October 5, 2025 • 33 mins
Becoming a parent has a way of reshaping everything you thought you knew about yourself.
For Scotty James, an Olympic medalist, professional snowboarder, and father to 1-year-old Leo, this involved tackling a new challenge while balancing nearly twenty years of training and competing at the top with the unpredictable and humbling experience of dadhood.
In this episode, Scotty opens up about:
- The shock of shifting priorities after becoming a dad
- How fatherhood has reframed his approach to sport and success
- Why some of the biggest lessons come from the smallest (and messiest) moments
Special thanks to RedBull for bringing this to life!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Ashton, Matthew, A little question for you, my friend, what
is a super flex for a dad? Reverse parking one handed?
There's no other way to park. It's how I do it, ever.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Term, but using mirrors and no cameras, Oh there is.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
That's a very good point. But I was going to say,
knowing that, when your kid is asked the question what
does your daddy do for a living, the answer is
Olympic metal pro snowboarder. That's a big flex. I mean,
I can't keep you up with that. My kids just
say he works on his laptop, He's on his phone
the whole time. I know mine's like he wears this
silly town on his head. But I understand what's going on.
(00:38):
I'm entertaining the masses.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Honestly, Matt, I don't think our kids are ever ever
going to be able to say.
Speaker 1 (00:44):
No, hang on, something is cool a second. I'm thirty eight,
ash there is still time for me to be a
world champion. It's something you.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
Were pretty good on the mountain, I will say, and
just a fi We recorded this on a mountain thanks
to Red Bull.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
Did they set up this delicious little interview with Scotti James,
who his dad to one year old Leo and husband
to his lovely Canadian wife, Heir Chloe.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Yes.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
Scotty James is training for the next Winter Olympics at
the start of next year, but this will also be
the first time he's juggling it alongside his life as
a dad.
Speaker 1 (01:14):
There's certainly new territory for someone whose whole life has
revolved around being a professional athlete for almost this is
crazy twenty years.
Speaker 2 (01:22):
Scotty does bring up how much of a shock to
the system it was when he realized the shift in priorities.
Speaker 1 (01:28):
Also the other things that come with being a daddy.
He talks about some of the more messier situations that
he finds himself in. As they say in the snowboarding world,
I heard a lot of you. Let's get into it.
(01:54):
Welcome back to Three Doting Dads. I'm Maddie, Jay, I'm.
Speaker 3 (01:58):
Ash, and I'm doting dad with three Scutty.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
Oh maled it. Very good, very good, Thank you. This
is a podcast all about parenting. It is the good,
it is the bad and the relatable. Now Scotty, legally,
Ash and myself, we're not allowed to give any advice
for yourself. Totally fine. Your void from those restrictions. Loophole.
Speaker 3 (02:16):
We found a loophole in the contracts. The legal legal team.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
Said, guests, can you say whatever they like, but we can't.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
This is this is we won't talk about before the
show started.
Speaker 3 (02:24):
When you give me all the advice, yes, absolutely, thank you,
Thank you for that. I appreciate you.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
We'll look at this part right we're locked in a
basement right now? Are we in a basement? We were?
We normally Scotty record at my house, but we're down
at Perisher at the moment, and thanks meant to be
in one room. We got pulled out of that room.
We got them put into the luggage room where we
are now. We set up in about three minutes.
Speaker 5 (02:50):
And they cleared all the bags out so quick like
they were Olympic athletes.
Speaker 4 (02:54):
To be honest, I feel quite comfortable in here because
it's very similar to hotel room that I would have
stayed at with my mum at some point in my journey.
Very misty going to Australian ski resorts so very scary.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
They were like, you've got thirty minutes and we're like,
don't worry, as quick as we can. And then you
sat down and said boys, let's drag this out for
as long as we can.
Speaker 5 (03:19):
Listen to here for the listeners at home at perish,
there's a lot of snow. It's also very windy and
very cold, so in here is delightful, real say it,
will say so.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
We usually started the scotty with do you remember as
a child the worst trouble you ever got?
Speaker 3 (03:35):
In?
Speaker 4 (03:35):
Hm, that's probably a question for my mum.
Speaker 1 (03:40):
I was.
Speaker 4 (03:41):
My mum would say constantly. I was presenting a lot
of challenges to my parents all the time.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
I would say that with a very big smirk on.
I was like, what believe here?
Speaker 4 (03:54):
Probably the one story my mom loves telling the most
was to be honest. I look at it and I go, wow,
that was honestly pretty intelligent. I got down to the
local milk bar when I was in kindergarten. But I
had to get out to go down the local milk bar.
My mum was a basketball coach at our local team,
and my kindergarten was across the street from the basketball stadium,
(04:15):
and the milk bar was another five hundred meters past
the basketball stadium, so it was territory I was very
familiar with. I was at the basketball stadium. Every day
I'd go from kinder of the basketball stamum and watch
my mum coach these basketball teams.
Speaker 3 (04:29):
So in terms of.
Speaker 4 (04:31):
Safety and knowing where I was going, it was fine.
But the probably the bad part was I remember having
my friend who's still a good friend of mine to
this day because of this. I had him get on
his all fours and you know, obviously naturally walking into
Kindred day so you understand how to pop the gate,
(04:51):
and got up, climbed on his back, popped the gate
opened up, just headed on down to the milk bar.
Speaker 1 (04:59):
How far was it?
Speaker 4 (05:02):
Like close to a little bit shy of a kilometer,
that's still a long way. Yeah, decent, you've been like
five or six years old here, right, yeah exactly. So
then you can imagine now whatever it was recess or
what has finished, and they do a headcount and I'm
not there, so now it's this, did.
Speaker 1 (05:20):
You take your mate with you?
Speaker 4 (05:26):
So I get down to the milk bar and sure
enough they see me every day, so they're like, hang on,
check the time.
Speaker 3 (05:32):
This doesn't seem right.
Speaker 4 (05:34):
And then the people in the milk bar rang around
and were like, we have him and my mom at
this point is losing it because I've gotten out of
kinder and you know, end up being this whole thing.
So that was probably one of the worst things.
Speaker 3 (05:48):
You're essentially an escaped convict.
Speaker 5 (05:50):
Yes, and your mom had to ring it or they
had to ring around and find because I can imagine
the panic on your mom's voice then like where is he?
Speaker 1 (05:57):
Yeah? Did you what?
Speaker 4 (05:58):
Do you remember the punishment or was it I remember?
I don't think I was punished for it. I think
my dad's the problem exactly.
Speaker 1 (06:06):
I knew there was a reason.
Speaker 4 (06:08):
I think my mum probably just went terminator on the
kindergarten to be honest, the fact that I even't got out,
which is fair.
Speaker 3 (06:14):
Enough, Yeah, that's I think that's fine nowadays.
Speaker 1 (06:18):
Or kindy teacher must have been like, how the fuck
did he get out? You're right there.
Speaker 5 (06:23):
You go to the same gate every day, like my kids.
I'm surprised they're too dope to.
Speaker 3 (06:27):
Figure it out.
Speaker 4 (06:27):
I guess I reckon nowadays it's probably Yeah, it's probably
higher than.
Speaker 1 (06:32):
Changed the height off the back of that. Also, I think.
Speaker 4 (06:34):
There's a double gate situation, so I think there's two
gates get into kindergarten these days.
Speaker 1 (06:40):
This is a podcast about gates. We have an app,
so you swipe on your phone on the app to
get in the technology. You go, yeah, it's like Fort Knox.
My daycare had him over. I was thinking, like when
you were starting to compete internationally. It was from the
age of fourteen fifteen, Like, if you're a little bit
(07:01):
cheeky being away from your family and being with other adults,
it could have made you grow up really fast and
become like more mature, or it could have made you
even more cheek here, Yeah, which one was it for you?
Speaker 4 (07:13):
To be honest, I was so at first. I went
away with my mum to the North Northern Hemisphere when
we decided I would pursue snowboarding as a profession when
I was probably eleven, because you need to be quite young,
even maybe even ten.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
So eleven's really young. Yeah, Like, what were the points
that you were ticking off where everyone was going, yeah,
let's do this because it's a big move.
Speaker 3 (07:33):
Backflip yeah, backflip was in there for sure.
Speaker 4 (07:37):
No way, it's not really a pathway either, Like it's
also not that accessible. So it was huge respect to
my parents to have the courage to let me pursue it,
because you know, there was definitely not a moment in
time where we were like this is this is a guarantee.
It's always you know, it was never a sure thing.
