Off The Couch

Today we’ve got some race recaps for you; our initial impressions of Saucony’s Switchback2 (which features the BOA system); and we discuss the arrival of the first carbon-plated trail shoe, The North Face's Flight Vectiv. TOPICS & TIMES: Race Recap: Moab Red Hot (2:05) Race Recap: Black Canyon Ultras (8:52) Review: Saucony Switchback2 (15:03) Carbon-plated trail shoes have arrived (24:26) Host...

My Off The Couch co-host Brendan Leonard has a new book coming out, so I talked to Brendan about zen koans, piñatas, other running books, kids, alternate titles for the book, and why Jonathan thinks that you should read this book whether you hate running, or love it. TOPICS & TIMES Best Table of Contents Ever? (2:00) Who is the book for? (4:23) Alternate titles  (11:09) Running books &amp...

Brendan Leonard & Jonathan Ellsworth talk to Mike Foote , who on 12.31.20, headed out with fellow The North Face athlete, Rob Krar, to attempt an FKT of the Rim to Rim to Rim “alt” route of the Grand Canyon. So Brendan and I caught up with Mike to get his version of events, and we discuss a number of interesting and important topics that show just how terrific and thoughtful of a person Mike i...

Brendan Leonard & Jonathan Ellsworth talk to Ed Roberson, the creator of The Procrastinator’s Punishment 50k; the host of the excellent Mountain & Prairie podcast ; and the author of a fantastic Books Recommendation series . So we talked to Ed about all of the above, and more. TOPICS & TIMES: Ed’s podcast,  Mountain & Prairie  (1:52) The Procrastinator’s Punishment 50k (9...

Zoë Rom is a runner / scrambler / climber; reader; writer; and host of the DNF Podcast . And we talk about all of this plus her interest in continuing to deepen and enrich running culture; the very specific way to win her heart; getting cut from the cross country team in high school; winning her first ultra with the help of Oreos & Fireball; her FKT on Capitol Peak; what she’s reading, watchin...

Brendan Leonard and I talk with Peter Bromka , a runner that grew up in Portland, ran at Tufts University in Boston, started trail running around San Francisco, and now, is back in Portland where he runs for the Bowerman Track Club Elite Program. But in addition to training hard and running fast, Peter is focused on writing about running itself. And in this conversation, you’ll hear more about how...

Most of you are familiar with the BOA fit system, but do you know what BOA is up to today? Or maybe you’ve thought, What’s wrong with regular shoe laces? We went to the BOA Performance Fit Lab to learn more; hear why they see a big opportunity in trail running shoes; and see how they are working with companies to optimize products. TOPICS & TIMES: BOA’s background & the Performance Fit Lab...

Our guest today is Matt Hart , author of the book, Win at All Costs: Inside Nike Running and its Culture of Deception , which is an important book that everyone interested in competitive athletics should read. We talk to Matt about how he got interested in and involved with this story; whether we should just make all performance-enhancing drugs legal in all sports; who is most to blame for PED use...

If you are interested in product design and the process of innovation, then you need to listen to this conversation. Jean-Luc Diard started as an intern at Salomon, developed the first shaped ski, became the CEO at Salomon, played a major role in the development of Salomon’s running shoes, moved on to found Hoka One One, and is currently the VP of Innovation for the Deckers Group, where he current...

Billy Yang is (among other things) a runner, filmmaker ( Billy Yang Films ), podcast host ( Billy Yang Podcast ), and someone who has been chronicling the sport of running in a fashion that is often beautiful, and always inspiring. In this conversation, Brendan Leonard and Jonathan Ellsworth talk to Billy about everything from cigarette brands to the need for more compassionate critical thinking i...

Today we’re putting our Off The Couch co-host, Brendan Leonard ( semi-rad.com ) in the interviewee seat to hear about his recent FKT; his review of his FKT route and whether you should do it; movies; his current running program; gas station donuts; how well he deals with deadlines; some of his current and upcoming projects, and more. TOPICS & TIMES: Brendan’s new FKT (7:27) Interlude: movie ta...

Six months ago, professional skier, Cody Townsend , hated running. Now he loves it. So what happened?? And will his current training program really get him ready to ski tour up and down some of the gnarliest peaks in North America for his ongoing Fifty Project ? If you have ever found yourself in the “I hate running” camp, you should listen to this episode. WATCH THE CONVERSATION ON OUR YOUTUBE CH...

