Send us a Text Message.In this weeks episode I speak to Daniel Weller.Dan grew up in Ohio in the USA before moving to the UK and taking up trail running. Dan has been in the sport for many years, but has started to put down some epic performances at some of the UK’s biggest ultramarathons.Having consistently finished on the podium at many races over the last year, he started this year by winning the winter Spine Challenger South in January. Most recently he won the GB Ultras Pennine Barrier 5...

Send us a Text Message.In this episode of the podcast I speak to returning guest Jon Shield.Jon is possibly the busiest man in UK ultra running right now. When he’s not racing and winning ultras all over the world, he’s coaching, putting on trail running camps, organising the new FENIX running team and he is currently in the process of setting up his own trail running brand! It’s no wonder he only gets 4 hours sleep a night!We talk about his wins since we last spoke. His up and down trai...

Send us a Text Message. On this episode of the podcast, I speak to Emma Stuart about her amazing results over the last year.  After wins in the 2023 editions of the 100-mile Arc of Attrition, 100-mile Ultra-Trail Snowdonia, and third place in the 120km Lavaredo Ultra Trail, Emma moved up the distance further by entering Italy’s notoriously punishing 205-mile Tor des Géants, which she won 🥇  After a great start to 2024 with a 3rd place at the highly competitive Trans Gran Canaria. She now has...

In this episode I speak to Christina Smith. Christina is an Olympic bobsledding athlete residing in Canada, who now works for The Enhanced Games. If you’re not familiar with the concept of the EG…….it’s set to be the Olympic Games for the next generation. Imagine the Olympics, but without drug testing. Imagine having a team of scientists and doctors overseeing everything in the name of science and research. Well you don’t have to imagine, because it’s coming! This isn’t just an idea...

On this episode of the podcast I speak to Sophie Power. Sophie shot to infamy in the 2018 UTMB race, when she was photographed breastfeeding at a checkpoint. Due to the races then policy of not allowing race deferrals due to pregnancy, she found herself racing with a 3 month old baby. When the image went viral around the world, Sophie realised that she now had an obligation to raise awareness of the failings of some race organisations with regard to female runners. The deferral issue was...

In this episode we speak to Scott Jenkins. Scott is the first Brit to complete the gruelling Triple Crown of 200’s in the USA. Scott ran the Tahoe 200, Bigfoot 200 and finally the Moab 240 to take 5th place overall. This all happened within 10 weeks! We chat about all of the 200’s he’s ran over the last few years. His adventures around the world and his plans for a certain UK race that shall remain nameless. We talk about his preparation, execution and his favourite hallucination featuring...

In this episode of the podcast I speak to Julian Ayres, Senior Lecturer at Wrexham University. Jules takes his research seriously! In an effort to improve his student’s resilience, he embarked on a mission into ultramarathon to find out how grit and resilience in physical activity can be applied to his students to help them improve outcomes in the workplace. We talk about that race beginning with S, and lots about the Dragons back and other big ultras and how his experiences helped shape...

In this episode of the podcast I speak to UK ultra-running legend, and now bestselling author, Allie Bailey. Allie has risen to fame over the years with her no nonsense approach to running and life. She races brutal ultramarathons and has a reputation for her brutal honesty about pretty much everything! Allie is a recovering alcoholic and she has written a book about her life as an addict. In this podcast we talk about her love of running really really long races all over the world. Her...

On the latest episode of the podcast I speak to ultra-running royalty Nicky Spinks. We chat about our shared experiences of this years race and how it went for her. We talk about her sleep strategy, fuelling and kit that she used. We also discuss hallucinations, the epic weather on course and wether or not she will return to Britains most brutal race. I’m really pleased to have had this conversation with Nicky as she’s been on my list of people that I’ve wanted to interview since the...

I relive the highs and lows of taking on Britain’s most brutal race.  We talk about my path leading me to this years race over many years of prep. We talk about the sleep deprivation, food and the weather that was particularly Spiney! We also talk about that infamous fall that almost ended my race prematurely.  Great to chat to Kate as always.  URS

Welcome to the last episode in the special pre-race Spine 2024 series! We end with last years 2nd place woman, Hannah Rickman. We talk about her year of globe trotting l, splitting her time between Malawi in Africa and good old Blighty. We discuss training, sleep strategy, mental preparation and most importantly FOOD! It was great to catch up with Hannah and I can’t wait to see what she can do at this years race. URS

In this episode of the Special pre-Spine race 2024 series, I speak to reigning Spine champion Damian Hall. We chat about last years race, his training for this year and I probe him on wether he feels any pressure returning to the race that he has invested so many years in. Damo reveals his tradition of watching an inspiring film the night before the race, in an effort to rev himself up for glory! A great chat as always with Spine royalty! URS

