Weathering The Run
By Andrew Buck Michael
Weathering The RunApr 24, 2024
E32: DeadSkout, Running across America, twice
DeadSkout, or Skout, ran across America in the fall of 2023 from Los Angeles to New York City. It was a solo effort with no crew, so he was very minimalistic with his gear that he carried in his backpack. Skout is an artist and his avatar, for the character he is representing, is a sad panda. So he is running across the country as a character and wearing a motorcycle helmet with a decal of a panda to represent the hardship that the panda character deals with. So the run was dedicated towards mental health and suicide prevention awareness.
Skout wants to attempt the run again this coming fall and hopes to have a crew this time to help. He is selling some gear on his website to help raise funds: https://deadskout.com/
E31: Bob Smaltz, A wealth of trail & ultrarunning knowledge
E30 Brian Papay, cranking up the running miles
Brian Papay ran 5125 miles in 2023, but didn't get serious into running until 2020 when COVID shut down the gyms. He pushes hard with minimal attention or gear. You will often see him running a hundred mile race in shoes, shorts, and a handheld water bottle. He has big goals on the horizon to push himself more.
E29 Jonathan Levitt, "For The Long Run" podcast
Excited to chat with Jonathan Levitt, the host of For The Long Run podcast. We talk about his experiences growing up in the Boston area and how the weather is so much different than what he experiences living in Boulder, Colorado now. He also travels a lot with his work, so he gives us some other areas to put on a bucket list for amazing runs.
You can find him on social media at: @jwlevitt.
E28: Justin Boggs; Inspiring weight-lose & battling the elements
It is hard to find someone that is as positive and smiles as much as Justin Boggs. He is a very active running in the Columbus community, but just a few years ago he weighed 420 pounds. With diet and lifestyle changes he weighs less than 180 now. Crazy weather seems to follow the races he signs up to run, but he continues to persevere.
Connect with Justin on Instagram: jj_boggs
E27: Fern & the Columbus Free Chipotle Strava Segment Challenge Contest
You may have heard about the “CHIPOTLE SEGMENT CHALLENGE SERIES” contest that just occurred in January. The two companies teamed up and made Strava segments a little less than a quarter of a mile long that ended at Chipotle restaurants in LA, NYC, DC, Chicago, Denver, and Columbus. Each city had their own unique story of how the competition went to see who could run those segments the most during the month of January. I sat down to talk about it all with the winner of the Columbus segments. A modest runner that goes by the name of "Fern". Fern doesn't want a lot of spotlight, but he ran the 0.2 mile segment 1,000 times over the month of January to win a year of free Chipotle (52 free entrees). Columbus had some rollercoaster winter weather and the segment also was unique since it runs along the edge of Ohio State's main campus. Great chat for someone willing to lay down some serious miles just to get bragging rights along with some free burritos. Really enjoyed this chat. For more on the rules: https://www.chipotle.com/strava-segment-challenge
E26: Aneta Zeppattella; Empower(ing) Ultra runners
Aneta co-founded Empower Ultra with Jennifer Russo, who was a guest on Episode 4 of Weathering The Run. Aneta and Jennifer set up their races with generous cut-offs and other parameters to ensure a high finishing rate. Two of my 100+ mile races occurred at their races.
Aneta signs up to run some very difficult races and has an extensive list of race finishes over the last decade, including Badwater 135. She was also featured in a recent documentary running Western States, called "Nettie From Ohio". Aneta is also very active on Instagram and Strava, if you would like to follow her journey.
E25: Scotty Kummer, Ten Junk Miles & Extreme cold running gear tips
Most of the world has 24 hours in a day, but Scott Kummer somehow seems to get 36 hours of work done 1 day. You may know him from his podcast Ten Junk Miles or from one of the races that he race directs with Ten Junk Miles Racing. His podcasts have helped me get through some long solo runs. He dives deeper than most podcasts with questions that his guests typically do not get asked. Scotty is a lawyer for a living and he said that helps with thinking of questions to dive below the surface with some of the guests. Sometimes they don't even get around to talking about running or their latest accomplishments. It was a pleasure getting the chance to pick his brain about his career in running. He has run some of the toughest winter endurance races around. He also is a big volunteer helping others in their quests to challenge themselves. He shared some expert tips on running in extreme cold weather and I tested out some of his methods just this last week and man was it a game changer! Hope you enjoy this episode!
E24: "Run The 88", Sisters running races in every county of Ohio
Elizabeth Long says in the episode that her sister, Bridgett Shoemaker, is the runner. But Elizabeth is running every race across the state of Ohio with her sister. It is a way for them to see all of Ohio and meet some awesome people. They always try to find a local hidden restaurant to eat at, after the race. So far they have completed 77 of the 88 counties. The rules they made: minimum distance is a 5k (3.1 miles) and it must be a sanctioned event. Some counties only have a race or two every year, so they have to lace up and run the event. It was great hearing about their favorite races and most memorable locations. Great bonding for the two of them and it inspires me to do more memorable things with my family.
