Blister Cinematic

55 years ago today, the movie ‘Downhill Racer’ came out, and it starred two legendary actors, Robert Redford and Gene Hackman. The film critic Roger Ebert calls this “the greatest sports movie ever made,” and today, Jonathan discusses ‘Downhill Racer’ with one of the greatest American downhillers of all time, Daron Rahlves.

Now normally, our advice is that you should watch the film before listening to our conversation about it, but in the case of ‘Downhill Racer,’ we think that listening to our conversation first might help you appreciate the film even more, and see why Daron Rahlves & Roger Ebert both love it so much.

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Get Yourself Covered: BLISTER+

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Film Overview (5:32)

Robert Redford (11:30)

How Race Courses & Ski Racing Have Changed (16:28)

Memorabilia, Romance, & Heartbreak (31:25)

Gene Hackman (38:02)

Most Rewatchable Scenes (44:04)

Hahnenkamm Downhill (49:08)

Last Scene (57:07)

Best Lines (1:03:05)

Hottest Take Award (1:13:28)

Should the Film Be Remade? (1:16:26)

Who Won the Movie? (1:24:40)

Our Final Grades (1:28:01)

Meeting Up at WC Races in Sun Valley (1:32:10)

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Blister Podcast

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

CRAFTED

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Jonathan talks with our great friend and longtime Blister reviewer, Paul Forward, about a beautiful new series of three short films about Paul, called The Hard Way. It is presented by Sitka Films, and it delves into Paul’s lifelong passion for traditional bow hunting, and the ethics that guide Paul’s practice.

Paul and Jonathan have talked about some of these topics on various Blister podcasts, and we’ll include a link to those conversations in the show notes of this episode. But today, Paul and Jonathan go behind the scenes of the making of these films, and we flesh out some of the topics related to The Hard Way.

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Ep. 1: ‘The Hard Way’ (3 minutes)

Ep. 2: ‘The Hard Way’ (4 minutes)

Ep. 3: ‘The Hard Way’ (23 minutes)

CRAFTED: Paul Forward on Arrows

CRAFTED: Paul on Traditional Bows

Blister Podcast: Paul on Cooperation Across the Outdoor Industry

GEAR:30: Paul & Jonathan on Pow Skis in AK

TOPICS & TIMES:

How did this film come to be? (3:17)

Solo vs Solo for Filming (10:06)

The Depths of Experience and Hunting Philosophy (24:59)

Risk and O2 Demand (29:40)

Relative Risk vs Absolute Risk (42:13)

Luke Koppa, Mentorship, and Modern Tech (51:07)

Listener Question from Luke: The Hardway? (55:54)

Successfully Unsuccessful (1:12:01)

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Blister Podcast

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

CRAFTED

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Today, Simon Stewart is joined by former pro cyclist Joe Park to revisit the 1977 documentary, A Sunday in Hell, often regarded as the greatest bike racing film of all time. Having raced the 1988 Paris-Roubaix, Joe brings a perspective only someone who has suffered on the infamous cobbles of  “The Hell of the North” can offer. Director Jørgen Leth’s gritty documentary style puts you right there on the famed cobbles of northern France to witness the 1976 edition of the Paris-Rounbaix road race, while Joe’s experience racing against some of the same legends in the film adds an unmistakeable layer of authenticity to the conversation.

RELATED LINKS: 

BLISTER+ Get Yourself Covered

Read Now: Our 24/25 Digital Winter Buyer’s Guide

Order Now: Our 24/25 Winter Buyer’s Guide

Come and Gone: Joe’s book

Topics and Times:

The Sherif, The Gypsy, and The Cannibal (1:47)

Jørgen Leth’s Documentary Style (5:08)

Joe’s 1988 Paris-Roubaix Race (6:34)

Flemish vs Belgian (11:20)

Daunting Boredom (17:17)

Joe’s Pie-Plate (20:37)

Dust (24:06)

The Chaos of the Cobbles (26:04)

Race Strategy (34:37)

The Broom Wagon (45:14)

Roger Muffed It (51:27)

New Bikes vs Old Bikes (58:43)

Best Bike Race Film Ever (1:05:41)

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:

Blister Podcast

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

CRAFTED

Off The Couch

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Jeremy Jones & Jonathan Ellsworth revisit the 2010 film, Deeper, that Jeremy calls the most important movie of his snowboarding career —  which is saying something, coming from a guy who was named snowboarder of the year 10 times, and a guy who’s starred in over 100 films. But there is no question that DEEPER represents a watershed moment in snowsports films, when riders like Jeremy, Travis Rice, and Xavier De Le Rue are here pushing the limits of what is possible on the steepest slopes. In our conversation, Jeremy lays out what he was trying to do, where he was trying to push skiing and snowboarding, he shares the backstories behind the steepest lines he’s ever ridden, lots of the lessons he learned, and more.

