Yvon Lararthe


Street luge is a unique, exhilarating and adrenaline filled sport, involving traveling at high speed down a paved course with only a board between you and the ground. Hailing from Switzerland, Yvon Labarthe is one of the most highly renowned gravity sports athletes of his generation. His dedication to competitive street luge has seen him win titles including the Vice World Cup Series Championship 2010. IDOL caught up with Labarthe to find out why street luge is such a unique sport and what it takes to be a champion.


WHEN AND HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED IN SUCH AN EXTREME SPORT AS STREET LUGE?
I started rollerblading downhill after a friend introduced me to it 20 years ago, after 10 years I switched my skates for a skateboard and took part in a downhill race where I saw a competitor make a beautiful slide and I thought, “I want to do that”, so I began to seriously commit myself to downhill skateboarding in 1999. I was world champion by 2002 and three years later I switched to street luge.


WHAT DO YOU LOVE THE MOST ABOUT STREET LUGE?
I like how exhilarating and fast the downhill ride is without any form of engine, when you are at 130km/h and all you can hear are your wheels and the wind in your helmet, it's like flying.


STREET LUGE IS GAINING POPULARITY, WOULD YOU SAY THIS IS MAKING COMPETITION BETWEEN LUGERS TOUGHER?
Year after year luge riders get better and better, it's not easy to stay at the top.


YOU HAVE WON MANY WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS AND OTHER TITLES. WHICH ONE WOULD YOU SAY WAS THE MOST DIFFICULT OF THESE COMPETITIONS?
The 2009 season was the hardest season so far for me, trying to keep my results constant was very difficult. Sometimes you win a race easily and sometimes it's very hard, it really depends on the opponents and the track you ride. Last year, I won the world cup series with only a 0.72 point margin (on 1800 points).


YOUR ACHIEVEMENTS ARE OUTSTANDING AND YOU HAVE CONSISTENTLY CLAIMED PODIUM WINNING POSITIONS THROUGHOUT THE YEARS. WHAT CAN WE EXPECT FROM YOU NEXT?
I just would like to continue racing and share my experience with some new riders. Ideally I’d like to stay at the top, but it is not the most important factor for me; I just would like to continue to travel through the world and meet new people and make great videos.


IS THERE A SKILL YOU HAVE ALWAYS WANTED TO LEARN BUT HAVE NEVER HAD THE TIME FOR?
Yes, Base jumping.


WHAT DO YOU LIKE DOING FOR FUN?
Snowboarding, skiing, kite surfing, mountain biking, climbing, and ping pong amongst other things.


WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR?
Become to old for riding


WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TO A BEGINNER IN STREET LUGE?
"Ride safe, and have fun!" Street luge is not very difficult to learn, anybody from 7 to 77 years old can learn, but to win a race is another story.


HAVE YOU EVER BEING THROUGH SELF-DOUBT ABOUT REALLY KNOWING WHAT YOU ARE DOING?
No, when I'm on my luge I am totally focused on what I have to do for my safety. It's like driving a car, you stay focus on the road and you know what you have to do.


IF YOU CAN TAKE A HOLIDAY RIGHT NOW, WHERE WOULD YOU GO AND WHY?
Right now, I would like to be in Canada or Alaska for snowboarding in the powder.


IN YOUR NEXT LIFE, WHAT/WHO WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE REINCARNATED AS?
I would like to be a girl to see the life from the other side, to be in the sexy part of the world.


WHO IS YOUR IDOL?
Tony Hawk

Interview by Katre Laan

Pictures courtesy of the artist

Published in IDOL magazine online version:
http://idolmag.co.uk/art-culture-interview/yvon-labarthe

Tom Kirkman
IDOL introduces you to Tom Kirkman, one of the top mountain boarders in the world. Hailing from Cornwall, a town synonymous with surfing, Kirkman really is a cut above the rest. Having won two championship titles in 2010 alone, we find out what makes mountain boarding so appealing, and what it takes to be such a success story.


CORNWALL IS WELL-KNOWN HOTSPOT FOR SURFERS, SKATEBOARDERS AND BMX-ERS, WHAT DRIVES YOU TO MOUNTAIN BOARDING RATHER THAN THE SLIGHTLY MORE POPULAR OPTIONS?
I love to skate and surf but mountain boarding gives me something I don’t get from either of those sports, the freedom to ride wherever I want and whenever I want, to be creative with my terrain and riding.


