Miles & Mountains

Nick
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Join Nick, a social worker and coach by day, as he unravels the inspiring stories of athletes and the public, uncovering the motivations behind their actions, from conquering mountains to participating in ultra-endurance races and competing in rodeos. Get ready for heartwarming tales of community support, acts of kindness, and the revelation that everyone has a deeper story to tell. Whether it's running, climbing, or participating in rodeos, these stories will inspire and uplift. #Running, #Climbing, #EverydayAthletes, #Rodeo

  1. hace 4 d

    AVA Ranch & Rodeo Photography

    He’s not trying to look perfect online. He’s trying to tell the truth about the road. We sit down with Andrew, a traveling rodeo photographer and videographer who’s built a reputation for showing the whole story. That means early mornings, midnight edits, flat tires, long drives, and the unglamorous reality behind the “one great shot.” We talk about what the job actually demands, why communication earns patience, and how his background in fashion photography helped him create better rodeo storytelling for brands, sponsors, and rodeo organization's. Then the conversation turns personal. Andrew explains the meaning behind “Howdy Friend,” the phrase that became his mission and merch line, and why it’s rooted in inclusion, kindness, and mental health awareness. He shares how heartbreak and loneliness spiraled into depression and suicidal thoughts, and how small, ordinary moments in rodeo community became the turning points that saved his life. If you’ve ever wondered how community shows up when you don’t ask for help, this will hit home. We also dig into the practical side of building a creative career in the Western industry: chasing a PRCA pro card, networking, earning trust, learning horses to be safer and more useful around the chutes, and defining success as respect rather than hype. If you care about rodeo photography, Western lifestyle media, travel photography, or honest conversations about mental health on the road, you’ll get real takeaways here. Subscribe for more conversations like this, share the episode with someone who needs a “Howdy Friend” moment, and leave a review telling us what part of Andrew’s story stayed with you. Instagram:  @avaranch_rodeo https://www.instagram.com/avaranch_rodeo?igsh=Y2c4czZzZHduZG9k Shoutout to: Andrew Van Asselt aka AVA  Howdy Friend  Emma Folz Rodeo Community Ag-Gear Store  https://www.aggearstore.com/ Use Code: Milesmountains  For 15% Off  Raising Awareness: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Mental Health  Send us Fan Mail

    1 h 10 min

  2. 23 jun

    Riley Riddle

    Eight seconds is the easy part to talk about. The hard part is what happens when the rider comes off wrong, the bull turns back, and a bullfighter has to choose a gap with no guarantee he’s walking out clean. That’s where Riley Riddle lives, and he joins us to explain what real preparation looks like in professional rodeo bullfighting.  We get into the daily work most people never see: training five to six days a week, staying “old school” with weights and time in the dirt on practice bulls, and treating the gym as mental training as much as physical. Riley also calls out a trend he’s watching closely in bull riding and local rodeos, where some people want the photos and the TikToks more than the reps. He breaks down why that mindset does not just limit performance, it can put bullfighters in a bad spot when riders don’t commit and the arena gets unpredictable.  Riley shares what 36 years in rodeo has taught him about professionalism, reputation, and being the same person at the day job, at the airport, and behind the chutes. We also talk rodeo content creation, how he actually gets filmed, why editing takes time, and how he chooses music that stays clean and watchable for every age. Then we go straight into the danger: a hospital trip, a horn to the head, and the kind of decision-making that keeps riders safe even when it costs you.  If you care about rodeo fitness, bull riding safety, the realities of the rodeo lifestyle, and what it means to give 110% when it counts, you’ll get a lot from this one. Subscribe, share the episode with a rodeo friend, and leave a review with your take: is practice the real separator or is it something else? Instagram: @official_starch_rileyriddle https://www.instagram.com/official_starch_rileyriddle?igsh=MXd3Y3RzdGF0YTA5Yg== Shoutout to: Riley Riddle The Riddle Family  Ag-Gear Store  https://www.aggearstore.com/ Use Code: Milesmountains  For 15% Off  Raising Awareness: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Mental Health  Send us Fan Mail

    48 min

  3. 18 jun

    Arley Hughes

    Barrel racing looks like a blur of speed, three tight turns, and a clock that doesn’t care how far you hauled to get there. The truth is messier and more interesting. Arley Hughes joins us to talk about what it really costs to compete in rodeo, why so many athletes do it anyway, and how a “hobby” can turn into a lifestyle built around horses, hauling, and grit. We get honest about the overhead most people never see: the truck and trailer, diesel, feed, farrier work, vet bills, and the reality that “profitable weekend” is the exception, not the rule.  Arley also shares her story of starting on horses as a little kid, stepping away when life and support made it hard, then jumping back in decades later when her husband opened the door. From buying tack again to running jackpots and quickly grabbing a WPRA permit, she explains how passion can outrun perfection and why momentum matters more than waiting until you feel “ready.” We also dig into the questions every rodeo family faces: how to enter rodeos around T-ball, cheer, business demands, and travel, and what would change if a once in a lifetime horse put bigger goals on the table.  You’ll hear practical road-life details too: what she does before and after a run, how she thinks about fitness and core strength, the calendar systems that keep everything moving, and the food strategies that make long weekends doable with kids in the rig. If you love barrel racing, WPRA rodeos, or just want a real look at rodeo work life balance, this one delivers. Subscribe for more conversations, share this with a rodeo friend, and leave a review with the part that hit closest to home. Instagram:  @arleyann1017 https://www.instagram.com/arleyann1017?igsh=MTFhdWZ5OGhxOHltbA== Shoutout to: Mrs. Arley Ann Hughes The Hughes Family WPRA Ag-Gear Store  https://www.aggearstore.com/ Use Code: Milesmountains  For 15% Off  Raising Awareness: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Mental Health  Send us Fan Mail

