Cloudbase Mayhem Podcast

Gavin McClurg

Free flight podcast hosted by Gavin McClurg

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278 episodes
Updated Friday
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Episodes278

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Jul 12, 2023 · 47 min
Episode 198- Going Big in…Israel? A flight to remember with Eliya Zemmour
UPDATE to this podcast: Cross Country magazine has just (July 2nd, 2025) broke an incredible story that Eliya Zemmour, featured in this episode has been regularly faking his flights on XContest, using other pilot's flights as his own. As Cross Country wrote, it is both sad and shocking in equal measure. This remains an interesting and exciting show, but we have no idea what is truth and fiction...
Jun 23, 2023 · 1 hr 8 min
Episode 196- From World Record Skydiving to Paragliding, Reserve Testing, pro repacks with Andrey Kuznetsov
Andrey Kuznetsov has been on the national sky diving team for many years, holds several world records and the genius record (100 way canopy formation record) and has been a long-time test pilot for reserves. He made the transition quite easily from sky diving to paragliding in 2009 and skipped the C class altogether as he found it too slow! He recently flew across Vermont and landed on the beach and owns AirQuest paragliding, a professional reserve packing and line-trimming company. In this episode we talk about his history of sky diving, the transition to XC paragliding, why SO many people don't pack their reserve correctly, trimming gliders, why it matters and a lot more.
Jun 11, 2023 · 1 hr 32 min
Bonus Episode! Behind the scenes before the start of the 23′ Red Bull X-Alps
The toughest adventure race on Earth starts in a few hours! 32...
Jun 4, 2023 · 1 hr 30 min
Episode 197- Honza and Son strike gold in the Alps
5 time Red Bull X-Alps pilot Honza Rejmanek and his son Martin return to the Cloudbase Mayhem this week to recount yet another incredible vol-biv tandem adventure in the Alps. Martin is now 14, and he and his dad have been tackling some pretty epic lines in the Alps since Martin was 8. In this episode they recount their 3rd attempt at hiking and flying from Annecy to Zermatt last summer and hooking into incredible weather which allowed for an amazing flight right up on the Matterhorn massif and then continuing well past their goal of Zermatt and carrying on all the way to Davos. This is inspiration on a magical level.
May 19, 2023 · 1 hr 13 min
Episode 195- Sending in Style with Philipp Zellner
In this episode we discuss Philipp's zen for going big, being a professional pilot, the importance of having an acro background and acro training, vol biv, and just some good old fashioned storytelling in the highest mountains on Earth. Tuck in for some inspiration!
May 2, 2023 · 1 hr 29 min
Episode 194- The Spring Tune up with Nick Greece and Russ Ogden
This week we dive into spring with the current World Champion and long-time Ozone test pilot Russ Ogden and multiple US National Champion Nick Greece. Year after year we see accidents in free flight spike in spring. Spicy conditions, rusty skills, new unfamiliar gear, heightened stoke, another year behind us, lack of confidence... we explore the many things that might have an impact on why we see the spike and what you can do to make sure you're not in the data set.
Apr 19, 2023 · 1 hr 3 min
Episode 193- “The Scariest Flight of my Life” with Nikolay Lipko
There are times in a pilots career when things do not go according to plan. This is one of those times. Nikolay Lipko had a rather unusual (but not unheard-of) event flying in Chamonix, France that thankfully ended quite well thanks to a successful reserve deployment. As with all incidents, there is hindsight and modifications to how to take to the skies. And if anything else, this story is a case study for why SIV training is so important. In this instance your host and our guest don't see eye-to-eye on the cause and effect but the take-aways are valuable.
Apr 8, 2023 · 1 hr 15 min
Episode 192- Questions answered with Myles Connolly
Our Mayhem editor Myles Connolly is about 350 hours into his flying journey and is leaving soon for an SIV course with Jocky Sanderson in Turkey. We thought it would be fun to connect and have him fire questions at me about all the things he's currently curious about as his XC skills and training progress. Hike and fly; risk related to big events like the Red Bull X-Alps; how to approach Vol Biv (gear, locations, top landing, distance, etc.); Wing and gear developments and the new 2 liner C wings, gear choices and a lot more.
Mar 21, 2023 · 1 hr 15 min
Episode 191- A Walk (and Fly) down memory lane with Gaspard Petiot
Gaspard Petiot is a mountain guide and very accomplished pilot who competed successfully in the Red Bull X-Alps in 2015 (5th, Monaco), 2017 (broken wrist, withdrawn after leading day 6) and 2019 (7th, Monaco) despite having very bad knees. In this episode we rewind the clock as we have done with the others in this X-Alps series and hear the behind-the-scenes stories that the fans didn't see on live tracking.
Mar 6, 2023 · 1 hr 12 min
Episode 190- A Walk (and Fly) down memory lane with Manuel Nubel (Ger 1)
Manuel Nubel has competed in four Red Bull X-Alps, starting in 2015. On Team USA 1 we call him the comeback kid. He often starts in the middle or back of the pack but gets stronger and more crafty as the race goes on. We rewind the clock to 2015, his first race and find out the back story of landing in a tree on his way to Monaco and the hilarity that ensues, the ups and downs of his campaigns, (for example having to quit due to exhaustion in 2017, and making a series of magical moves in 2021 which saw him climb from 16th to 6th in the final days of the race) and his decision to not compete in 2023, but why we may see him again in 2025.
Feb 25, 2023 · 59 min
Episode 189- Flying the Himalaya with Debu Choudhury
