob and Kelly’s infamous high five, the injury wild card vote that ended Rob’s tour career, the death of Todd Chesser, and plenty more. Happily, Rob was also up for going in-depth on these same legendary stories, and the result is an intimate, honest and totally compelling chat with one of the greatest surfers ever. Thanks as ever to Matt Ward for the theme tune. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wearelookingsideways.com/subscribe