    49 min

  4. 15 jun

    SISU Farms

    A city background does not prepare you for a morning that starts with milking a cow, scanning for rattlesnakes, and measuring your day in half-day chunks because there are no shortcuts. We sit down with the co-owner of SISU Farms, to talk about how she went from urban convenience to a full-on homesteading experiment on remote land, and why she believes you can change your entire life faster than you think. The story begins with a family health crisis and a growing distrust of “business as usual” solutions. That pressure turns into a deep dive into self-sufficient living: sourcing ingredients directly, learning food preservation and fermentation, and building a farm-to-table routine where milk can go from cow to table in hours. Along the way, we get honest about the unfiltered realities of rural life: wildfire risk, fire breaks, livestock management, predators, and the kind of small mistakes that can lead to big consequences. We also talk about the parts people rarely post, including the heartbreak of animal loss, the grind of long workdays, and the decision to delete negativity on social media instead of feeding the outrage machine. She shares what helps her stay steady, from running quiet rural roads to sauna culture and learning to sit with her own thoughts. If you’re curious about homesteading for beginners, off-grid mindset, and what it really takes to build a self-reliant family life, this conversation will give you both the inspiration and the reality check. If this gave you a new way to think about your own life, subscribe, share it with a friend who’s craving a reset, and leave a review so more people can find the show. What part of homesteading would you try first? Instagram: _sisufarms_ https://www.instagram.com/_sisufarms_?igsh=MTd5MzliY3cxMGYyOQ== Shoutout to: SISU  The SISU Farms Family  Ag-Gear Store  https://www.aggearstore.com/ Use Code: Milesmountains  For 15% Off  Raising Awareness: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Mental Health  Send us Fan Mail

    1 h 8 min

  5. 23 mar

    On the Road with Wiley Coyote

    The crowd sees the run. We live everything wrapped around it: the midnight departures, the feed stops, the horse-first priorities, and the mental snap from exhausted to locked in when it’s finally time to compete. From Centralia to Port Angeles to the next town, we talk through what a real rodeo weekend looks like when you’re hauling, swapping slack, sleeping in fragments, and still expected to perform like nothing hurts. If you’ve ever wondered how rodeo athletes survive the travel grind, this one puts you in the passenger seat.  We also get into the part people avoid saying out loud: rodeo finances can feel like gambling on yourself. Entry fees, fuel, repairs, and those weekends where you go home broke. We break down how competitors think about payouts, why guaranteed money from pickup work is hard to turn down, and what it means to choose between chasing competition and staying financially stable. Along the way, we talk steer wrestling, team roping, the culture behind the chutes, and why the best talent really does look like “D1 athletes” when you watch them up close.  Then the conversation turns raw and personal. I share what cancer remission, grief, and burnout taught me about fake support, real friendship, and putting family first. We talk faith without the performative stuff: showing up, sitting in silence, and the emotions that surface when you’re trying to rebuild yourself with discipline, training, and honesty.  If you got something from this, subscribe, share it with a friend who respects the grind, and leave a review so more people can find these stories. What part of the road life would break you first: sleep, money, or mindset? Instagram: @wileyjackcoyote_22 https://instagram.com/wileyjackcoyote_22?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Facebook: @wileyjack.karas https://www.facebook.com/wileyjack.karas?mibextid=LQQJ4d Shoutout to: Wiley Jack Coyote Karas The Karas Family Ag-Gear Store  https://www.aggearstore.com/ Use Code: Milesmountains  For 15% Off  Raising Awareness: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Mental Health  Send us Fan Mail

    1 h 55 min

  6. 20 ene

    From 4-H To FFA w/ Jaxi

    A fifteen-year-old stock show competitor opens up about life in FFA, why she chose pigs over sports, and how caring for animals builds real discipline. She shares the feed plans, show prep, and family support that keep her moving toward a future in nursing. • moving from 4‑H to FFA and finding a better fit • what FFA teaches about livestock, routine, and responsibility • choosing pigs, training methods, and daily handling • feeding strategies, target weights, and show prep for OYE • weekly care, pen cleaning, grooming, and teamwork with her sister • honest talk about butchering, costs, and hard choices • future goals in healthcare inspired by her grandmother. Shoutout to : Jaxi Long  The Long Family  FFA  Ag-Gear Store  https://www.aggearstore.com/ Use Code: Milesmountains  For 15% Off  Raising Awareness: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Mental Health  Send us Fan Mail

