Dirt Church Radio Trail Running

 Kia ora e te whānau. As the sport of trail and ultramarathon running evolves, we find ourselves searching for that extra 1%. Whether it's in efficiency and speed (just witness the spectacle of the elite aid stops at Western States) or pushing that bit further, it seems like we are heading towards uncharted territory. This week on Dirt Church Radio, we bring you two interviews with athletes who know how to go the Well. Sam Harvey makes his DCR three-peat this week and talks to Andrew about (literally) running himself to a standstill as the assist in the recent world-record-breaking 118-hour/790 km knock at Dead Cow Gully. Stephen Redfern is notable for several things, including his ongoing feud with Andrew McDowall, but most recently for his (complicated) podium finish in the 400-mile self-propelled adventure through six Southern states of the USA in The Last Annual Heart of the South road race.  Dirt Church Radio- Best Enjoyed Running.--- --- --- Episode Links Sam Harvey Instagram Stephen Redfern Instagram Sam Harvey DCR 181Sam Harvey DCR 245Stephen Redfern DCR 151Sign up for the DCR AidStation newsletterThe Squadrun 4-Week Training Trial for DCR Listeners!Dirt Church Radio on InstagramDirt Church Radio on FacebookFurther Faster New ZealandEnjoy!Music by Andrew McDowall, Digicake

Kia ora e te whānau.This episode of the Aidstation leaves more questions unanswered than answered. Is finding your attention waning at a race with no end the same as disliking it? Why does Test Cricket suck? What’s wrong with Corriander? Will it be a kiwi double at Western States? Hey Andrew, can we see your buckle? Did the wikipunishment meet the wikicrime? IS putting your intention out there ultimately a bad thing or a good thing? Is it breaking our brains that our friends are good at running? All this and more in the AidStation Dirt Church Radio- Best Enjoyed Running.--- --- ---Episode LinksSign up for the DCR AidStation newsletterThe Squadrun 4-Week Training Trial for DCR Listeners!Dirt Church Radio on InstagramDirt Church Radio on FacebookFurther Faster New ZealandEnjoy!Music by Andrew McDowall, Digicake

Kia ora e te whānau. It would be easy to start this post off with something like “the internet sucks” and again, that would date us. In today’s context, the internet is, and with that comes its joys, its horrors, and the amplification of the worst angels of our psyche. In the physical world, moments come and go; in the digital world, a senseless act is immortal. Camille Herron, who returns to Dirt Church Radio for a third time, remains one of the greatest talents in our sport, having set multiple world records across various distances. In 2024, the wheels fell off over allegations of Wikipedia tampering. Contracts were lost, and the pile-on was massive and brutal. Ali Pottinger and Andrew McDowall speak with Camille about her career, the recent challenges she has faced, and where she sees our sport heading in her first podcast interview for 2025. We encourage you to have a good listen to this one, if for nothing else, for an incredible Greatest Run Ever. Dirt Church Radio- Best Enjoyed Running--- --- ---Episode LinksCamille Herron HomeCamille Herron InstagramSign up to the DCR AidStation newsletterDirt Church Merch!The Squadrun 4-Week Training Trial for DCR Listeners!Dirt Church Radio on InstagramDirt Church Radio on FacebookFurther Faster New ZealandEnjoy!

Kia ora e te whānau. It would be easy to start this post off with something like “the internet sucks” and again, that would date us. In today’s context, the internet is, and with that comes its joys, its horrors, and the amplification of the worst angels of our psyche. In the physical world, moments come and go; in the digital world, a senseless act is immortal. Camille Herron, who returns to Dirt Church Radio for a third time, remains one of the greatest talents in our sport, having set multiple world records across various distances. In 2024, the wheels fell off over allegations of Wikipedia tampering. Contracts were lost, and the pile-on was massive and brutal. Ali Pottinger and Andrew McDowall speak with Camille about her career, the recent challenges she has faced, and where she sees our sport heading in her first podcast interview for 2025. We encourage you to have a good listen to this one, if for nothing else, for an incredible Greatest Run Ever.   Dirt Church Radio- Best Enjoyed Running--- --- --- Episode Links Camille Herron Home Camille Herron Instagram Sign up to the DCR AidStation newsletterDirt Church Merch!The Squadrun 4-Week Training Trial for DCR Listeners!Dirt Church Radio on InstagramDirt Church Radio on FacebookFurther Faster New ZealandEnjoy!Music by Andrew McDowall, Digicake

Kia ora e te whānau. Join Ali Pottinger, Lucy Bartholomew, Jessie Speedy, and Nicole Bunyon for the Ultra Trail Australia Women in Trail Panel. As our Ali says at the top, there is always more to say, and this is a good place to start. Join our incredible panel for this awesome discussion on the current state and the hopeful future of women in trail. This episode is Ali going solo, running amok, as she says, and just like the women on the trail panel, this is a great place to start. Dirt Church Radio- Best Enjoyed Running.--- --- ---Episode LinksUltra Trail AustraliaLucy BartholomewJessie SpeedyNicole BunyonAli PottingerSign up to the DCR AidStation newsletterDirt Church Merch!The Squadrun 4-Week Training Trial for DCR Listeners!Dirt Church Radio on InstagramDirt Church Radio on FacebookFurther Faster New ZealandEnjoy!Music by Andrew McDowall, Digicake

