Road Stories Podcast Ep. 4 | Ross Leonhart Shares Wild Travel Tales from Down Under | Road Stories

I just grabbed Ross, who is a longtime Vail local. His resume is longer than a CVS receipt. In mountain towns, they say you either have four jobs or four houses — he’s got seven jobs. So, he’s definitely on that side. We pulled him in; he’s been around the world a time or two, and he’s got a little bit of a road story for us.

Ross, welcome to the podcast. “Thanks for having me. Great intro there. That was beautiful.”We do what we can. “Yeah, that was great. That was great.”

Studying Abroad and Australia Day

So, Ross, you told me you’ve studied abroad, you’ve traveled a bunch. Obviously, you do a lot — sounds like just in your day-to-day career. You were on the news, your local television, you’ve been an MC out here in Vail, you’ve done a bunch of stuff. What we do is bring people on the podcast who travel, because things go sideways, things go wild, things go crazy. What is one time you were traveling when something just memorable happened?

“Oh man. First of all, thanks for having me. I think traveling is so important, especially as a child, to see the world, see how other people live, and how other cultures are out there. That was really instilled in me. I didn’t ask to study abroad when I was in college — my parents kind of pushed me in that direction, which is really cool of my parents, right? Growing up in Maryland, why not try to go to Melbourne, Australia, for six months and study down there? Had a blast. Took Aboriginal Studies — none of my journalism credits would transfer back, so I was taking these off-the-wall classes. Had a great six months, made some awesome relationships. But one memory that I will never forget is on Australia Day. It’s their big holiday, they celebrate, they’re in the streets celebrating. I was staying a little outside of the city at some of my family’s place, so I was taking the train in and out throughout my time there. Australia Day happens, I go out for a good time and decide I’m going to go home now. I start walking to the train to go home, and some police stop me.”

A Friendly Police Encounter

“Some police stopped me on the side of the road and said, ‘Sir, do you know where you are?’ — probably in a different accent, right? I’ll never forget, I said, ‘I am in Australia. Of course, I know where I am. I am good, dude.’You can imagine — it’s a little late at night, past midnight, and the train had stopped running, apparently. They were actually looking out for me. They were like, ‘What is this guy doing?’ But I was in no shape to get anywhere, so they took me in a car and gave me a place to sleep for the night in the nicest way possible. I remember going through the garage — the silly American in me putting my hands up when I’m coming out of the back of the car, just… yeah, I’m harmless. So I sobered up, got out of there, but I’ll just never forget telling that police officer, ‘Of course I know where I am. I’m in Australia. What do you mean?’ They were asking more like, 'do you know where you are in relation to Australia? '”

Police in Ski Towns vs. Abroad

“It’s funny — I’ve heard from multiple people that as Americans, we’re a little bit conditioned about the police. When the police show up, you’re on your best behavior. But when you travel abroad, a lot of times the police are genuinely there to help you. It’s almost like the Vail police and the Aspen police that I’ve experienced. Actually, the Aspen police gave my now-wife a piggyback ride from one bar to the other."

"Amazing. I should have asked for a piggyback ride, you know?” - Ross

Turning 21 in Australia

“I still keep in touch with these people. One of them comes out and snowboards most years. But another funny story — when I turned 21 in Australia, my friends said they were taking me out for my birthday. We went out… and they took me to a gay bar. They didn’t tell me until 30 minutes to an hour in, but I was having the time of my life. If you’ve ever been to one, people dance at these places, and they have fun. I have no problem with it at all — I just remember being 21, going out, thinking, ‘This is kind of… not what I expected,’ but it was a blast.”

Climbing Uluru (Ayers Rock) - DO NOT DO THIS!

“After that, I went to the middle of Australia to see Uluru — a very historical site for the Aboriginal people. The bus driver said you’re not supposed to touch the rock. But back then, you could still climb it. At the end of his speech, he said, ‘You’re allowed to climb it — does anyone want to climb it?’ No one from any other country put their hand up. I said, ‘All that being said, you said we could do it, right? I’ll do it. I think I was one of the last people to climb it before it was closed. Not super proud of it, but at 21, I didn’t grasp the full cultural significance. Once my hand went up, the German hand went up, then all these other people were like, ‘Yeah, we’ll do it.’”

Why Travel Matters

Ross and I talked about how travel changes your perspective. He shared how experiences like losing your truck at the airport or getting stuck somewhere make you appreciate the easy days. You meet people for just a few days, and they become lifelong friends. Ross says travel teaches you that life is lived differently around the world, and sometimes those differences — like siestas in Europe — might be worth adopting.

NOTE: Ross kinda wishes he didn't climb Uluru, but at the time (see below) there was a chain set up to climb the rock and it seems like there was a grey area around whether you were allowed to or not. In the essence "adventure" he did it, but would not have knowing what he knows now. This is a subtle reminder that we make mistakes when we travel and to be conscious of being a "good traveler" when it comes to respecting other cultures.

IMAGE GALLERY FROM ROSS

Where to Find Ross

Ross snowboards in the winter and shares his adventures on Instagram: @colorado_livin_on_the_hill. He encourages everyone to get out, travel, and discover that adventure is literally around every corner.

Sign Off

That was our conversation with Ross Leonhart, a great dude out of Vail, CO, who had some great stories to tell us. If you want to hear more podcasts like this one, or if you want to be on the podcast or know someone who does, reach out! We are always open to hearing more and more stories from the road. See you out on the trail, and if you can't follow along!

• AdventureFamDam

Links that you might like:

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Full Podcast Episode Here: