Minimal Multisport Podcast

This episode of the Minimal Multisport Podcast is with my friend and colleague, Phil Casanta. Phil is a former elite runner, professional cyclist, and now he is one of the premier bicycle mechanics and fitters in the world, running a shop called Hypercat out in California.  Phil and I dive pretty deep in to the inner workings of the bicycle business and how it has evolved in both good and bad ways.  If you’re not very into bikes, you can probably skip over the first 15 minutes or so, as we talk about some fairly technical things with how bikes have evolved from being rather simple, to the current high-tech state that requires more consumer knowledge to own and maintain.  If you’ve listened to this show before you already know that I think this is mostly a bad thing, and I wanted to get a historical view from Phil, who is older and wiser than I, and has seen in detail how things have changed since the 1980’s.

This episode of the Minimal Multisport Podcast is with 6-time Ironman World Champion and the man that ESPN called the Greatest Endurance Athlete of All-Time, Mark Allen. If you’re not from the endurance sports realm, the best way I can explain it is that he’s the Michael Jordan of triathlons. Or if you’re one of my friends from jiu-jitsu, it’d be like having Rickson Gracie on the show. In other words – he’s a big deal, and it was an honor to have an hour of his time. Even if you aren’t into running or triathlons, much of what Mark and I talked about applies to all sports, business, and just generally trying to improve how you tackle any difficult situation. In particular, Mark is a big believer in learning how to quiet your mind, and that this is one of the biggest factors in being able to achieve anything great. Don’t worry, it’s not all hippy and woo-woo, and Mark gives some great advice that you can benefit from.

This episode of the Minimal Multisport Podcast is with one of the best short-course triathletes in the world, Cam Dye. The big news for Cam is that he recently announced his retirement from the sport, after a very successful career. More importantly, however, he is super down to earth, and I’m not just saying that as the standard thing you’re supposed to say. I met Cam back when I was a fledgling pro triathlete myself, and he was always super approachable. I later worked with him as the sponsorship manager for one of his equipment sponsors, and I was always struck by how willing he was to come by and talk to us before his races. Like… to the point where I was thinking, “Hey man, shouldn’t you go and put your feet up now to rest for this huge competition tomorrow?!” He always went way over the top and was super friendly. This interview was very fun, as Cam gave a lot of unfiltered opinions on the good and bad of the sport and the companies that are engineering its direction. Especially towards the end, he gives it to you very straight on what needs to change, and also his advice to anyone that wants to pursue a career in athletics.

This episode features professional triathlete and multiple Ironman Champion, Ben Hoffman. Ben is a great guy, very entertaining, and a super talented athlete. Also, he has been in the news lately, having missed the opportunity to race this year at the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii, due to an injury – which we talk about in-depth during the show. I also wanted to talk to Ben because he is a very smart and genuine guy, and his overall message fits into this show quite well. He’s a very thoughtful person, and while he doesn’t describe himself as a minimalist, a lot of his approach to life lines up with nicely with minimalism and wanting a balanced and happy life. He has hobbies like woodworking, welding, and carpentry. He and his wife Kelsey make a point to clear out the clutter from their house several times a year. He has lived out of an Airstream trailer. And perhaps most importantly, he doesn’t just pursue sponsorships with manufacturers of high tech sports equipment – he also has both a bacon and a wine sponsor. I think he’s doing something right! :)

This episode is with the great Dr. Nat Collins. He is a doctor of physical therapy, coach, ultrarunner, and occasional triathlete. Nat and I discuss a lot of things, but the main reason I wanted to pick his brain is that he has a unique combination of clinical work, coaching experience, and personal experience that a lot of coaches don’t have. He has a very deep understanding of biomechanics, and has helped me personally with injuries before. I wanted to get his take on athleticism in general, and what the key things are that the average person is bad at. In other words, for most of us with desk jobs, and living in an artificial environment – what are the most common physical issues he sees, and the best ways to fix it without spending a tremendous amount of time? Spoiler alert: If you’re spending zero time in the gym, have never seen a physical therapist, and don’t know what a foam roller is, you’re probably not doing yourself a ton of favors in terms of long-term health.

This episode is with none other than Ben Hobbs – one of the funniest, most controversial characters in the triathlon and endurance sports world. You may know him as “The Real Starky”. Ben started off as “just another guy” – another age group triathlete. As a joke, he began a parody Twitter account that poked fun at triathletes, and this snowballed into something much bigger – a blog, a very popular podcast, and eventually a legitimate news website that competed with major publishers in the triathlon space. However, after several years of making content, it all stopped rather suddenly. The podcasts trickled off, the articles stopped, and everyone started to wonder what happened. Where is The Real Starky and what is he doing now? Why did he stop? Is he ever going to come back? What about Ben’s side project, The Ben Hobbs Podcast (which, incidentally, was outstanding). Well, folks – now is your chance to hear the full update. Ben and I talked for about an hour, and caught up on all-things-TRS. We get in to his life changes, reducing his digital footprint, eliminating most social media, and even how adopting a minimalist lifestyle has improved his quality of life in the over-teched world of 2018. Ben is very funny and a great speaker from his years of podcasting experience, and I think you will enjoy this episode.

This episode of the Minimal Multisport Athlete Podcast is with my friend John Paul Severin. John is a longtime triathlete (and athlete in general), who I met while racing in college. We have a similar outlook on life and have both taken steps to simplify our lives as we move into real adult life in our 30s.The long story short is that John is busy now. He has a wife and kids, a full-time job, and is trying to balance all of that while still staying in shape. He has some effective strategies for this, such as commuting to work on his bike. He and his family also have a big interest in minimalism, mostly as a strategy to bring some sense of peace to a house with three small children. John got in touch with me to discuss something that I mentioned on the last episode, which is trying to downsize his bikes. At his peak, John had 4 bikes, each fulfilling a slightly different purpose than the next. Now he is working to reduce that to 3 or perhaps even 2, and we talked about all of the details such as:-How he prioritized the most important ‘jobs’ that his equipment needed to do.-How having a couple sets of different tires can completely change the capability of one bike.-How simplifying his equipment has allowed him to bring a sense of fun and joy back into exercise – ultimately leading to better longevity in the sport, and overall health.