Looking Sideways: 10 Things
Here's are this week's ten things I thought were worth sharing
1. I released two episodes in the last week. First up: episode 172 with legendary snowboarder Danny Davis, widely regarded as one of the greatest riders of all time. But there’s more to Danny than this. Because, in a world of ever-increasing progression for its own sake, Danny stands for something. He’s a symbol of the creativity that is supposed to be at the heart of this entire business. As such, he’s one of the most beloved and admired riders on the planet, loved by snowboarders across the world as the personification of the idea that progression is redundant if it isn’t accompanied by style and creativity.
When I interview people how occupy such an exalted place in our culture, I’m always curious to see how they wear their reputation. Are they aware of it? Do they reject it? Embrace it? Will they even want to discuss it?
In Danny’s case, as I was delighted to discover, he’s more than happy to discuss it. What follows is, I humbly contend, as revealing an interview with Danny as you’re likely to hear, in which one of the greats dissected his own career and the state of snowboarding in general with total honesty and openness. In doing so, he offers us a peerless insight into the mindset you need if you’re going to stay at the top of the game for twenty years.
This one is great. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Watch our conversation above, or click here for the audio version.
2. Second up: episode 171 with surfer and academic Sam Bleakley, which is something of a companion piece to the extremely popular Dylan Graves episode from a few weeks back. In Sam’s case, he has combined his two passions - surfing and geography - into a truly singular surfing career. What I found fascinating about our conversation is the way Sam has worked to create these opportunities for himself by being honest to his own unique interests, and how he uses them to stretch himself creatively with honesty and integrity. This one provoked a huge reaction among listeners: click here to listen.
3. Hat tip to listener Tim LeRoy, who told me about The Man Who Skied Down Everest, an extraordinary, Oscar-winning documentary about Yuichiro Miura’s 1970 quest to ski down Everest. Watch it above, and click here to read more about Miura.
4. I’m a big fan of Jamie Currie’s surf writing, and have been enjoying some of his recent work, including his new Substack blog about running, and this recent Beach Grit piece about the state of modern surfing. Click the links to read them.
5. Looks like I’m heading to Jackson Hole next week for the first leg of this year’s Natural Selection tour! I’m going to record a load of episodes, and I’ve also been asked to commentate on the event, which I’m equal parts excited/terrified about.
In the meantime, our Selection Committee work is pretty much done and the line up is being announced at the moment. Follow Natural Selection here to keep up to date.
6. Connor Ryan’s new film Spirit of the Peaks is that rare thing - an action sports flick that asks intelligent, discomfiting questions. Watch it above
7. It’s been fascinating watching Paul O’Connor’s research into the benefits of skateboarding in middle age get picked up by news outlets all over the world. Watch him discuss his work above, and click here for a Guardian piece exploring readers’ experiences of skating in middle age.
8. If you’ve followed the podcast for a while, you’ll be aware of the growing number of projects that use skateboarding as a way of delivering social change (listen to my recent episode with Ollie Percovich from Skateistan for more on this). Which is why Clown In Action, the collaboration between Clown Skateboards and international none-profit Concrete Jungle Foundation, caught my eye recently. Their Planting Seeds Apprenticeship initiative helps kids and young adults in Peru by showing them how the life skills they learn through skating can create self-sufficiency and equip them for the challenges ahead. Find out more here.
9. In the last week or so I’ve been intrigued by the ongoing Twitter spat between author Johann Hari and academic and broadcaster Matthew Sweet. Hari is doing the rounds promoting his latest book Stolen Focus; Sweet contends the book is based on pseudo-science and should be withdrawn or amended. Click here to read Sweet’s Twitter thread outlining his charges, and here to read this Unherd piece which also explores the problems with Hari’s history and approach.
10. This week’s Laax Open is last chance saloon for some of the world’s best snowboarders to snag an Olympic spot, which is why luminaries such as Shaun White, Scotty James, Ayumu Hirano and Yuto Totsuka are all in town. With so much at stake, Saturday’s double whammy slopestyle/half pipe showdown should be one for the books. Watch it here on Saturday evening:
Thanks, man. Appreciate the shout!