E23: Rick Hohman, 100 mile crusher
I have had the pleasure of running with Rick Hohman a few times while visiting family in Northeast Ohio over the last few years. He is always very inviting when I pop into town. He is not a very outspoken person, but he has some amazing stories to share. He also runs quite a few tough 100 mile races each year and has yet to drop out of a race. And these are some very challenging races, like Hellgate, Potawatomi 200 miler, Grindstone, Hellbender, Bear, IMTUF, Ouray, Ute, and so many others. So he does not back down from tough races and grinds it out. He also has completed Eastern States 100 and was just selected to run Western States 100 in 2024. He is pretty minimalist when it comes to gear, but he does have a few essential items that he will carry for these long training runs and events. Buckle up for a great episode!
E22: Jeff Henderson, Fleet Feet Columbus & Holiday Gift Ideas
Jeff Henderson is hard to miss at local races or running events. He is 6' 11" tall and he owns the Columbus area Fleet Feet stores, so he is always out and about helping other runners and coaching as well. We talk about his running experience and how he helped develop and cut local trails at a nearby state park. He also is instrumental in getting free shoes on the feet of the youth, with Girls On The Run. He also goes over some great gear ideas for any running acquaintances you have in your life, if you are looking for a gift for someone.
E21 Ryan Ploeckelman; The Adventure Jogger
It is a real treat to sit down and chat with Ryan Ploeckelman, the host of The Adventure Jogger podcast. Ryan has a long history of running and pacing ultra races. So we turn the mics around for me to ask him some questions. The Adventure Jogger website.
E20: Dr. Ariel Cohen; severe weather and understanding weather forecasts
It would be hard to find someone as passionate about severe weather and understanding it like Dr. Ariel Cohen. When I knew him at Ohio State he was not a runner, but he picked it up and he has great advice on trails to run across the country since his career in meteorology has taken him to all corners of the United States. He has some great advice and we talk about the public's understanding of weather and how we can better communicate the weather forecast.
E19: Dr. Jay Hobgood; decades of running, hurricane misunderstandings
He has a tropical blog, where he writes about the current active storms in the tropics: jayhobgood.com.
You can also find him on Facebook as Jay Hobgood along with X (Twitter): @JayHobgood.
E18: Brad Lindeberg, a non-practicing meteorologist crushing races across the country
I have followed Brad Lindeberg for several years and only interacted on social media until we chatted for this episode. He has run races across the country and is full of stories. He considers himself a non-practicing meteorologist because his career now is helping people with their taxes. But don't let that fool you because he still gets out there and storm chases.
Strava: https://www.strava.com/athletes/18429735
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bradrunsfar/
X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/BradRunsFar
E17: Dr. Jana Houser, changing what we know about how tornadoes form
Dr. Jana Houser is a runner & a leading research scientists on tornadogenesis. This episode gets into the science of tornado formation. She will continue her research, thanks to a $1.7 million grant she just landed, through Ohio State, to build a mobile radar system. Her research has already sampled more than a dozen tornadoes with most rotating at the ground first. Really honored to chat with her and about the robust meteorology program Ohio State has to offer young minds. Here is a link to her most recent research article titled: "Additional Evaluation of the Spatiotemporal Evolution of Rotation during Tornadogenesis Using Rapid-Scan Mobile Radar Observations": https://journals.ametsoc.org/view/journals/mwre/150/7/MWR-D-21-0227.1.xml
E16: Joe Fitzwater; Wild & Wonderful West Virginia trail running
Joe Fitzwater is a Chief Meteorologist at WVNS 59 News in Beckley, WV. He reached a point in his life where he felt he needed to make a change, so he started by trying to run one mile and kept trying to challenge himself to push farther. He gives us an inside look at how running and weather are related and connected.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/meteojoe
Twitter: https://twitter.com/meteojoe
E15: Erin Arnett, "Every run is a gift"
You will have a hard time trying to find someone more positive than Erin Arnett. She is a mother of 4 and a great role model in the community. She shares some stories with us about how she got into running and some of the most challenging running elements she has had to endure. She also has lost a few of her best friends that were also runners, but she dedicates runs to them in remembrance and to celebrate that every run is a gift. She also records all of her runs to help raise money with the Linda W Daniel Foundation. For every mile walked/run or 15 minutes of working out then it counts as 1 beat. You record your beats each Monday on their website and LWDF raises $1 to support select cancer organizations on a one-for-one basis to match your beats. IG: @momrunmomrepeat
Episode 14: Arlen Glick; Western States, Hardrock... UTMB and 2024?
