Gotta Run Podcast

Katie Asmuth is a Saucony sponsored ultra runner and days after her incredible performance at the 2023 Western States 100, we were fortunate enough to chat with her about her epic day from Olympic Valley to Auburn, culminating in a 4th place finish in a year where women created the biggest buzz! After 2 previous top ten performances, Katies describes how this time felt different; she embraced ever...

We first spoke with Steve Day in 2022 when he was a guest on our Canadian Trail to Western States series Ep 38. He's back in 2023 to chat about his experience at Western States 100 and his unexpected entry into the 2023 running of UTMB. Norman and Steve chat in detail about their shared experience from the training camp to the start line in Olympic Valley, all the way to the track in Auburn and on...

Kicking off our 3rd year of the Canadian Trail to Western States series is Francesco Riccadona of Stouffville, Ontario.  After 7 years of submitting qualifying races, his ticket was finally pulled! We share a similar race history with Francesco; he has completed Javelina 100, Zion 100, Bryce 100 and Rio de Lago along with Vermont 100, not to mention several local ultras. We learn about his competi...

Ultrarunner and coach Robbie Britton recently broke the 24-hour British record which has stood since 1982!  He covered a distance of 277.439 km in a  24-hour continuous race, involving laps of Ruffini Park, in Turin. He gives us insight on how he was able to achieve this amazing feat. His thirst for adventure has led him on some incredible journeys including a 650km record breaking crossing from n...

Galen Reynolds is an expat of our native Canada and when we heard he had been named to Team Canada for the upcoming World Mountain and Trail Running Championships, we jumped at the chance to chat with him. He has been tearing up the ultra scene in Europe with wins at the Dolomiti 100K, Matterhorn 100M and Swiss Peaks 360K. The longer the race, the stronger he becomes! Living in Slovenia, he has ac...

We love chatting with fellow Race Directors! Andrew Fairhurst is the co-director of North America's only qualifier of the Skyrunner World Series, billed as the most technical racing circuit in the World. The Minotaur Skyrace takes place in Crowsnest Pass, Alberta in June and features 2900 metres of elevation gain over 33 kilometres with a 12 hr time limit tells you the difficulty of this event.  A...

Edmonton based runner Priscilla Forgie had never heard of Western States 100 when she ran her first ultra back in 2019 and now, thanks to an incredible performance at The Canyons has earned herself a ticket to the big show this June. While her running history is relatively short to this point, she definitely has racked up some impressive performances at races such as Ultra-Trail Harricana, Squamis...

Arden Young from Calgary joins us to chat all things running.  Fresh off her win at The Desert Rats Trail Race where she qualified for UTMBs CCC (listen to hear more on that),  Arden has impressive performances at some big name races like Bandera 100K, Run Rabbit Run and Javelina Jundred Stateside as well as winning Lost Soul Ultra and Sinister 7 in Canada. She earned her spot on Team Canada to co...

After relocating from Florida to Utah just prior to the pandemic, Meredith Johnson was eager to find other like minded women to explore her new backyard with and thus, the Women of the Wasatch group was born. Meredith describes how the group quickly grew from 20 members to over 700 in a very short time and the unique experiences these women continue to share. Fastpacking the Pacific Crest and Appa...

In todays episode we chat with Brandon Miller fresh off his win at the Moab Run The Rocks 3 day stage race.  We met Brandon Miller at the start line of Moab Run the Rocks on Day 2, after he had won the first stage in speedy fashion! His first ultra was the Canadian Death Race in 2017, which he won describing it as a perfect day . He also racked up wins at Lost Souls in 2021 and Freaky Creeky which...

If you haven't listened to Part 1 of David Ross's adventures yet - check it out first and then come back for more! This time we cover Comrades, which he has run over 10 times, his Western States 100 2x, Leadville, his impressive Guinness World Record at the London Marathon (3:25hrs in a full 4mm wetsuit in 2013) and his goal to race in all 28 European Economic countries. We also chat about his RD...

Where do we start with David Ross? In just over 19 years of running, he has completed over 133 ultra marathons, 158 trail marathons and 170 road marathons, averaging 2 races per month which puts him #409 on the World Megamarathon List. In Part 1, we chat about the Berlin Wall 100 Miler, How he dislocated his shoulder during the Ecotrail Paris 80K, Daytona 100 and Badwater just to name a few. David...

Moab Run the Rocks - Stage 3 Recap - final leg! We are joined by Eric, Heather and Jonathan on today's final episode.  The last stage was challenging for different reasons (could be because we had already covered 64K)!! All were in agreement that the inaugural Moab Run the Rocks was an epic adventure that we won't soon forget! Kudos to Transrockies Running Events for an amazing job well done - if...

