The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast

Brian Gatens
  • 5.0 (54)
  • Sports
  • Semiweekly

The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast welcomes you to our world. Come hear from racers, race directors, fans of AR, and everyone in between. The podcast's out there, you pick it up, it's yours, you don't, I got no sympathy for you. (as inspired by Glengarry Glenn Ross)

  1. Oct 23

    The Course Reveal Podcast - 2026 USARA National Championships

    This is a special Course Reveal episode of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast, recorded the week before the 2026 USARA Adventure Racing National Championships in Oregon. Race directors Jason Magness and Darren Steinbach of Bend Racing walk us through the 32-hour course they built in beautiful mountains of Oregon. Teams start high near Diamond Lake and drop fast through the North Umpqua River country, riding past a clifftop hot spring and trekking to waterfalls where the checkpoints can’t be reached without getting wet. Then the course turns uphill, into volcanic ridgelines, an old fire lookout, and a night climb of Mount Bailey, before a final paddle across Diamond Lake to the lodge. In this conversation, we explore: How a missing bus turned into a long, downhill opening rideThe North Umpqua whitewater, and the first Nationals to require packrafts for four-person teamsA points system that turns route choice into strategyGarwood and Mount Bailey, where the navigation gets serious and the race slows downSide challenges along the way, including a Mount Bailey FKT and a rope swing over a remote mountain lake Darren and Jason also tell dot watchers what to look for: a fast first half, a grinding mountain middle where the field tightens, and a sprint home across the lake. Follow the race at www.usara.com/2026-national-championships. ------------------------------------- Want more adventure racing stories? Check out Rootstock Racing's takeover of The Dark Zone feed during their Endless Mountains Adventure Race. This limited series of six episodes captures the race from start to finish chronicling the experience of the racers, the grandeur of the course, and the human experience borne from an expedition-distance adventure race. https://ardarkzone.com/the-endless-mountains-podcast-by-rootstock-racing/

  2. Sep 30

    The Course Reveal Podcast - ARWC 2026 Adventure Racing World Championship

    This is a special Course Reveal episode of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast, released just as the 2026 Adventure Racing World Championships get underway in Corsica. Nancy Bahuaud of Raid in France joins us to walk through the course she and her husband Pascal built: 505 kilometers and twelve stages across an island often called the mountain in the sea. From the start in Corte to the finish on the northwest coast, teams will face nearly every discipline the sport has to offer, and terrain that will test the best in the world. In this conversation, we explore: How Raid in France thinks about building a race as a journeyThe river and sea sections, and why this dry year has everyone watching water levelsThe stage Nancy expects to be the hardest, and how long it may take even the fastest teamsWhy compulsory rest remains non-negotiableA prologue that brings the town of Corte into the race Nancy also shares what this race means to her and Pascal after twenty years of directing, and why Corsica holds a special place in that story. Follow the race at www.arwc2026.com. ------------------------------------- Want more adventure racing stories? Check out Rootstock Racing's takeover of The Dark Zone feed during their Endless Mountains Adventure Race. This limited series of six episodes captures the race from start to finish chronicling the experience of the racers, the grandeur of the course, and the human experience borne from an expedition-distance adventure race. https://ardarkzone.com/the-endless-mountains-podcast-by-rootstock-racing/

  3. Sep 18

    TDZ 172 - Luke Jansen & Silas Jones: The First Junior Adventure Racing World Champions

    Racing as Black Diamond NZ, Luke Jansen and Silas Jones of New Zealand traveled to Canada and became the first Junior Adventure Racing World Champions. In this episode, they recount a childhood of hut trips, orienteering before their teens, and cycling the vertical height of Everest for the fun of it. All of it compounded, quietly, into a team that could go around the world and come home champions. What comes through most is how much fun they're having. These are two friends who race hard and laugh the whole way through it, still finishing high school and already eyeing the next mission, the next film, the next start line. Youth is definitely not wasted on these young people, and as we like to say, the kids are alright. Shownotes: Instagram: Team: @Turbo.platypus.squadron.ss Luke: @luke_jansen101 Silas: @prodbysilas Chasing Seconds - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cW8fmwFFxnY Black Diamond - https://blackdiamondequipment.com/ Inspire Foundation - @inspire_foundation_nz AXICO Financial Advisers - @axicoadvisers Pure Sports Nutrition - https://www.puresportsnutrition.com/ Canterbury Sports Foundation - https://www.sportcanterbury.org.nz/funding/canterbury-sports-foundation-1

