Mike D interview ideas

L

LesBainsDouches

Member
I'm interviewing Mike D. in the near future, and I have most of my questions ready, but I wouldn't mind hearing some of your ideas. Mind that it's being written for a city scene/arts & style mag, not a skiing one, so I won't be able to ask lots of really specialized, industry-tied questions. Most of the people reading it likely don't have anything more than the most cursory knowledge abt newschool, so I'd like to do rep Mike and the scene better than most of the phoned-in, pandering bullshit I've read from other outsider attempts to 'tap into youth sport culture' etc. I go back a ways w/ Mike and it's nice to see what he's done with his life.

I'll post the article once it hits print so you can see if your question made it in.

 
Do you feel that Salomon is pushing the sport, say as much as, K2 or other companies?

'I think that gay marriage is something that should be between a man and a woman,' -a certain California governor

www.wolfcreekski.com
 
Hes not going to give an honest answer in respect to salomon.

'I would be embarrassed to constantly complain about my life considering all the freedom and opportunities we have today. People that can't find anything they enjoy in life simply aren't giving it a real try.' ~Nick 311
 
Some of the questions you may want to pose to him would be relating to how he views the gap between the core ski culture of newschool/freeski enthusiasts, and the majority of recreational weekender type skiers can be bridged, or even if it should be bridged. You can also ask questions relating to if he feels that newschool skiing only takes from urban culture or does it give anything back.

Just some thoughts

Defy Skeez(tm) Team Rider and all around Jackass
 
you should also get him to elaborate on how the newschool culture is bringing the fun back to skiing, just like snowboarding got started...get the kids stoked again and $$$ will come just like snowboarding did

When in doubt...FSI

...fuckin send it

work to live...not live to work.

work to ski...but only if you ski to work. The simple equation to skibumming 101
 
^ and ^^ both good suggestions. i don't think people reading a culture magazine are going to have the slightest interest in salomon vs k2 though

also, mike d is pretty old - does he have a kid? (i forget) how about being an older guy in a field of kids ten+ yrs younger than he is? work the family angle maybe

-Strode

Abba Zabba, you my only friend
 
He said in powder mag dueling banjos that since 49% of ticket sales were sold out east that meant that 49% of skiers only have a park to ski. Ask him if he really believes that cause its sooo off

Jesus saves!

Gretzki gets the rebound. he feeds the puck to LeClare. he shoots he scores! the crowd goes wild

 
1. How do you feel you best relate and contribute, now and in the future, to the youth ski culture that's literally half your age?

2. Is the preoccupation with the pursuit of sponsorship (the holy grail), and the incurring injuries of those 'progressing' the sport as a result, jeopardizing its future?

3. Are competitions (e.g. X-Games, US Open) the best way to showcase a movement that started out as a rejection of the established competition circuit (FIS) and their unmoving and subjective judging criteria?

4. Do you think the two cultures will move closer together now that FIS freestyle moguls have opened up their jump standards and the Olympics are pondering the inclusion of skier halfpipe?

Sorry if the questions seemed focused on 'negative' aspects. I'd suspect that Mike could answer them positively anyway, so no harm.

 
Wow, some really intelligent suggestions there, thanks. I also want to ask him if he's worried that newschool's ascendance happened too quickly, and if there's going to be a psychological 'comedown' when progression - which has accelerated more quickly in skiing than in any other neo-sport this century - plateaus because people can physically only go so big before people start vaporizing mid-air.

 
Ifsa_alum

those are great questions, but perhaps those questions are a little to close to the scope of feild that a ski magazine, and more specifically a 'newschool' ski magazine might need in the way of content.

I am not sure how relevant and interesting that would be to a reading audience that is not skier based, as is the type of publication he said this was for.

Defy Skeez(tm) Team Rider and all around Jackass
 
Hmm... maybe have him break down what new school is in lehman's (sp?) terms? So uneducated folk know what the fuck is up. It's tricky because everything I think of is geared more towards a skiing publication rather than a fine arts/trend mag... maybe i'll think of somethin lata.

'I bought an antfarm once. Them fellers didn't grow shit'.
 
ask him if salomon is ever gonna make a good park ski instead of pow pow skis

______________________________________

just ski

KILL GATE RAPERS

7th outa 30 in big air hell ya!!
 
ask him how he feels now that he has started to make the transition from full time skier to more of a support position in the industry, a la glen plake. i say this because of his commentary positions at the x games and bmwx3 invite and what not.

mark

'One good thing about music, when it hits you feel no pain'

 
How bout this... try and see what he feels the role of action sports like skiing, skating, boarding, bmx surfing ect is going to play in the future (when todays kids are in their late 20's early 30's and begining to have families) of american society verses the role that traditional sports like football basketball baseball ect play. and if he feels that traditional sports are going to get less or the same exposier in mainsteam media due to the growing popularity of action sports.

with more televised events and dedicated action sport tv stations in 10 or so years do you see action sports being just as mainstream as traditional sports and why do you think that is or isn't going to happen.

do you feel that the fact that most if not all action sports are more of a solo mental game in which you aren't part of a team and where there is much more socalization and comradery (sp) is better or worse for the youth of today.

just a few things that I think about all the time.

www.offtrailproductions.com

The time is almost here......
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top