Women in Action Sports Conversation Space: Recent Episodes
Alba Pardo
Conversations with leaders, athletes, professionals and makers of the action sports industry.
Hosted by action sports media expert and founder of the Women in Action Sports Network Alba Pardo, these conversations touch on current, relevant and very important topics about our personal and professional lives tied up around the passion for action sports and its community.
Julia Sosnovska is the communications manager at Don't Take Fake Agency & Magazine and Kyiv's Double Triple Fest.
After receiving the news that her team in collaboration with the Ukrainian snowboard brand Holy Wood Boards have put together a capsule collection with ten different Ukrainian artists and are auctioning it on-line to raise funds for the psychological recovery of their soldiers I thought we had to jump on a conversation to talk about the action sports community in Ukraine, their job on nurturing and building on that scene and presenting it to the World through the international skate, snowboard and freeski event in downtown Kyiv the Double Triple Fest.
But also, I really wanted to understand her situation and her companies in the context of war. Because it's something I can't fully grasp or begin to understand I wanted to ask these questions. In this conversation Julia not only explains the culture and community around sports and urban culture in Ukraine but shares the love for their own history and creations, which has taught me the invaluable lesson that, besides money, one way we can all help is by recognising their history, their traditions, their uniqueness and their talent and help them develop it further.
First, head to the Double Triple Fest Instagram accounts and place your bids to get your hands on one of the beautiful snowboards they have curated and help raise funds for the recovery of their defenders.
And second, if you have the opportunity and as an action sports industry professional, maybe consider to reach out to some of the amazing Ukrainian creatives, designers or artists to help you in your next project. But in the mean time don't forget to check your sources but keep sharing their culture and heritage for the world to know.
For this first episode, ever, of How I did This I reached out to Lisa Slagle, Founder of the creative Agency Wheelie Creative.
I don’t want to give away too much before we get started, but I can tell you that Lisa is a determined, hard working, no bullshit creative whose live has been shaped by her passion for snowboarding.
Trained as a graphic designer in the Colorado State University Lisa started her business venture on her own and with very little resources, but soon after her company started growing and she has been the proud owner of Wheelie Creative for 13 years.
These 13 years have been full of big shifts, growth and changes. From getting unintetionally stranded in Montana to setting shop there for 10 years, to expanding to a team of more than 30 people and 2 offices in two different states to more recently going completely remote and deserting their office and sticking by it. Lisa’s and Wheeliess journey is exciting, inspiring and most importantly relatable. No fairy tales, but as she says: just GOOD WORK.
On the basis of CRAFT, CONNECTION AND CHANGE she has build a little empire of her own. And I must say after this conversation with her I couldn’t sleep for two nights straight, just reflecting and taking in everything she tells us, how authentically she talks about it and how brutally honest you have to be with yourself to thrive.
About Kimmy Fasani
Kimmy Fasani has been a Professional snowboarder for over twenty years. She has always pushed the female snowboarding scene, not by only achieveing tricks never done before, like when she was the first woman to land a double backflip in a snowpark and in the back country back in 2011 but also by pushing the limits everywhere she could.
She was one of the only women to film with Absinthe Films and she earned her parts in male dominated crews and movies, like the one in the Standard Films movie 2112 where her and Anne-Flore Marxer where the only female riders featured. But also stood up for equality and progression hosting events like Amusement Park and Amusement Mountain which were events to help expedite women’s learning curve and progression in snowboarding.
In 2017 she won the Snowboarder’s Women rider of the Year Award and after that in March 2018 she became a mom. Then an there she did another huge step advocating for equality when she announced that she was planning to continue her career as a professional athlete and had negotiated the terms with her main sponsor, Burton Snowboards, to not only support her through this journey but put policies in place to allow others to do the same in the future.
If you don’t think this is an inspiring life story just yet, let me tell how in 2019, just few months after having her second baby, Zeppelin, Kimmy was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive inflammatory breast cancer. She underwent 10 months of treatment, including 6 rounds of chemotherapy, a double mastectomy, and 30 rounds of radiation. As of now, Kimmy has had a complete pathological response to chemo and surgery so she is cancer free.
