Basecamp Podcast Wrap Up

I stepped off the Cornerstone Theatre stage in Canmore after hosting the Night of Lies, an evening of multi-media presentations by climbers, when Dominic Girard introduced himself. He handed me his card and said, “Would you be interested in hosting a climbing-themed radio program on Banff Centre Radio?” It was nearly midnight and I had been drinking Bow Valley-brewed keg beer, it was no time to talk business.

Nearly a week later, I found Girard’s card in my pocket. After a re-introduction and a meeting in Banff, Basecamp Radio was born. The Banff Centre hired a team of producers, most who’d worked at cbc, to create three radio stations that would broadcast to the Bow Valley. After a year, The Banff Centre cancelled Banff Centre Radio and laid off most of the producers. Some of the shows became podcasts and the others were archived. Basecamp Radio was rebranded as Basecamp Podcast and the new Banff Centre website had a page dedicated to the show. Along with Basecamp, the centre turned three other radio shows into livestream content. Basecamp Podcast was number one with over 3,000 subscribers. We continued to record podcasts until the spring of 2016 when The Banff Centre wrapped up the podcast program and I signed off.

I interviewed some of the world’s best climbers for Basecamp, including Alex Honnold, Tommy Caldwell, Barry Blanchard, Hazel Findlay, Sarah Hueniken and David Lama. In total, I chatted with 50 people. Jesse Huey talked about the friction between him and his family after terrorist attacks on Nanga Parbat. Geoff Powter talked about his bold Rockies solos. Ian Welsted and Raphael Slawinski talked about their Piolet d’Or win. Lydia Bradey talked about her historic Everest climb. Colin Haley talked about doing hard drugs. Will Gadd talked about the future of climbing. Canadian comp climbers Eric and Elise Sethna talked about being champs. Canmore twin sisters Becca and Sara Frangos talked about growing up in the Canadian climbing scene. Ed Douglas talked about the state of climbing media. And Cedar Wright talked about suffering.

One of my favourite discussions was with Andrew Wexler about his recovery from a pelvis-shattering paragliding accident. Another memorable interview was with Andrew Brash about a rescue on Everest and how climbing affected his marriage. One of the funniest stories was Greg Child’s about spilling a pee bottle at altitude and having the pee freeze to the tent f loor. One of the most memorable was with Sharon Wood, as she discussed being a female climber in a generation of mostly men. The final show I recorded was with Kelly Cordes, author of and it was one of the best. Thanks to Girard, The Banff Centre and the producers who made Basecamp Podcast what it became – a place for climbers to talk about the happy and the sad climbing moments. I was lucky to be part of it and thanks to everyone involved. I will be hosting the Night of Lies this fall.