YOU STARTED MOUNTAIN BOARDING IN EARLY TEENAGE YEARS. WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IS THE BEST THING ABOUT MOUNTAIN BOARDING? 
For me it’s the friends I’ve met along the way, the places I’ve been and the way the sport has progressed, mountain boarding is a relatively new sport which means new  tricks and styles are happening every day, it takes a bit of so many sports an rolls them all into one.


HOW WOULD YOU DEFINE YOUR STYLE OF RIDING?
I don’t know, I like to think I don’t huck much, I favour a floaty trick over a dirty spin any day. I just enjoy myself and hope that comes across In my riding.


YOU HAVE BEEN OUT FOR THE COMPETITIONS FOR A WHILE DUE TO AN INJURY, HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE BACK?
It sucks to be injured; when I can’t ride all I want to do is ride, especially when I see my friends having fun doing what I love. The competitions are the last thing on my list at the moment, mountain boarding is too fun to take it, and yourself, too seriously, but it feels great to be back on a board and having fun with my friends.


IF YOU COULD CHOOSE A PLACE IN THE WORLD TO RIDE WHERE WOULD IT BE?
I’m in Brazil right now, this place has it all, great people, great free-riding, a few great parks, and it is one of the most beautiful place on earth, other than that anywhere with my friends be it the local park, a dirt track, or through some woods.


YOU ARE TRAVELLING A LOT AND HELPING TO PROMOTE MOUNTAIN BOARDING. HOW HAS THE RESPONSE BEEN SO FAR? WHERE WOULD YOU REALLY LIKE TO TAKE THE SPORT?
Travelling is my true love, meeting new friends, tasting new cultures, and finding new spots to ride. Mountain boarding gets a great response everywhere we go.


YOU HAVE STARTED YOU OWN COMPANY ATC PRODUCTION WHERE YOU PUBLISH MOUNTAIN BOARDING VIDEOS, HOW IS THAT GOING?
The site ATC Productions (www.atcproductions.co.uk) is going great; we’ve been making videos for years now and this gives us a way to show the world what we’re doing, we also produce clothing, and our shop will be up soon. We’re not really a company, just a bunch of mates who have got time to try and show our sport to people in a way that would get us excited if we’d never seen mountain boarding before. As for creative director, that’s just a word we made up, I don’t even know what it really means.


YOU WON THE WORLD DOWNHILL CHAMPIONSHIPS IN FRANCE AND THE WORLD FREESTYLE CHAMPIONSHIPS IN AUGUST; IT SEEMS YOUR SUCCESS IS NOT GOING TO STOP ANYTIME SOON, WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR 2011? 
Travel, ride and have even more fun than last year.


WHAT ARE YOU THINKING WHEN YOU ARE MOUNTAIN BOARDING DOWNHILL WITH NO BRAKES?
Not much, it sounds a bit strange but it’s a bit like meditation for me, I don’t hear anything, I don’t think about anything, just pure pleasure.


IN YOUR OWN OPINION, WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO DO THIS SPORT?
Mountain boarding is one of the most accessible sports there is, you don’t have to be hitting big jumps or flying down a mountain to enjoy it, my mum rides, anyone can do it you just need to start small and work your way up. Being able to stand up is a bonus too.

WHO OR WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE IN YOUR NEXT LIFE?

Me again, I haven’t got any complaints, I’m having a great life!

YOU WON 3 TIMES THE WORLD CHAMPION AND UK ELITE CHAMPION AND YOU ARE CONSIDERED ONE OF THE BEST MOUNTAIN RIDERS IN THE WORLD, DID YOU EXPECT THIS WHEN YOU FIRST STARTED?

Yes, it sounds really cocky, but the only reason I got to where I am with my sport is because I have self belief, when I’m in the start gates, no part of me thinks I’m going to pull out second; or, when I’m dropping into a jump, I know I’m going to land the trick I’m trying otherwise I wouldn’t make it.

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU FELL SCARED?

The other day when I was standing with my hands on the boot of my friend’s car two pistols and a rifle pointed at my back and three cops screaming at me in a language I couldn’t understand.

