Tales from the Valley Podcast

talesfromthevalleypodcast
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  • RUNNING
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Behind every runner there is a story, and we think our local communities deserve to have theirs’ told. The Tales from the Valley Podcast aims to uncover running stories from the South Coast of NSW. Passionate runners Sam Hodges & Katie Mahoney will be catching up on a weekly basis to unravel the running stories from the South Coast and take you on their own personal running journeys.

  1. 6D AGO

    TFTV - ChatGPT Q's, Track Drama & Holiday Workouts

    Sam & Katie catch up on their training this week with no guest on the mic, and also dive into some listener ChatGPT Q’s along the way. 🤖🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️ Katie continues her cycling block, hits squat PB’s, and keeps the running load sensible — while also unpacking Sam’s incredibly inconvenient offer to “help” her through one of her track sessions. 😅 Sam bounces back from a bit of a lull with a strong week featuring speedy 400s, sharp threshold work and mile repeats while down the coast for a wedding. Tune in for Café Kit of the Week ☕️, ChatGPT Q’s, and a fresh round of Yeah/Nah rants… though Katie is still not over Sam breaking her rhythm at the track.

    1h 6m

  2. FEB 4

    TFTV ft. Charl Jansen van Rensburg

    Sam & Katie catch up with Charl Jansen Van Rensburg, who makes his return to the podcast with plenty of updates since last time. Charl has rewritten his Half Marathon PB, clocking a 1:15 at the Gold Coast Half Marathon last year. Alongside his running, Charl has also launched his business Mileage Mate, and walks us through the product—designed to help runners stay warm, dry, and clean before and after training and racing. 🏃‍♀️ Training Weeks Katie Recaps her win at the Aquathon 5k 🥇 Backs it up with more strength training Plenty of cycling to round out the week Sam Talks through a bit of a down week Coming off the back of a heavy training block with some big workouts in the legs Charl Runs through his week as fitness starts to return Recently managed a calf injury picked up at the GONG5000 Feeling positive as things begin to click again ☕ Café Kit of the Week Tune in for this week’s Café Kit and the always-divisive Yeah / Nah segment. 🙌 Shoutouts & Congrats Congrats to Erin Hargrave, this month’s winner of the Run Havoc Café Kit of the Month Voucher 🎉 🔗 Check out Charl’s business here: 👉 https://mileagemate.com.au/ If you want, I can: Shorten this for Instagram / Spotify show notes Add a punchier opening hook Match formatting exactly to the previous Chris Stone episode for consistency

    1h 42m

  3. JAN 19

    TFTV ft. Ethan Spears & Cody Bramich (360 South Project)

    Sam and Katie are joined by Ethan Spears and Cody Bramich from the 360 South Project. Ethan and Cody are relatively new to running but are passionate about building a movement in the Illawarra through community, challenge, and shared suffering. Their flagship event is a unique 360 km relay from Wollongong to Huskisson and back, completed by teams of six over a 30-hour window, with legs split however teams choose. Despite being early in their running journeys, both are getting quick. Ethan recently clocked a sub-20 5 km time trial, while Cody has run 1:28 at both the Shellharbour and Husky Half Marathons. In the lead-up to the May 15 event, the crew discusses the vision behind the project, the logistics of the relay format, and what’s planned around it — including merch, community runs, and launch events. 👉 More info: https://www.instagram.com/360southproject/ Training Weeks Sam breaks down an 81 km week featuring hilly mile reps and another YoYo Tempo. Ethan & Cody battle the flu but still manage track work, HIIT and RIG sessions at the Yard Gym, run-club easy jogs, and even consult an Etsy witch to keep the rain away for Sunday’s long run. Katie logs 41 km including another “Moana” fartlek, absurdly long core sessions, and 4 hours of cycling. Café Kit of the Week Mileage Mate — https://mileagemate.com.au/ Megablasts New Balance Elite Slam Ball News ASICS trade-in event ahead of the Nimbus 28 at Centennial Park Cam Myers runs 3:49 for the mile at UW Indoor Jake Derdon clocks 2:22 at the Houston Marathon