RELATED LINKS: 

BLISTER+ Get Yourself Covered

Read Now: Our 24/25 Digital Winter Buyer’s Guide

Order Now: Our 24/25 Winter Buyer’s Guide

TOPICS & TIMES:

The Inspiration For Deeper (3:04)

When Big Alaska Turned Small (6:46)

The Station Wagon Scene?? (8:55)

Jeremy’s Goal with Deeper (11:50)

Travis Rice (14:51)

Tents & Steep Lines (19:54)

Chamonix (20:56)

Toe Edge Turns (25:01)

Risk Assessment & Rule #1 (26:21)

Antarctica (31:36)

Riding Steeps (36:10)

Fairweather, Alaska (38:38)

Bivy Sack and Black Bomber and Frozen Joints (44:32)

Fear (53:29)

Production Challenges & Picking Lines (55:14)

Wall of Walls (57:28)

Spine Riding (59:40)

Soundtrack & Rewatching the Film  (1:03:02)

Impact of Deeper (1:06:40)

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:

Blister Podcast

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

CRAFTED

Off The Couch

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One of the best (and unique) things about snowsports is that, every fall, we get to meet up as a community, go to some theater, and watch together the season’s new ski and snowboard films. So on this episode, we celebrate the start of Ski Movie Season with Drew Petersen. Drew talks about the major impact that ski movie screenings made on him; he names some of his all-time favorite ski movies, he talks about his role today in running the Salomon Quality Ski Time Film Tour, and we offer a sneak peek of some of the films that will be showing, including the latest from Cody Townsend; a great one from The Blank Collective; and more.

RELATED LINKS: 

BLISTER+ Get Yourself Covered

Read Now: Our 24/25 Digital Winter Buyer’s Guide

Order Now: Our 24/25 Winter Buyer’s Guide

Quality Ski Time Film Tour Info

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:

Blister Podcast

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

CRAFTED

Off The Couch

TOPICS & TIMES:

Yearbook (1:58)

Drew's Favorite Ski Movies (5:25)

The Quality Ski Time Film Tour (9:52)

Tour Locations (17:19)

The Films in the Tour (18:30)

Camp Blank (22:12)

Open (22:45)

Cody’s Latest Film (27:20)

Josh Daiek (30:25)

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20 years ago, ‘Yearbook,’ one of the most star-studded ski movies of all time, was released. So last week on Blister Cinematic, we talked with Matchstick’s Murray Wais and Scott Gaffney about the making of the film, and today, we’re talking with three of the stars of the film, Hugo Harrisson, Ingrid Backstrom, and Mark Abma.

RELATED LINKS: 

BLISTER+ Get Yourself Covered

Read Now: Our 24/25 Digital Winter Buyer’s Guide

Order Now: Our 24/25 Winter Buyer’s Guide

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:

Blister Podcast

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

CRAFTED

Off The Couch

TOPICS & TIMES:

HUGO HARRISSON (3:00)

Bella Coola (5:46)

Hugo’s Approach to Picking Lines (11:01)

"If you aren’t scared….” (14:59)

Harrison Motel (17:04)

Shane’s Anecdotes (23:00)

INGRID BACKSTROM (24:28)

Getting Noticed (24:49)

Shane as Mentor (31:22)

Ski Racing (33:11)

Confidence Going into Filming? (34:43)

Bella Coola (37:04)

Karaoke (40:04)

First Big Mountain Lines (47:00)

MARK ABMA (1:02:11)

Getting the Call for Yearbook (1:05:54)

One of Mark’s First Lines (1:10:02)

confidence vs doubt (1:12:56)

Rock Ride (1:21:18)

Parallax Shot (1:25:02)

Rock n Roll High School (1:32:38)

After Yearbook (1:35:35)

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20 years ago this week, ‘Yearbook,’ one of the most star-studded ski movies of all time, was released. So today we talk with Matchstick’s Murray Wais and Scott Gaffney about the behind-the-scenes insanity; the in-front-of-the-camera surprises; the incredible soundtrack; the styles of Seth Morrison & Hugo Harrisson; and more.

And tune in next week where some of the stars of the film (Ingrid Backstrom, Hugo Harrisson, & Mark Abma) will be sharing their ‘Yearbook’ stories.

