Anders Engberg embarks on a short illustrated series examining the changing world of mountain bike media.
In the streets of Reading you would often find a kid riding his Raleigh Mustang looking for something to do. It was 1991 and even though the Mustang somewhat resembled a mountain bike, the passion for the sport had yet to find this particular youngster. The kid on the bike was Chris Hall, founder and presenter of Downtime Podcast, but at this point Chris had no idea that he would work with media let alone have a passion for mountain bikes. This changed on a spring day when the local Scouts took him and his friend Jamie to the woods for a bike race. Somewhere between the dust kicked up by his friend and some bomb holes in the trail, Chris was bitten by the bug and has loved riding mountain bikes ever since.
As the years passed Chris went on to become an automotive engineer, steadily climbing the corporate ladder. Unfortunately this climb resulted in less engineering and instead more spreadsheets and budgets which wasn’t Chris’s cup of tea. Around this time, podcasts were becoming a thing and Chris having a 1.5 hour daily commute was a frequent listener. However, there weren’t a lot of mountain bike podcasts available, so Chris started thinking about maybe doing something in that direction. After a bit of procrastination countered by a helpful push from friends, his first episode of the Downtime Podcast aired 14 February 2017. Since then Chris has steadily grown Downtime Podcast in to one of the most appreciated podcasts out there, covering some of the most respected riders and industry professionals in our sport.
Podcasts are one of the most consumed forms of content, no doubt made popular by their inviting nature which has shortened the gap between the voice of media and the consumer. It requires a fine balance though, the art of podcasting. It seems to require a finely tuned dynamic that tangents the friendly chat and the journalistic endeavour. From an outside perspective, it seems very hard to be to stay on point but still keep the conversation from going stiff.
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‘I think the key is for the guest to feel comfortable. That can be tricky, especially with remote recordings with people you’ve never met before. I do everything I can to make the guest feel at ease with the hope that it makes it easy for them to open up.’
Chris Hall
Telling a story that is compelling requires this openness as this will hook the listener too. Because truthfully, these days our attention span is quite narrow and there are so many media outlets to focus on. If a consumer doesn’t like it, changing the channel has never been easier. And the supply has never been richer
During the pandemic new podcasts have been popping up everywhere resulting in a veritable smorgasboard of audible content. To be able to survive in this sea of choice Chris makes sure to adjust his storytelling.
‘For me, the most important aspect of a podcast is to be clear what it is. I wanted to make sure that within reason, people know what to expect when they tune in. I also realise that if people are regular listeners then if I tell too many of my own stories then they are going to hear them again and again. Also, no one cares about me, they care about the guest, so I let them have their say.’
As consumers we are certainly in a good spot as the media landscape has changed massively over the years.
Back in Reading in 1991 there would have been no one with air pods on, listening to post race shows or in-depth interviews with athletes. In those years, Chris and his riding buddies would resort to print media for their fix of stories and news from the mountain bike world, quite the contrast from todays offerings.
‘I like that there is so much MTB media out there. Everyone is doing things a bit differently. That means that hopefully there is something for everyone and it brings lots of people deeper into the sport as they can connect with it in the way that works for them’
A type of media made to fit consumers on an individual basis is something that Chris foresees becoming more frequent, but it can emerge bearing its own demise.
‘Mountain bike media definitely seems to be diversifying across more channels and formats. The challenge is how all of these different media outlets are sustained. Everyone needs to make a living but as the amount of media increases, the number of people consuming it needs to do the same, or things get tricky. With fewer eyes on it, traditional advertising is much harder to make work and this is the main reason that print has struggled so much to remain in the market.’
New ways to consume media also opens for new ways of funding it. As the lines between journalism and commercial content get blurred, Chris also spots potential conflict in the emerging possibilities.
‘How each media outlet monetises its work will be interesting. I think we will see more and more ‘sponsored content’ where brands are effectively paying for editorial, I just hope that comes along with media outlets being honest about how their work is being paid for. It’s going to be interesting to see how it all pans out.’
We are definitely in a time where the content we consume is undergoing some form of metamorphosis. It is exciting and daunting at the same time as both quality and quantity battle for first place. However, no matter how media changes over time, people like Chris have shown that in one way the future will still resemble the past. The great storyteller will always have an audience.
Big thanks to Chris Hall for sharing his thoughts, for more info on what Chris is all about, head over to downtimepodcast.com. Also thanks to Sven Martin and Richard Baybutt for providing reference photos.
