The Ostrich Running Podcast

Mason Wright—aka The Buff Runner—is back on the podcast after doing the unthinkable: running 421 miles across the entire state of Utah. In this episode, we break down the run mile by mile, pain cave by pain cave, from the early injury scare to the final steps across state lines. Mason opens up about the mental game behind multi-day suffering, what surprised him most out there in the desert, and wh...

The One Where We Get Sweaty In this episode, we sit down with Joseph Proctor, aka Apache Joe—a husband, father of three, and a former high school and college runner who took a 23-year detour through the chaos of mental health struggles before lacing up again. What brought him back? Nose breathing, miles in the dark, and something deeper that couldn’t be ignored. We dive into Joe’s raw and honest j...

Episode 10 – The One Where Everyone Wears Hokas This week, Nick and Jarett dive headfirst into one of the most lopsided questions in endurance sports: why are ultra runners broke while pro athletes in other sports cash seven-figure checks for playing less than three hours a week? We break down the OC Marathon results, highlight the early buzz around Cocodona 250, and explore whether increasing pri...

The One Where I Reflect: Is It the Finish Line or the March That Matters? escription: In Episode 9, Nick flies solo and dives deep into some of the biggest questions we face as runners — and as people. First, we reflect on our conversation with Dr. Jaimie Lusk about whether running truly heals us... or sometimes just hides the real work we need to do. Then, we explore the massive new partnership b...

Episode 8: The One Where the Rat Inside Got Quiet Guest: Dr. Jaimie Lusk, PsyD In this episode, we dive into the deep end of what fuels us to run — and what we’re sometimes running from. Dr. Jaimie Lusk, a licensed psychologist and ultra-runner, joins us to explore the powerful intersection of trauma recovery, mental health, and endurance sports. We talk about how ultra-running can be a path to he...

Episode 7 – Dante Liberato: 500 Miles, Psychedelics, and the Edge of Human Potential Ultra runner, psychonaut, and performance coach Dante Liberato joins us to unpack the layers behind his jaw-dropping 500-mile run — a journey that fuses endurance, trauma, recovery, and altered states of consciousness. We dig into: The mental preparation behind extreme distance How psychedelics became part of Dant...

In this episode, Nick and Jarett dive deep (and maybe too deep) into what makes the running community feel a little... culty. Nick opens up about how running became his outlet for chaos, and Jarett asks the real questions: When your life revolves around weekly mileage, hallucinating during ultras, and worshipping electrolytes — is that a sport, or are you in a robe chanting “PRs over everything”? ...

Episode 5 – The Buff Runner: Mason Wright on Breaking the Mold and Running with Purpose This week on The Ostrich Running Podcast, we’re joined by Mason Wright, better known as The Buff Runner—a powerlifting football player turned ultra athlete who’s rewriting the rules of endurance sports. Mason doesn’t fit the typical runner mold, and he doesn’t want to. From facing judgment in the community to f...

In this episode of The Ostrich Running Podcast, we sit down with Cody Novini—a man on a mission to push himself beyond limits, even when he hates running. Cody shares his unconventional journey into endurance sports, which began on a whim when he signed up for a half marathon the night before the race. From there, he dove headfirst into the deep end, tackling sprint triathlons, Ironman events, and...

Episode 3: Are Ultra Runners Just Crazy? Welcome to The Ostrich Running Podcast! Today, we’re tackling the age-old question every ultra runner has been asked: Are we all just crazy? 🤪  Why do people willingly sign up for races that leave them sleep-deprived, in pain, and questioning their life choices at mile 80? Is it about self-discovery, mental resilience, or just pure suffering for suffering’...

What if your phone screen time depended on how much you moved? In this episode of The Ostrich Running Podcast, we sit down with Garrett Eledui, a software engineer, father, and aspiring runner who created an app that exchanges one minute of exercise for one minute of screen time. We dive into: ✅ How his app is changing the way people think about fitness & screen addiction ✅ The psychology of...

Welcome to the very first episode of the Ostrich Running Podcast! Hosted by ultra runner Nick Meraz and co-host Jarett "The Juice" Horton, this show dives into the wild world of long-distance running, training struggles, race stories, and the bizarre reasons people push their limits. In this debut episode, we introduce the podcast, share our own running journeys (or lack thereof—looking at you, Ja...