I've always had like pretty good air awareness. I did
(07:57):
a bit of trampolining when I was a kid, and
then there was probably that one that first season I
went over to the US, and that was a bit
of a moment where I was like, after this, we'll
continue or not, because if you can beat you know,
the US kids and Europeans, then you know, we probably
should pursue it. It was such a huge move when
(08:17):
I was so young. I think you grow up very quickly.
You know, I'm still ten or eleven years old, but
once I hit my teenage years, you know, start traveling
away from your parents. So yeah, I always stayed cheeky.
But I think I also, although I was young, I
respected what I was doing, I guess, and I didn't
necessarily take the piss all the time. So I know
(08:39):
it's a massive thing for my parents to do financially,
but also from a commitment perspective.
Speaker 1 (08:44):
What are the other athletes like, do they welcome you
with open arms? There's a little fucking grommet.
Speaker 4 (08:51):
Not as much now like the stuff I dealt with
when I was a grommet.
Speaker 3 (08:56):
Now, I mean there's there's an HR department now. Yeah,
in your.
Speaker 4 (08:59):
Head died, you know, being wrapped in toilet paper and
like getting duct taped to the beds, funny stuff.
Speaker 1 (09:08):
Yeah. Do you look at the young kids now and
be like, you don't know how good you've got it?
Speaker 4 (09:11):
Yeah? I sound a little bit like jaded, like an
old man. Nah, for sure. I mean nowadays there's a
lot more cushion around generally everything, So you know, it
was all parf of the course, and it was fun,
Like it's fun to think about the memories now. I
remember going to New Zealand. I'm on my own. It
would have been twelve or thirteen. I was with my
(09:32):
coach and his sister, Tori Bright, who's a you know,
very successful female snowboarder from Australia as well. I was
traveling with those two and it was almost like Harry Potter.
I was like staying in the house, but my bedroom
was under the stairs, so when they went to wait
out in the morning, they'd like, just.
Speaker 3 (09:50):
Stairs.
Speaker 5 (09:52):
It must be hard to find your person, right and
you've you're married, now you've got kids. Obviously, do you
remember the first time you metlo?
Speaker 3 (10:01):
Yeah, I do.
Speaker 4 (10:02):
I remember it very well, and yeah, you're right, it
was I think, oh god, for sure. I think obviously
traveling so much and her family being in sport as well,
she and you know her lifestyle, she travels a lot,
so she naturally just understood. Yeah, I think if I
(10:23):
was to you know, I grew up in moren Dight,
for us to date the girl next door, it just
doesn't quite compute, which I fully understand. So naturally she
understood it really well.
Speaker 3 (10:35):
You know.
Speaker 4 (10:35):
That said, it still has its challenging It challenges at
at moments. But yeah, we met at a restaurant called
Motel Morris in New York City.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
What did you order?
Speaker 3 (10:46):
I remember?
Speaker 1 (10:46):
Not important.
Speaker 4 (10:47):
I remember a few bottles of red wine being consumed.
But we had a great time and here we are,
kid married.
Speaker 3 (10:53):
Was it instant? Like pretty instant.
Speaker 4 (10:55):
I actually met her brother first, and then he loves snowboarding.
That's how we connected.
Speaker 1 (11:00):
That's perfect. Yeah, if the woman you're chasing has a
brother who's into what you do, yea the dream.
Speaker 3 (11:06):
Yeah, it's good. It's kind of like you get one
foot in the door.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
One question that we always get, it's like a most
asked question from people who don't have kids, is when's
the right time? For me? It was a bit of
an accident, a happy accident with kids, surprised surprise accidents.
Thank you, you got my back. You're like, hang on, mat,
don't talk about kids. Thank god you're here. Thank you.
(11:29):
How did that conversation involved with Chloe about having kids
and starting a family?
Speaker 4 (11:34):
Yeah, it's to be honest, we also asked ourselves the
same question. It's funny you kind of just continue to
ask it because you have one and you go, oh, you.
Speaker 3 (11:43):
Know, when do we want to have another one? When
are you ready?
Speaker 4 (11:46):
And I think the best answer to that question is
you just never are. I think you'll always find a
reason not to have kids. And especially for us, we're like, oh,
you know what about traveling? What that's going to be like?
You know, how's it going to affect your career? Are
you going to become? For me, my biggest fear was like,
all of a sudden, I've sounds a bit grim, but
like I've got a lot more to go home too
now because I'm a dangerous sport, and that was something
(12:09):
that I was very timid about having kids because you
need to be able to just kind of not you know,
factor that in. But when so we had a lot
of different things like that, but we got married, we
kind of thought, you know, we'll see, give it a
little bit of time, and then we kind of where
we made the decision. To be honest is I said
(12:31):
to Chloe, I was like, hey, you know, we would
be so lucky to also have kids because I know
so many friends of mine that have tried to have
kids forever, and I'm like, what if we can't have kids,
and what if we're just thinking that we're going to
have this fairy tale, which we did in the end,
which is amazing, But like, yeah, we'll just try and
then we'll have a kid. It's like it might not
be that easy. We might have a five year path
(12:53):
ahead of us. Saw never so when we kind of
talked about that, it puts a lot of things in
perspective and we'll like, you know what, let's not try,
but just see what I continue with life and see
what happens.
Speaker 3 (13:04):
It's meant to be.
Speaker 4 (13:04):
It's meant to be, And sure enough, like bang, we
got she got pregnant, which was amazing, and I'm a
bit of a spiritual person in that sense. I was like,
it was meant to be.
Speaker 3 (13:13):
And yeah, it changes, it changes your why. You know
you why?
Speaker 5 (13:17):
And like I know when you were saying, like, now
that you're an extreme athlete and you put the word
extreme in front of it, there's the possibility of serious
injury and or death, not to make it morbid, but
like I can't imagine, like, you know, my.
Speaker 3 (13:31):
Thought surrounded by wooden.
Speaker 1 (13:33):
Yes, my thought changed.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
And I'm not even an extreme athlete.
Speaker 5 (13:37):
I can't imagine what that thought is when you're standing
at the top of a run and you're like, what's
gonna happen?
Speaker 4 (13:42):
If I Yeah, for sure, I guess the success is
in the process, Like if I prepare really well and
I train well, and I definitely don't stand there and
think that, and I don't, to be honest, I don't
think about anything that other than what I'm doing. And
I'm very present and I know that's where I'm safest,
and I realize that very quickly.
Speaker 3 (14:01):
Even when he was.
Speaker 1 (14:02):
Born, childbirth is a pretty wild experience and I went
into it pretty naive. I didn't read any books or.
Speaker 3 (14:10):
I did a class, did you. Yeah, it was like
too Saturdays.
Speaker 5 (14:14):
I pretty much watched the WSL both times the whole time.
Speaker 1 (14:18):
We'll leedit that out of the podcast in there. How
was it for yourself because you were training when Chloe
went into labor, Is that right?
Speaker 4 (14:27):
I was in my preseason getting ready for the season.
I was pretty well away right up until two weeks
before Leo was born. On reflection, it was because being
in sport, you gotta be very selfish like I and
I would say this to Chloe, is like ninety nine
point nine percent at a time, you're always thinking about,
you know, what you have to do to be the
(14:47):
best or if you want to be competitive. That's how
you have to think and operate. And she respects that.
So when you have a family, all of a sudden,
it's still very much the focus. But naturally, just because
you know, I like being a bit more of a
family person. I you know, your attention goes diverts a
little bit. But when Leo was born, she was born
(15:09):
on the third of October. It was like a Thursday night,
and he was born at like three or four am
or something. And then I remember him being born and
we had this amazing moment. And then Chloe fell asleep
and he was like there next to me, and I
was like laying in bed and I was already like
looking at the weather and then seeing people training and
(15:31):
it just like I was like, I've got to go,
and I couldn't. But that was like myela, yeah, and
I was like, I've got to go. So I naturally
did what I thought was right in the moment. Instinctively.
I left that like a day and a half later.
Now when I say it out loud, I'm like, what
a fucking asshole, because I actually feel like that.
Speaker 3 (15:52):
But she again blessed her. She understood.
Speaker 4 (15:55):
But I remember getting to Switzerland, getting on the glacier,
like gone through the process of going. Thankfully, it's on
our flight, so I wasn't too far away and I
got there and I just cried and I was like,
what the fuck have I just done. I was like,
I can't believe I'm here. Yeah, and I think I
didn't even take a run through the pipe. I got
back and I flew home.
Speaker 1 (16:17):
I went home.
Speaker 3 (16:18):
Yeah, I was like, I can't. I shouldn't be here.
