Lane One Podcast

Wesley Shoup went from being a football player to running ultramarathons. We chat with Wesley about his journey to running ultramarathons and what he hopes to accomplish on The Longest Day ever. On Saturday June 24th he plans on running from sunup to sundown. He hopes to run 50 miles but is shooting for 75. The start and finish are located at the Casino/Village Pier on St Simons Island, GA and he'll follow a loop around the Island.He will be 100% self supported except for inspiration from those that come out to join him and cheer him on and bring him pop tarts. Wesley is also hoping to raise funds for a local non profit. All proceeds raised will go to The Farm at Oatland. https://www.givesignup.org/DonationWebsite/TheLongestDayEver The Farm at Oatland North is an animal sanctuary located on the north end of St. Simons Island. In the 1700's the land was known as Oatland Plantation. The Farm rescues and provides sanctuary for abused, neglected, and abandoned animals. At The Farm, animals learn to trust again and have a chance to thrive and live out their lives in peace, comfort, dignity, and love.

Back from our short break!  We went on a run with Jean Knaack.  Jean and I first met when I was the Georgia state representative for the Road Runners Club of America (RRCA). She is the Chief Executive Officer of the RRCA where she has served in the role since 2005.  She is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin at Green Bay where she earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Human Nutrition. She earned a Master’s of Public Administration with a concentration in nonprofit management from George Mason University. She has extensive skills in organizational and financial development, board and member relations, and program planning and implementation.  She finished the inaugural Ironman Louisville (2007), Ironman France (2009), Ironman Coeur D’Alen (2010), and DNF’d Ironman Maryland (2017).  You can learn more about the Road Runners Club of America at www.rrca.org.

We sat down with Mireya and learned about her journey to running in the Western States 100 Endurance Run.  She started running in high school but it was her experience of crewing for her husband when he ran, and won, the Angeles Crest 100 that inspired her to give the 100 mile distance a shot.  In 2021 she earned a Golden Ticket to Western States via the Black Canyon 100k and set her sights on cracking the top ten on her run from Olympic Valley to Placer High school.  She hopes that her experience will also inspire Latinas to learn about the sport of ultra running and bring more Latinos into the sport.

Friends! In our thirteenth episode we sat down with Ryan Van Duzer!  As you're about to find out he likes to ride his bicycle.  After completing his Peace Corps service Ryan didn't fly back home to Colorado.  Instead he road his bicycle from Honduras to Boulder, CO. Since then he's completed many two wheeled adventures and shares his story on his YouTube Channel.  You can learn more about Ryan at www.duzertv.com.    A quick program note.  Our internet connection was giving us trouble throughout the interview and chopped of the last ten minutes.

Coach Jacob Puzey is the Director of Peak Run Performance (PRP) based in Canada.  PRP provides individual run coaching to athletes of all levels in all corners of the world and they organize several races throughout the year.  Jacob is also an accomplished runner and has set records and won championships throughout his storied career.  Jacob and I first connected when he was my coach and help me train for my first 100 mile run.  You can learn more about Jacob and Peak Run Performance at www.peakrunperformance.com. This episode is sponsored by the Quintanar Running Co.  Q running works to empower individuals and communities through running.

Jill Homer claims not to be very athletic but her race resume tells a different tale.  After a move to Alaska she started a blog to keep her friends updated on her transition to living up north.  She then decided to sign up for a 100 mile winter mountain bike race and turned the blog into a training diary. The rest as they say is history.  She eventually decided to ride the divide and tackled the longest and hardest mountain bike race in North America.  You can read about her adventures at http://www.jilloutside.com/.  Learn about the Tour divide here: https://bikepacking.com/event/tour-divide-2021/

We sat down with Sam Woodside who had the distinct pleasure of pacing me from mile 62 to the finish of the Western States 100 endurance run.  Sam shares her history with running and how she came to love ultra marathoning.  Since 2016 she completed a couple of degrees and continues adventuring.  She even shared a "room" with Jim Walmsley.

I sat down with Craig Thornley whose day job is race directing the Western States 100.  Craig has been the race director since 2013 and he shared details and stories that extend beyond just the running part.  He has also run the race on several occasions and is one race shy of having run the event ten times.  Prior to his RD duties for Western he was a co-founder of the very popular Waldo 100k and he’s also an avid rock climber.  At the time of our conversation they were still up in the air about whether or not Western would be a go but if you’re following the race you know its ON!!! You can learn more about Western States at www.wser.org.

We sat down and chatted with Rhonda Hampton the race director for the Umstead 100 Mile Endurance Run.  Held annually at the Umstead State park in Raleigh, NC this 100 mile race is the perfect event for the first time hundo runner.  Organized by the North Carolina Ultra Running Association and one of the most organized event this side of the Appalachian Mountains.  The race holds a registration lottery in September and it fills all 250 slots within minutes.  Umstead is also a Western States qualifier and that's how I got into States.  You can learn more about Umstead at www.umstead100.org and you can find them on facebook.

We sat down with Jay Holder and chatted with him about his running history and his role as the director for marketing and communication for the Atlanta Track Club.  You can learn more about the track club by visiting www.atlantatrackclub.org