    1h 30m

  4. JAN 13

    TFTV ft. Chris Stone

    Sam and Katie are joined by Chris Stone, who shares his running journey—from early runs with his dad, to a long hiatus through university, and then a spark moment after lining up at City2Surf that reignited his love (and natural knack) for running. Since returning to the sport, Chris has clocked some impressive road PBs: 5km: 19:32 10km: 39:56 Half Marathon: 1:29 Marathon: 3:21 at the Sydney Marathon More recently, Chris has found his passion on the trails, completing UTA100 in 15 hours and 31 minutes. Chris’ favourite place to run is the Wollongong Escarpment, he loves a strong mountain-culture status quo, and his go-to sessions are tempo and threshold workouts. 🏃‍♂️ Training Weeks Sam 75km week Yo-Yo tempo session 3-minute reps Plus approximately 1000 beers on Friday night 🍻 Katie Continues her Zwift racing and strength work Quick kilometre reps and 400s on the track Gets out for a threshold session in the heat Chris Plenty of time riding his new mountain bike on local trails Progressive tempo session with the JT Running crew K reps and 400s on the track with JT Running teammate Michael Donald ☕ Café Kit Bella’s Nutella Protein Balls Buff for neck coverage Lee & Me blended coffee (Wollongong) 🙌 Shoutouts Training partners: Michael Donald, Michael Bilboe, Josh Boxell Coach: James Tunbridge Wife: Amanda

    1h 27m

  5. JAN 7

    Cafe Kit of the Month (Ep 2)

    On this episode of Café Kit of the Month, Sam sits down with Isaac Shaw. Isaac breaks down his outstanding performance, finishing 2nd in the State 3000m, and walks us through his summer of training. He also shares his experience with precision gels, gives an early review of the up-and-coming NVR running apparel—with a focus on the Ghost Singlet—and chats about the Puma MagMax. To round things out, Isaac gives us the inside word on the upcoming Run Havoc community runs and their latest testing partnership.

    20 min

  6. JAN 7

    TFTV 2026

    Sam and Katie kick off the New Year with a proper catch-up, chatting New Year’s resolutions and recapping their training weeks as usual. Café Kit of the Week Nike Vaporfly 4 Brooks Glycerin Max Zwift subscription Huge congrats to Alex Bui, who takes out this month’s Run Havoc $100 voucher 🏃‍♂️🎉

    1h 4m

  7. 12/30/2025

    TFTV ft. Tim Manuel

    Sam chats with Tim Manuel, a huge part of the KJ’s community. Tim rediscovered his love of running during the Covid lockdowns after first lacing up in his junior years—and he’s been flying ever since. From a 2:11 PB over 800m through to an agonisingly close sub-3 marathon attempt at last year’s Sydney Marathon (3:00:50), Tim’s range is seriously impressive. A standout Masters athlete, he’s won multiple Cross Country and Track titles for KJ’s and played a key role in numerous podium finishes throughout the season. Originally a middle-distance runner, Tim tackled the marathon with guidance from those around him, plenty of reading, and jumping into long runs with the WTC group as part of his Sydney build. Training Weeks Sam Another solid week of training Yasso 800s Friday session: 5-4-3-2-1 off a one-minute jog Sunday long run: 2 hours Total volume: 80km Tim Running purely for enjoyment through the end of the year Mixing in swimming ahead of the Australia Day Aquathon/Duathlon Around 60km of running, including some pool-to-run transition practice Café Kit of the Week T8 Sherpa Shorts (order a size up) ASICS Metaspeed Edge – Ekiden colourway Milo cereal Shoutouts Tim gives a shoutout to Joe Crawford, who does a mountain of work behind the scenes for KJ’s while also running some seriously impressive times across the marathon and beyond.

    1h 26m

  8. 12/24/2025

    TFTV ft. Sam Hodges

    This week, Katie takes over hosting duties and puts Sam in the hot seat for a change. Sam runs through his personal bests — including a 9:57 3 km time trial where a shoelace came undone mid-run, a gritty 1:18 half marathon at the Western Sydney Half, where he came third after running through the field and picking off competitors throughout the second half, and his 2:56 marathon, which capped off his original ambition of breaking three hours. Katie then debuts a brand-new segment: Rapid Fire Questions, putting Sam on the spot with some quick hits. 🏃 Training Weeks Katie recaps a varied week of strength training and cycling, before having a crack at the JT Running 5 km on the track Tuesday night. Sam successfully paces the JT Running 5 km group through to sub-20 minutes, but spends the rest of the week jogging easy while battling a head cold. 🎄 Thank you to all our listeners for the support this year — wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and happy running!

    58 min
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About

Behind every runner there is a story, and we think our local communities deserve to have theirs’ told. The Tales from the Valley Podcast aims to uncover running stories from the South Coast of NSW. Passionate runners Sam Hodges & Katie Mahoney will be catching up on a weekly basis to unravel the running stories from the South Coast and take you on their own personal running journeys.

Information

  • Creator
    talesfromthevalleypodcast
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    100
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2024 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Tales from the Valley Podcast

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