Speaker 4 (16:20):
That was also a really good moment to reflect on
although you know, I could be perceived as about the
wrong thing to do, which it was. I also realized
in that moment that that day that I would have
got actually didn't affect me in the long run. Like,
you know, I still won World Championship, I still won
X Games, I still I still won all the marquee
events that year. But I look back at that and
(16:42):
I go, I actually wouldn't have accomplished anything that day.
Speaker 3 (16:45):
I should have just been there, Yeah, Chloe, and I
should have been there for it.
Speaker 5 (16:48):
Probably also like have it right because you've been doing
this for at that point, way longer than you're being
a dad.
Speaker 1 (16:53):
Yeah, you've been conditioned to just like our work. You know,
sometimes you're like, really don't feel like office feeling. I'm
just gonna pretend sick. You know. You're like, I'll go
to the gym and I can't be stuff this morning,
so I'm tired. Whereas for you, it's like, no, if
I don't do that, Like, yeah, the impact of my
job is huge when you're trying to be number one.
Speaker 5 (17:14):
I love it doing to day as an athlete.
Speaker 1 (17:18):
You can't get Yeah.
Speaker 4 (17:20):
Well, after that, after I went back, I had plenty
of doing a days. I was there and I loved it.
When you're very primed all the time and you practice
and you're there and you're present and you're in the
moment limits the risk of anything happening. So I also
think that's a factor. That's why you know, I want
to train so much.
Speaker 3 (17:38):
Do you think after having Leo you got some dad strength?
Speaker 4 (17:40):
I think I got Dad's strength more so just internally,
because I remember I had an okay start to the
season and I was coming into Larks and that's like
for us as an event, it's the pipe's perfect, you know,
there's nowhere to look in terms of elements. I still
think that people expect me to fail, like they're way
for me to not win, and I it motivates me
(18:04):
a lot and it's still my driving force. So I
had that, But then the elevated part of that was, well,
you expect me not to win and my dad fucking
watch this.
Speaker 3 (18:14):
Yeah, that's epic.
Speaker 4 (18:15):
And I kind of my brother Tim said the same
thing to me. He goes, I think everyone thinks that
you're not going to win this event, and he kind
of he was like, you need to go out and
just you know, hypothetically fucking knock him out, and we
knocked him out.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
We always talk about we love our kids, but it
is a bit of a handicap. It makes off a
little bit harder a competition. If you're a dad, you
get like an extra point going into a competition.
Speaker 5 (18:44):
Yeah, it's funny watching athletes. Any athlete really there a
new dad. Like for example, Reuben Garrick, right from Amly Seagulls,
he had a kid. The morning of the game, his missus,
who's obviously in and around the sport of our whole life,
said go and play scored for tries.
Speaker 1 (18:59):
Yeah, but also like start the game, try up. Yeah,
he's a dad. Give there sucking he gives already for me.
Now my eldest is six. I've had some dad tendencies
come through, like now, like every time I get up,
I forget off the seat. I'll be like if I
(19:20):
see a nice bit of lorn, I'm like, oh yeah,
the Se'm like the creeping in. Do you have any
dad tendencies.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
That you're like, oh god, oh, mine's comfort shoes. I
just won't. I'm like, hush puppies. I'll just if I'm.
Speaker 4 (19:36):
Putting on an outfit and you know, I'll try and
look trendy. It's always I always try very hard, but
I'm never successful. Nowadays, I'm like, you know what, I'm
just going to wear my Runners, like I don't care.
I'm going to go to the airport. I'm I'm not
I'm going to a training camp. You know, I've got
to go through security. I can whip it on off easy.
I'm just wearing my Runners. I'm not wearing anything that's uncomfortable.
(19:59):
So that probably a big dad thing of me. I
also heard ankle socks is a big dad thing.
Speaker 5 (20:04):
It's a weird it's a weird length of socks. It's
not quite ankle, it's not quite long. It's this weird
in between. Yeah, that they sell and it's like.
Speaker 1 (20:13):
When you're a dad, it looks pretty good.
Speaker 4 (20:14):
Yeah, it's really I've gone down the ankle sock road.
Speaker 1 (20:22):
Wow.
Speaker 4 (20:23):
And I've been several occasions now I've been called out
as a dad.
Speaker 5 (20:26):
Ankle socks, New Balance and Jaws.
Speaker 3 (20:30):
Yeah, that's the look.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
The trifecta.
Speaker 3 (20:33):
You're all over the world all the time. I watch
you all the time.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
With Chloe also her brother all over the world as well.
Speaker 3 (20:39):
It seems chaotic. Give us an insight to how.
Speaker 4 (20:41):
It works for you guys, Well, it is pretty chaotic.
Call a spade a spade. We actually, you know, we
actually have someone helping us when we're traveling, because, to
be honest, I think between my training, the traveling, the
time zone changes, you know, my job being pretty demanding.
Chloe's being pulled around a lot as well. So when
we travel, you usually try and bring some someone to
(21:02):
help us. If we don't have someone, then we'll have
a family member come with us as well, which is good.
So that's been really helpful. But if we don't then yeah,
I mean naturally, it presents some challenges. And all of
a sudden, you know, I used to go through security
at the airport and like it's making me take my
belt off and do I need to take my shoes off?
Speaker 3 (21:23):
Yeah? Take your shoes off. I'm like, do I have
to take like my necklace off?
Speaker 1 (21:27):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (21:28):
I'm like, oh god. And then now you go and
you're like where do I even start?
Speaker 3 (21:34):
Like, yeah, I'm here. There's the freaking stroller and then
his stuff and we saw.
Speaker 1 (21:40):
Reguard to I was like in a buggerboo carrying it,
and I was like, oh god, traveling with kids is hard.
Speaker 3 (21:47):
There are so funny We're always about.
Speaker 1 (21:49):
The light and shade. Yeah here on the podcast. Parenting
is unique because it has on both ends of the spectrum,
the most amazing, incredible moments that are core memories for
the rest of your life, but there's also moments that
so hard and exhausting. What are the really amazing moments
that you love and what are the moments where you've
been like, shit, I didn't sign off for this.
Speaker 4 (22:09):
Shit would be a good start Leo's got a habit
at the moment of just set. It's like seven fifteen,
and we should have learnt by now that maybe seven fifteen,
he's gonna take a shit. Go take a shit, and
we put him in the bath because he always eats
about six thirty and we have a bit of playing time.
Then he has a bath and he goes to bed
by seven thirty. But he's in the bath at seven
(22:30):
and he's got a habit at the moment, which I
don't blame him. I'm sure it's really nice to take
a pooh in the bath. To be honest, I kind
of watch him like, to be honest, I reckon, that's
probably just really nice.
Speaker 1 (22:40):
I'merous, not that I do this often, but taking a
poo in the ocean A done that very good? Yeah, yeah,
a bit of wave, so I get where Leo is
coming from. I sympathize with it. A bit of wave
actually to wash it out.
Speaker 4 (22:54):
Even more elevated is the lukewarm water, right, yeah, the ocean.
You know, you can't control that tenure, but he's in
lukewarm water.
Speaker 1 (23:02):
It's impossible not to ship. Yeah. Yeah. Also the salt
contains that once it comes out.
Speaker 4 (23:07):
So that's one thing that he started doing. And we
fair enough we laugh and think it's really funny. Do
you dig it out of the drain or do you
stomp it down? It depends, like sometimes they're quite solid
and you know they float, but then recently they've been
a bit more. Yeah, the running consistency, so he just
(23:28):
goes down.
Speaker 1 (23:29):
The bit of force that goes down, put your hand
in and you're like.
Speaker 3 (23:33):
Oh, but probably one of the more challenging moments. Yeah.
For me, it's probably just the traveling.
Speaker 4 (23:39):
Like I'm spending so much time away, I feel like
every time I come back, he's got like a new tooth.
He's like this little time stamp where when I leave
and I come back, you feel like you're missing out
on something.
Speaker 5 (23:49):
Do you have that fear that you might miss out
on a milestone that you really really want to be
there for?
Speaker 3 (23:54):
Yeah, for sure all the time.
Speaker 1 (23:55):
How do you battle that when you're also trying to
stay so focused on sport.
Speaker 4 (24:00):
I just said to Chloe, I was like, he walks
or something when I'm not around.
Speaker 1 (24:05):
Tell me stay down.
Speaker 4 (24:09):
Yeah, do not argue you, just stay down on the ground.
I'm just like, don't tell me, Like, just pretend when
I come back.
Speaker 1 (24:17):
Like, oh my god, it's his first step.
Speaker 3 (24:19):
Yeah, I'd be happy.
