The Pain Cave Jason Friedman

There was a reading assignment for this show…naturally, Phil couldn’t be bothered to do any actual work, so I had the great pleasure of speaking with Doug Mayer about his new book, The Race That Changed Running: The Inside Story of UTMB, out TODAY! An American expat living full-time in Chamonix, Doug works as a journalist and runs his own tour guide company, Run the Alps. The new book (his third) grew out of his own personal history with and curiosity about the race that, like it or not, is at the forefront of the world ultra and trail running scene. We talked about many of the issues and controversies around the race and the UTMB series of races, the influence of Ironman, how the book was written, and also Doug’s recent trip to Innsbrouck to cover the World Trail and Mountain Running Championships. This was a really fun conversation that I think people will find very thought-provoking. Plus, the triumphant return of Desert Island Picks!

Links
Order The Race That Changed Running or Doug’s other books
Run the Alps
Doug’s coverage of the World Trail and Mountain Running Championships

Desert Island Picks: The Odyssey, Hot Rocks by the Rolling Stones, Big Mountain Brewing Wild Mountain

Intro music: "Fine Line" by the BloodlettersOutro music: "When I Was Still Young" by Yard Sale

Rich Lockwood has been a mainstay on the PNW trail-running scene for several years, but he grabbed the national spotlight in 2022 with a string of world-class performances, capped by a win at the uber-competitive Run Rabbit Run 100 and a podium spot an the Doi Inthanon 100K (by UTMB, blah blah blah) in his first international event. We caught up with Rich after last month’s return to racing at the newly-reinvigorated Lake Sonoma 50 mile because we wanted to clarify a bunch of crucial information that hadn’t been shared pubicly before, like what cartoon character he identifies with. Let no one accuse us of not asking the tough questions.

Links:Follow Rich on IG

Beers for this episode: Best Day Brewing Hazy IPA, Two Way Brewing Confusion Saison, Holy Mountain Throne of Blood

Intro music: "Fine Line" by the BloodlettersOutro music: "When I Was Still Young" by Yard Sale

Many of you may not know about Chad Lasater, but you should. He’s the current champion of the Grand Slam of Ultrarunning (having finished the GS in both 2021 and 2022) and after a breakthrough performance at Desert Solstice (his first real 24-hour race) he is currently in position for a spot on the US team for the World Championships this fall. We recorded this in late 2022, shortly after Chad’s awesome run at DS, where he narrowly missed Bob Hearn’s 50+ American Record, but I’ve been too busy to release the show until now—which is great, since Chad has an insanely busy year about to start up. In this episode, we reminisce about the good old days in the late 2010s, when Phil and I were still able to kind of keep up with Chad, and we try to figure out The Secret behind his incredible progress in the sport and how he is able to be running huge PRs into his 50s. Then, it’s time for a very entertaining 20 Questions; Chad has raced 25 100s all over the world and has a million stories to share.

Links:Follow Chad on IG - zero posts so far!

Beer for this episode: Wicked Weed Pernicious

Intro music: "Fine Line" by the BloodlettersOutro music: "When I Was Still Young" by Yard Sale

Happy New Year! Sneaking in our traditional year-end pod under the wire, my favorite episode every year, debating the Ultrarunners of the Year with recurring guest Jason Mintz, who battled through COVID and came to PLAY! Tons of consensus this year but also some pretty good debate. Phil and I both completely f****d up and somehow both left Matthieu Blanchard out of our top 10, which is a travesty, but otherwise I think we held our own. I had a great time pointing out Phil’s lack of internal consistency which is always fun, and Phil made me defend Camille, which was weird.

Beer for this episode: Wolf Hills Trooper’s Alley, Captain Lawrence Clearwater Kolsch

LinksLaura Kline on the 2017 ballotJason Mintz on the 2018 ballotRich Heffron on the 2019 ballot for the women and menMintz again on the 2021 ballotMy final ballot in 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019

Intro music: "Fine Line" by the BloodlettersOutro music: "When I Was Still Young" by Yard Sale

It took us way too long to have Beastcoast star Riley Brady on the pod. For some reason we waited until they’re getting ready to move to Boulder (like everyone else!) to invite them on. Fresh off a Golden Ticket-winning performance at the Javelina Jundred, Riley joined the show to talk about competition in the sport, The King, karaoke, and much more.

Links:Follow Riley on IG

Beer for this episode: Treehouse Six, Dancing Grain Harvest Sun

Intro music: "Fine Line" by the BloodlettersOutro music: "When I Was Still Young" by Yard Sale

It’s always a little scary to double the amount of Brits on the show, but it couldn’t have been easier with Pete Mortimer, one of the most accomplished and prolific athletes in our sport today. We talked about some of Pete’s most recent exploits at HURT, Run Rabbit, and Barkley, before tackling all-important questions about hashing, Metallica, and (of course) Marmite.

Links:Pete’s websitePete on IG and Strava

Beer for this episode: Treehouse Juice Machine, Radiant Pig Save the Robots

Intro music: "Fine Line" by the BloodlettersOutro music: "When I Was Still Young" by Yard Sale