Ben Fogle: Wilderness and Whales

Sid is a high-altitude mountain guide, a heli-ski guide and more recently a self-taught builder! Sid lives in The Cascades in Washington State and he is currently building a house in the middle of nowhere and thoroughly enjoying the process. Sid and Kenton met at Everest Basecamp in 2018 when they were both guiding there. Sid has summited Everest three times, from both the South Side and the North Side, and they share stories about their experiences in this week’s episode of Cool Conversations. Sid spends a lot of his time heli-ski guiding and has built up a base of loyal clients who return to ski with him year after year. He talks about the importance of building their trust and also understanding skill levels of the group to keep everyone safe on the mountain. Kenton describes him as a renegade or a non-conformist, which he agrees with, but not at the expense of safety. This is a Cool Conversation between two friends that touches on many different subjects, so be prepared for the conversation to go anywhere!

This week, Kenton speaks to Dr Sarah Ruggins who, it is fair to say, leaves him lost for words a few times! Sarah embraced academia when she was younger and she holds four degrees in four different subjects. Her interest in philosophy and economics led her to a career in finance where she now holds a senior position in one of the biggest wealth management companies in the UK. Sarah is also a phenomenal athlete. As a junior, she ran Junior Olympic qualifying times in the 10,000m and had a promising future until a horrific illness left her bedridden for a very long time. Since recovering, she has learnt to ride a bike and has recently completed the epic Transcontinental Race (TCR) from Roubaix in Paris to Istanbul in Turkey. She covered 4,400km in 13 days over multiple mountain ranges, and with very little sleep. Her determination, passion and resilience shine through very strongly in this conversation – enjoy!

Benny Lieber is an accomplished climber and is also described by Kenton as 'the next generation of high-altitude mountain guides'. Benny and Kenton met at Everest Base Camp earlier this year and hit it off immediately with Kenton feeding off Benny's unquenchable energy. Benny is a product developer by trade, but gave it up for a life in the mountains back in 2016. He moved to Alaska and lived for several years in his car before being able to afford an apartment, but he has now found his niche and is a full-time mountain guide. He has many summits to his name including Everest, Lhotse, K2, Manaslu and Vinson and we are certain there are more to come. Kenton and Benny discuss the changing world of mountain guiding, they compare stories of different mountains, and Benny describes the luxury of absolute wilderness in Alaska. Listen now to this high-energy episode!

A fellow mountain guide and mountaineer, Brent Bishop first summited Everest in 1994 and now describes himself as an 'aging climber'. He talks with Kenton about many of his mountain expeditions and how his family history helped to frame his experiences. Brent is a successful businessman and has juggled life in the mountains with his businesses. Last year he suffered a huge heart attack at his local climbing centre, despite being fit and healthy, but that hasn't stopped him! This episode is a classic Cool Conversations - lots of interesting topics covered and a few previously unknown facts uncovered!

This week, Kenton talks to Ed Jackson, a former professional rugby player who sustained a spinal cord injury in 2017 and is now living a very active and adventurous life as an incomplete quadriplegic.  Ed's remarkable story is documented in his new film, The Mountain Within Me, which is released in cinemas later this week. Ed tells Kenton how the mountains have supported both his physical and emotional recovery, and how his experiences have inspired him to set up a charity for young adults who have experienced physical and/or mental trauma. Ed's positivity in the face of the daily challenges that he still faces is extraordinary. His acceptance of his injuries, his willingness to push his limits and his determination to find the good in his injuries is a story of its own. Buckle up and prepare to be moved! THE MOUNTAIN WITHIN ME, directed by Polly Steele, is in UK cinemas from 23rd August, with Preview Q&A screenings from 19th August. For more information head to: mountain-within-me.film

Today we treat you to an extra six minutes of Kenton speaking to Ben and Georgie Ainslie. After they had finished their 'official' podcast recording, they continued chatting and the conversation was just too good not to be shared!

In this week's episode of Cool Conversations, Kenton speaks to broadcaster and adventurer Ben Fogle whilst they are both sailing through Alaska. Ben has lived an extraordinary life, completing ambitious challenges and travelling extensively - he has visited over 160 countries around the world. He regularly finds himself visiting people who live off the beaten track and his passion for learning more about their lives and the wilderness around them is abundantly clear during this conversation. Kenton and Ben are on the lookout for whales whilst talking, and you will be treated to colourful descriptions of the landscape around them. Apologies for the sound quality from Alaska!

Sir Ben Ainslie is a name many people will recognise. As Britain's most successful sailor, Ben won medals in five consecutive Olympic games from 1996, including Gold at the four games held between 2000 and 2012. Ben and his wife, Georgie, join Kenton today to talk about life after the Olympics. Ben and Georgie make a formidable partnership. Whilst Ben is Team Principal and CEO of Ineos Britannia - the team attempting to win the Americas Cup for Britain for the first time - Georgie has founded a start-up called Ainslie + Ainslie. Kenton discusses with them the importance of communication, the intensity of competition, the constant balance between work and family, leadership under pressure and, of course, their new night powder which is working wonders for Kenton's sleep... This episode is one not to be missed even if, like Kenton, you're more comfortable on dry land than on a boat. https://benainslie.com/

This week, Kenton sits down with Ross and Hugo Turner, also known as The Turner Twins. The identical twins are adventurers who embark on a variety of different challenges, often linked to scientific studies due to sharing the same DNA. Kenton talks to them about their recent project driving the first fully electric 2-seater convertible MG from London to Shanghai, visiting 27 countries along the way. They also discuss the results of embarking on omnivore vs vegan diets, when they compared weighted exercises with bodyweight exercises, and when they compared 20 minutes of exercise to 40 minutes of exercise. Did they experience double the benefit from double the exercise? Hugo and Ross encourage everyone to be curious and willing to experiment. Their studies have sometimes led to unexpected results and this is a really interesting conversation.

Lukas is a mountaineer, geographer, adventurer, leader of countless expeditions and founder of Furtenbach Adventures. He has established Furtenbach Adventures as one of the premier operators on Everest, and he and Kenton reflect on the 2024 season together. Lukas was one of only three foreign operators granted permits to climb Everest from the North Side this year and he tells Kenton about the challenges he faced. Kenton and Lukas discuss the commercialism of mountaineering versus 'real' alpinism and they consider what the future of Everest might look like. This is a captivating conversation between two guides who both know Everest extremely well.