Throughout this difficult journey Kimmy has shared her experience very openly on her social media channels and has become an inspiration and a source of strength and hope for many.
Today I have the pleasure to sit down to talk to her about her journey, her choice to go “public” on this challenging times and the things to come. We get real and dig into the uncomfortable topics and hard moments, but if there is one thing I can tell you is that Kimmy is no stranger to the discomfort and nor scared to embrace it, she sheds hope and positivity like I have only seen few people do.
Tangible tools and lessons learnt are just her gift to us at the end of the conversation. So if you are only going to listen to one podcast this month, make sure this is the one.
You can follow Kimmy's journey on her Instagram and support the the Benchetler Fasani Foundation here.
Nikita Ducarroz is a Swiss American BMX Olympic Medalist Athlete who discovered BMX on Youtube in the safety of her room whilst she wouldn't dare to go out in the real world due to her severe anxiety.
In this conversation we talk about her discovery and the progression of the BMX, which is now of course an Olympic sport and she got to grab a medal in the debut of the sport in Tokyo, but most importantly we talk about her journey to get there, her inspirations and her aims.
We talk about the importance of prevention, support and personal work as well as the authenticity on showing oneself to the World, specially as a professional athlete and public figure to keep things real and authentic is her goal. In this line she tells us about her project MindTricks and what is she looking out for the future.
Nikita rides for Red Bull, Mongoose Bikes, Omega. Riding Culture and Troy Lee Designs.
You can follow Nikita on Instagram and also her project MindTricks about mental health awareness.
Michaela Schmid is originally from Davos, Switzerland although she is now living in another Swiss mountain town: Laax. Michaela is the Chill Foundation Coordinator for Switzerland and also a tidying coach. She gathered and extensive experience with marketing and social media whilst travelling around the globe until she came to a point of burn out that made her re-evaluate her choices.
In this conversations she tells us all about this unconventional path of simplicity and joy as well as her work with the kids and young adults in the Swiss program for the Chill Foundation and how snowboarding becomes a tool for integration and value education.
Michaela describes herself as a versatile person who loves contrasts: the mountains and the sea, being active and chilling, her home and nature.
Follow her on her personal accoun @lamichaaaa or her coaching account @michacoaching.ch and learn all about Chill on their Instagram and website.
Thinking about volunteering or working for a non-profit like Chill, here you can check out their open positions.
Marina Minetti is a criminal therapist as well as the woman behind the Swedish Snowboard Association initiative to promote girls snowboarding and freesking called "Progsession".
Marina was born and raised in Tampere, Finland and in this conversation she tells her journey from when she was a teenager and discovered skateboarding, having to take a break from all sports due to a threatening sickness to rediscovering snowboarding and using sport to get out of "trouble".
As a tomboy she never had many girlfriends, and she narrates how she even felt uncomfortable being around other girls. However, that changes after embarking to an adventure that took her out of her comfort zone and change her professional and personal life forever.
We also discuss what is Progsession doing to support girls and evolve the riding level in Sweden, what she understands for support and promotion of a sport and what's needed to keep evolving as a community.
Follow her on:
@marinaminetti
@progsession
Chiara Grisorio is the women's Team Manager for Northwave and Drake as well as the filmer and right hand of operations at Rusty Toothbrush and the mother of little 8 month old India.
In this episode we talk a bit about everything from when he fell in love with snowboarding, how the Italian snowboard scene was back then and her vision on things is right now.
After just launching the first "unisex" snowboard and becoming the women's team manager at Drake & Northwave she also shares her vision on why this figure is needed, what the team managers and brands need to be aware of and how companies need to do things in order to promote equality in the sport and in their teams.
Having lived in a van for few years Chiara and her partner Alex are now the proud parents of baby India and she also talks about her ways to manage motherhood, family life, nomad life and professional life.
Chiara is energetic, opinionated, fun and relatable and this conversations showcases just that.