Speaker 4 (24:20):
I think like where I get a lot of validation
in what I'm doing is that, you know, I hope
one day you know whether maybe I missed those moments.
Is like I can say, hey, what when I was
away when you were little baby, like, this is what
I was doing, and it was.
Speaker 1 (24:35):
When you're winning World Chair bro.
Speaker 5 (24:37):
Like my six year old asked me who I was with,
and I'll show you guys on YouTube and he'll be
like that is epic And they were like.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
Dad, show me you and he's like, that's it. You
left us for five days for this. Where are your flips?
Speaker 5 (24:52):
And for Chloe, obviously she understands the lifestyle, the job,
the career so well that when you mentioned before you
can't marry the girl next door and do you do,
because they would probably get the ships with you that
you're missing these milestones like my wife does. Like if
I'm away and I'm working, it might be a case
which is like, well you missed him doing.
Speaker 1 (25:10):
Winning world championship, So anybody that's right, Yeah, yeah, I'm
on day two, Matt. You never know, there still time
might get a call up what are the moments that
you love? But for me getting a smile like that.
There are people who listen to the podcast who don't
have kids, and they're probably thinking that smiles at me. Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (25:31):
The bottom line is if you don't have kids, it's
very hard to just relate. And my brother would say
stuff before I had kids, and I'd be later, here
we go saying stuff about the kids again. But now
I'm obviously your dad when now he's almost eleven months,
he recognizes me, like on FaceTime also in person, and
(25:51):
it's just that little blip that he gives me. He's
tough and a smile out of but.
Speaker 5 (25:55):
Is the best and we always say there's something that
kids can give you that nothing else can. Yeah, it's
that little moment the first time they smile at you,
and it's like it makes it all worth it that
you have the shittest day in the world, even with
them involved sometimes and you're like, you've shadowed me twice today,
but I'm now putting you into bed and you give
me the cheeky smile and you're like, God, damn it, I.
Speaker 1 (26:16):
Love you so much.
Speaker 4 (26:18):
And somehow, if you could just put it in a
in a pill, maybe we're under something here and people
that aren't parents just like it's.
Speaker 5 (26:33):
That I would know if my wife's listening and my mom.
Speaker 3 (26:38):
But yeah, it is special and getting the smile.
Speaker 1 (26:40):
It's cool now when you compare yourself back before you
had kids, and I'm sure you know when Chloe was pregnant,
you're imagining what kind of dad you're going to be, Like,
is it the same the person you thought you'd been
the dad you are now?
Speaker 4 (26:54):
Ah hmm, it's a good question. I I think I
am the dad that I want to be, Like Chloe
always says, as much as I'm away, when I'm home,
I'm very I am super present and I consciously make
a decision, like get off my phone, and even though
sometimes like being frank, like sitting there watching him do
(27:15):
the same thing for an hour is pretty boring, So
naturally you want to like pick up your phone and
you know, maybe check something, but I like consciously don't.
I'm like just I literally stare at him for hours,
just because I know that when I'm not doing that,
I've got to go and I'm going to be like, yeah,
not thinking about it, but yeah, I think I think
I am, And I reckon you. Obviously also to learn
(27:38):
a lot from my parents, and then you know, you
think about things that they did for me and how
I want to emulate that, and yeah, so I think
I am.
Speaker 3 (27:46):
But that's probably a question for Chloe.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
Well, she's here right now.
Speaker 6 (27:51):
Are you going to are you gonna push you.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
You start dancing?
Speaker 5 (27:58):
Are you going to push Do you think you're gonna
put the young fella into the family business of snowboarding?
Speaker 3 (28:05):
Chloe's old man.
Speaker 4 (28:06):
Funnily enough, when he was like first born, we're having
a laugh because he was.
Speaker 3 (28:11):
Like, no go cuts, no snowboards, ballet shoes.
Speaker 6 (28:17):
He's quite a big, powerful mountain. He's quite a big
powerful guy, and you'd be like, Okay, why ballet. I
don't know, because I think it's just like so far
from just so far from anything extreme. It's not like,
you know, life risking every single day, but.
Speaker 3 (28:35):
Don't tell a ballet dance of that, bro. We risk
our lives on the.
Speaker 1 (28:44):
Pier wedding. It's nothing.
Speaker 3 (28:45):
But I don't know.
Speaker 4 (28:46):
I'm probably just very I do think about that in
my case because none of my family professional skills. We
didn't live at the mountains, we didn't like, none of
my journey was because of something my family did. I
think about that. With Leo, I'm like, it doesn't really.
I don't think it necessarily matters, Like he'll probably pick
what he wants to do anyway, which I'm like, as
(29:07):
long as you enjoy it, that's all.
Speaker 5 (29:10):
And it's like for us who have slightly older kids,
it's super cool when they like what you like, even
just for a split moment.
Speaker 3 (29:16):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, girl.
Speaker 1 (29:19):
I'm like, he wants to play the cricket and they're like,
fuck off.
Speaker 5 (29:21):
Dan, Matt's getting his nails painted. Yeah, that's great.
Speaker 3 (29:25):
I love it.
Speaker 4 (29:26):
But we like now on Sundays, the rule is like
Chloe will not let Leo yet, I'm like waiting for it.
Not let him watch TV. Like he won't watch TV.
He's only ten months old, so he's not really Maybe
he was parenting my kids at that age. Yeah, but
she's like, he can't watch TV, and I'm like, all right,
But on Sundays, rules go out the door, Like, I'm what, personally,
(29:49):
I want to watch footy, So I'm not sitting in
a living room like staring at the wall.
Speaker 3 (29:55):
Sorry, but we're going to put the footy on.
Speaker 4 (29:58):
So now on Sundays I put the footy on and
he'll sit there standing in his little thing and just
and it kills her. But you know, on Sundays we
watch some footy. I get joy out of that for sure.
Speaker 1 (30:11):
Yeah, that's pretty awesome. When Leo is all grown up,
he's an adult. Let's assume that he's going to fly
the nest. He's no longer living with you and Chloee.
What is the one thing you would want him to
remember about the house he grew up in.
Speaker 4 (30:26):
The one thing would be that he always he could
always come home and know that everything was okay, Like
doesn't matter what he's done, you know, if he's having
trouble with his friends or anything like. He second you
walk through your front door, you know that, like mom
(30:48):
and I are there.
Speaker 1 (30:49):
I love that. Also very fitting from someone who was
breaking out of Kindy's at the age. It's fine that
you broke out of Guindy. Don't worry about it.
Speaker 3 (30:56):
My mum always says that she's like, if he's any
thing like you.
Speaker 1 (31:00):
Yeah, that's such a grandparent sentence.
Speaker 4 (31:04):
But it's true though, because I actually I think I
want that because that's what I had, even though I
would have you know, did definitely.
Speaker 3 (31:11):
Was a trouble maker.
Speaker 4 (31:12):
I always knew that I could go home and I
would be like, Okay.
Speaker 1 (31:16):
What's that like?
Speaker 5 (31:19):
Scott, thank you so much for spending some time with
us today in this.
Speaker 1 (31:22):
Lovely log cap. We can just keep We'll stop recording,
just pretend we're still podcast. Everyone from Red Bull right
now is like waiting for the open.
Speaker 4 (31:30):
Knot and talking as the weather there's no sun yet,
let's just keep talking.
Speaker 1 (31:36):
Scotty appreciate it. Thank you so much, dude.
Speaker 4 (31:38):
Yeah, thanks guys for having me. And it's fun to
talk about dad stuff. So it's actually it's quite refreshing now.
Like I always talked about sport my whole career and
obviously still do. But it's really nice to talk about something,
to be honest, that's so much more significant than anything
I'll ever do in sports.
Speaker 3 (31:56):
So well, anytime you want, you can come on.
Speaker 1 (31:59):
You want to chat, dads, we're all when you want
to talk, angle socks, give us a suggests a few
brands here cheers. Well, what a lovely dad was he joking? Jay,
he's great, He's great.
Speaker 2 (32:14):
And another big thank you to Red Pull for teeing
that up for us and having us showing us around
as well, which was great at an amazing time and
a great chat with.
Speaker 1 (32:22):
Scott And good luck to Scotty James for his next competition. Yes,
I think it's in China. Will be there And if
you've enjoyed this episode, please share it with another friend,
give us some feedback, a couple of stars, and if
there's any other mums or dads out there that you'd
like us to interview, please send it through.
Speaker 2 (32:41):
Hello at two Doting Dads or on social media Instagram, TikTok,
Facebook also YouTube Two Doting Dads.
Speaker 1 (32:47):
Look it up. But the YouTube is only for Wednesday episodes.