  4. Sep 7

    TDZ 171 - Champion Racer Rachel Nolan: The Queen of Rocking Up And Racing Steady

    Rachel Nolan is back on the show FOUR YEARS (We can't believe it either!) after her first visit on Episode #35, and it's great to have her join us. In July 2026 she won PC12 in Colombia with Vidaraid, her first race with the team. Rachel and Brian also get into how she got there: solo bikepacking across the Atlas Mountains and the Pan Celtic, a training week built on hill repeats and packrafting off the west coast of Ireland, and a racing style she calls steady rather than fast. They also talk meat-free fueling in a meat-heavy country, sleeping (or not sleeping) through a five-day race, running her own tour company, and why she thinks waiting to feel ready is a mistake. Next stop for her is the world championship in Corsica. Shownotes: Rachel on TDZ #35 - https://ardarkzone.com/2022/06/27/the-dark-zone-35-rachel-nolan-irish-adventure-racer-bikepacking-champion-and-african-donkey-whisperer/ Jen Segger - https://jensegger.com/ Jill Mooney - https://barrultra.com/about-us/jill/ Northwave - https://www.northwave.com/en/bike/shoes Infinity Bike Seat - https://infinitybikeseat.com/ Albion Cycling - https://www.albioncycling.com/ Orbea Bikes - https://www.orbea.com/es-es Columbia Sportswear - https://www.columbia.com/ TransAtlanticWay - https://www.transatlanticway.com/ Montenegro Mountain Madness - https://www.montenegromountainmadness.com/ Super Jay - https://www.instagram.com/jay_jantaraboon/

  5. Aug 25

    TDZ 170 - 2026 ARWS European Championships - RD Lars Bukkehave on Crafting Denmark's Beautiful and Challenging Course

    Just days before the ARWS European Championship Montane Adventure Race, race director Lars Bukkehave sits down with TDZ to explain the 48-hour course that he built. Showcasing the beauty and challenge of Denmark, the race runs 19 stages including a sea cliff where you can still see the black clay layer left by the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs, underwater checkpoints, a Cold War nuclear bunker turned checkpoint, a vertical orienteering stage that sends racers climbing into the trees, and a maze set in a public park so spectators can watch. Lars also gets into what holds it all together: 70+ volunteers, and the bonfires, stick bread, and shared meals that turn 50 teams from 17 countries into a reunion before the gun even goes off. His 22-year career as an adventure racer, race director, and championship-winning teammate has led to this moment, and he looks forward to sharing it with the world. Shownotes: Race Social Media - https://www.facebook.com/MontaneAdventureRace Atlas Explorers Expeditions - https://www.atlas-explorers.com/

  6. Aug 8

    TDZ 169 — New Zealand's Louie Burger: 18 Years Old and Four Expedition Races Deep

    New Zealand's Louie Burger is 18. He's also four expedition races deep, including a run at the iconic Godzone. He got there by way of one of the country's strongest school adventure racing programs, a last-minute addition to a team at The Magnificient, dedicated training and teamwork, and a lot of very long days in the bush. We talk about what it takes to trust people you've known for 24 hours versus teammates you've raced with since school, what actually goes wrong on a six-day expedition race, and the moments both fun and not-so-fun that always come along during a race. Along the way, Louie speaks about mentors, challenging moments, an unforgettable in-race surprise, and his own thoughts on how hard to push a young body built for a sport he wants to still be doing at 60. Shownotes: Facebook Page - Link Here Instagram Page - Link Here Godzone Report - Link Here Tasman Adventure Race - www.tasmanadventurerace.nz

  7. Aug 3

    TDZ 168 — Finding Your People: RD and Racer Shawn Lemaster On His First 100 Miler and 361's Biggest Year Yet

    In December 2021, Racer and Race Director Shawn Lemaster sat down with us for Dark Zone #16. He was building races through 361 Adventures and putting in his own long days planning race courses and personal adventures. This year, we hit five years of the show, so we're running it back with some of those early voices, and Shawn was first in the chair. A lot has happened. 361 Adventures continues to grow, this spring he ran his first hundred-miler, and connects even more with his community through racing, directing, and adventures both near and far. That's the thread running through the whole hour. Triathlon, then AR, then bikepacking, now ultras. Every time Sean moved to a new sport, what he was really looking for was his people. We also get into 361 going all in for 2026, their signature event The Fig growing to twenty-four hours for its twenty-fourth year, and a mountain bike race that broke his social media. The Dark Zone is delighted to welcome Shawn Lemaster back to the show. Shownotes: 361 Adventures - https://361adventures.com/ 361 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/361.Adventures/ 361 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/361adventures/ Stagecoach 400 Documentary - Click Here

  8. Jul 29

    TDZ 167 - The Endless Mountains Podcast, Episode 6: Slaying Dragons

    Rootstock Racing is taking over the Dark Zone feed, offering a limited series podcast chronicling the 2026 Endless Mountains Adventure Race. In this, the final episode, official standings, returning to real life, and holding on to the magic of the adventure Shownotes: The Endless Mountains Adventure Race - www.endlessmountainsar.com Rootstock Racing - www.rootstockracing.com

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5
out of 5
54 Ratings

About

The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast welcomes you to our world. Come hear from racers, race directors, fans of AR, and everyone in between. The podcast's out there, you pick it up, it's yours, you don't, I got no sympathy for you. (as inspired by Glengarry Glenn Ross)

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