Kia ora e te whānau. You’d need to have been living under a rock over the last year not to have seen one of Gary House’s videos in the ultrasphere. From satirical stitches that poke fun at the absurdity of running media to no-nonsense and practical advice to aid in your running, e.g., “Stop being so British when climbing hills” Ali and Matt speak with Gary about his somewhat circuitous route into running, his coaching business, and his leap into the digital running media world. This conversation goes all over the map. We learn that there might be a man named Dead Paul wandering around Wrexham, and that there also might be streets he can’t jog down in London, because it appears that some people can’t take a joke. Dirt Church Radio- Best Enjoyed Running--- --- ---Episode LinksGary House InstagramHouse Run ClubGary House YoutubeSign up to the DCR AidStation newsletterDirt Church Merch!The Squadrun 4-Week Training Trial for DCR Listeners!Dirt Church Radio on InstagramDirt Church Radio on FacebookFurther Faster New ZealandEnjoy!Music by Andrew McDowall, Digicake

Kia ora e te whānau. All Matt knew is that he went to Ultra Trail Australia, got home, and then a couple of hours later went to work. What he missed in that very full-on week was a cavalcade of what Men In Blazers’ podcast would only describe as sheer ultrarunning shithousery. From the William Goodge trans-Australia beef, to the Avaripa running saga and consequential PR home-run, to whatever the heck Camille was on about, through to Stephanie Gage’s win at UltraTrail Snowdonia, and a Sea Slug winning a 200-mile race, Matt asks to be caught up, and boy-howdy is he. This episode has it all. Are the crew getting on in years? Maybe. Does Matt go on about how attractive William Goodge is a bit much? Maybe.  Is Andrew protesting too hard about not finding William Goodge attractive? Also, perhaps, but look. We’re not here to split hairs. As a bonus, please enjoy Ali’s before and after chat with UTA miler sixth place woman’s finisher Dr Charlotte Lomas.  Dirt Church Radio- Best Enjoyed Running--- --- --- Episode Links Sign up to the DCR AidStation newsletterDirt Church Merch!The Squadrun 4-Week Training Trial for DCR Listeners!Dirt Church Radio on InstagramDirt Church Radio on FacebookFurther Faster New ZealandEnjoy!Music by Andrew McDowall, Digicake

Kia ora e te whānau. It’s always a party in the Blue Mountains. From the out-of-this-world scenery, to the amazing people, to the exceptional country that carries you, the Blue Mountains have it all. Add to this mix the atmosphere and celebration of Ultra Trail Australia being a UTMB world major, and you have a recipe for an incredible time. This year’s UTA live special is in three parts. In part one, Ali and Matt speak to UTA miler athletes, Vlad Shatrov, Kellie Angel, and UTA22 guns Ben Duffus and Sara Levett at the first of the DCR live shows. Part two sees Matt head out onto the trails, with the 50km athletes, speaking to Sweep Manager and running legend Jane Trumper, adaptive athlete Mick Marshall, Father and Daughter duo Harry and Jess, and some Fairmont aid station action. We then head to Part 3, where we speak to some of the 50 and 100km runners. We try to crack Dan Jones’ media training, we find out that a gorilla has no chance against 100 Caitlin Fielders, we sizzle in Beth McKenzie’s laser focus, and dig into  2023 UTA100 winner George Murray’s road to redemption in 2025. Dirt Church Radio - Best Enjoyed RunningUltra Trail Australia Home  Sign up to the DCR AidStation newsletterDirt Church Merch!The Squadrun 4-Week Training Trial for DCR Listeners!Dirt Church Radio on InstagramDirt Church Radio on Facebook Further Faster New ZealandEnjoy!Music by Andrew McDowall, Digicake

Kia ora e te whānau. This week, Ali Pottinger speaks with Hanny Allston for a special addition to the Aidstation Podcast. Hanny is a returning champion to DCR  who was with us for episode 121, all the way back in December 2020. Back then we said Hanny is based in Tasmania and is a high performance coach, owner of Find Your Feet Outdoors, former junior and senior world champion orienteer - elite trail runner and now the author of Finding My Feet, Hanny’s memoir which delves into a lot of topics including body image, mental health, and bullying, which we don’t often talk about in the trail running space, but we definitely should. This conversation focuses on the multitude of identities we have in our lives, and how we can be pigeon-holed into specific ones, and they, in turn, can define what people perceive of us, but not the whole us.  Heads up. This conversation deals with topics around perinatal mental health. Ali and Hanny are powerful women, and this is a worthwhile listen for anyone with a running Mum in their lives, or indeed, any Mum in their lives. That means most of us. Mum’s rule.  Dirt Church Radio- Best Enjoyed Running-- --- --- Episode Links Finding My Feet: My Story Trail Running Guidebook Hanny Allston Facebook Hanny Allston InstagramFind Your Feet Tours  Sign up to the DCR AidStation newsletterDirt Church Merch!The Squadrun 4-Week Training Trial for DCR Listeners!Dirt Church Radio on InstagramDirt Church Radio on FacebookFurther Faster New ZealandEnjoy!Music by Andrew McDowall, Digicake

Kia ora e te whānau. Bryon Powell is a legend. The founder of iRunFar, an Ultramarathon runner and returning Dirt Church Radio Champion. In this week’s episode of DCR, Bryon speaks with Ali and Andrew about the lessons he learnt and the stories he shared in his lifetime, packed into three days, winning the incredible Ultra Gobi 400km. Dirt Church Radio - Best Enjoyed RunningBryon Powell on Instagram iRunFar Sign up to the DCR AidStation newsletterDirt Church Merch!The Squadrun 4-Week Training Trial for DCR Listeners!Dirt Church Radio on InstagramDirt Church Radio on Facebook Further Faster New ZealandEnjoy!Music by Andrew McDowall, Digicake