Debu Choudhury hails from the small village of Manali, India, a gateway to Ladakh and the infamous Karakoram pass. Pilots the world over know the region because of nearby Bir, one of the most reliable big-mountain flying sites in the world. Debu began flying there 29 years ago and chases it just as hard today as he ever has. In the world of paragliding he's done and continues to do it all. Acro, high-level comps, tandems, guiding, instruction, vol biv and flying huge lines in the Himalaya.
Feb 9, 2023 · 1 hr 12 min
Episode 188- To the Archives!
ve got a head cold and hoarse throat this week which makes interviewing pretty hard, so we're diving back into the archives to bring you a show that was great then, and better now and an excellent tune-up before spring. "Mastering Autonomy" with Manu Bonte. And a couple important topics in the show opener that I've been meaning to hit for weeks. Enjoy!
Jan 30, 2023 · 46 min
Episode 187- The ABC’s of Flying the World Cup
The World Cup is as high as it gets in competition hang gliding and paragliding. For many it is the ultimate goal in cross country flying. But getting an invitation to fly in the world cup isn't very straightforward. First there are the many organizations- the FAI, CIVL, PWCA, and a nations flying organization (USHPA, BHPA, etc.). What's the difference between Cat 1 and Cat 2? What is the WPRS and how does it play into selection? What are letters and why are they important? How do you make the World's team and how is that different from a world cup? The road to a world cup isn't very straight, but with a little clarification of the acronyms, and an understanding of how it all works together you can navigate the process quite easily.
Jan 14, 2023 · 1 hr 31 min
Episode 186- Checking the boxes with Greg Hamerton
A common question we ask on the Mayhem is "what would you do if you could rewind the clock to your 50 hour self?" One of our listeners reached out awhile back and wanted to know what we should tell our zero hour selves. When we first begin we know absolutely nothing other than we want to fly! But getting into the sport is daunting. How do you pick the right instructor? What qualifications or qualities should we look for? Should we consider connecting with a club and mentors BEFORE signing on with an instructor? What are the RIGHT questions new pilot students should be asking so we don’t turn off potential mentors.
Jan 3, 2023 · 1 hr 9 min
Episode 185- Eli Egger and gearing up for the Ultimate Race
Elizabeth (Eli) Egger is one of the rookies in the 23' Red Bull X-Alps. She's also a paragliding instructor, Niviuk team pilot, high-level competition pilot (we sat down after the Superfinal in Mexico to have this chat), has supported Simon Oberrauner (2017) and Aaron Durogati (2019 and 2021) in the X-Alps, and has a very interesting professional background in earth mapping and engineering. In this wide-ranging talk we discuss her training for the upcoming race and what she's learned from supporting Simon and Aaron, preparing for comps, progression, instruction, and going to bat against the best in the world.
Dec 20, 2022 · 1 hr 22 min
Episode 184- A Walk (and Fly) down memory lane with Aaron Durogati
We keep the absolutely nutty going this week with 5-time Red Bull X-Alps competitor, 2 X Superfinal champion, and winner of just about everything in our sport, Aaron Durogati. Aaron and I sat down in person on the final day of the Superfinal in Valle De Bravo in Mexico and he had me in stitches from the get-go. Aaron is a fantastic story-teller and his triumphs and beat-downs in the X-Alps are jaw dropping. Enjoy these incredible amazing tales from the edge!
Dec 2, 2022 · 1 hr 23 min
Episode 183- A walk (and fly) down memory lane with Honza Rejmanek
We're continuing the theme of radical stories from radical people this week with Honza Rejmanek, who competed in 5 Red Bull X-Alps from 2007 to 2015. Honza begins the storytelling in 2007 with what has to the hardest start in the history of the race after eating some questionable food the night before the event even started, puking (and worse) all night, spending the night on the Dachstein because he could barely move, and then the long fight back. We learn about his podium in 2009 shared with Red Bull X-Alps legends Chrigel Maurer and Alex Hofer...
Nov 18, 2022 · 2 hr 3 min
Episode 182- A Walk (and Fly) down Memory Lane with Tom De Dorlodot
Tom De Dorlodot has done more Red Bull X-Alps than everyone other than Toma Coconea (who has done them all!). The Belgian explorer extraordinaire started at the tender age of 21 in the 2007 race and hasn't missed one since. He is currently training for the 2023 event, which will be his 9th! We got together recently to dive into his campaigns just after he and his family moved into their new home on the island of Faial in the Azores. We rewind the clock to a time where teams didn't have GPS, athletes used paper maps (in the air!) to navigate, and a Russian athlete carried over 20 kg on his back! As we wander through Tom's highs (getting to Monaco in 2019...) and lows (getting evacuated in 2015...) of his campaigns we tap into all kinds of great advice for pilots dealing with risk (who doesn't?), family (ditto!), and living life to its fullest.
Nov 4, 2022 · 1 hr 21 min
Episode 181- A walk (and fly) down memory lane with Chrigel Maurer
With the 2023 Red Bull X-Alps quickly approaching I thought it would be fun to sit down with Chrigel "The Eagle" Maurer to take a walk back through his 7 winning campaigns. No one in our sport has been and continues to be more dominant than Chrigel. He won his first X-Alps in 2009 and hasn't lost since (2023 will be his 8th campaign). He's won everything (many at least 3 times)- Bornes to Fly, X-Pyr, Dolomiti Superfly, EigerTour, Dolomitiman, VercoFly (which he won flying tandem too!), and of course dominated for several years on the world cup, is a test pilot for Advance, heads up the X-Alps Academy and is without rival as the best mountain pilot on Earth.
Oct 17, 2022 · 57 min
Episode 180- Tim Rochas takes on the XRedRocks
Tim Rochas is a long-time Niviuk Test pilot (he did his first testing for Niviuk at the age of 12!), wing and harness designer, French team member and veteran World Cup pilot. Tim has has recently gotten into hike and fly racing not only for his own pursuits but to become a Red Bull X-Alps supporter of Tanguy-Renoud Goud in the 23' race this summer.