RELATED LINKS: 

BLISTER+ Get Yourself Covered

Read Now: Our 24/25 Digital Winter Buyer’s Guide

Order Now: Our 24/25 Winter Buyer’s Guide

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:

Blister Podcast

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

CRAFTED

Off The Couch

TOPICS & TIMES:

1993: Meeting in Crested Butte (1:48)

2003: What was going on in Skiing & at MSP? (4:37)

The Stars of Yearbook (10:19)

The Premiere / Shane McConkey on Mtn Dew (12:32)

Rock n’ Roll High School (17:37)

The Soundtrack (32:50)

Abma the Freshman (35:55)

Ingrid the Rookie (42:23)

Hugo Harrisson (48:57)

Seth vs Hugo (56:12)

Crashes (1:00:09)

Candide (1:04:50)

Tanner Hall (1:05:42)

Favorite Segments? (1:15:17)

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There’s no denying that the film Rad is a cult classic. Released in 1986 at the height of BMX popularity, it artfully combines BMX freestyle and BMX racing, with a classic underdog story based on the life of BMX freestyle legend, Eddie Fiola. 

Today, Eddie joins Simon Stewart, along with BMX Hall of Famer Jen Zeuner, in a fun conversation about this iconic bike film where we discuss how Eddie got the call to be in the movie; director Hal Needham being a badass; getting knocked out; the terrifying drop into the Helltrack; wearing Lori Loughlin’s pants, plus a whole lot more.

RELATED LINKS: 

BLISTER+ Get Yourself Covered

TOPICS & TIMES:

How Eddie Ended up in the Movie  (2:34)

Is the Movie Based on Eddie’s Life? (5:51)

Why Was it Filmed in Canada? (11:09)

Director Hal Needham (14:02)

Different BMX Disciplines (17:44)

3-Story-High 72º Drop-In to Helltrack (19:13)

Getting Knocked Out (29:22)

Mongoose (38:22)

Wearing Lori Loughlin’s Pants (41:43)

Eddie’s Most Challenging Stunts (46:14)

How Much is Eddie Riding Now and Stunt History (51:03)

Breaking Warren Miller’s Camera (1:03:06)

Eddie’s Favorite Scene (1:05:10)

Memorabilia (1:09:09)

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:

Blister Podcast

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

CRAFTED

Off The Couch

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Brendan and Jonathan discuss the 1976 movie, Rocky, because Brendan has made the bold claim that Rocky is the greatest running movie of all-time. See if you agree, but even if you don’t, this is a fantastic movie and we think you’ll enjoy this conversation.

RELATED LINKS: 

BLISTER+ Get Yourself Covered

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:

Blister Podcast

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

CRAFTED

Off The Couch

TOPICS & TIMES:

Brendan’s Upcoming 50k (3:12)

Background on ‘Rocky’ (5:09)

Brendan’s Hot Take (14:23)

Most Rewatchable Scenes (28:47)

Best Quotes (36:55)

What’s Aged the Best? (45:16)

Athletes / Actors in the Film (53:27)

Who Needed BLISTER+ the Most? (55:39)

Whats Aged the Worst? (56:28)

Burning Questions (59:25)

Sequel, Prequel, Remake? (1:07:00)

Memorabilia You’d Most Want? (1:07:30)

Who Won the Movie? (1:08:39)

Our Final Grades (1:11:36)

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Kevin Costner, bike racer? Yep. American Flyers was released 39 years ago this week, and Costner would go on to make some of the best sports films of all time, including Bull Durham, Field of Dreams, and Tin Cup. So how well does this bike film hold up? How does it compare to the other bike film written by Steve Tesich, Breaking Away? Jonathan and Simon discuss — and also come up with might be their best idea ever for a prequel.

RELATED LINKS: 

BLISTER+ Get Yourself Covered

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:

Blister Podcast

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

CRAFTED

Off The Couch

TOPICS & TIMES:

Another Bike Film (4:19)

The Actors, Players, & Ferris' Sister (9:11)

Most Rewatchable Scenes (12:11)

What’s Aged the Best? (20:29)

What’s Aged the Best/Worst? (30:50)

Best Lines (38:26)

Worst Line (44:59)

Hottest Take (47:28)

Who Needed BLISTER+ the Most? (1:00:45)

Gimme More, Gimme Less? (1:03:16

Burning Questions (1:07:11)

Attention Span Award (1:11:28)

Prequel, Sequel, or Spinoff? (1:12:39)

Memorabilia You’d Most Want from the Film (1:16:15)

Who Won the Movie? (1:20:44)

Our Final Grades (1:24:00)

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