DESCRIBE A REGULAR DAY

Wake up, eat something, play a bit of guitar, either go to work or call some mates and see what’s up; go for a ride or a skate, get unhealthily drunk and try and talk to a girl then carry a friend home. Or just drink loads of tea and have an early night.

WHAT WOULD BE DOING IF YOU NEVER FOUND MOUNTAIN BOARDING?

Drugs and booze in the bus stop.

AND FINALLY, WHO IS YOUR IDOL?
I really don’t have one, my parents maybe, they’re amazing; or my little brother, he’s the most natural smooth mountain boarder ever.

Interview by Katre Laan
Pictures courtesy of Tom K.

Published in IDOL magazine online version:
http://idolmag.co.uk/art-culture-interview/tom-kirkman

Jean- Albert Loic 
Nicknamed the Flying Dude, Jean-Albert Loïc, the world champion skydiver, wingsuit flyer, BASE jumper and internet sensation is more comfortable flying through the sky than pounding pavements. Just six years-old when he first tried paragliding, Jean-Albert moved to France at 18 to join the French Skydiving Federation, and at 32 he has made a name for himself as one of the most successful and driven figures in extreme sports, top of the field in three of his sports as well as a licensed pilot, he is not a wallflower when it comes to a challenge. IDOL chats to the 'Flying Dude' about his accomplishments, knock-backs and what he’s working on now.


WHAT DOES SKY FLYING MEAN FOR YOU?
The closest you can get to birds.


WHEN YOU STARTED SKYDIVING YOUR PARENTS WERE YOUR FIRST INSTRUCTORS. WHAT WAS YOUR THEIR REACTION WHEN YOU DECIDED TO GO PRO?
They were scared because it is hard to make a living out of it and I was leaving home at 17 but also happy because I was living my passion and doing good things.


SOMETHING YOU WOULD NEVER DARE TO DO
Take crazy risks without thinking about it.


IF THE SKY HAS NO LIMITS THEN WHAT ARE YOUR LIMITS?
The ground...


WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TO A BEGINNER IN WINGSUIT FLYING NEVER TO TRY?
Don't try and do what you see on videos without proper training. It took us years to get there.


HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH COMPLICATIONS WHEN YOU’RE UP IN THE AIR?
I'll do my best… It's a pretty natural survival reaction!


APART FROM BEING WINGSUIT FLYER YOU ARE ALSO A WINGSUIT DESIGNER, PHOTOGRAPHER AND CAMERAMAN. THIS YEAR YOU ALSO OBTAINED AN AIRLINE PILOT LICENSE. IS MOVING FORWARD PUTTING A STOP ON YOUR WINGSUIT FLYING?
I broke my back while parapenting and that put a stop to my professional wingsuit flying. Flying planes, helicopters is keeping me in the air.


YOU ARE A WORLD CHAMPION IN SKYDIVING. WHO WOULD YOU SAY IS YOUR GREATEST COMPETITOR?
There are many in each discipline I practiced. USA and Russia are the two strong nations fighting against France. I don’t know a competitor who's been on world podiums in three disciplines like I did.


IF YOU WEREN’T SKYDIVER WHAT WOULD YOU BE?
A bird!


WHO IS THE PERSON YOU HAVE LEARNT FROM THE MOST?
Not one person! You have to take a little bit of a lot of great minds to build your own knowledge. Using just one would be like a photocopy!


WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO BEFORE YOU DIE?
To live! Full and free!


WHERE DID YOU GET YOUR NICKNAME THE “FLYING DUDE”?
A guy posted his own edit of my Verbier flight on You Tube and called it that…it got a big audience!


YOU ARE TESTING A WINGSUIT TO LAND WITHOUT A PARACHUTE, HOW IS THAT GOING? ARE YOU GOING TO BE THE FIRST ONE TO TRY IT?
Even though a lot of media are saying that, I am not really testing this type of wing suit. We are developing different models to get better performance out of it in different fields, including lowering flying speed.


WHO IS YOUR IDOL?
There are many people I like, because they are good technicians in their fields as well as good people. I do not like the idea of idols. We are just simple individuals, whatever we've accomplished!




Interview by Katre Laan

Pictures courtesy of Jean-Albert Loïc

Published in IDOL magazine online version:
http://idolmag.co.uk/art-culture-interview/jean-albert-loïc