Cloudbase Mayhem Podcast

Support the show

Episode 198- Going Big in…Israel? A flight to remember with Eliya Zemmour

Episode 196- From World Record Skydiving to Paragliding, Reserve Testing, pro repacks with Andrey Kuznetsov

Bonus Episode! Behind the scenes before the start of the 23′ Red Bull X-Alps

Episode 197- Honza and Son strike gold in the Alps

Episode 195- Sending in Style with Philipp Zellner

Episode 194- The Spring Tune up with Nick Greece and Russ Ogden

Episode 193- “The Scariest Flight of my Life” with Nikolay Lipko

Episode 192- Questions answered with Myles Connolly

Episode 191- A Walk (and Fly) down memory lane with Gaspard Petiot

Episode 190- A Walk (and Fly) down memory lane with Manuel Nubel (Ger 1)

Episode 189- Flying the Himalaya with Debu Choudhury

Episode 188- To the Archives!

Episode 187- The ABC’s of Flying the World Cup

Episode 186- Checking the boxes with Greg Hamerton

Episode 185- Eli Egger and gearing up for the Ultimate Race

Episode 184- A Walk (and Fly) down memory lane with Aaron Durogati

Episode 183- A walk (and fly) down memory lane with Honza Rejmanek

Episode 182- A Walk (and Fly) down Memory Lane with Tom De Dorlodot

Episode 181- A walk (and fly) down memory lane with Chrigel Maurer

Episode 180- Tim Rochas takes on the XRedRocks