It doesn't matter. Okay, bye bye bye bye bye bye.
Two Doting Dads podcast acknowledges the traditional custodians of country
throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community.
Speaker 2 (33:05):
We pay our respects to their elders past and present
and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torrestrate Islander
peoples today
Ashton, Matthew, A little question for you, my friend, what
is a super flex for a dad? Reverse parking one handed?
There's no other way to park. It's how I do it, ever.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Term, but using mirrors and no cameras, Oh there is.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
That's a very good point. But I was going to say,
knowing that, when your kid is asked the question what
does your daddy do for a living, the answer is
Olympic metal pro snowboarder. That's a big flex. I mean,
I can't keep you up with that. My kids just
say he works on his laptop, He's on his phone
the whole time. I know mine's like he wears this
silly town on his head. But I understand what's going on.
(00:38):
I'm entertaining the masses.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Honestly, Matt, I don't think our kids are ever ever
going to be able to say.
Speaker 1 (00:44):
No, hang on, something is cool a second. I'm thirty eight,
ash there is still time for me to be a
world champion. It's something you.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
Were pretty good on the mountain, I will say, and
just a fi We recorded this on a mountain thanks
to Red Bull.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
Did they set up this delicious little interview with Scotti James,
who his dad to one year old Leo and husband
to his lovely Canadian wife, Heir Chloe.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Yes.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
Scotty James is training for the next Winter Olympics at
the start of next year, but this will also be
the first time he's juggling it alongside his life as
a dad.
Speaker 1 (01:14):
There's certainly new territory for someone whose whole life has
revolved around being a professional athlete for almost this is
crazy twenty years.
Speaker 2 (01:22):
Scotty does bring up how much of a shock to
the system it was when he realized the shift in priorities.
Speaker 1 (01:28):
Also the other things that come with being a daddy.
He talks about some of the more messier situations that
he finds himself in. As they say in the snowboarding world,
I heard a lot of you. Let's get into it.
(01:54):
Welcome back to Three Doting Dads. I'm Maddie, Jay, I'm.
Speaker 3 (01:58):
Ash, and I'm doting dad with three Scutty.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
Oh maled it. Very good, very good, Thank you. This
is a podcast all about parenting. It is the good,
it is the bad and the relatable. Now Scotty, legally,
Ash and myself, we're not allowed to give any advice
for yourself. Totally fine. Your void from those restrictions. Loophole.
Speaker 3 (02:16):
We found a loophole in the contracts. The legal legal team.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
Said, guests, can you say whatever they like, but we can't.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
This is this is we won't talk about before the
show started.
Speaker 3 (02:24):
When you give me all the advice, yes, absolutely, thank you,
Thank you for that. I appreciate you.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
We'll look at this part right we're locked in a
basement right now? Are we in a basement? We were?
We normally Scotty record at my house, but we're down
at Perisher at the moment, and thanks meant to be
in one room. We got pulled out of that room.
We got them put into the luggage room where we
are now. We set up in about three minutes.
Speaker 5 (02:50):
And they cleared all the bags out so quick like
they were Olympic athletes.
Speaker 4 (02:54):
To be honest, I feel quite comfortable in here because
it's very similar to hotel room that I would have
stayed at with my mum at some point in my journey.
Very misty going to Australian ski resorts so very scary.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
They were like, you've got thirty minutes and we're like,
don't worry, as quick as we can. And then you
sat down and said boys, let's drag this out for
as long as we can.
Speaker 5 (03:19):
Listen to here for the listeners at home at perish,
there's a lot of snow. It's also very windy and
very cold, so in here is delightful, real say it,
will say so.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
We usually started the scotty with do you remember as
a child the worst trouble you ever got?
Speaker 3 (03:35):
In?
Speaker 4 (03:35):
Hm, that's probably a question for my mum.
Speaker 1 (03:40):
I was.
Speaker 4 (03:41):
My mum would say constantly. I was presenting a lot
of challenges to my parents all the time.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
I would say that with a very big smirk on.
I was like, what believe here?
Speaker 4 (03:54):
Probably the one story my mom loves telling the most
was to be honest. I look at it and I go, wow,
that was honestly pretty intelligent. I got down to the
local milk bar when I was in kindergarten. But I
had to get out to go down the local milk bar.
My mum was a basketball coach at our local team,
and my kindergarten was across the street from the basketball stadium,
(04:15):
and the milk bar was another five hundred meters past
the basketball stadium, so it was territory I was very
familiar with. I was at the basketball stadium. Every day
I'd go from kinder of the basketball stamum and watch
my mum coach these basketball teams.
Speaker 3 (04:29):
So in terms of.
Speaker 4 (04:31):
Safety and knowing where I was going, it was fine.
But the probably the bad part was I remember having
my friend who's still a good friend of mine to
this day because of this. I had him get on
his all fours and you know, obviously naturally walking into
Kindred day so you understand how to pop the gate,
(04:51):
and got up, climbed on his back, popped the gate
opened up, just headed on down to the milk bar.
Speaker 1 (04:59):
How far was it?
Speaker 4 (05:02):
Like close to a little bit shy of a kilometer,
that's still a long way. Yeah, decent, you've been like
five or six years old here, right, yeah exactly. So
then you can imagine now whatever it was recess or
what has finished, and they do a headcount and I'm
not there, so now it's this, did.
Speaker 1 (05:20):
You take your mate with you?
Speaker 4 (05:26):
So I get down to the milk bar and sure
enough they see me every day, so they're like, hang on,
check the time.
Speaker 3 (05:32):
This doesn't seem right.
Speaker 4 (05:34):
And then the people in the milk bar rang around
and were like, we have him and my mom at
this point is losing it because I've gotten out of
kinder and you know, end up being this whole thing.
So that was probably one of the worst things.
Speaker 3 (05:48):
You're essentially an escaped convict.
Speaker 5 (05:50):
Yes, and your mom had to ring it or they
had to ring around and find because I can imagine
the panic on your mom's voice then like where is he?
Speaker 1 (05:57):
Yeah? Did you what?
Speaker 4 (05:58):
Do you remember the punishment or was it I remember?
I don't think I was punished for it. I think
my dad's the problem exactly.
Speaker 1 (06:06):
I knew there was a reason.
Speaker 4 (06:08):
I think my mum probably just went terminator on the
kindergarten to be honest, the fact that I even't got out,
which is fair.
Speaker 3 (06:14):
Enough, Yeah, that's I think that's fine nowadays.
Speaker 1 (06:18):
Or kindy teacher must have been like, how the fuck
did he get out? You're right there.
Speaker 5 (06:23):
You go to the same gate every day, like my kids.
I'm surprised they're too dope to.
Speaker 3 (06:27):
Figure it out.
Speaker 4 (06:27):
I guess I reckon nowadays it's probably Yeah, it's probably
higher than.
Speaker 1 (06:32):
Changed the height off the back of that. Also, I think.
Speaker 4 (06:34):
There's a double gate situation, so I think there's two
gates get into kindergarten these days.
Speaker 1 (06:40):
This is a podcast about gates. We have an app,
so you swipe on your phone on the app to
get in the technology. You go, yeah, it's like Fort Knox.
My daycare had him over. I was thinking, like when
you were starting to compete internationally. It was from the
age of fourteen fifteen, Like, if you're a little bit
(07:01):
cheeky being away from your family and being with other adults,
it could have made you grow up really fast and
become like more mature, or it could have made you
even more cheek here, Yeah, which one was it for you?
Speaker 4 (07:13):
To be honest, I was so at first. I went
away with my mum to the North Northern Hemisphere when
we decided I would pursue snowboarding as a profession when
I was probably eleven, because you need to be quite young,
even maybe even ten.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
So eleven's really young. Yeah, Like, what were the points
that you were ticking off where everyone was going, yeah,
let's do this because it's a big move.
Speaker 3 (07:33):
Backflip yeah, backflip was in there for sure.
Speaker 4 (07:37):
No way, it's not really a pathway either, Like it's
also not that accessible. So it was huge respect to
my parents to have the courage to let me pursue it,
because you know, there was definitely not a moment in
time where we were like this is this is a guarantee.
It's always you know, it was never a sure thing.
I've always had like pretty good air awareness. I did
(07:57):
a bit of trampolining when I was a kid, and
then there was probably that one that first season I
went over to the US, and that was a bit
of a moment where I was like, after this, we'll
continue or not, because if you can beat you know,
the US kids and Europeans, then you know, we probably
should pursue it. It was such a huge move when
(08:17):
I was so young. I think you grow up very quickly.
