Dabbling In Paddleism Podcast

Chris Thomas
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The Dabbling In Paddleism Podcast is an exploration of all things endurance, adventure, and ultramarathon paddling experienced through storytelling and the celebration of athletes. We'll cover everything from mental & physical training, recovery, strategy, gear, nutrition, hydration, photo-/videography, all the way through to coming out on the other end of any paddling adventure a better version of ourselves. We aim to inspire, build community, and celebrate athletes ranging from DNFs (we’ve all been there) to record breaking performances, epic expeditions, and podium finishes.

  1. E37: Brad Friesen - The Assist at Last Paddler Standing 2025

    2D AGO

    E37: Brad Friesen - The Assist at Last Paddler Standing 2025

    In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Brad Friesen, stand up paddle boarder, adventurer, and race director out of Winnepeg, Manitoba. Brad is one of the top elite ultra paddle boarders out there and is a clear contender in any race he enters. We cover so much in this episode from his early days of river surfing, coaching and instructing SUP, his basecamp barista, crew, and family support at Last Paddler Standing, training for paddle sports in a cold climate, theoretical limits for Last Paddler Standing, camaraderie, sleep deprivation strategies, comparisons between the Yukon 1000 and the Alabama 650, LPS weather delay impacts, the Red River Paddle Challenge and how shorter races can help grow the sport of ultra paddling, and a sneak peak at one of his upcoming new races. There’s so much more to this episode, but I’ll let you hear it from Brad himself on this 37th episode of the Dabbling in Paddleism Podcast… Brad’s Book Recommendations: -Paddle to the Amazon, by Don Starkell: https://a.co/d/1X1ExTQ Links: -Red River Paddle Challenge: https://www.redriverpaddlechallenge.com/ -Winnipeg River Quest: www.winnipegriverquest.com Socials: (IG) @bradfriesen @redriverpaddlechallenge @winnipegriverquest

    1h 49m
  2. E36: Paul Cox & West Hansen - 1st place canoe, 2nd overall 2025 Yukon 1000

    FEB 8

    E36: Paul Cox & West Hansen - 1st place canoe, 2nd overall 2025 Yukon 1000

    In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with a couple paddling legends, Paul Cox out of Georgia and West Hansen out of Texas. There’s a lot of laughs in this episode with these two characters, so buckle up, because it’s gonna be entertaining. We cover so much in this episode from their entries into ultra paddling, Paul’s previous attempt on the Yukon River, canoes versus kayaks over extreme distances, importance of navigation in the Yukon Flats, boat modifications, water reading skills, rough weather conditions and angry beavers, a firsthand review of a new GPS device, how the sport has changed over the years, and bucket list races and adventures. There’s so much more to this episode, but I’ll let you hear it from Paul and West themselves on this 36th episode of the Dabbling in Paddleism Podcast… West’s Book Recommendations: -The Worst Journey in the World, by Apsley Cherry-Garrard: https://a.co/d/1AC2sbg -Running the Amazon, by Joe Kane: https://a.co/d/g4tHddc -Into the Thaw, by Jon Waterman: https://a.co/d/cDGqfF4 -Arctic Crossing, by Jon Waterman: https://a.co/d/gk2hfi2 -Anything by Buddy Levy -Anything by Hampton Sides Paul’s Book Recommendations: -Great Heart, by James West Davidson: https://a.co/d/3Q2PslK Socials: -IG: @paul.cox -FB: m.facebook.com/paul.cox.77920526/

    1h 20m
  3. E35: Greg Wingo's 2025 Race Recap

    FEB 1

    E35: Greg Wingo's 2025 Race Recap

    In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Greg Wingo, race director of the Great Alabama 650, Last Paddler Standing, the Eliminator, and mastermind behind Roam Projects a multi-country trekking and adventure travel experience. We cover so much in this episode from his unique new race in the UK the Eliminator with partner race director Cassie Salter, the 2025 Alabama 650 and how it has compared to years past, all the variables that can impact performance in such a long distance race, the difficulty of Mobile Bay, app innovation for dot trackers, SUPs, still riding a high from a multi-record setting year at LPS, inspiration behind the location change, the overwhelming positive support from the community of Lake Placid, and new Roam Project trekking locations. Just as a side note, we did 2 takes for this episode, because on the first take Greg wasn’t ready to share new updates for his UK Eliminator race, but we got all of those updates fresh off the press at the end of the chat. There’s so much more to this episode, but I’ll let you hear it from Greg himself on this 35th episode of the Dabbling in Paddleism Podcast… Greg’s Book Recommendations: -Lost City of Z, by David Grann: https://a.co/d/68XrPwr -Anything that Adam Shoalts writes [examples: Vanished Beyond the Map (https://a.co/d/52LJGAz), Beyond the Trees (https://a.co/d/3Zj3DEy), Where the Falcon Flies (https://a.co/d/imS2w9x), Along Against the North (https://a.co/d/3ENQ53c)] Links: -Alabama 650: https://www.alabamascenicrivertrail.com/great-alabama-650/ -Last Paddler Standing: https://lastpaddlerstanding.com/ -The Eliminator: https://www.facebook.com/p/The-Eliminator-61577037287882/ -Roam Projects: https://roamprojects.com/home.html Socials (IG): @greatalabama650 @lastpaddlerstanding @roamprojects

