RIDEOUT: The Other Side of Hard

Evan Slaughter grew up in Birmingham, Alabama in a conservative household before addiction changed the course of his life. After battling an early OxyContin addiction and completing rehab, he joined the U.S. Army, earned an Airborne contract, deployed to Afghanistan, and was injured in an IED blast. The pain medication prescribed after that injury pulled him back into addiction. What followed were...

Matt Cassel's football story shouldn't have happened. He spent his college career at USC backing up two Heisman Trophy winners, Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart, throwing just a handful of passes while wondering if he'd ever get a real opportunity. Most players would have transferred. Matt stayed ready. That decision changed his life. After being drafted by the New England Patriots, he learned behin...

Danny O'Connor looked like he had everything. A state wrestling champion. An Olympian. One of the top professional boxers in America with a world title shot finally within reach. Behind the scenes, almost nobody knew he had been battling an eating disorder for years. What began as extreme weight cutting in high school wrestling evolved into a life-threatening cycle of starvation, binge eating, deh...

He taught himself to rap at nine years old, co-founded the rap supergroup La Coka Nostra, got discovered by Ben Affleck for Gone Baby Gone, and went on to act in The Town, Killing Them Softly, and Joker. What almost nobody saw was what was happening behind the scenes. For 23 years Slaine battled alcohol and addiction, through cocaine, OxyContin, and heroin, while chasing two careers most people to...

He graduated from Notre Dame, signed with Top Rank, fought at Madison Square Garden and Cowboys Stadium, starred in national Subway commercials, and earned a shot at a world title. What almost nobody saw was what was happening behind the scenes. For years Mike battled chronic pain, autoimmune disease, misdiagnoses, and Lyme disease while trying to keep his career alive. He fought through broken ri...

David Millar grew up at the Jersey Shore surrounded by addiction, promising himself he would never become like the people he watched struggle around him. Instead, by age 20, he was deep into alcohol, cocaine, and crack addiction. He dropped out of college, cycled through psych wards, detox centers, and rehabs, slept in the woods, stole to survive, and believed drugs would define the rest of his li...

Scott Stallings is one of the fittest players to ever walk the PGA Tour. He grew up between Worcester, Massachusetts and Oak Ridge, Tennessee, walked on at Tennessee Tech after the program he dreamed of passed on him, and turned himself into a three-time PGA Tour winner over a fourteen-year career. Then, at the 2024 Players Championship, one swing into the lip of a fairway bunker tore his shoulder...

Chris Herren grew up in Fall River, Massachusetts, a basketball city where making it meant everything. He earned a scholarship to Boston College, starred at Fresno State, and did what every kid in his hometown only dreamed of. He pulled on a Boston Celtics jersey. What almost no one knew was that he did it as an addict. Cocaine in college gave way to OxyContin and then heroin in the NBA. Chris pla...

Jake Muise grew up in rural Canada hunting, fishing, and living off the land. A Division I volleyball scholarship brought him to Hawaii, but a dorm room mix-up changed the course of his life forever. After being welcomed into a local Molokai family, Jake developed a deep connection to Hawaiian culture and became fascinated by Hawaii's invasive axis deer problem. What began as an obsession eventual...

Chris Spencer grew up in rural Mississippi working cotton fields, facing racism firsthand, and struggling with dyslexia throughout school. Football became the one place where everything made sense. That path eventually took him from being one of the top recruits in the country to Ole Miss, where he played alongside Eli Manning, before becoming the 26th overall pick in the NFL Draft and spending a...

Todd Anderson wasn't supposed to play at Michigan State. He came from a tiny town in Michigan. No Division I offers. No scholarship. No clear path forward. Then a chance opportunity earned him a walk-on spot at Michigan State. What followed was years of injuries, setbacks, position changes, and moments where quitting felt like the logical choice. Eventually, Todd became a key contributor on a Mich...

Jon Anik is the voice of the UFC. Before calling the biggest fights in the world, he was a young broadcaster at ESPN trying to find his place in sports media. Then Dana White offered him a chance to help build the UFC during one of the most important growth periods in the company's history. In this conversation, Jon shares the journey from ESPN to the UFC, what it was like earning Dana White's tru...

Danny Boy O'Connor helped build one of the biggest songs of the 1990s. As a founding member of House of Pain, he watched "Jump Around" become a global anthem and experienced everything that came with it: money, fame, chaos, addiction, and eventually rock bottom. In this conversation, Danny shares stories from a childhood shaped by violence, crime, and survival. We talk about the rise of House of P...

