Joanny is a Canadian runner who, to celebrate her and her husband's 40th birthdays, trained for an 80K, that's 240Ks for their two 40th birthdays. 80Ks is basically 50 miles for my fellow Americans. Having run some road half marathons, Joanny was drawn to trail and ultra running with its acceptance of different paces, collective cooperation, and mutual support. I really appreciated hearing her approach to an injury during her training that required her to consider actually taking time off from running. I think you will enjoy listening to how thoughtful Joanie is about her training. I hope you enjoy this episode.

Jeff Cady is this week's guest, and this summer he ran his first official 50k race at Go Beyond Racing's Volcanic 50k. Jeff has a long history of running and mountaineering, and along the way has experienced some major injuries. Jeff recounts his story of bouncing back from injury and following a plan to get himself ready for a tough 50k around Mt. St. Helens.

In this episode, we meet Antonia Timmer, who attempted the Tahoe 200 this spring. Antonia's journey into ultra running began under the most challenging of circumstances, a stage four melanoma diagnosis. Her doctor recommended walking as a way to cope with the fatigue caused by chemotherapy. And over time, Antonia started running and then increased her distance to eventually training for and running ultra marathons, all in between her chemotherapy sessions.

In this episode of Ultra Origins, we speak with Ben Standhardt, a runner who was so inspired by a video of my running Moab 240 that he transformed from a self-proclaimed non-runner into an ultra runner in just over a year. Ben's story is one of resilience, determination, and the power of setting ambitious goals.

In this episode, we meet Joe Hardin, who shares his journey of hitting rock bottom due to alcohol and substance abuse, then turning to exercise and running, which led to his finishing his first 100K this spring. Joe is also now a podcaster hosting a new podcast called "Beyond the Finish Line with Joe Hardin". We had some technical snags during the recording of this episode, so it looks and sounds a little different than normal, but I hope you enjoy the conversation.

In this episode we meet Lulu Martinez, a good friend of my wife Leah and me who we originally met while Lulu's husband Joe and I were both running the Triple Crown of 200s in 2022. While Lulu has been running ultras for a while now, this year she finished her first 200 miler at the Tahoe 200. After witnessing first hand the trials of 200 mile runners from the perspective of being a crew member, she knew she wanted the experience for herself. I hope you enjoy Lulu's inspiring journey to the place where miracles happen.

In this episode, we meet Elliot Waldock from North Dakota. Elliot is a fan of the channel, and I happened to meet him while I was volunteering at the 2023 Crazy Mountain 100 in Montana. Elliot ran his first 50k in 2020, and in the short time following has racked up several Ultra finishes, all with the goal to eventually tackle the 200 mile distance. This year, Elliot achieved his goal and finished not only the Cocodona 250, but also the Tahoe 200.

In this episode, we talk to Justin Handlin from Houston, Texas. I met Justin in April at the Ancient Lakes 50K, where he ran his first 50K. At the time, my mind was playing with the idea of this series, and meeting him gave me more desire to want to make this series real, so it was really exciting for me to invite him on to share his story. Justin talks about the significance of consistent training and shares how as a father of three small kids, he sometimes had to get creative to get his training in. And through the magic of the internet, he spoke to us from Spain, where he and his family are traveling this summer. So let's meet Justin Handlin