Follow her on Instagram at @carrygrisu
Follow Rusty Toothbrush @rustytoothbrush
And if you haven't watched it yet, you can enjoy their latest movie "Two Vans, No Plans" here.
The main participants in this conversation are Marina Minnetti from the Swedish Snowboard Association, Satu Järvela president of World Snowboard Federation, Nick Bridge Founder of Girls Are Awesome, Sophie Acworth head of communications at The Nines, Lee Ponzio from the Japanese Snowboard Team, Marcel Den Oude from Girlifornia and many more.
This has been a first of what we think will be many conversations, and in the meantime we invite you to follow the discussion and keep bringing on ideas and sharing resources in the Women in Action Sports Network Facebook Group.
Samantha is a writer, photogrpaher, filmmaker and bike lover from Wales. She loves dogs and travelling with her van. Sam's passion to document, tell and enjoy life and biking come out through every word she says. We talk about women on bikes, life, more bikes, work paths and story-telling.
Follow Samantha 'Saskia' Dugon on Instagram to enjoy her photography: @saskiadugon
You can also look out for her stories on Pinkbike or Sender Magazine.
Here you can watch her documentary with her and her mum "Back on the Bike"
Mel Cheng is a tech specialist an action sports enthusiast who has done pretty much everything what she has set her mind to do. She is originally from the UK and is now based in a small village close to Salzburg in Austria.
Mel transitioned from the tech industry into the action sports industry by targetting what she thought could be her dream job in the mountains. Her journey is exciting, full of daring and many downs.
Mel is now working at Kiska's design agency and she has founded a platform and community to empiower women as a challenge to herself. She Dares has become a community of adventurous, independent and daring women and she continues to inspire more and more individuals every day, through her podcast and the sessions and events she organises.
With Mel we talk about daring, getting out of the comfort zone, ways to achieve a goal and reflecting on the small wins. We talk burn out and break down and how it is possible to pick up the pieces and continue to shape the life you want.
You can join and follow the She Dares community on Instagram @_shedares ans listen to her podcast on any of the major platforms, but mostly she encourages you to get involved.
Or follow Mel's personal account on Instagram to see what she is up to next.
Anne-Flore Marxer was one of the snowboarders you dreamt of becoming. She would ride anything and still keep her own style and approach. From freestyle transitioned into Freeride and she not only continued to progress the sport but she also became a true pain in the ass for a lot of people. And we should all be thankful for that. Specially the new generations of riders.
Her work in equality advocacy, her protests and her tough to swallow statements meant that many would dislike her but that she had just become one of the most valuable leaders in the fight to pursue gender equality in the action sports and snowboarding in particular.
And let's not forget, she is also the 2011 Freeride World Champion amongst many other impressive athletic achievements.
Watch "A Land Shaped by Women"
Follow @annefloremarxer on Instagram
Originally from Half Moon Bay, CA, Katie became a fixture on the race circuit for nearly 10 years, where she competed in local and national levels, in addition to world cups and even urban races in South America. For Katie, racing allowed her to develop a sense of community, to push her limits, and to be comfortable with being uncomfortable. Driven by a desire to explore unique terrain and discover new forms of motivation, Katie transitioned from racing to freeride almost 10 years ago, and her passion for women's freeride continues to fuel her to this day. As the brainchild behind Red Bull Formation, a week-long women's freeride camp, Katie hopes to elevate women's freeriding and to clear the path for the next generation of female freeriders. Currently residing in Bellingham, WA, Katie is continuing to explore ways she can connect sports with places, people, and the global community. When she's not riding steep trails, creating vision boards, or collaborating with peers on Formation, Katie often grounds herself -- literally -- by laying on the ground and letting the earth pull her back into the present moment. - (written by Arc’teryx)
Katie's Website
Follow Katie on Instagram: @katieholden
Grow Cycling Foundation
Conversation Summary:
From being a very competitive profesional mountain biker who used to see other women as big competition, Katie has become one of the main figures on paving the path for the future of female freeride mountain bikers. She takes us through her journey as an athlete and as an advocate for the sport and the female athletes, the reasons and the thinking behind Formation and an overview of the current status of the women's field.