One of the nicest and fastest people you will ever meet: Arlen Glick. He is a self-proclaimed 100 miles specialist & joins us with his recent big adventures at Western States and Hardrock. We also chat about his future plans like UTMB and what 2024 may look like for him. He represents Ohio well and all of his followers like to call themselves Arlen's darlins.
This year he ran Western States 100 and finished 14th place, after finishing 3rd place in 2022. This was also his first year running Hardrock 100 and he finished 5th place and first place for American males.
Arlen does not have social media for personal reasons, so some sponsors passed him up. However Craft Sports signed him as a sponsored athlete and they are getting more attention than normal athletes because it funnels the curiosity through their channels.
Episode 13: Rob Steger & Marianne Hogan; Training for Ultra, Marianne Runs: 2022 Western States & UTMB podium
Honored to chat with Rob Steger and Marianne Hogan. I have followed Rob's work with Training for Ultra with his podcast and book for several years. He also just released a documentary on Marianne, called Marianne Runs, that followed her 2022 Western States and UTMB double. We got to chat about the opposites of weather that they have endured and about Marianne's return to running after overcoming injury.
A few sponsors they would like to shoutout would be Naak, Ciele, Salomon, Hammer, XOSKIN, Tanri Outdoors.
Episode 12: Harvey Lewis; from the frigid Arrowhead 135 to scorching Badwater 135, plus Barkley Marathons, Big Dog's and Dead Cow Gulley Backyard Ultra, to the Appalachian Trail FKT & so much more...
This episode is jam packed! I sit down with Harvey Lewis, just days after his finish at Badwater 135. And his Badwater run across Death Valley was less than 2 weeks after his 375 miles that he ran at Dead Cow Gully backyard ultra in Australia. We also talk about his documentary that just game out: Like Harvey Like Son, where he attempted the fastest known time, FKT, to run the entirety of the Appalachian Trail. I also found out that he ran the Arrowhead 135, which is a race across the frozen landscape of International Falls, Minnesota where temps have dipped to -45°F during the race. Harvey has also ran in the last two runnings of the Barkley Marathons, which is an invite-only 100-ish mile orienteering race at Frozen Head State Park that has only been completed 21 times by 17 runners. Again, so much to get to and I hope you enjoy this episode. I feel like there is a lot more to uncover with Harvey and more stories to share, but we try to uncover more of his adventures and the worst weather he has had to endure.
Harvey partners with RoadiD, Newton, Tailwind, 2XU, and All Day Running.
Follow Harvey on social media by looking up Harvey Lewis Ultrarunner on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.
You can find the documentary "Like Harvey, Like Son" on Amazon Prime Video.
Also, if you are interested in checking out his travel running company, check out Run Quest Travel.
Episode 11: Chikage Windler; running in excessive heat day after day
Chikage Windler is the Chief Meteorologist at the CBS Austin TV station. She has been running for years, as she has traveled around the country forecasting the weather. She is a great example for the community and helps share information to the public about exercise responsibly. Texas has recently been going through a prolonged heatwave with temperatures 100°F and hotter, for more than a couple weeks.
Find Chikage on Instagram, Twitter, YouTube & Facebook at @ChikageWeather.
Episode 10: Fred Doyle; Mount Washington Road Race & decades in the running industry with Nike & Saucony
Fred Doyle was a treat to have on the podcast. He has a long history with running and coaching, including 25 years at Nike as the Director of Running Commerce and then Saucony for another eight years as VP. Most recently he has been the high school running coach at Tewksbury High School, in the Boston area. He has witnessed the big running boom first hand and the gear enhancements over the last few decades. Fred shared some amazing stories about some interesting weather situations like running to the top of Mount Washington, but there was no safe way to get runners back to the bottom, once they reached the finish at the top. He also encountered some rough seas that gave him a challenge to get to the starting line of another race and how about trying to get beat up mid-race, but his sweat saved him. Sit back, or lace up, and enjoy! Fred coach running camps in the Boston area. If you are interested in checking them out: XC Project & The Speed Project.
Episode 9: Dave Parsons; Flying Pig Marathon
Dave Parsons will tell you that it pays to run. He has a special skill at finding money while he runs and he shares his secrets to getting paid to run. He is also an ambassador for NOXGEAR, a company that I personally love as well, and if you are interested in getting some new gear to light up yourself at night for safety then feel free to use his code DPONTHEGO2, for the best discount you can find online. There isn't much to keep Dave from getting his miles done and I am excited to catch up with him to talk about recent races and his upcoming races... Spoiler alert, he had a race following this recording and he did manage to get his PR goal for the 50k.