You know, I'm still ten or eleven years old, but
once I hit my teenage years, you know, start traveling
away from your parents. So yeah, I always stayed cheeky.
But I think I also, although I was young, I
respected what I was doing, I guess, and I didn't
necessarily take the piss all the time. So I know
(08:39):
it's a massive thing for my parents to do financially,
but also from a commitment perspective.
Speaker 1 (08:44):
What are the other athletes like, do they welcome you
with open arms? There's a little fucking grommet.
Speaker 4 (08:51):
Not as much now like the stuff I dealt with
when I was a grommet.
Speaker 3 (08:56):
Now, I mean there's there's an HR department now. Yeah,
in your.
Speaker 4 (08:59):
Head died, you know, being wrapped in toilet paper and
like getting duct taped to the beds, funny stuff.
Speaker 1 (09:08):
Yeah. Do you look at the young kids now and
be like, you don't know how good you've got it?
Speaker 4 (09:11):
Yeah? I sound a little bit like jaded, like an
old man. Nah, for sure. I mean nowadays there's a
lot more cushion around generally everything, So you know, it
was all parf of the course, and it was fun,
Like it's fun to think about the memories now. I
remember going to New Zealand. I'm on my own. It
would have been twelve or thirteen. I was with my
(09:32):
coach and his sister, Tori Bright, who's a you know,
very successful female snowboarder from Australia as well. I was
traveling with those two and it was almost like Harry Potter.
I was like staying in the house, but my bedroom
was under the stairs, so when they went to wait
out in the morning, they'd like, just.
Speaker 3 (09:50):
Stairs.
Speaker 5 (09:52):
It must be hard to find your person, right and
you've you're married, now you've got kids. Obviously, do you
remember the first time you metlo?
Speaker 3 (10:01):
Yeah, I do.
Speaker 4 (10:02):
I remember it very well, and yeah, you're right, it
was I think, oh god, for sure. I think obviously
traveling so much and her family being in sport as well,
she and you know her lifestyle, she travels a lot,
so she naturally just understood. Yeah, I think if I
(10:23):
was to you know, I grew up in moren Dight,
for us to date the girl next door, it just
doesn't quite compute, which I fully understand. So naturally she
understood it really well.
Speaker 3 (10:35):
You know.
Speaker 4 (10:35):
That said, it still has its challenging It challenges at
at moments. But yeah, we met at a restaurant called
Motel Morris in New York City.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
What did you order?
Speaker 3 (10:46):
I remember?
Speaker 1 (10:46):
Not important.
Speaker 4 (10:47):
I remember a few bottles of red wine being consumed.
But we had a great time and here we are,
kid married.
Speaker 3 (10:53):
Was it instant? Like pretty instant.
Speaker 4 (10:55):
I actually met her brother first, and then he loves snowboarding.
That's how we connected.
Speaker 1 (11:00):
That's perfect. Yeah, if the woman you're chasing has a
brother who's into what you do, yea the dream.
Speaker 3 (11:06):
Yeah, it's good. It's kind of like you get one
foot in the door.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
One question that we always get, it's like a most
asked question from people who don't have kids, is when's
the right time? For me? It was a bit of
an accident, a happy accident with kids, surprised surprise accidents.
Thank you, you got my back. You're like, hang on, mat,
don't talk about kids. Thank god you're here. Thank you.
(11:29):
How did that conversation involved with Chloe about having kids
and starting a family?
Speaker 4 (11:34):
Yeah, it's to be honest, we also asked ourselves the
same question. It's funny you kind of just continue to
ask it because you have one and you go, oh, you.
Speaker 3 (11:43):
Know, when do we want to have another one? When
are you ready?
Speaker 4 (11:46):
And I think the best answer to that question is
you just never are. I think you'll always find a
reason not to have kids. And especially for us, we're like, oh,
you know what about traveling? What that's going to be like?
You know, how's it going to affect your career? Are
you going to become? For me, my biggest fear was like,
all of a sudden, I've sounds a bit grim, but
like I've got a lot more to go home too
now because I'm a dangerous sport, and that was something
(12:09):
that I was very timid about having kids because you
need to be able to just kind of not you know,
factor that in. But when so we had a lot
of different things like that, but we got married, we
kind of thought, you know, we'll see, give it a
little bit of time, and then we kind of where
we made the decision. To be honest is I said
(12:31):
to Chloe, I was like, hey, you know, we would
be so lucky to also have kids because I know
so many friends of mine that have tried to have
kids forever, and I'm like, what if we can't have kids,
and what if we're just thinking that we're going to
have this fairy tale, which we did in the end,
which is amazing, But like, yeah, we'll just try and
then we'll have a kid. It's like it might not
be that easy. We might have a five year path
(12:53):
ahead of us. Saw never so when we kind of
talked about that, it puts a lot of things in
perspective and we'll like, you know what, let's not try,
but just see what I continue with life and see
what happens.
Speaker 3 (13:04):
It's meant to be.
Speaker 4 (13:04):
It's meant to be, And sure enough, like bang, we
got she got pregnant, which was amazing, and I'm a
bit of a spiritual person in that sense. I was like,
it was meant to be.
Speaker 3 (13:13):
And yeah, it changes, it changes your why. You know
you why?
Speaker 5 (13:17):
And like I know when you were saying, like, now
that you're an extreme athlete and you put the word
extreme in front of it, there's the possibility of serious
injury and or death, not to make it morbid, but
like I can't imagine, like, you know, my.
Speaker 3 (13:31):
Thought surrounded by wooden.
Speaker 1 (13:33):
Yes, my thought changed.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
And I'm not even an extreme athlete.
Speaker 5 (13:37):
I can't imagine what that thought is when you're standing
at the top of a run and you're like, what's
gonna happen?
Speaker 4 (13:42):
If I Yeah, for sure, I guess the success is
in the process, Like if I prepare really well and
I train well, and I definitely don't stand there and
think that, and I don't, to be honest, I don't
think about anything that other than what I'm doing. And
I'm very present and I know that's where I'm safest,
and I realize that very quickly.
Speaker 3 (14:01):
Even when he was.
Speaker 1 (14:02):
Born, childbirth is a pretty wild experience and I went
into it pretty naive. I didn't read any books or.
Speaker 3 (14:10):
I did a class, did you. Yeah, it was like
too Saturdays.
Speaker 5 (14:14):
I pretty much watched the WSL both times the whole time.
Speaker 1 (14:18):
We'll leedit that out of the podcast in there. How
was it for yourself because you were training when Chloe
went into labor, Is that right?
Speaker 4 (14:27):
I was in my preseason getting ready for the season.
I was pretty well away right up until two weeks
before Leo was born. On reflection, it was because being
in sport, you gotta be very selfish like I and
I would say this to Chloe, is like ninety nine
point nine percent at a time, you're always thinking about,
you know, what you have to do to be the
(14:47):
best or if you want to be competitive. That's how
you have to think and operate. And she respects that.
So when you have a family, all of a sudden,
it's still very much the focus. But naturally, just because
you know, I like being a bit more of a
family person. I you know, your attention goes diverts a
little bit. But when Leo was born, she was born
(15:09):
on the third of October. It was like a Thursday night,
and he was born at like three or four am
or something. And then I remember him being born and
we had this amazing moment. And then Chloe fell asleep
and he was like there next to me, and I
was like laying in bed and I was already like
looking at the weather and then seeing people training and
(15:31):
it just like I was like, I've got to go,
and I couldn't. But that was like myela, yeah, and
I was like, I've got to go. So I naturally
did what I thought was right in the moment. Instinctively.
I left that like a day and a half later.
Now when I say it out loud, I'm like, what
a fucking asshole, because I actually feel like that.
Speaker 3 (15:52):
But she again blessed her. She understood.
Speaker 4 (15:55):
But I remember getting to Switzerland, getting on the glacier,
like gone through the process of going. Thankfully, it's on
our flight, so I wasn't too far away and I
got there and I just cried and I was like,
what the fuck have I just done. I was like,
I can't believe I'm here. Yeah, and I think I
didn't even take a run through the pipe. I got
back and I flew home.
Speaker 1 (16:17):
I went home.
Speaker 3 (16:18):
Yeah, I was like, I can't. I shouldn't be here.
Speaker 4 (16:20):
That was also a really good moment to reflect on
although you know, I could be perceived as about the
wrong thing to do, which it was. I also realized
in that moment that that day that I would have
got actually didn't affect me in the long run. Like,
you know, I still won World Championship, I still won
X Games, I still I still won all the marquee
events that year. But I look back at that and
(16:42):
I go, I actually wouldn't have accomplished anything that day.
