Sure, mountaineering has moments of adrenaline and dopamine to keep one going. But for me it was actually something else: planning and logistics. I really loved to plan these trips. The climb was just a way to test the plan.

I was this many years old when I discovered that in bodybuilding "private sponsorship" means something completely different than what I was talking about.

The commission math is brutal: agents need $50K+ deals to survive. Your potential doesn't pay their bills. Stop waiting to be chosen. Start choosing your approach. "The Independent Athlete" - 60-90 day pilots executives actually approve. a.co/d/6Sj3FMz

Agents won't return calls. Viral content leads nowhere. Traditional sponsorship = charity. After feeding 24 sled dogs through winters, I learned the old model is broken. "The Independent Athlete" - practical partnerships without agents. Scripts, templates, frameworks inside. a.co/d/6Sj3FMz

Why doesn't every sports federation in the world announce every championship here on Bluesky? It's free. The athletes deserve the recognition. And why are the athletes not demanding recognition for their achievements? These. Are. Simple. Things. Even for niche sports. #rantoftheday

This is the craziest story from an athlete we work with. Imagine getting your season cut short and sent to jail for a murder you didn’t commit. sports-veritas.com/forged-by-in...

THE KICKERS ARE TOO GOOD (And other football thoughts)

Reading the news I can’t help but think that collectively we’re on a bad trajectory. My focal point is the evolution of institutions in societies. Generally speaking we benefit from autonomous, inclusive institutions which are slow & steady. Increasingly we see fast, rash government meddling.

The mathematics of elite alpine skiing are unforgiving. Add Type 1 diabetes, ankle reconstruction, and minimal funding, and success probability approaches zero. Nikita Barov operates within these parameters daily. sports-veritas.com/nikita-barov... #alpineskiing

Danyil Odynets, a 21 year old Ukrainian NxtStride athlete just WON THE IRONMAN M18-24 championship in a last mile overtake!!! #ironman #trialthlon @nxtstride.com

IRONMAN championships in Nice, France are ongoing: will #Norway will a triple win? At least here in Greece DAZN app shows the broadcast live, for free under the #triathlon channel. #IRONMAN

Sorry to go off on a tangent: Years ago my friend got a rent controlled apartment in very affluent part of Helsinki. All the names on the doorbell list were with titles, “Dr.”, “CEO”, and so on. My friend put “High school graduate Whatshisname”

After 110 km of cycling at IRONMAN Championships in Nice, France, the NxtStride athlete Danyil Odynets has climbed to 4th position in M18-24! #triathlon #ironman

Tätä kun lukee niin pakostakin tulee mieleen että voittajan veto olisi yhdistää puolueet uudeksi Punavihreä-puolueeksi, ja kääntää aiempien vuosien haukkumasana ankkuriksi. Ei tietysti tapahdu, koska Puolue Ensin. Mutta ajatuksena. #vasemmisto #vihreät yle.fi/a/74-2018163...

Random thought of the day: If you are invited to join an early stage startup and you think you can contribute by checking slack a couple times per week, don’t join. The rest don’t have the time to help you catch up all time time. Either you’re in, or you’re out. #buildinpublic

Calling all climbers! Who should we connect with on Bluesky? #rockclimbing #bouldering #mountaineering

I am building a starter pack of sports writer. Anyone from #discgolf community who could suggest some writers? How about the #climbing community?

Trying to support the sports community here on Bluesky, so I put together a starter pack for people who want to follow sports writers. Do you know someone who should be on this list? Lemme know! go.bsky.app/C6YtGX4

Vielä 1900-luvun alkupuolella kaupunkisuunnittelussakin oli vallalla - omituisesti - ajatus siitä että kaupungit itsessään ovat ongelma. Syntyi erilaisia Garden City ja Radiant City ajatuksia jotka olettivat että ihminen haluaa elää ja kuolla jonkun suunnitelman mukaisesti jossain kaavalähiössä.

Looking at what both Europe and Russia learned from the drone attack on Poland: - Americans just sat on their hands and didn’t dare to do anything that might annoy the White House - European NATO members (Poland, the Netherlands, Italy) nevertheless did what the forward deployment is supposed to do

Olin lääkärissä nielussa olleen paiseen takia. En voinut puhua, sylki valui rinnuksille. Lääkäri kysyi onko mulla vakuutus kunnossa, ja kun oli, tyhjensi parin tunnin ajalta kalenterin ja katsottiin telkkarista uutisia New Yorkista. Mun paita oli aika märkä.

