Dabbling In Paddleism Podcast

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Candi Hill and David Miller to chat about their back-to-back mixed tandem victories and course record for the Suwannee 230. We cover so much in this episode from couch to the MR340, the Kansas/Missouri paddling community, going from never met to racing an ultra the next day, navigating swamps, how electrolytes can affect paddling technique, double vs. s...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Steve Schnarr of Missouri River Relief and the sitting Race Director of the MR340. We cover so much in this episode from the community-centric programs Missouri River Relief provides and how they transform lives as well as the river, the story behind MRR becoming involved with the MR340, how the race has evolved over the years, the MR340 culture of shar...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with David Horkan, Irish ultramarathon paddler, adventurer, guide, and coach who just came in 3rd place K1 in the Vohondu Marathon in Estonia. We cover so much in this episode from getting started paddling at a young age through canoe polo, crossovers between show jumping horses and kayaking, the importance of consistent practice, the Liffey Descent, the Dev...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Kendra Leibel & BeaV Vollhaber two adventurers and ultramarathon paddlers with a preference for unsupported challenges. I first want to give a shoutout to Joseph Gerard who suggested I interview these two last year. We cover so much in this episode from wing nights to backcountry Alaska living, the Everglades Challenge and the Water Tribe, resume buildi...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Matt Taylor and Bobby Johnson, two elite ultramarathon paddlers out of Alabama and Florida, respectively, who have won back-to-back Suwannee 230 titles in ’24 and ’25 as well as the 2025 Alabama 650 as a team. We cover so much in this episode from learning from failure, the Texas Water Safari, broken boats that bring a team together better than Flex Tap...

In this episode, Chris Thomas gives his firsthand account of the 2026 California River Quest including the conditions, boat selection, and challenges along the course. Additionally, he discusses ways in which listeners can support the show at www.dabblinginpaddleism.com via a new merch store, membership opportunities that come with custom gear that only members will have access to, as well as dona...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Trey Reaves and Emily McNeil, two highly accomplished paddlers who just came out on top in the 2026 Everglades Challenge. After meeting both of these characters in the 2023 Yukon 1000 it was great to sit down with them together and chat about how they both came through for each other in a solid team win in the EC. We cover so much in this episode from t...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Jennifer Fratzke, ultramarathon paddler, coach, and podcaster. We cover so much in this episode from the Sea Paddle NYC, the MR340, the importance of the mental aspect of training, fishing as a cross training activity, power napping for performance, the Seventy48 race, YRQ, Alabama 650, paddling for vengeance, the Adirondack Canoe Classic, hypothermia,...

So this episode is going to be a bit different as I not only have one or two guests, but a cornucopia of them. Back in the early episodes of the show I asked paddlers to reach out to me if there were specific topics they’d like me to cover and this episode is courtesy of Chuck Scheidt reaching out. His question was, “how do paddlers get themselves rested for a race? In particular the two weeks (or...

This is the law of the Yukon and ever she makes it plain. Send not your foolish and feeble. Send me your strong and your sane. This is the Robert Service poem my guest today recites minutes before paddlers begin the Yukon 1000. In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Jon Frith, U.K. Army veteran, adventurer, expedition leader and guide for wounded veterans, and race director of the Yukon 1000...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Mike Malone, veteran, paddler, crew support extraordinaire, and paddling coach. We cover so much in this episode from his early days as an elite swimmer, why he gravitates to coaching and crewing ultramarathon paddling over competing, pitfalls crew support often fall into, tips for getting out of in-race funks, approach to training with focused sets and...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Bruce Smith, former ultramarathon runner and ironman athlete and now elite ultramarathon stand up paddle boarder out of Northeast England. Bruce is coming off of a massive year winning the inaugural Eliminator race in the U.K. and completing 48 laps including 2 super laps in the 2025 Last Paddler Standing. We cover so much in this episode from a career...

Hello to all the paddlers out there. First of all, thank you so much for listening to the show! I’ve had so much outpouring support lately and it really means more than you know. Today’s show isn’t really a show or even an episode, but more of a public service announcement. I wanted to let all the paddlers out there know that I just launched a website for the show which you can find at www.dabblin...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Scott Baste, mountain biker and ultramarathon stand up paddle boarder out of Atlanta, Georgia, now hailing from Western North Carolina. One of Scott’s many paddling career highlights thus far is completing the Everglades Challenge 4 years in a row on SUP and is the only person to complete that race more than 2 times on SUP. This is certainly impressive...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Anne-Marie Reichman Totah out of the Netherlands, currently hailing from Hawaii. Anne-Marie is a former elite professional windsurfer, now stand up paddle boarder and founded the SUP 11 Cities Tour. We cover so much in this episode from elite competitive windsurfing, long distance ice skating, starting stand up paddle boarding in 2008 only to launch a m...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Mike Carson, ultramarathon runner and stand up paddle boarder out of Michigan, currently hailing from Alabama. In the past year Mike completed the Vol State 300 mile journey run, made it to the super lap in Last Paddler Standing, and won the Across the Years Last Man Standing running backyard ultra. We cover so much in this episode from ultramarathon ru...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Rod Price, legendary ultramarathon paddler originally from South Carolina and now hailing just outside Orlando, Florida. Rod is a highly decorated ultramarathon paddler and is just coming off his 11th start and 11th win in the Everglades Challenge, but that doesn’t even scratch the surface of all his paddling accomplishments. We cover so much in this ep...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Jeff Kay out of California, ultramarathon paddler and co-founder/race director of the California River Quest. We cover so much in this episode from getting into paddling by invitation, the transition from short paddle races to ultramarathons, the history of the California 100 and his journey in founding the California River Quest, race safety precaution...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with John Astbury & Rich Winstanley, two paddlers out of the U.K. that battled significant adversity in the 2024 Yukon 1000 but refused to give up. We cover so much in this episode from the sprinting world of paddling, the Devizes to Westminster, the importance of trusting a partner, training for Lake Laberge around the Isle of Wight, paddling 800+ miles wit...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Lillian Nelson and Izzy Nicolier, 25 year old canoeists, dog mushers, and adventurers hailing from Alaska. Both have just finished the Alabama 650 in 2025 and the Yukon 1000 in ’24 with plenty of endurance adventuring as well. We cover so much in this episode from the Yukon 1000 race, source to sea on the Yukon, the Great Alabama 650, revisiting an air...

In this episode, Chris Thomas sits down with Jeremy Stanton and up and coming stand up paddle boarder out of Ozark, Missouri who just tied for 4th place overall completing one full super lap in the 2025 Last Paddler Standing. We cover so much in this episode from the MR340, Chattajack, the importance of being curious, nutrition and sleep strategies, Last Paddler Standing, using joy as a fuel, supp...

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...

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 distan...

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...

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 F...