Nobody Asked Us with Des & Kara Des Linden and Kara Goucher

A very special guest joins the podcast this week as Mary Kate Shea sits in with Des and Kara. Mary Kate (aka MK) is the Director of Professional Athletes and Technical Support for the Boston Athletic Association (aka the BAA) and personal friend of Des.
Before giving details on the episode itself, it'll be important for you, if you haven't already, to find the viral video that Kara mentions at the start of the podcast. It may or may not be posted on Kara's social media and will show you the proper way to exit a party. The legend of Des Linden only keeps growing...
From there, the episode takes a bunch of twists and turns starting with a proper discussion of the merits of cross country as an Olympic sport and then shifting to everything you never thought you needed to know about recruiting elites to the Boston Marathon and the rules and regs of elite bottle support. Seriously, the process behind fueling elites on-course in the major marathons is surprisingly fascinating. You will never watch a marathon in the same way again.
You will also learn that MK is awesome and that we couldn't possibly have a better person curating the Boston elite field for us. Thanks to MK for joining the podcast and for hosting Des on her trip to watch the most boring football game ever played!

No horses were harmed in the making of this episode.
This one starts off innocently enough with Des providing details of her recent trip to Japan, including the recovery tool she rediscovered on the journey that has surely been abandoned again by now. Kara gives an update on her challenges with a recent dystonia flare-up that caused a bad fall while running. In true Des and Kara fashion, that topic leads to a fun and funny discussion of the new Olympic sports coming for 2024 and 2028 (hello break dancing!) and Des's secret Winter Olympic aspirations.
Then, the conversation turns a bit spicy as they express frustration over the ongoing back and forth about the start time for the Olympic Marathon Trials and Max Siegel's new contract extension as the CEO of USATF. Plus, they welcome Malcolm Gladwell to the old-curmudgeon club for his not-so-hot take on shoe tech. We are sure that he didn't ask, but we know that everybody wants to know...
Editor's note: this episode was recorded before the final decision by USATF to move the start time for the Olympic Marathon Trials to 10:00 am.

Just a few hours after the conclusion of the elite races, Des and Kara jumped on the mics to recap all of the action at the TCS NYC Marathon on Sunday. To call this episode "pure fire" would be a gross understatement AND STILL perhaps the best possible teaser words for it. 
They spend the most time on the women's race, one that Kara calls "the best race of the year," breaking down the cat-and-mouse games that extended well into the race. This includes their perspectives on the strategies of Kellyn Taylor and Molly Huddle to take the lead at various points, knowing full well that Obiri and Gidey were going to stay patient until a final, blazing-fast push to the finish. As a bonus, you get some early predictions for the women's marathon in Paris. 
Then, they cover the men's race too, but not before hearing about Des's death-defying trip to the marathon start line in Staten Island, where she and counterpart-on-the-lead-motos Galen Rupp, were the very last to cross the bridge before it closed.
Des was in rare form on this episode - fresh off the marathon broadcast, still jet-lagged from Japan, hopped-up on champagne, beer, and coffee, and oh so ready to stoke any available fire. Kara just can't seem to contain her... or walk away. You have to stay all the way to the end for the biggest conflagration (and genuinely not a bad sponsorship idea for the US Marathon Trials). Enjoy!

What's better? Sex or two Nobody Asked Us episodes in 4 days?!? It's a trick question because the correct answer is listening to this new episode while munching on a Nerds rope.
This episode starts by going a little off the rails but quickly gets back on track as Kara leads Des through a conversation about her record-setting weekend. There's also bonus coverage of Kara's 5K race on Saturday and her successful spectating duties on Sunday.
You will hear about the controversial KitKat at the press conference, pancakes in a wine room, Rivers on his best behavior, the athlete who held up the elite bus, Des doing math in the final miles, and her mindset from start to finish line with just 12 seconds to spare. 
Plus at the end, Kara and Des react to the mind-blowing performances at the front of the race and give you breaking news about the NYC Marathon.
Are you ready for this?!? We aren't sure, but here goes nothing...

Des and Kara kicked off marathon weekend in Chicago with a live episode from Fleet Feet Chicago. They talk about their marathon routines and strategies for pre-race prep, in-race execution, and of course, the post-race party.
Come for the usual, inspirational tips on marathoning, stay for the random tangents about Ted Bundy, a murder on Valentine's day (and the connection to Des's house), running in handcuffs, and tattoos on your face. You never know where these episodes will lead...
Des and Kara also wanted to send a special thank you to Fleet Feet Chicago and Altra for hosting the event in Chicago, and of course, to TCS for sponsoring the podcast.

This episode is the runner's equivalent of an all-you-can-eat buffet. There's a little bit of everything, just please go easy on the corn and tomatoes.
Des and Kara start with a recap of the Diamond League Final at the Prefontaine Classic, covering the highlights with behind-the-scenes stories from Kara who was on the call with NBC. They share their favorite moments and try to put some of the mind-blowing results in context. 
Then, they step into a full Chicago Marathon preview starting with the inside scoop on Des's training, key workouts, and her goals for the big day and ending with a breakdown of the elite fields on both sides, including some intel Des has collected on a few of the top American contenders. 
Finally, Kara talks about Colt's middle school cross country season and how she's supporting his interest in the sport as a parent. At the same time, she and Des reflect on their own journeys to fall in love with the sport. Plus, you get plenty of pet and life updates with the Top Five to end the show!
Thank you to TCS for sponsoring this podcast as well as being the technology partner for the Chicago Marathon and the Chicago Marathon app. Download it today to track and support all of your favorite runners on October 8th.