AM: 100%!
You’re known for Slopestyle and also Big Air, can you tell us about these disciplines and why you are drawn to them?
MM: Slopestyle is a combination of rails and jumps – kind of what you would see around every single snow park. Most resorts will have a couple of jumps and a couple of rails. That’s what a lot of kids grow up doing in that freestyle of things of riding. There’s less and less half pipes nowadays. Where we grew up in Western Canada, there wasn’t many half pipes if any! So, that’s kind of what I was drawn to and obviously, I liked catching big jumps.
So, catching Big Air, is just one single jump. Slopestyle is a combination of jumps and rails which we really love and are drawn to. That’s kind of what you would see in the movies and things like that. So, I have always had a big love for it, and still do!
AM: Clearly, snowboarding is a full body sport, but do you find yourself doing other fitness methods or workouts that help to optimize you when you are doing this?
MM: For sure! Having mobility and strength in those deep ranges will keep you less injury prone, will make you be able to stay on the mountain longer – so strength and mobility are kind of the 2 bigaboos and I work on those daily. Especially as I get older, it’s always been very important to me and I came up during a time where my elders were like, “you have to stretch and you have to do gym work.” If you want to be a pro, you have to be a pro athlete and you have to have fitness and that kind of strength to be able to do it at the level that we are doing it and to of course have that kind of longevity! You want to try to stay out of that rehab zone!
AM: From what you can tell as we’re talking to you as you’re preparing for the Rockstar Energy Open in Breckenridge – how is it different than other competitions that you have been in as I know this is their first debut in snow.
MM: Yeah. I think it is really exciting that there is a different kind of contest that is happening in an Olympic year where it’s usually very regimented. It’s nice to be able to switch it up and kudos to them to get a unique group of riders together and to have a very unorthodox, fun, creative course that we would normally not see and to have a fun twist on things! I’m really stoked to be here and it’s nice to have this break in the season. You’re still competing and you still want do well and you’re making a plan and trying to do a run. At the same time, it feels a little more laid back and you’re not chasing points to qualify for the Olympics or going for broke on some 80’ jump – it’s all fun sized and extremely creative.
AM: You have the X Games coming up as well as the Winter Olympics. What’s a week of training look like when you are focused on competitions like that. Are you doing anything different?
MM: A week of training during a major competition like the X Games or the Olympics, is a lot of planning around when the practice sessions are. You’re trying to peak at the right times, trying to get the rest you need – when you have a day off, maybe you’re going to do a lift then. Most of the time, it’s a lot of recovery and mobility, breathwork, thoracic spine, and things like that – trying to just keep the chassis in tip top shape. Trying to eat clean and prioritizing a good 8 hour rest, things like that.
I would say that on non-competition weeks, you’re lifting more weights and doing harder gym sessions. But the practice sessions are a ton of impact and a ton of mental stress. So when you get off the hill, you’re in the gym, but it’s more about spinning, recovery, mobility, eating clean, and sleeping.
AM: Wow!
You’re one of the most decorated snowboarders and with the X Games being a few weeks away, what do you love about competing there and what are you looking forward to?
MM: The X Games has been so amazing for my career! I have had great success in Aspen and I love the town – it’s a special place. I can’t say enough good things about X Games and Aspen – it has truly built my career to what it is. I’m just thankful that I am still doing it and my first X Games was in 2011 in Aspen –
AM: Which is crazy because that’s veteran status there!
MM: Yeah, 15 years now! I’m thankful to still be going out there, I’m thankful to still be able to have a shot at winning. I’m feeling healthy and happy and I’m really excited to be able to get back there!
AM: This will be your 4th Olympic appearance. What does it mean to you to represent your country, participate in the opening and closing ceremonies, and to compete on that kind of global stage?
MM: It’s an honor to represent your country! Like you said, it will be my 4th time around which I am extremely proud of. There’s not a single male that I competed with in 2014 at the Sochi Olympics that will be at the Olympics in Italy. I am proud of that longevity and I am proud of the hard work that I have put in. I am really looking forward to going out there and doing my best and riding to the best of my ability. I really feel like that if I do that, I have a good shot at some hardware. I’m excited for family and friends to be around because the last one in 2022, it was quite COVID’d out. It wasn’t a ton of spectators.
When I go to an Olympics, it’s always been pretty focused mode – horse blinders on. Not really like taking in a ton – you’re just kind of focused on what you’re doing. I actually went to Paris for the last Summer Games and it was a lot of fun to be able to take in an Olympics and not to compete! I could just be a fan and I really enjoyed that! So I’m excited for friends and family to come to get that experience and obviously, as I get older and mature more, I know that there is a lot more to life than that, but I will definitely be locked in and focused and I will try to enjoy it as well as the pizza and pasta as well!
AM: Pizza and pasta – that’s our language right there!
MM: Yup! If we’re going to get a big work in, you get to have a carb load!
AM: As someone who has competed all over the world, you have filmed all over the world, are there 3 places that are your top destinations to snowboard in that you can share?
MM: It’s really hard for me and I guess I’m biased, but I will say that Western Canada has got to be in my top 2 if not 1! I think Japan is a place that if you love to ski or snowboard, it’s a must! Anytime after the New Year to late Feb, it’s really hard not to score there. It’s a really special place and it’s neat to go there and to experience that culture. I spend a lot of time on the glaciers in Europe during the Fall for training and I like spending time in Switzerland, Austria – places like that! I really like Italy – their mountains are amazing and the people and the culture are also amazing there. I think that the Alps, Japan and Canada are my 3 favorite places to go.
AM: Because you do travel so much, are there 3 items that you like to take with you that make you feel like you’re at home?
MM: Yeah! You know I return to the same spots a lot over the last 15 years. Something that always comes with me is this little portable blender and then I have juicers all around the world at the places that I stay! Then, there’s my roller! Like I bring that in my carry-on because sometimes I get off the plane and when I am waiting for the next flight, I can just roll my back out and it’s such a good feeling – I love it! I would say that those are obviously my essentials – I mean clearly there’s my passport and things like that.
But the things that I bring that I like, my portable smoothie, I have juicers everywhere and my roller!