Speaker 3 (16:45):
I should have just been there, Yeah, Chloe, and I
should have been there for it.
Speaker 5 (16:48):
Probably also like have it right because you've been doing
this for at that point, way longer than you're being
a dad.
Speaker 1 (16:53):
Yeah, you've been conditioned to just like our work. You know,
sometimes you're like, really don't feel like office feeling. I'm
just gonna pretend sick. You know. You're like, I'll go
to the gym and I can't be stuff this morning,
so I'm tired. Whereas for you, it's like, no, if
I don't do that, Like, yeah, the impact of my
job is huge when you're trying to be number one.
Speaker 5 (17:14):
I love it doing to day as an athlete.
Speaker 1 (17:18):
You can't get Yeah.
Speaker 4 (17:20):
Well, after that, after I went back, I had plenty
of doing a days. I was there and I loved it.
When you're very primed all the time and you practice
and you're there and you're present and you're in the
moment limits the risk of anything happening. So I also
think that's a factor. That's why you know, I want
to train so much.
Speaker 3 (17:38):
Do you think after having Leo you got some dad strength?
Speaker 4 (17:40):
I think I got Dad's strength more so just internally,
because I remember I had an okay start to the
season and I was coming into Larks and that's like
for us as an event, it's the pipe's perfect, you know,
there's nowhere to look in terms of elements. I still
think that people expect me to fail, like they're way
for me to not win, and I it motivates me
(18:04):
a lot and it's still my driving force. So I
had that, But then the elevated part of that was, well,
you expect me not to win and my dad fucking
watch this.
Speaker 3 (18:14):
Yeah, that's epic.
Speaker 4 (18:15):
And I kind of my brother Tim said the same
thing to me. He goes, I think everyone thinks that
you're not going to win this event, and he kind
of he was like, you need to go out and
just you know, hypothetically fucking knock him out, and we
knocked him out.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
We always talk about we love our kids, but it
is a bit of a handicap. It makes off a
little bit harder a competition. If you're a dad, you
get like an extra point going into a competition.
Speaker 5 (18:44):
Yeah, it's funny watching athletes. Any athlete really there a
new dad. Like for example, Reuben Garrick, right from Amly Seagulls,
he had a kid. The morning of the game, his missus,
who's obviously in and around the sport of our whole life,
said go and play scored for tries.
Speaker 1 (18:59):
Yeah, but also like start the game, try up. Yeah,
he's a dad. Give there sucking he gives already for me.
Now my eldest is six. I've had some dad tendencies
come through, like now, like every time I get up,
I forget off the seat. I'll be like if I
(19:20):
see a nice bit of lorn, I'm like, oh yeah,
the Se'm like the creeping in. Do you have any
dad tendencies.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
That you're like, oh god, oh, mine's comfort shoes. I
just won't. I'm like, hush puppies. I'll just if I'm.
Speaker 4 (19:36):
Putting on an outfit and you know, I'll try and
look trendy. It's always I always try very hard, but
I'm never successful. Nowadays, I'm like, you know what, I'm
just going to wear my Runners, like I don't care.
I'm going to go to the airport. I'm I'm not
I'm going to a training camp. You know, I've got
to go through security. I can whip it on off easy.
I'm just wearing my Runners. I'm not wearing anything that's uncomfortable.
(19:59):
So that probably a big dad thing of me. I
also heard ankle socks is a big dad thing.
Speaker 5 (20:04):
It's a weird it's a weird length of socks. It's
not quite ankle, it's not quite long. It's this weird
in between. Yeah, that they sell and it's like.
Speaker 1 (20:13):
When you're a dad, it looks pretty good.
Speaker 4 (20:14):
Yeah, it's really I've gone down the ankle sock road.
Speaker 1 (20:22):
Wow.
Speaker 4 (20:23):
And I've been several occasions now I've been called out
as a dad.
Speaker 5 (20:26):
Ankle socks, New Balance and Jaws.
Speaker 3 (20:30):
Yeah, that's the look.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
The trifecta.
Speaker 3 (20:33):
You're all over the world all the time. I watch
you all the time.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
With Chloe also her brother all over the world as well.
Speaker 3 (20:39):
It seems chaotic. Give us an insight to how.
Speaker 4 (20:41):
It works for you guys, Well, it is pretty chaotic.
Call a spade a spade. We actually, you know, we
actually have someone helping us when we're traveling, because, to
be honest, I think between my training, the traveling, the
time zone changes, you know, my job being pretty demanding.
Chloe's being pulled around a lot as well. So when
we travel, you usually try and bring some someone to
(21:02):
help us. If we don't have someone, then we'll have
a family member come with us as well, which is good.
So that's been really helpful. But if we don't then yeah,
I mean naturally, it presents some challenges. And all of
a sudden, you know, I used to go through security
at the airport and like it's making me take my
belt off and do I need to take my shoes off?
Speaker 3 (21:23):
Yeah? Take your shoes off. I'm like, do I have
to take like my necklace off?
Speaker 1 (21:27):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (21:28):
I'm like, oh god. And then now you go and
you're like where do I even start?
Speaker 3 (21:34):
Like, yeah, I'm here. There's the freaking stroller and then
his stuff and we saw.
Speaker 1 (21:40):
Reguard to I was like in a buggerboo carrying it,
and I was like, oh god, traveling with kids is hard.
Speaker 3 (21:47):
There are so funny We're always about.
Speaker 1 (21:49):
The light and shade. Yeah here on the podcast. Parenting
is unique because it has on both ends of the spectrum,
the most amazing, incredible moments that are core memories for
the rest of your life, but there's also moments that
so hard and exhausting. What are the really amazing moments
that you love and what are the moments where you've
been like, shit, I didn't sign off for this.
Speaker 4 (22:09):
Shit would be a good start Leo's got a habit
at the moment of just set. It's like seven fifteen,
and we should have learnt by now that maybe seven fifteen,
he's gonna take a shit. Go take a shit, and
we put him in the bath because he always eats
about six thirty and we have a bit of playing time.
Then he has a bath and he goes to bed
by seven thirty. But he's in the bath at seven
(22:30):
and he's got a habit at the moment, which I
don't blame him. I'm sure it's really nice to take
a pooh in the bath. To be honest, I kind
of watch him like, to be honest, I reckon, that's
probably just really nice.
Speaker 1 (22:40):
I'merous, not that I do this often, but taking a
poo in the ocean A done that very good? Yeah, yeah,
a bit of wave, so I get where Leo is
coming from. I sympathize with it. A bit of wave
actually to wash it out.
Speaker 4 (22:54):
Even more elevated is the lukewarm water, right, yeah, the ocean.
You know, you can't control that tenure, but he's in
lukewarm water.
Speaker 1 (23:02):
It's impossible not to ship. Yeah. Yeah. Also the salt
contains that once it comes out.
Speaker 4 (23:07):
So that's one thing that he started doing. And we
fair enough we laugh and think it's really funny. Do
you dig it out of the drain or do you
stomp it down? It depends, like sometimes they're quite solid
and you know they float, but then recently they've been
a bit more. Yeah, the running consistency, so he just
(23:28):
goes down.
Speaker 1 (23:29):
The bit of force that goes down, put your hand
in and you're like.
Speaker 3 (23:33):
Oh, but probably one of the more challenging moments. Yeah.
For me, it's probably just the traveling.
Speaker 4 (23:39):
Like I'm spending so much time away, I feel like
every time I come back, he's got like a new tooth.
He's like this little time stamp where when I leave
and I come back, you feel like you're missing out
on something.
Speaker 5 (23:49):
Do you have that fear that you might miss out
on a milestone that you really really want to be
there for?
Speaker 3 (23:54):
Yeah, for sure all the time.
Speaker 1 (23:55):
How do you battle that when you're also trying to
stay so focused on sport.
Speaker 4 (24:00):
I just said to Chloe, I was like, he walks
or something when I'm not around.
Speaker 1 (24:05):
Tell me stay down.
Speaker 4 (24:09):
Yeah, do not argue you, just stay down on the ground.
I'm just like, don't tell me, Like, just pretend when
I come back.
Speaker 1 (24:17):
Like, oh my god, it's his first step.
Speaker 3 (24:19):
Yeah, I'd be happy.
Speaker 4 (24:20):
I think like where I get a lot of validation
in what I'm doing is that, you know, I hope
one day you know whether maybe I missed those moments.
Is like I can say, hey, what when I was
away when you were little baby, like, this is what
I was doing, and it was.
Speaker 1 (24:35):
When you're winning World Chair bro.
