Philip Goldney lives in Italy and runs an action sports ministry there. JSAW’s Executive Director, Jonny, recently caught up with Philip to learn more about the trip they have coming up throughout Europe, and how you can get involved!
Jonny: Hi Philip, so what’s with the big truck and road trips?
Philip: Me and my wife have always been pretty nomadic, we love to travel and have lived in a whole bunch of different countries, often with YWAM. Since having kids (3 boys) we’ve calmed a bit, but whenever we get the chance we hit the road – the boys love it too! We have owned a couple of R.V.s. They are a bit expensive, and it is hard to justify the expense only using them a few times a year. A couple of years ago, we had the idea of a communally owned R.V. We have worked in the action sports scene for many years, and therefore we naturally thought about involving our friends in the scene. That idea became reality a couple of years ago when together with friends, who love Jesus and action sports bought an 8 ton truck and turned it into a pretty sick ROADTRIPPER! We wanted a vehicle suited to Skate/BMX/Snowboard/Parkour road trips. It is already a pretty sweet ride, but we will keep adding stuff!
Jonny: You call it the BeeTankFul?
Philip: Yeah, it is black and yellow like a bee, and it’s as big as a tank! The meaning of the name goes a bit deeper than that though, go to the website to see: www.ywamfreesports/beetankful
Jonny: You use it for mission trips?
Philip: Well a simple definition for mission is: to go! Mission can take many forms, but the common factor is the “going” bit. For the BeeTankFul, “going” is its natural state. Staying at home is not an option!
Jonny: So who goes?
Philip: It is cool to go in a group. Christ is best demonstrated in community (your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples). All tours are pretty much open invitation gigs for anyone that loves Jesus and action sports. Beginners and Pros are equally welcome.
Jonny: So what is your mission strategy?
Philip: (laughing) We don’t really have one. Each tour is different. We just go together, have fun, dispel that ridiculous myth that God is a killjoy and see what happens. We trust Christ in us. Living water flowing out of us effortlessly! We are not fruit factories, we just remain in him and fruit happens.
Jonny: Where do you go?
Philip: Europe is our focus. We are just starting out on this epic adventure. So far we have had parkour tours through the UK, Germany, Switzerland and Italy. We hope to visit many corners where people practice action sports. That may be surfers in Portugal, snowboarders in Austria, traceurs (peeps that practice parkour) in London or skaters in Barcelona…
Here is a little highlight video of one of our parkour tours:
Jonny: What, where and when is the next trip?
Philip: Our next trip is a skate road trip July 21st to August 9th 2014.
Here is our Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/575944789141711/
Here’s the route: Rome > Marseille (home of world famous Bowls by the beach) > Barcelona (Skate capital of Europe) > Biarritz (a little surfing at the end to cool off!)
Jonny: Awesome thanks for sharing Philip, I hope that sharing this interview will get a few people interested and maybe even to come on the trip with you!