    30 min

  7. 09/11/2025

    Metal Riffs & Country Roots with Jared Graham

    A metal kid grows up on thrash and stadium riffs, then finds himself writing country songs on a beat-up acoustic. That’s where our conversation with Jared Graham begins—somewhere between distortion and dust, showmanship and bare-boned truth—and it doesn’t let up until the last chord rings. We trade stories about the albums that rewired our ears—early Metallica, the maligned but meaningful Saint Anger, and the Red Dirt records that sneak up on you with brutal honesty. Jared opens up about bombing out of a formal music track, switching majors, and refusing to quit the guitar. The pandemic pause gave him space to write; the return to stages—from winery barns to Montana saloons—taught him how to read a room, shift gears mid-set, and end with a song that matters to his family. If you’ve ever fought for a booking by sheer persistence, or felt that jolt when a crowd locks in and the set starts feeding on itself, you’ll recognize his path. We tour the Northwest circuit—Long Branch’s songwriter rounds, Ellensburg’s WinterHop, Tri-Cities breweries that turn taps into stages—and swap notes on live presence from Slayer’s velocity to Demon Hunter’s surprise catharsis to Sturgill Simpson’s relentless focus. Along the way, we dig into why rock-to-country isn’t a sellout move but a search for a fuller language: metal names the rage, country names the ache, and together they feel like real life. If you love genre-bending artists, gritty lyrics, and the DIY hustle behind every “yes,” this one’s for you. Hit play, then tell us the show that changed you—and where Jared should play next. Subscribe, share with a friend who lives for live music, and leave a review so more listeners can find the pod. Instagram: @jared.q.graham https://www.instagram.com/jared.q.graham?igsh=Y3VmZW9lZjg0OGVk Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/share/1AtbGwnQsK/?mibextid=wwXIfr Shoutout to : Jared Graham The Graham Family  Music that shaped us.  Ag-Gear Store  https://www.aggearstore.com/ Use Code: Milesmountains  For 15% Off  Raising Awareness: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Mental Health  Send us Fan Mail

    1 h 18 min

  8. 29/10/2025

    From Idaho Gridiron To Olympic Skeleton Hopeful

    What does it take to aim your life at 89 mph and keep your head still while the world blurs? We sit with Andy Whittier, a Team USA skeleton hopeful on the cusp of Cortina 2026 and pull back the curtain on a sport that pairs sprint speed with steel nerves and brutal precision. From a small Idaho town and Division I football to a niche winter discipline, he explains why size and weight caps push some athletes toward skeleton, how a 70-pound sled changes sprint mechanics, and why no two 50-second runs on the same track ever feel the same. The journey isn’t glamorous. He left a secure marketing career, lived on sponsors and side gigs before a stipend finally kicked in, and accepted that holidays would happen without him. Training is a study in extremes: two to three runs a day, 4–6 G’s testing neck strength, and hours of film, sanding runners, mobility, and “mind runs” to map every curve. We trace the selection process from Park City to Europe—how circuits are assigned, how points stack from November to late January, and why only two men and two women will ultimately earn their Olympic start numbers. What stands out is the mindset. He talks about crashing early and getting back on the sled 15 minutes later, about reducing life to the work in front of him, and about the electric weight of the anthem after a win. The culture is both cutthroat and generous—teammates push each other hard and celebrate each other’s breakthroughs—because the flag deserves the best-prepared athlete on race day. If you’ve ever wondered how visualization, relentless discipline, and community support can carry someone from a local track to the world stage, this conversation delivers an unfiltered look at the process and the price. Subscribe, share with a friend who loves winter sports, and leave a review with your favorite moment. Then set a reminder to watch the Utah Olympic Park selection races on YouTube and tell us: would you go headfirst even once? Instagram: @andy_whittier_ https://www.instagram.com/andy_whittier_?igsh=MWt1cnM0NHpiZ2U2OQ== Website: https://linktr.ee/awhittier Shoutout to : Andy Whittier  The Whittier Family  US Skeleton Team  US Winter Olympic Team  Ag-Gear Store  https://www.aggearstore.com/ Use Code: Milesmountains  For 15% Off  Raising Awareness: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Mental Health  Send us Fan Mail

    41 min
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Información

Join Nick, a social worker and coach by day, as he unravels the inspiring stories of athletes and the public, uncovering the motivations behind their actions, from conquering mountains to participating in ultra-endurance races and competing in rodeos. Get ready for heartwarming tales of community support, acts of kindness, and the revelation that everyone has a deeper story to tell. Whether it's running, climbing, or participating in rodeos, these stories will inspire and uplift. #Running, #Climbing, #EverydayAthletes, #Rodeo

Ficha técnica

  • Creado por
    Nick
  • Años en activo
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodios
    268
  • Clasificación
    Explícito
  • Derechos de autor
    © 2026 Miles & Mountains
  • Sitio web del podcast
    Miles & Mountains

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