Featuring Eslam Kilany: Building Capoeira movement from Malta. #capoeira #malta #athlete

The reality of an entrepreneur. Yes. You have the liberty to choose where to live, and you can organise your schedule. But at the end of the day, even after a lovely dinner, business still needs to be taken care of. So back to work. #buildinpublic

Elite dog musher representing Team USA. 5th at Worlds. Racing Alaska to the French Alps while building the sport’s biggest online community. Introducing Niina Baum! Ready to partner with brands that get it: sponsors.nxtstride.com/u/niinathead...

Holy hell. I just had to spend a bit of time in TikTok. It’s essentially a US conservative propaganda engine. One account after another spewing hate. No wonder the ban has not been enforced. Sad that all this tech has more evil than virtuous use cases.

I’m not sure, but I think two years of market research, beta testing and talking with customers finally clicked together. I think I know what’s the missing element. How to get a *lot* of new sponsor for a lot of athletes. @nxtstride.com is now closed for signups while we build this feature.

This was the most fun I’ve had in a looooooong time! (I most likely would have chickened out unless it was my kid filming this) 🙈

Excellent news!!!

The discovery feature for sponsors is now in closed beta as well. In discovery mode the sponsor company will pay a 5% finders fee that comes with a partnership draft included. Except for under 1K€ deals we forfeit our fee to support small sports & businesses. #buildinpublic @nxtstride.com

Yup, exactly.

This is what I have told my European public sector ex-clients as well: American technology companies will not protect European data or workload sovereignty against executive orders from White House. Every workload and bit of data is a potential geopolitical hostage now. #CIOinsights

NHLs decision to pursue 2028 ice hockey World Cup without IIHF, directly through national organizations, appears to be a good example of tail wagging the dog. No sport should become proprietary to any privately owned organisation. American major leagues are notoriously spineless.

this iconic advertising copywriter named Kathy Hepinstall Parks died over the weekend and I wanted to share something from her website I thought Bluesky would like

I don’t know if similar data exists about Europe. I’m sitting on a park bench somewhere in Greece, watching kids play soccer, reading this wonderful biography of C. de’Medici by Hollingsworth. And I see see two other people reading. Also the cold beer is quite good on a hot August night.

Hey @jukkisahonen.bsky.social👋, This post was a runner-up for a top #buildinpublic posts for the past 24hrs. You almost got most reposted (4)! See who had the top posts on our feed @biptopposts.bsky.social. Keep up the great work!🎉

The complete rehaul of the sponsor journey is complete. Our first athletes now have their personalized outcome based partnership portals live! #beta #buildinpublic sponsors.nxtstride.com/u/eslamsagui94 (Yeah the profile photo has a bug! Looking into it…)

Just another day in the office on the road. Working on @nxtstride.com - we have first beta test athletes live with their partnership portals. And we are working on verifying achievements and media reach. #buildinpublic

So turns out the word “sponsorship” is throttled on many platforms. #buildinpublic

Holy shit.

I think until the 1960s Europe used to define success according to what worked for us. Then we started defining it as what works for U.S. Pun intended. Look at startups: definition of European startup success is to be acquired by an U.S company. A sellout is a sellout, no matter how you say it

I should be shooting some content for our marketing, but im starting to think I may be approaching a burnout. Self confidence is at zero, and while I haven’t lost confidence in the project, I’m finding it increasingly difficult to coax myself into action. “This, too, shall pass” #buildinpublic

Three reasons you don’t have sponsors even though you keep winning every race, every matchup. Keep reading, and please consider sharing this to an athlete you know. 20+ years of experience condensed into actionable info! 🧵 1/5

Female athletes produce exceptional results in sponsorship, when done right. Sponsors, wake up! #womeninsports #sponsorship nxtstride.com/blog/guide-t...

I am a strong believer in EU. I want to be supportive of our leadership. I am running out of patience. Unless @vonderleyen.ec.europa.eu and others start standing up and showing some character, I too, will use my voice and votes to drive change. #weareEurope #notvassals

I’m looking for digital marketing leads for European countries. You will receive a share of @nxtstride.com revenue for all subs from your geo. Ping me if interested! #jobopportunity #remotework #marketing (Please share in your network if you’ve got hungry marketers in it!)

In light of Trump’s announcement he’s taking control of DC, I’d like to repost my piece from @thebulwark.com on how autocrats hate their capital cities. These places are often far more diverse and progressive than the leader’s vision of the nation. www.thebulwark.com/p/why-autocr...

Sundays are *quite* different in my adopted Greece than in my native Finland. In #Finland basically everything is closed on Sunday. In #Greece it’s the day you go out, meet people, have a few drinks, share a meal, and enjoy the sun & the waves! Guess where I prefer to be on Sundays?

NB: This time around, Europe didn’t even demand a seat at the table because no one takes this seriously enough or thinks that this will change the game fundamentally. Also no appetite to sit next to Trump and look dumb when he gets played by Putin