Dave's Instagram: www.instagram.com/dp_on_the_go Dave's Strava: https://www.strava.com/athletes/14150950
For Noxgear: https://www.noxgear.com/ (Don't forget the code DPONTHEGO2)
Episode 8: The Buck Fifty Relay Race, Dave Huggins, & B-TEAM
This is a little different style of episode. I recently ran The Buck Fifty, a 150 mile relay race around Southern Ohio. There are 5 person and 10 person teams and all the money raised for the event helps the a local chapter of Drug Free Club of America. The local area has been featured in documentaries on the opioid epidemic. So local youth and race organizers wanted to stop the problem before it started. The local community buy-in and involvement in this race is phenomenal and the volunteers are top-notch. What is also unique is that the relay race inspires the team to dig deep for their 4-7 miles legs for the race that runs around Ross County including three state parks: Great Seal, Tar Hollow, and Scioto Trails. And it would not be an episode of Weathering The Run without weather getting involved and this race delivered some very wet weather for all of the 87 teams.
So I sat down with the race director to talk about this year's event, that I took part in. The race had a lightning delay because of very strong storms that went through the area along with some hail and rain that lasted for hours. After talking with Dave Huggins, the race director I catch up with the B-TEAM. This was the 5 person relay team that I was on and it was a great experience.
To find out more about the race, visit their website: https://www.thebuckfifty.com/
Episode 7: Chris Ward, Like a Bigfoot
It was a pleasure to sit down and chat with Chris Ward. You may already know him from his Like A Bigfoot podcast, which has more than 300 episodes where Chris talks with amazing endurance athletes. Chris loves a challenge and we caught up, on some of his recent adventures. From running across the desert a couple times to then doing a documentary on the Desert Rats, 150 mile stage race. The documentary is called "A Long Way from Nowhere", and it does not disappoint. Chris is also a father to young kids so we talked a little about squeezing in the running time or adventures while also juggling other responsibilities.
Links:
Documentary: A Long Way from Nowhere
Episode 6: John Kelly; Barkley Marathons, Wainwrights, Pennine Way, & other FKTs/adventures
Honored to chat with John Kelly in this episode. He has completed the Barkley Marathons TWICE and has a list of multi-day FKT (Fastest Known Time) records. We chat about how weather plays a big part in his endeavors and the gear planning for events when the forecast becomes less certain for multi-day mountainous challenges.
John's big sponsors are La Sportiva and Ultimate Direction. His website & blog is randomforestrunner.com with amazing write-ups to his races and events, along with links to his social media accounts.
Episode photo taken by Stacey Holloway, while John tackled the Grand Rounds.
Episode 5: Andy Salamone; Southern Lakes Ultra
Andy Salamone just completed the Southern Lakes Ultra, a 7-day staged race in New Zealand. Torrential rains arrived hours earlier than expected and this stranded some runners in the mountains with temperatures near freezing. Some runners experienced hypothermia and helicopters were used for rescue. Andy shares his story of what happened and some of the challenges he experienced. Andy's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mybandinc/
Episode 4: Jennifer Russo; Ohio & Big's Backyard Ultra
Episode 3: Star Blackford; Badwater 135
From being a human popsicle to running in the hottest place on earth, we talk to Star Blackford. She is gearing up to run Badwater 135, the toughest footrace on earth, across Death Valley.
Star ran Badwater 135 in 2015 and often helps crew other runners for the race.
Link to Star's blog: http://starstrees.blogspot.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/star.blackford
Instagram: @seblackford
Episode 2: Samuel Hartman; challenges of wet snow & ultrarunning gear geekout
Samuel is a race director for some of the most challenging and hilly races in Ohio.
He was also the crew chief last year for Harvey Lewis for the Barkley Marathon.
We talk about wet snow vs. dry snow on a recent mountain climb he did in Oregon.
Here is the Strava log from that run: www.strava.com/activities/8055325597
Sam is also a gear-head working at REI and it was great talking about different types of gear used for unique situations in the elements.
Sam's website: about.me/samuelhartman
He is the race director for TINAR Race Series: www.tinarraceseries.com/
His Strava: www.strava.com/athletes/21301536
His Instagram: www.instagram.com/sam_metal/
Episode 1: Michael Gampp; postholing and icy trails after an ice storm
We are kicking off the podcast with someone that I have shared more than a thousand miles with over the recent years: Michael Gampp.
Michael shares some of the times we have been caught in the elements and what made him want to keep pressing on. He also shares some stories about other challenging events like running a self-supported 150 mile run around the Shawnee State Park with more than 30,000 feet of climbing.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/happygampper/
Strava: https://www.strava.com/athletes/38903435
For more episodes: https://anchor.fm/weatheringtherun
Weathering The Run Trailer
Thanks for checking out Weathering The Run. This is the trailer to lay the groundwork for the plans with the podcast. The goal is to talk with runners about unique weather events that they were caught in and what they learned. I have some great guests planned and hope to even expand on the idea of "weathering" some mental challenges with some of these endurance events.