Jonathan and Helen join us once again to recap Stage 2 Gemini Rocks - a total of 40K on another incredible day of Moab Run The Rocks running. Stunning views from atop the rocks to stomach woes and everything in between. One more day to go!   Here is Stage Two Recap...   Check out GottaRunRacing website here:  gottarunracing.com Check out our YouTube Channel here - https://youtube.com/@GottaRunRaci...

We are LIVE on location in Moab, Utah for Run the Rocks presented by Transrockies Running Events to recap Stage 1 with our guests Helen Butt and Jonathan Ring. Due to inconsistent weather, the Race Directors have changed the course several times over the last 48 hours but they still came up with a doozy - 24K filled with astounding views, epic volunteers and slick rock shenanigans! Here is Stage O...

Hold on to your hats, we have a fun episode for you! We chat with 32 year old Janosch Kowalczyk from Stuttgart, Germany fresh off his third place finish at Black Canyon which earned him that sought after Golden Ticket to Western States 2023. Janosch describes his unique entry into ultrarunning and how he quit his job as an Engineer to pursue his dreams. He is no stranger to challenging races havin...

If you haven't yet heard the name Meghan Morgan, it won't be long before she becomes a regular on the ultra podium. Meghan started running with her mom as a middle-schooler, and completed the Boston Marathon at the ripe age of 17. When she switched over to the trails, she set her sights on a Western States Golden Ticket almost immediately with attempts at Bandera 100K (4th)  and The Canyons 100K (...

Anthony Costales fresh off his impressive win at Black Canyon, takes us through that epic race that earned him a Golden Ticket to Western States 100. Anthony belongs to the growing group of uber-fast marathoners (2:13 PR) that have recently taken the Ultra scene by storm. Earning his ticket and setting the new course record, Anthony's performance will be remembered as a gritty, no guts no glory ru...

We (Norm and Jodi) your hosts head down to Arizona for a training run at Aravaipa Running's Elephant Mount Trail Race, taking on the 50K distance.  We wanted to escape the Canadian winter weather for a few days and get in some desert training in preparation for Jodi's first stage race coming up in Moab, Utah - Run the Rocks. Follow along as we encounter a previous podcast guest Noel Kingston Eps #...

Paul Reader has an extensive running career with over 20 road marathons, 64 ultras and a previous WSER finish. Watching the WSER Lottery live stream this past December, you couldn't miss Paul as he anxiously awaited hearing his name to be called after 8 long years. With every name pulled from the United Kingdom, there was Paul waving the Union Jack until finally, his name was drawn during the wait...

Jenny Quilty runner and coach has been on the ultra scene for a few years now. She has made some big appearances on Canadian podiums having won the Squamish 50/50 challenge outright in 2019, 2nd female at the Canadian Death Race in 2021 and first at Ultra Trail Harricana that same year. She recently secured a Golden Ticket at Western States 100 and a spot at UTMB by winning the Doi Inthanon 100 mi...

Kevin 'Houda' McDonald is the Race Director for 5 Peaks Alberta, VP of the TransRockies stage run and RD of the newly formed Moab Run the Rocks stage race. From the first moment of our chat with Kevin, his passion for racing quickly shone through.  We enjoyed hearing about his origin story from working in two Olympic games to becoming an RD,  and his innate ability to make lifelong friends from al...

Wow Wow Wow !! What a year 2022 has been. We added 3 more trail races to our growing GottaRunRacing series and we have added more content on our YouTube Channel with more virtual runs and running adventures along with our Podcast chats. If you like what you see or hear, please be sure to give us a like, comment, review wherever you listen to us, we would really appreciate it.   Here is our 2022 ye...

Brian Gallant director of Sinister Sports found his way to race directing over twenty years ago after participating as an adventure racer for many years.  His company, Sinister Sports, produces some of Canada's most iconic ultras including Sinister 7, the Canadian Death Race, Black Spur and recently announced, The Divide 200 - Western Canada's only 200 miler. We chatted with him days before the li...

It's hard to imagine that Amanda Nelson from Woodstock, Ontario started her ultra journey only two short years ago as she's accomplished so much already!  She is the current Canadian female record holder in the 12 hour (with 134 km) and the 100-mile in 14hrs 45min, both achieved at the Survivorfest Ultra in Alberta. Her 33 hrs at Persistence Ultra earned her a spot on the Canadian roster for the W...