The NSMB Podcast: Obsessed with Mountain Biking

Here’s part one of my conversation with Mike, where he talks about growing up barefoot in New Zealand, learning to fix motorcycles and bikes, moving to America, racing bikes and motos, working in shops, beginning to write about mountain biking, and getting his start at Bike Magazine.

On a short trip to New Zealand in 2019, I thought there might be a chance to record a podcast with Sven and Anka Martin. When I arrived in Nelson, I learned that my two podcast targets had planned and were running the Santa Cruz media event that had brought me to their adopted homeland.

Sven is a former pro skateboarder and World Cup downhiller who has become one of the most well known and respected photographers on the DH and enduro circuits. Anka, who’s married to Sven, is a badass rider who raced World Cup DH until two thousand and nine and eventually began pursuing a career racing enduro. She has won both Trans Provence and Andes Pacifico and was a regular in the top 10 at the EWS - before stepping back from competitive riding at the end of 2016. Neither Sven nor Anka had ever ridden a mountain bike when they first met. Incredibly together they clawed their way up until they were both racing at the highest level.

Sven and Anka, South Africans by birth who also host the popular NZ Enduro every year, had to scuttle their original plan for myself and the other visiting journalists. Things were too hot in the trails near Nelson and the risk of fire was too high. They took this in stride and hastily organized a two-day excursion that involved riding sweet singletrack to a lodge that can’t be reached by road, leaving there by boat and then jumping in helicopters for an alpine drop to sample some of the finest loamy singletrack I’ve ridden. They pulled a wicked advenutre out of the hat and never seemed to break a sweat.

On top of this - Sven was shooting photos of all the journalists and athletes - and Anka was making sure everyone was having a great time and quietly sorting all the details - all this the week before their annual NZ Enduro.

In the midst of this chaos I asked if they could spare an hour to sit down for a podcast and they were gracious enough to accept.

The first thing you notice about Sven and Anka is that they are always smiling and laughing and enjoying life - even when things seem to be going sideways. Sven is always making wise cracks and Anka’s good mood seems impenetrable. We talked about their nomadic lives, how they came to settle in New Zealand, racing and photographing bikes and Sven’s unbelievable opening line when they first met.

This episode isn’t heavy on downhill or EWS for you race nerds, but I think it captures something authentic about my guests and the incredible lives they have created within the world of mountain biking.
Sven Martin on InstagramAnka Martin on InstagramGary Perkin on Instagram

Over the last 20 years, we’ve watched Geoff Gulevich evolve and grow from a fresh-faced 13-year-old grom into one of the most recognized freeriders in our sport. His career started about the same time that riding on the North Shore achieved worldwide renown and the two have grown together. From cedar skinnies up in the sky to the today's modern, flowy style, he has been there, first as a young local ripper with parts in Digger’s North Shore Extreme video series, moving on to global recognition with a big online following, working with companies like GoPro and lululemon in addition to his bike industry sponsors.
Throughout that time, Gully has been a mainstay in videos as well as freeride and slopestyle competitions, earning accolades and results but also the respect and admiration of fellow riders, fans, and the industry as a whole. His easygoing nature and friendly demeanour comes as naturally as greasing a massive booter, and that may be what people like most about him, but there is no shortage of reasons to be a fan. No boasting or ego here - just a grown-up kid who likes to have fun on his bike, who has matured along with the sport that he loves, and has brought us along for the ride.

I’m Pete Roggeman and this is episode 5 of the NSMB podcast, and for this one, Cam McRae and I sat down together with Geoff Gulevich - known to many of us as ‘Gully’ - to dive a little deeper.
Topics discussed:

1. Gully's first bike and how the wheel got taco'ed on the first day.
2. First-ever ride with a pro with Jay Hoots and knowing MTB was the career he wanted from the time he started.
3. Getting his parents to forge his application to McDonald's so he could earn money for bike parts - at age 12!
4. Competing at Rampage and slopestyle events like Joyride.
5. Guinea-pigging the Oakley sender and his biggest crash ever.
6. Traveling the world as a competitor and then as an adventurer.
7. Geoff collects pocket knives from places he travels to and commissioned Ethan Nell's dad to make custom knives for his groomsmen.
8. The experience of his Fox News interview after Rampage in 2014.
9. Social media, dealing with haters, a few tips for getting better GoPro footage.
10. How GoPro has influenced his career.
11. What advice would he give to Gully in the past?
12. What does the future hold for Geoff Gulevich?

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Follow Gully on Instagram
• Gully's viral helmet cam vid from Rampage and ensuing Fox News Interview

The NSMB Podcast: Obsessed with Mountain Biking is available on all of your favourite podcast apps:

• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify
• Stitcher
• Overcast
• Google Podcasts

For our first Podcast with Mike Ferrentino, he was home on the acreage where he lives, inland from the coast up the Carmel Valley. Mike lives in a barn filled with bikes and motorcycles, the latter in various stages of decomposition. He's a decent distance from civilization, and from the internet. Mike's connectivity relies on tethering to his phone's sketchy data signal so while we were talking the first time I would lose his picture, and sometimes his voice, for long stretches. There was also a delay I was unaware of, that caused me to walk over Mike's words quite regularly. This time around Mike had a better solution. He jumped into his Ford Transit,(which he got in trade for the Sprinter he mentions in the podcast) found a spot that was quiet and set up his mic. I lost him a couple of times, and once we got disconnected completely, but overall it was like going from hieroglyphics to Morse Code.

We dug a little deeper into Mike's time at bike magazine, particularly the glory days before corporate takeovers, talked about his six years working for Santa Cruz Bikes at the old cannery location, and even discussed mountain biking's newest marketing designation; Downcountry! We also talked about "shaping the destiny of mountain biking," about spectating, working for 'the man,' and being "strapped into a rocket car without a steering wheel."

And this made me realize all the things we didn't cover. But those will have to wait until next time.

Please enjoy our second podcast with the incomparable Mike Ferrentino.

For flat pedal riders after the most grip possible, FiveTen has really been the only option. Year after year, new shoe releases have left us to question, why is it so hard for others to achieve similar grip?

With the release of their new 2FO DH shoes and now the Rime, A.J. Barlas wanted to know more about Specialized’s shoe development process. Did they want all the grip, and if so, why did it take so long? How did they test the sole for grip? And what about their choice of materials?
Specialized Footwear Product Manager, Stephen Quay was happy to dive into the new shoes, answering A.J's questions and more. They discussed the development process behind SlipNot ST, the materials used in the uppers, and Specialized’s Body Geometry. It turns out heaps goes into making shoes and the type of rubber needed for grip is tricky to develop.