    1h 51m
  4. E34: Ethan Roadley - Circumnavigation of New Zealand's South Island

    JAN 25

    E34: Ethan Roadley - Circumnavigation of New Zealand's South Island

    In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Ethan Roadley, a kiwi, who recently undertook an expedition circumnavigating via kayak nearly all the way around the South Island of New Zealand until 6 weeks of horrible weather caused him to throw in the towel with only about 56 kilometers to go. We cover so much in this episode from a 100 day expedition tackling first descents in the whitewaters of Fiordland National Park, nutrition planning for expeditions including hunting and fishing, getting stuck in expeditions due to weather, winter weather paddling conditions, the stress of finding a land-able shoreline spot as daylight is coming to a close, amazing wildlife encounters, navigating tides and currents, treacherous beach landings, game changing gear for salt water conditions, heartwarming hospitality of his fellow kiwis, and the little things that helped to overcome the low points. There’s so much more to this episode, but I’ll let you hear it from Ethan himself on this 34th episode of the Dabbling in Paddleism Podcast… Ethan’s Book Recommendations: -A Winter’s Paddle by Tara Mulvany: https://a.co/d/27QzXlN -Southern Exposure by Chris Duff: https://a.co/d/ax0SDcI

    1h 2m

  5. JAN 19

    E33: Salli O'Donnell - The "Queen of the 650"

    In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with legendary ultramarathon paddler and “Queen of the 650”, Salli O’Donnell from Alabama. While Salli certainly has a very decorated paddling career, most recently she’s coming off of overall solo victories in the Suwannee 230 and the Alabama 650 in earning the new Southern Harm award in the process. We cover so much in this episode from her transition to ultra paddling from ultra running, the North Carolina Challenge, the James River 100, the logistics of planning for ultras, a continuous improvement mentality, recovery strategies, pre-race and in-race game plans for skin protection, paddling technique, nutrition rabbit holes, dealing with adversity and slumps, the importance of not wasting any opportunities, the evolution of ultramarathon paddling, and entering into the sprinting world. There’s so much more to this episode, but I’ll let you hear it from Salli herself on this 33rd episode of the Dabbling in Paddleism Podcast… Salli’s book recommendations: Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown: https://a.co/d/7Y4RE5P Find Salli on FB at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1552487491685668/

    1h 2m

  6. JAN 11

    E32: Mike Ranta - Legendary Expedition Canoeist

    In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with legendary Canadian expedition canoeist, Mike Ranta, who has paddled over 30,000 miles in his expeditions combined, including coast to coast across Canada 3 times solo with his dog Spitzii. We cover so much in this episode from growing up spending months living and paddling in the bush near Atikokan, Canada which is the Canoe Capital of the World, supporting youth, veterans, first responders, and First Nations by promoting awareness and developing supportive wilderness programs, massive 500+ mile portages with a canoe over the Canadian Rockies, aggressive apex predator encounters while circumnavigating Great Bear Lake, strategies for primarily living off the land, sleep deprivation strategies for extreme expeditions, getting hit by lightening, self-made clothing, and the inspiration behind him building the worlds largest paddle, the Big Dipper. There’s so much more to this episode, but I’ll let you hear it from Mike himself on this 32nd episode of the Dabbling in Paddleism Podcast… Mike’s book recommendations: Bush Runner by Mark Bourrie: https://a.co/d/htm6Jd2 Frozen in Time, by Owen Beattie & John Geiger: https://a.co/d/3vAPn7F How to find Mike: Facebook - Mike Ranta’s Paddle: https://www.facebook.com/mikerantaspaddle/ Warrior Adventures Canada: https://warrioradventures.ca/

    1h 44m

  7. JAN 4

    E31: Jon Marble of Race Owl

    In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Jon Marble, ultramarathon paddler, aerospace engineer, and developer of the race and adventure tracker Race Owl. We cover so much in this episode from racing in the MR340, the stories behind racing misadventures that keep him coming back, the story behind Race Owl, the many features the app offers to paddlers, dot trackers, as well as race directors and support crew, the story behind the storm-cancelled MR340 mid-race in 2023, how to connect with RaceOwl as a race director or even as a paddler about to attempt an FKP, and volunteering for the paddling community and how to volunteer with RaceOwl. There’s so much more to this episode, but I’ll let you hear it from Jon himself on this 31st episode of the Dabbling in Paddleism Podcast… www.raceowl.com Jon’s book recommendations: -Missouri River 340: First Time Finisher, by Stephen, Linda, Robert, Ellen, Christine, & Claire Jackson https://a.co/d/h2XefAr

    47 min

  8. 12/21/2025

    E30: 1 Year Anniversary!!

    In this episode, Chris Thomas celebrates the 1 year anniversary of the show, gives a recap of 2025, and dives into upcoming changes and what is to come in 2026.

    14 min
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About

The Dabbling In Paddleism Podcast is an exploration of all things endurance, adventure, and ultramarathon paddling experienced through storytelling and the celebration of athletes. We'll cover everything from mental & physical training, recovery, strategy, gear, nutrition, hydration, photo-/videography, all the way through to coming out on the other end of any paddling adventure a better version of ourselves. We aim to inspire, build community, and celebrate athletes ranging from DNFs (we’ve all been there) to record breaking performances, epic expeditions, and podium finishes.

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