Spindrift

Fast, furious, dramatic - the 2024 Olympic Mountain Bike races in Paris delivered on the drama front.

Spindrift host Aoife Glass chats with Tara Nolan, journalist from Canadian Cycling Magazine in this special edition of the Spindrift Podcast. 

They discuss highlights of the women's and men's Olympic XC events, the medal winners, the course, the dramatic moments of both events of which there were plenty, and what it's like to be a journalist at the Paris Olympic Games. 

Does motherhood have to mean the end of cycling adventures? How can you find accessible trails? Is the bike industry doing enough to diversify the representation of cycling? 

Spindrift was invited to host a panel discussion with 5 incredible guests at a live event in Sheffield, with Kelly-Jayne Collinge, Dr Fiona Spotswood, Vicky Balfour, Bron Black & Dr Phoebe Sneddon, discussing these topics and a whole lot more.

From stage management and musical theatre to bringing the atmosphere to the Mountain Bike World Series and the Cycling World Champs, Skye Murphy has fascinating role within the bike world, and an unusual path into it. Cool, calm and professional, she's worked at MTB events across the world over the last year with Great Big Events... and done it as a new mum, with her baby, Gwen, on tour with her. Spindrift spoke to Skye on the last day of the Cycling World Championship events in Glentress, Scotland, while the action took place around us. 

This bonus episode is a crossover with On The Outside, a podcast sharing diverse views on outdoor news in the UK. Specifically, this episode discusses the Cycling World Championships which took place in Scotland in August 2023, looking at a range of subjects around the event, its impact, accessibility, and what it was actually like to be there. Guests include Spindrift Podcast host Aoife Glass, Neil Russell, founder of the Adaptive Riders Collective (ARC) CIC, endurance athlete and adventurer Vedangi Kulkarni, and podcast producer, editor and host Francesca Turauskis.

Why is there still such a marked gender disparity in mountain biking? That’s the question that prompted Dr Fiona Spotswood, associate professor at the University of Bristol, to research gender inequality within and women’s perceptions of mountain biking. After numerous conversations with women across the UK, the results are fascinating - but perhaps not surprising. Women don’t feel represented or included in how MTB is portrayed, but the good news is they aren’t waiting around for the bike industry to catch up. This episode touches on representation, inclusion, grass-roots communities, how events like Red Bull Formation and Rampage play a part, and what needs to change to make mountain biking a more welcoming space for women.

Scottish mountain biker Lee Craigie describes herself as a storyteller and bike adventurer, and in this episode of the Spindrift Podcast she talks about her new book 'Other Ways to Win: A Competitive Cyclist's Reflections on Success'. The book is an autobiographical looks at her life, told in adventures, from childhood, to UK National Cross-country Mountain Bike Champion, to the formation of the Adventure Syndicate; along the way, Lee reflects on how success is and can be defined. 

Cassondra Spring is the Global Brand Manager for Liv Cycling, one of the largest cycling brands in the world and one that’s focussed on putting women first in all it does. She chats about how she got into cycling, what exactly it is that a global brand manager does, and as Liv is also the sponsor of the White Jersey at the Tour de France Femmes, what plans are afoot for 2023, and where she sees the future of women’s cycling in general.

Emily Horridge discovered mountain biking in the 90’s when it was a fresh new sport, and never looked back. She raced as an elite athlete in the downhill world cup for many years, then became a mountain bike guide and now leads adventures in the Alps. This year, she’s decided to return to the Downhill World Cup and settle up some unfinished business.

Bonus episode! A last minute call to go help emcee at the UCI MTB World Series in Italy gave me the chance to chat to a few people behind the scenes. Liz Walker, Liv Racing team manager, talks about her role and what it’s like behind the scenes at the races. Dimitri Tordo, pro enduro racer, talks about how the race went for him. And finally Rhys Pearson from Great Big Events, who put on the show in-venue, explains the work that goes into live events and what the goals are for the future.

Freestyle BMX athlete Nikita Ducarroz shares her story, from anxiety attacks aged 13 to discovering BMX which she credits with saving her life, to winning an Olympic medal! She talks openly about the impact anxiety has on her life, how she manages it, and why she set up MindTricks to open up the conversation around chronic anxiety.