As we all gear up for the coming winter, Nike 6.0 has kicked off their season by signing international superstars TJ Schiller and Jossi Wells. Joining Nike athlete Sammy Carlson, the three athletes make up a talented roster of young athletes. “I’m super pumped to work with these guys. They are two of my favorite skiers and I am so stoked to get them on board,” says Carlson of the duo. Tj Schiller had this to say about the new sponsor: “I am SO stoked on joining the Nike 6.0 program. It will be great to be able to shred with my boys and work with our team Manager Riley Poor. Having a company with so much experiance in sports I truly believe this will be a great thing for skiing.”
Also new to Nike 6.0, is Riley Poor, who has been announced as the 6.0 team manager. Riley has worked with MSP and the world’s best athletes over the past years, giving him the passion and enthusiasm for the sport.
We managed to correspond with Riley for a quick Q&A about the signings and his outlook on the team this season.
Congratulations. What do you think of your new position at Nike 6.0?
I am stoked for sure! I think it is great how Nike 6.0 entered freeskiing a few years ago by supporting Sammy, and are slowly growing the team. We have a really young, very small team now consisting of Sammy, TJ and Jossi which is the best case scenario because as we all know these guys are going to go off in the coming years. I am pumped to come aboard and grow the program with these guys, for sure.
Do you think that Nike’s escalating involvement in freeskiing is good?
I think Nike coming into skiing is one of the best things that has happened in skiing lately. Nike 6.0 supports the next generation of action sports athletes, and that includes freeskiing. Nike 6.0 wants to help the sport evolve, by supporting athletes like Jossi, TJ, and Sammy who have a positive influence and are really driving the future of sport. We want to enable these guys to reach their dreams and visions for the sport and you really can’t look at that as a bad thing.
Plus, Nike 6.0 recognizes freeskiing as a lifestyle, and their product represents this. They make a super quality product and fill a huge gap as far as skiing sponsors go, by bringing footwear to the table.
What do you think that Jossi and TJ will bring to Nike 6.0?
I think they will continue to bring a young, passionate energy along with Sammy. These guys love skiing — bottom line. The reason they ski injured and constantly put there bodies at risk is because thy really just love being out there. In my eyes that is what skiing and progression is all about. The reason these guys are so good is because they ski every chance they get.
A lot of people are pretty excited on the fact that Nike is more involved in freeskiing, do you think so too?
Obviously
Do you think that having international riders on the team is important?
For sure, as skiing is worldwide. Having our brother to the north and another from down under is going to help the whole program on a broader spectrum for sure. Jossi is huge in New Zealand, people love him because he rips and is such a good kid. He is also the leader of a whole clan of Wells shredders, so he is a household name in skiing there already. Jossi is still pretty new on the radar over, here but that’s about to change.
Where do you see Nike’s involvemnt pushing the sport, especially on the team side of things?
I think first and foremost we have a responsibility to support the dreams of these athletes. We are going to work closely with the team to make sure they are enabled to accomplish the goals they have, whatever that may be… We strive to support athletes who are dedicated and have the drive and influence to push the sport.
With Sammy, TJ and Jossi, Nike should do pretty well in the competitions this year, right?
It’s not Nike doing well in the contest it’s the athlete. As long as our guys are happy and focused we will always be winning with these guys. If the team does well this year we will be one of many very proud sponsors.
Is there any talk about a Nike movie or trip, similar to the way that other bigger sponsors have been organizing lately?
Oh yea, you know we got some stuff in the works. At this point, they are still top secret missions in their planning stages, but we will get the team out there all together at some point for sure.
So as the winter rolls on, we wish Riley, Jossi and TJ the best with their new endeavors with Nike 6.0.