But she also talks about her lessons learnt through injuries and evolving other pillars in her life taking the conversation to her other project, "Grow Cycling" which is creating the space for communities to flourish in whatever way that they want to flourish by being able to show up as who they are and who they want to be and the kind of cyclist they want to be. Because in Katies words "it doesn't matter what kind of cyclist you are, if you ride a bike, you're a cyclist. And that's all that matters."
Following her passion for Snowboarding and mountain life, at the age of 29 Gina left her office job and home in the UK, for a position in the tourism industry working as a Resort Manager for a leading Tour Operator across resorts in France, Italy and her now hometown of Mayrhofen in Austria.
In 2020, as the pandemic spread far and wide, the tourism industry was put on hold, and like many others Gina found herself locked down and unemployed. With this new found abundance of time Gina decided to learn new skills such as website building, creative writing, social media and marketing creating. It wasn't long before these new experiences inspired her next project, to create and host a podcast showcasing the inspiring stories, insightful advice, and top tips of people who live and work abroad from their native countries.
After spending time in early 2021 learning the various aspects of how to make a podcast, on 6th April 2021 Gina released her first episode of the show ‘That Seasonaire Podcast’. Having released a full season, comprising ten episodes, and with over 2500 listens Gina is now working on the production of season two of the popular show.
That Seasonaire Podcast
On instagram: @thatseasonairepodcast
Conversation Summary
Loosing a job, a break up, an illness or even a global pandemic are often listed as reasons to take a leap, change your career path and start something new.
Gina Cerejo, the voice behind "That Seasoinare" Podcasts tells us her journey on not only moving abroad and starting fresh but showcasing the stories of all those others that are doing it. The most empowering moment of this conversation comes when Gina explains that you can basically can learn and do anything you want to do.
Kim Woozy (she/her) is an entrepreneur, community leader and advocate in the skateboarding community. She has spent the last 15 years creating and contributing to brands, organizations and events that inspire, connect and empower girls and women including MAHFIA.TV, Women’s Skateboarding Alliance (WSA), Quit Your Day Job Film, The Skate Exchange Tokyo, Skate Like a Girl and Slmbr Party. In 2019, she advocated for California State Bill AB 467 (Equal Pay for Equal Play) which was signed into law in 2020. She currently serves as the Director of Marketing & Partnerships at Skate Like a Girl, a 501c3 community-led organization whose mission is to create an inclusive community by promoting confidence, leadership and social justice through skateboarding. Challenging who and how people skateboard, Skate Like a Girl lowers barriers to entry and brings people together regardless of age, gender, race and resources.
Born, raised and based in the Bay Area, California, Kim also sits on the community advisory board for the Center for Sport and Social Justice at Cal State East Bay and the Oakland Roots Soccer Club. She is currently a member of the Gender Equality Commission for World Skate. Finding her own strength, freedom, and self-expression through board sports, she is committed to creating accessible opportunities for everyone to participate.
3 x BMX World Champion, 5 x Mountain Bike World Champion and Dual Olympian Athlete, Caroline has been riding the bike for well over two decades. As one of Australia’s most popular female action sports athletes, Caroline rules the BMX race course, excels in Downhill Mountain Biking, dominates the Dual Slalom and loves the Pump Track.
But Caroline classifies herself as more than just a cyclist.
Pro-athlete, business woman, social media talent, mentor and proud advocate for women in sports are only some of the hats she wears. With her down to earth attitude, she has catapulted herself to be one of Australia’s most approachable sportswomen, being equally at home dodging trees downhill on a mountain bike as she is teaching young girls how to navigate their first run on the track.
Caroline’s personal values of equality, hard work and respect motivate her to live by one of her mottos - "overcoming what life throws at you makes you stronger”. With her influence and recognition in her field, she uses her platform to support and empower young women in sports, paving the way for the Next Gen.
Caroline Buchanan Website
Caroline Buchanan Instagram