Brendan Leonard and Jonathan Ellsworth talk to Kaytlyn Gerbin about her work as a bioengineer, the Rainier Infinity Loop; running ultras vs mountaineering; why scientists make good ultra runners; cheating on snowboarding; and a whole lot more.  TOPICS & TIMES Kaytlyn tries to remember the name of her dissertation (2:21) Describe the Rainier Infinity Loop? (6:35) Choosing projects / runnin...

Last Saturday, Blister reviewer & accomplished ultrarunner, Maddie Hart, ran the Emma Coburn Elk Run 5k with Blister founder & very unaccomplished runner, Jonathan Ellsworth, and they recorded the experience. Hilarity (and embarrassment) ensued, but it was all for a great cause: Living Journeys . Check it out. TOPICS & TIMES: Running attire (5:50) Maddie’s FKT attempt(10:33) 5k Update:...

Coree Woltering is definitely one of the most interesting ultrarunners out there, so Brendan Leonard and Jonathan Ellsworth talked to Coree about the one time when a catcall actually worked; why the running world needs to stop overlooking midwestern athletes; Quick Trip burgers and how to remove ticks and deal with bird-sized mosquitoes; and the injury and the miracle that happened while he was se...

Ryan Hall is a two-time Olympian, holds the U.S. record in the half marathon, and is the only American to run a sub-2:05:00 marathon. But these days, Ryan has cut back quite a bit on his running, and is currently far more focused on lifting — and his transformation from a ~130 lb. worldclass runner to ~180 lb. bodybuilder is wild. But that’s not the only wild thing Ryan’s got going on — he just co...

Ever feel like you aren’t — or couldn’t ever possibly be — a “real” runner? Most of us have, which is why most of us need to meet Kelly Roberts . Kelly is good at making us feel fine about the fact that we sometimes hate running. And she’s equally good at helping us continue to run — or walk, or bike, or just keep moving. So we talk to Kelly about her moving (and hilarious) entrance into running;...

We talk to 3-time Olympian, Simi Hamilton , about XC skiing and running; competition & competitive drive; his recent win of the Audi Power of 4; and Jonathan Ellsworth tries to instigate a battle between Simi and a previous Off The Couch guest. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we take a look at the trends in running shoes for 2020. Jonathan Ellsworth is joined by Maddie Hart and Gordon Gianniny to talk about knit uppers on trail shoes (??), massive heels, marketing copy, and we even design our own ‘Blister Pro’ shoe. Then we wrap up by talking about a few current events and get Maddie and Gordon’s upcoming plans. TOPICS & TIMES: Current Running Shoe Trends...

What do Taco Bell, the Harlem Globetrotters, a twisted femur, & Rocky Balboa have in common? They’ve all played a role in the journey of Camille Herron to become a world champion runner and a multiple world record holder — and Camille still has some very big plans. So Brendan Leonard and Jonathan Ellsworth talk with Camille about all of the above, including her unusual path to trail running, a...

Noah Brautigam just won the Speedgoat 50K — a very tough race that includes nearly 12,000 feet of total climbing and takes place mostly above 9,200 feet on a rocky, rooty, steep course. A few days after winning, Noah sat down with us in Blister HQ to provide a very fresh and very fun recap of the race, and describe what tweaks were made to allow the event to happen in these times of COVID. We also...

Martinus Evans is the founder of 300poundsandrunning.com , the founder of the Slow AF Run Club , a marathon runner, a DJ, the host of the 300 Pounds And Running podcast , and more. And this week, Brendan Leonard and I talk to Martinus about modern media, being a Black runner in 2020, DJ-ing, motivation, Detroit pizza vs. Chicago pizza, the Slow AF Run Club Martinus started, and more. TOPICS &...

Brendan Leonard and Jonathan Ellsworth talk to Amelia Boone about being a world champion obstacle racer; transitioning into trail running & racing; mental health & eating disorders; ElliptiGos, mtn lions, & more. TOPICS & TIMES  Mtn Lions, Bears, Snakes, & Sharks (2:24) Amelia’s background (7:24) Intro to Tough Mudder (10:35) Competing & Practicing Law (18:03) Getting...

Addie Bracy is an accomplished runner who thinks hard about the psychology of sports performance. So we talk to Addie about her background and how it led her to the study of sports performance psychology; the book she is now writing on the topic; and OUTrun , the organization she founded with her partner, Corey Conner, to empower and connect LGBTQ+ individuals within the running community and to c...

The Skid Row Running Club is “an unusual running club that uses the power of running to improve the lives of those who are at risk of homelessness and addiction” in the Skid Row area of Los Angeles, California. And this week we talk to the club founder, Judge Craig Mitchell, about why he started the club; his background as a runner, highschool teacher; the duty of police officers to protect and se...