I really am not doing a great job of making these regular. I hold my hands up and apologise. However, it hasn’t stopped me listening to them.
This episode is dedicated to Looking Sideways, a podcast I’ve been listening to for over a year and one which initially I was picky about what I listened to, but with time, have learnt listen to EVERYTHING. Friends have asked for recommendations and this is one I will always offer as its relatable to so many aspects of life, even though the context may not be apparent until you scratch the surface.
Matt Barr does an epic job and rather then coming up with another long winded way of describing it, here’s my iTunes review.
“Now I’m no boardsports guy… I can get about on a skateboard, just, & my total winter experience is one day snowboarding on Cairngorm some 12 years ago, where my dad set me off to the ski school in an old ski school onesie thermal suit he’d picked up from the same school some year before when they were flogging previous seasons demo gear….. rock & roll! My biggest memory from that day is being able to carve from top to bottom by the end, followed by me slinging the board on my shoulder and running to the top after each run.
Anyway, Looking Sideways. I stumbled across Looking Sideways by accident. I’d started listening to podcasts last year and came across the feed on instagram. I’ve watched surfing on the web, worked at boardmasters and Freeze fest several times for GoPro and know people in the industry. But other than hearing their stories, never knew too much about it. One episode from Matt’s relaxed tone, engaging and unlocking the culture, history and personal stories of those being interviewed had me hooked. Looking Sideways has branched out to cover all action sports, from ski, board, skate, climbing, free diving, ultra running and more. There truly is something for any and everyone with an interest in action sports, the people behind them and the mindset involved.
This isn’t just another “tell me your greatest achievement” catalogue, rather, genuine effort is made to uncover lesser known aspects of athlete’s lives, that have much greater value for the listener in wider life, and with that, there is a real sense of community across the podcast. Matt holds votes on potential merch and commercial ideas which will impact the listenership, asks for who we would like to hear, engages with us on social (media) and above all, has made it more than a 60 minute episode. Download an episode and let your ears decide, if you have an interest in action sports, I’m pretty sure you won’t be disappointed.”
I haven’t really much more to say, I think that pretty much covers everything. And yes, I have a t-shirt.
James Mackeddie 