Looking Sideways: 10 Things
A brilliant podcast series, yet more Patagonia takes, and a modern day protest classic.
1. Just back from an ace week chasing my two Aussie nephews, who have both been riding for about a week, around the Three Valleys. It was so fun and inspiring to see the mountain anew through fresh, perpetually stoked eyes.
2. Our drive back to Normandy took 11 hours, so as we passed signs for Orleans, Tours, Paris and Rouen we binged this excellent Rest Is History series on Joan of Arc.
This is an extremely basic comment but - I had no idea what a completely bonkers story this actually is. I now can’t wait for the forthcoming Baz Lurhmann take.
3. Current reading: this exhaustive (and occasionally exhausting) Nick Drake biography.
A reminder that the 2026 reading list is go here, and I’ve started a brand spanking new Chat thread for 2026 which you can join below. Big up everybody who is sharing their recommendations on there 🙌
10 Things will always be free, but it takes a lot of effort, love and curiosity to pull this thing together each week.
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4. The Boss with a swiftly-written response to recent events in Minneapolis.
5. Outdoor brand Alpkit has had quite a week: going into administration and then being immediately picked up as part of a ‘corporate restructure’. More here.
6. “It's frustrating how much oxygen Patagonia suck up when others are doing good and better work,” said regular Looking Sideways correspondent Tim LeRoy last after I shared Foster Huntingtons’s piece.
Well, I hate to add to that pile, but here are two more takes on the brand I thought were worth sharing this week.
The first (above) was this by Kyle Frost, a thoughtful counterpoint to Foster’s bit…
7. …and the second was this challenge to the brand to do more to meet the current moment in the States by the always provocative and insightful Calum Macintyre. (cc Len Necefer).
8. Ash Routen is one of my more thought-provoking Instagram follows, particularly around his views on what constitutes a genuinely pioneering achievement in today’s world of increasingly spurious adventure firsts.
So I enjoyed his recent Adventure Podcast conversation, in which he debated these issues and more with host Matt Pycroft. Listen above
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9. Snowboard gang: if you’re in London (or Are) next week, my pal Rich ‘RP’ Roberts is hosting an evening with The Reason and Klattermussen which celebrates all things board graphics. Details above.
10. I’m such a huge fan of Rebecca Solnit’s writing, and her latest essay on what technology' ‘takes from us’ is a must-read contribution to the debate around the current AI-fuelled direction of travel.
To illustrate it, here’s a short video of a flight of swans I took the other morning. Have a nice weekend.
Which of these stories did you enjoy this week? Let me know ✌️
I've just seen this, and thanks for sharing Matthew :) glad you enjoyed the podcast with Matt, as I'm never quite sure how a more critical approach to adventure and expeditions will land.
That’ll be my roadmap of 2026 books edited, then. Nick Drake’s (I assume) troubling, tragic, and short(?) biography will be a big scenery change from my current page turner: a salty take on the modern history of scientific catch and releasing Atlantic bluefin tuna. Nerd alert.