Darren Waller was one of the most talented players in football. Georgia Tech standout. NFL draft pick. Pro Bowl tight end. Massive contracts. Fame. Success. But behind the scenes, he was spiraling. Addiction started at 15. Pills. Alcohol. Failed drug tests. Suspensions. A fentanyl overdose that nearly killed him. Eventually, the NFL banned him for a year. This conversation goes way deeper than foo...

Mitchell Hooper became the strongest man on Earth almost by accident. A former marathon runner, exercise physiologist, and coach… he found Strongman late, exploded onto the scene, and became World’s Strongest Man in just a few years. But this conversation goes way deeper than strength. We talk about steroids, the Enhanced Games, performance obsession, money, success, mental health, addiction, suic...

Jason “J-Mac” McDonald grew up moving between Malden, Medford, Chelsea, East Boston, and Revere. Bullied, angry, and constantly trying to fit in, he found identity in graffiti, hip-hop, stealing, and eventually drugs. What started as tagging trains and shoplifting turned into OxyContin, heroin, violence, overdoses, and years of addiction that nearly killed him. This conversation goes deep into Bos...

Jessica Long is one of the greatest Paralympic athletes of all time.18 gold medals. 31 total Paralympic medals. A career that changed sports forever. But this conversation has almost nothing to do with swimming. Jessica was born in Siberia, placed in an orphanage as a baby, and had both legs amputated before she was two years old. By 12, she was winning Paralympic gold medals for Team USA. The wor...

Chris “Knuckles” Nilan was a Boston kid who became a Montreal Canadiens legend. 688 NHL games. A Stanley Cup. More than 3,000 penalty minutes. One of the toughest enforcers hockey has ever seen. But after the cheers stopped, the real fight started. Injuries. Painkillers. OxyContin. Heroin. Fentanyl. An overdose that nearly killed him. This conversation goes way deeper than hockey. We talk about id...

Former Raiders linebacker and actor Miles Burris joins Ken for a conversation about identity, reinvention, and what happens when the dream you chased your whole life suddenly ends. Miles grew up in Granite Bay, California obsessed with football from the moment he first put on pads. After becoming a standout linebacker at San Diego State, he was drafted by his childhood team — the Oakland Raiders —...

Mark Kerr was one of the most dominant fighters on the planet. NCAA champion. Undefeated in early MMA. A force so powerful they called him The Smashing Machine. But behind the wins was a different story. Addiction. Shame. An overdose that nearly killed him. A life spinning out in real time. This conversation goes way deeper than fighting. We talk about identity… what happens when success isn’t eno...

Johnny Wilson’s life doesn’t follow a straight line—it crashes, burns, and rebuilds. From getting kicked out of the Naval Academy to fighting his way into the Navy SEALs…From combat deployments in Iraq to the trading floor at Goldman Sachs…From suicidal thoughts and a fractured life to finding healing in the darkest places… This is a story about what happens after the mission ends. Johnny opens up...

Jason Smith is a retired U.S. Army infantry sergeant who lost both legs after stepping on an IED in Afghanistan in 2012.  What followed wasn’t just survival—it was a complete rebuild. From months of rehab in Texas to refusing prosthetics, to eventually relearning how to walk, Jason had to let go of who he was to become someone new. Along the way, he faced PTSD, setbacks, and moments that nearly br...

Katie Hoff was one of the best swimmers in the world before most kids could drive. She made the Olympic team at 15, won multiple medals, and carried the pressure of being called the next great American swimmer. But behind the results was a different story. The weight of expectations. The identity tied to performance. And the realization that even success at the highest level didn’t bring what she...

I’ve known Micky Ward for a long time. Before the fights people saw. Before the movie. This is a guy who was working as a corrections officer while trying to make it in boxing. Getting written off. Used as an opponent. Walking away from the sport… and coming back anyway. We talk about the part people don’t understand — the fear. He’ll tell you straight up, everyone’s scared. Anyone who says they’r...

I went out to Malibu to sit down with Laird Hamilton and Gabby Reece. Everyone knows Laird for big-wave surfing and doing things most people wouldn’t even attempt. But what stood out to me wasn’t the waves—it was how he thinks about fear. He doesn’t avoid it. He uses it. And then there’s Gabby. She’s watching the person she loves go put himself in real danger, and instead of trying to control it,...