074 – We Chat To MTB Freelance Journalist Lauren Jenkins
Photo: Saskia Dugon
Todays Guest
Lauren Jenkins – Freelance Journalist Specialising in Mountain Biking
On todays episode number Seventy Four we are chatting with MTB Freelance Journalist Lauran Jenkins. Lauren has been a Journalist for a number of years and has always had an interest in writing from an early age. When friends would be at a party Lauren would excuse herself, go home and write a blog. But when Lauren found her passion for mountain biking in 2012 she quickly combined that with her passion for writing and her career was born.
Lauren quickly got involved in the industry and even though she was still at university finishing her journalism degree she found herself spending more time at the Dirt Magazine offices. We chat about her early days trying to get her foot in the door, what kind of articles and jobs she was doing, how she got involved with Pinkbike and the great people she has had the pleasure to work with.
Lauren started her mountain biking experience on a downhill bike and a downhill track! Now if that isn’t being thrown in at the deep end I don’t know what is. However, after many tears and frightening moments Lauren build her skill level so she could cope with whatever the trail had to offer, she was even on a DH team. Lauren now rides a more friendly enduro bike and keeps the downhill stuff for special occasions. We chat with Lauren about what gear she uses and delve into ladies specific bikes, gear, clothing and how the industry is changing to cater for these things. We chat about a number of great interviews Lauren done in St. Moritz with ladies that work or play in the mountain bike industry and how they feel the ladies scene has changed over a number of years, mostly for the better.
So if you want to know more about how to get involved with journalism in the mountain bike industry or simply want to know what kind of schedule a MTB journalist keeps, plug in and let Lauren tell you all about it.
Find Out:
- How Lauren got started in journalism
- What publications Lauren has worked for
- How Lauren got work with Wide Open Magazine and what it was for
- Why Lauren started mountain biking on a downhill bike
- What Lauren’s local area and scene are like
- Why Lauren loves mountain biking so much
- What kind of journalism work Lauren does on a daily basis
- How Lauren normally works with the different publications
- What different skills Lauren can offer and how she is continually updating her skill base
- How Lauren thinks the scene has improved for females getting into the sport & what the brands etc. are dong to help with this
- Freedom Machine and travelling around Switzerland
- What Lauren thinks the future of mountain biking looks like
- Future plans for Lauren
- How to get in contact and keep up to date
It was great to get Lauren on the show and chat about journalism in the mountain biking industry. It plays such a huge part in how we consume the information about our sport or social hobbies. But do we really stop to think what goes into getting those stories into magazines and onto bike related websites. Lauren is the first journalist we have had on the show and I really enjoyed our chat. Back on episode 039 we had Seb the editor and owner of Cranked Magazine on the show (listen here) but that was slightly different. Even though Seb still goes into the field and writes articles for his magazine it was nice to get the perspective from a freelance writer. Lauren has worked with some of the top people in the industry and has achieved a number of great accomplishments but she is still hungry to achieve more by building on her media skills. And Lauren feels to be successful in the media/blog/journalism sector you have to have many different attributes that can be called upon.
So tune in and have a listen to find out what goes into getting that print onto paper or onto a screen and the people behind the words. This is a sector of the mountain biking industry filled with long hours, hard work, intelligent and passionate people. And I don’t really know if we appreciate what these talented people do and the lengths they will go to get that print on your favourite bike magazine. You can find out more here. Have a listen and check it out. Enjoy the show!
To Connect with Lauren:
Website: lauren-jenkins.co.uk
Instagram: lj_mtb
Twitter: LJ_MTB
Resources in this Episode:
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Thanks so much to Lauren for coming on the show and sharing her story.
And thank you once again for Listening!
Join me next week for another MTB TRIBE Podcast show!