Speaker 5 (24:37):
Like my six year old asked me who I was with,
and I'll show you guys on YouTube and he'll be
like that is epic And they were like.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
Dad, show me you and he's like, that's it. You
left us for five days for this. Where are your flips?
Speaker 5 (24:52):
And for Chloe, obviously she understands the lifestyle, the job,
the career so well that when you mentioned before you
can't marry the girl next door and do you do,
because they would probably get the ships with you that
you're missing these milestones like my wife does. Like if
I'm away and I'm working, it might be a case
which is like, well you missed him doing.
Speaker 1 (25:10):
Winning world championship, So anybody that's right, Yeah, yeah, I'm
on day two, Matt. You never know, there still time
might get a call up what are the moments that
you love? But for me getting a smile like that.
There are people who listen to the podcast who don't
have kids, and they're probably thinking that smiles at me. Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (25:31):
The bottom line is if you don't have kids, it's
very hard to just relate. And my brother would say
stuff before I had kids, and I'd be later, here
we go saying stuff about the kids again. But now
I'm obviously your dad when now he's almost eleven months,
he recognizes me, like on FaceTime also in person, and
(25:51):
it's just that little blip that he gives me. He's
tough and a smile out of but.
Speaker 5 (25:55):
Is the best and we always say there's something that
kids can give you that nothing else can. Yeah, it's
that little moment the first time they smile at you,
and it's like it makes it all worth it that
you have the shittest day in the world, even with
them involved sometimes and you're like, you've shadowed me twice today,
but I'm now putting you into bed and you give
me the cheeky smile and you're like, God, damn it, I.
Speaker 1 (26:16):
Love you so much.
Speaker 4 (26:18):
And somehow, if you could just put it in a
in a pill, maybe we're under something here and people
that aren't parents just like it's.
Speaker 5 (26:33):
That I would know if my wife's listening and my mom.
Speaker 3 (26:38):
But yeah, it is special and getting the smile.
Speaker 1 (26:40):
It's cool now when you compare yourself back before you
had kids, and I'm sure you know when Chloe was pregnant,
you're imagining what kind of dad you're going to be, Like,
is it the same the person you thought you'd been
the dad you are now?
Speaker 4 (26:54):
Ah hmm, it's a good question. I I think I
am the dad that I want to be, Like Chloe
always says, as much as I'm away, when I'm home,
I'm very I am super present and I consciously make
a decision, like get off my phone, and even though
sometimes like being frank, like sitting there watching him do
(27:15):
the same thing for an hour is pretty boring, So
naturally you want to like pick up your phone and
you know, maybe check something, but I like consciously don't.
I'm like just I literally stare at him for hours,
just because I know that when I'm not doing that,
I've got to go and I'm going to be like, yeah,
not thinking about it, but yeah, I think I think
I am, And I reckon you. Obviously also to learn
(27:38):
a lot from my parents, and then you know, you
think about things that they did for me and how
I want to emulate that, and yeah, so I think
I am.
Speaker 3 (27:46):
But that's probably a question for Chloe.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
Well, she's here right now.
Speaker 6 (27:51):
Are you going to are you gonna push you.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
You start dancing?
Speaker 5 (27:58):
Are you going to push Do you think you're gonna
put the young fella into the family business of snowboarding?
Speaker 3 (28:05):
Chloe's old man.
Speaker 4 (28:06):
Funnily enough, when he was like first born, we're having
a laugh because he was.
Speaker 3 (28:11):
Like, no go cuts, no snowboards, ballet shoes.
Speaker 6 (28:17):
He's quite a big, powerful mountain. He's quite a big
powerful guy, and you'd be like, Okay, why ballet. I
don't know, because I think it's just like so far
from just so far from anything extreme. It's not like,
you know, life risking every single day, but.
Speaker 3 (28:35):
Don't tell a ballet dance of that, bro. We risk
our lives on the.
Speaker 1 (28:44):
Pier wedding. It's nothing.
Speaker 3 (28:45):
But I don't know.
Speaker 4 (28:46):
I'm probably just very I do think about that in
my case because none of my family professional skills. We
didn't live at the mountains, we didn't like, none of
my journey was because of something my family did. I
think about that. With Leo, I'm like, it doesn't really.
I don't think it necessarily matters, Like he'll probably pick
what he wants to do anyway, which I'm like, as
(29:07):
long as you enjoy it, that's all.
Speaker 5 (29:10):
And it's like for us who have slightly older kids,
it's super cool when they like what you like, even
just for a split moment.
Speaker 3 (29:16):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, girl.
Speaker 1 (29:19):
I'm like, he wants to play the cricket and they're like,
fuck off.
Speaker 5 (29:21):
Dan, Matt's getting his nails painted. Yeah, that's great.
Speaker 3 (29:25):
I love it.
Speaker 4 (29:26):
But we like now on Sundays, the rule is like
Chloe will not let Leo yet, I'm like waiting for it.
Not let him watch TV. Like he won't watch TV.
He's only ten months old, so he's not really Maybe
he was parenting my kids at that age. Yeah, but
she's like, he can't watch TV, and I'm like, all right,
But on Sundays, rules go out the door, Like, I'm what, personally,
(29:49):
I want to watch footy, So I'm not sitting in
a living room like staring at the wall.
Speaker 3 (29:55):
Sorry, but we're going to put the footy on.
Speaker 4 (29:58):
So now on Sundays I put the footy on and
he'll sit there standing in his little thing and just
and it kills her. But you know, on Sundays we
watch some footy. I get joy out of that for sure.
Speaker 1 (30:11):
Yeah, that's pretty awesome. When Leo is all grown up,
he's an adult. Let's assume that he's going to fly
the nest. He's no longer living with you and Chloee.
What is the one thing you would want him to
remember about the house he grew up in.
Speaker 4 (30:26):
The one thing would be that he always he could
always come home and know that everything was okay, Like
doesn't matter what he's done, you know, if he's having
trouble with his friends or anything like. He second you
walk through your front door, you know that, like mom
(30:48):
and I are there.
Speaker 1 (30:49):
I love that. Also very fitting from someone who was
breaking out of Kindy's at the age. It's fine that
you broke out of Guindy. Don't worry about it.
Speaker 3 (30:56):
My mum always says that she's like, if he's any
thing like you.
Speaker 1 (31:00):
Yeah, that's such a grandparent sentence.
Speaker 4 (31:04):
But it's true though, because I actually I think I
want that because that's what I had, even though I
would have you know, did definitely.
Speaker 3 (31:11):
Was a trouble maker.
Speaker 4 (31:12):
I always knew that I could go home and I
would be like, Okay.
Speaker 1 (31:16):
What's that like?
Speaker 5 (31:19):
Scott, thank you so much for spending some time with
us today in this.
Speaker 1 (31:22):
Lovely log cap. We can just keep We'll stop recording,
just pretend we're still podcast. Everyone from Red Bull right
now is like waiting for the open.
Speaker 4 (31:30):
Knot and talking as the weather there's no sun yet,
let's just keep talking.
Speaker 1 (31:36):
Scotty appreciate it. Thank you so much, dude.
Speaker 4 (31:38):
Yeah, thanks guys for having me. And it's fun to
talk about dad stuff. So it's actually it's quite refreshing now.
Like I always talked about sport my whole career and
obviously still do. But it's really nice to talk about something,
to be honest, that's so much more significant than anything
I'll ever do in sports.
Speaker 3 (31:56):
So well, anytime you want, you can come on.
Speaker 1 (31:59):
You want to chat, dads, we're all when you want
to talk, angle socks, give us a suggests a few
brands here cheers. Well, what a lovely dad was he joking? Jay,
he's great, He's great.
Speaker 2 (32:14):
And another big thank you to Red Pull for teeing
that up for us and having us showing us around
as well, which was great at an amazing time and
a great chat with.
Speaker 1 (32:22):
Scott And good luck to Scotty James for his next competition. Yes,
I think it's in China. Will be there And if
you've enjoyed this episode, please share it with another friend,
give us some feedback, a couple of stars, and if
there's any other mums or dads out there that you'd
like us to interview, please send it through.
Speaker 2 (32:41):
Hello at two Doting Dads or on social media Instagram, TikTok,
Facebook also YouTube Two Doting Dads.
Speaker 1 (32:47):
Look it up. But the YouTube is only for Wednesday episodes.
It doesn't matter. Okay, bye bye bye bye bye bye.
Two Doting Dads podcast acknowledges the traditional custodians of country
throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community.
Speaker 2 (33:05):
We pay our respects to their elders past and present
and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torrestrate Islander
peoples today
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