In the next instalment of the pre-race interviews I speak to Kim Collison about his prep for this year’s race. We talk about his experience at last years race and his hopes for this year. Notably, Kim has got to the bottom of his muscular issues and with a change of medication, hopes that he can be foreign on all cylinders come January 14th! We talk about his training, mental preparation and his racing strategy. URS

In this next episode of the pre-Spine race 2024 podcast series, I speak to Elaine Bisson.  We talk about the injury that led to her DNF at last years race, how she feels about returning to The Spine and how she felt about having to cut her race short.  We talk about her success at the Cape Wrath Ultra back in May and how it’s helped prepare her for the upcoming race.  We talk about training, nutrition and her race strategy.  We also talk about her love of art as her other passion.  To see her...

In this episode of the special pre-Spine race series I speak to the race media team. Regular listeners will know that I’ve been involved with the race for the last couple of years as a volunteer and last year had the privilege to work on the media team. So in this episode I catch up with the media pals to discuss the upcoming race, their predictions for the runners and how they are going to approach covering Britain’s most brutal race! We also get some insights into Jenny’s recent race...

In this next episode of the pre-Spine race 2024 podcast series, I speak to James Nobles. James is a returning guest on the podcast so we dive straight into the good stuff. We talk about his recent 2nd place at the Cheviot Goat and how it has set him up for success at the fast approaching Spine Race in January. We talk about his approach to training, nutrition and racing strategy as he contemplates lining up with some of the best ultra distance athletes assembled on the race. James is a...

In this next episode of the pre-Spine race podcast series I speak to Simon Roberts. Fresh from his recent win at the Montane Cheviot Goat, we talk about his journey into ultra, his experience of previous Spine races and of course his win at the Goat. He talks about his love of the Dragons Back race and his passion for the shorter faster fell races local to him in Wales. With the Spine now only weeks away, we talk about his choice of gear, nutrition and his relaxed approach to racing...

It’s that time of year again. Spine Race season! From now until the end of the year we will be releasing special Spine race episodes. We will hear from the team behind the scenes from the organisation, from the media team and from the runners themselves. We will deliver the big names hoping to do well again and also throw in some wildcard entries to keep your eyes fixed on the dots. First up we have Lindley Chambers, who is responsible for finalising the route and overseeing everything kit...

In this episode of the podcast I speak to James Elson. James is well known for his exploits as a long course ultrarunner who’s completed some of the toughest and most prestigious races around the globe. He’s also the race director and head honcho at Centurion Running, who put on some of the best 50-100 mile ultramarathons in the UK. We talk about his own running career competing at The Spine Race, Tour De Geants and Western States. We also dive into the new World Trail Majors series that...

In this special episode of the podcast I get the exclusive first interview with the IRONMAN UTMB group about the recent events with Gary Robbins WAM races and UTMB’s new Whistler Ultra Trail race. I recently posted on social media that I was worried that we weren’t really hearing directly from them about what happened and their own perspective on what went down. I got the chance to virtually sit down with Paul Huddle - Senior director of global trail running and Keats Mcgonigal - Vice...

On this episode of the podcast myself and Ben Wells Runs Fells speak to Kate Allen from the RunUltra website. Last week I wrote an article for the website discussing the current controversy surrounding the UTMB/Iron Man situation in Whistler. We have an unbiased conversation about who could be to blame (if anyone even is) and how the trail running community around the world have reacted to the announcement of their new race in British Columbia. We talk about the ethics of the decision to...

On this episode of the podcast i speak to Matt Buck - AKA Running Bucky. Matt has been in the sport of ultra running for many years and has turned his love of trail running, into a profitable business. After a moment of inspiration at Marathon De Sables, he decided that running coaches don’t all have to be idiots. He also realised that there are many people out there who want to start trail running, but don’t know how to get started. Running Adventures was born out of that idea. We talk...

On this episode of the podcast I speak to the ultra running legend John Kelly - AKA Random Forest Runner. We talk about his background as a data scientist. How it helps with the planning and execution of running a really really long way. We dive into his running history and how he ended up running The Barkley Marathons as his first official ultra! We also answer the question that everyone asked me to put to him, is he coming back to The Spine Race in 2024? To find out the answer to this...

On this episode of the podcast I speak to Ellis Bland, fresh off his win at Lakes In A Day. This was a deep conversation that took me off guard to begin with. We talked at great lengths about body dysmorphia in men, how we seem to perpetuate the notion that “lighter is faster” and the rise of the hybrid athlete in ultramarathons. We talk about his love of all types of running and his passion for racing in more of a North American style, different to how he’s perceived as a “fell runner” We...