Beyond the Mountains podcast

When I was thinking about maybe starting a podcast,  Max Vince was one of the first people I had on my list of people to talk to. 

He was my first ski instructor and took me for my very first ski lesson. 

While I was falling all over the beginner slope, hands on my knees and trying to snow plough, Max was skiing backwards and making jokes with with me.  

The next lesson I had with Max during the same season, I had progressed a lot, but I didn’t know what to do with my ski poles. During my first lesson, Max threw my poles away, and told me I didn’t need them yet. So after I got better and could ski on the blue and red runs some friends who are also ski instructors told me it was time to start using poles. That it would help me turn better

So I booked Max for a lesson, and asked him how I use the poles. I was also keen to show him my progress, so we went to a really nice Red run, he showed me how to plant my poles to help initiate the turns. I thought I was skiing fast, but the entire lesson Max was skiing backwards faster than I was skiing forwards and the entire time he was cracking jokes at my expense.

I knew from friends that Max was a pro skier and competed on the Freestyle tour,  I wanted to learn more about this, and the local Freestyle ski show he and his friends used to put on in the resort. and 

I also had the feeling from a few conversations we had over the years that Max had lost some of his enjoyment for Skiing. This was something I wanted to ask him about, as his job was to be a ski instructor. He skis everyday in the winter.

I have also been pretty impressed by Max’s entrepreneurial spirit to start a new business, something not ski related. His competitive spirit and self determination has helped him to expand and grow.

There is something magical about watching birds flying in the mountains. Especially when it’s a large bird like an Eagle, a vulture, or a gypaete. Vultures and gypaetes have wingspans of close to 3 meters. You can see them a lot in the French Alpes. Watching them fly it’s hard not to imagine what it’s like to fly or wish we could fly like that.

My guest today is Philippe Hamichi and he gets as close to flying like a bird as you can get.

He is a professional paragliding pilot. He takes clients on tandem flights in mountains and his passion for flying has led him to fly in many different mountains and countries around the world.

On the show, we discuss how a trip to Canada led to him to meeting and falling in love with the girl of his dreams, and then falling in love with the mountains and falling in love with flying.

We’ll talk about the importance of reading the winds, Flying over the French Italian border to buy cheese, and why the period just before winter is the worst part of the year.

Welcome to episode 1 of Beyond the mountains podcast.

I want to ease my way into this show. So I am talking to a very good friend of mine, I know him as Raphy, but as you’ll hear in the show his name is Raphael Carvalho.

This first series of episodes I am calling the Locals Project. I’ll be talking to my friends and other locals from the Maurienne Valley. I want to share with you some local knowledge.

The perfect person to talk to about Locals in the local barman and Raphy knows everyone in Val Cenis.

Raphy and his wife Dorata have been a huge help to me in relocation to France. So I want to thank them both publicly now. Thank you Raphy and Dorota

But Raphy is the owner of a terrific bar and burger restaurant in Val Cenis. Val Cenis is a ski resort in the Haute Maurienne part of the French Alpes.

We talk about Tour, the town he was born in, located in central France. It’s a famous wine-producing region. We talk about his time working in the UK and learning English. I can totally relate to this.

But  Raphy makes the best burgers in Val Cenis and he shares with us his 3 most popular burgers.

And we talk about his passion for snowboarding and learning to play the Ukulele and the guitar.

So let's start the intro music and get on with the show. Allons-y

The Beyond the mountains podcast is a series of stories and interviews from people who "Live, Work and Play" in the mountains. From pro athletes, mountain guides, restaurant owners, musicians, ski patrollers, cyclists, and mountain refuge guardians.

They all share the same passion and love for the mountains. These are their stories about being in the mountains. I hope it inspires you to come an visit us in the mountains.