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Borderlands Trail and Ultra Running

Borderlands Trail and Ultra Running

Hosted by Josh Rosenthal | Ultra Runner

BusinessEntrepreneurshipSportsHealthFitness
WebsiteRSS feed

Episodes

318

Latest episode

Aug 2026

Language

EN

About the show

Borderlands Trail and Ultra Running is a storytelling podcast for ultra runners who love this sport deeply, the iconic races, the legendary athletes, the gear, and the culture that makes all of it worth caring about. Hosted by Josh Rosenthal, founder of Borderlands Trail Running, this show exists to collect the ultra running stories that define the sport, from spending a day at Laz Lake's home to deep conversations with Scott Jurek, Dean Karnazes, Camille Herron, and the everyday runners doing extraordinary things out on the trails. This podcast covers the full world of ultra and trail running: race coverage and analysis of marquee events including Western States Endurance Run and UTMB, honest trail running shoes reviews and ultra running gear breakdowns from someone who has tested 44 pairs over 6,000 miles, and big conversations about where the sport is headed, including what dirtbag runners bring to a sport that's growing fast. This show gives ultra runners the stories, perspectives, and gear knowledge to go deeper into a sport they already love while celebrating what makes trail and ultra running unlike anything else. We'll answer questions like: - Who is Laz Lake, and why does everyone in ultra running revere him? - What makes the Barkley Marathons the hardest race in the world? - How does Western States Endurance Run work, and why is it so hard to get in? - What are the best trail running shoes and ultra running gear right now? - Who are the greatest ultra runners of all time? - What does dirtbag running culture actually mean? - How is ultra running changing, and is that a good thing? - What does it take to run a 100 mile ultra marathon? - What should ultra runners eat during training and on race day? If you want the stories, the gear, and the culture that make ultra and trail running the most addictive sport on earth, you're in the right place.

Listen to episodes

60 recent
August 13, 202639 min

Harvey Lewis | The Mind Behind the Ultras

Ultrarunning eventually becomes a mental problem. The body hurts, the race stops going to plan, and the question becomes what the best ultrarunners understand about continuing when quitting makes sense.Harvey Lewis has spent 30 years figuring that out. In part two of our conversation in Ohio, we get into the mental strategies behind Backyard Ultra, why different races require different mindsets, the failures that changed how Harvey competes, and what decades of Badwater, journey runs, and 200-milers have taught him about going farther than he thought possible.Please give us a follow, rate the podcast, and give a review.If you’re new to Borderlands, start here.Thumbnail photo by Romain MayambiTopics / Timestamps00:00 Harvey Lewis Intro01:15 The Mental Game of Ultrarunning10:47 Learning How Not to Quit14:06 Different Mindsets for Different Races16:55 Pilgrimages and Journey Runs23:31 What Failure Taught Harvey Lewis30:33 What the Best Ultrarunners UnderstandResources / LinksSalt Lake Foothills Trail Races Borderlands.ccHigh TonesRelated EpisodesUltra Running isn't Just RunningPresented by Kiprun.----Borderlands explores trail running through culture, media, and the forces shaping it.Watch on YouTubeRead on Substack

August 10, 202634 min

Harvey Lewis | The Man Behind the Ultras

Harvey Lewis is one of ultrarunning’s most accomplished endurance athletes, but the more interesting question might be how a high school civics teacher from Ohio became capable of doing any of this. Badwater, Backyard Ultras, Barkley, 250-mile runs. Harvey has built an extraordinary career without making running his entire life.I spent a morning with Harvey at his home in Ohio, days before his 16th consecutive Badwater, trying to understand what makes Harvey Harvey. We talk about the dreamer and engineer he inherited from his parents, the teachers who changed his life, how running and teaching grew together, and why the hardest races have become something closer to pilgrimages.The conversation ends somewhere more personal, with Harvey remembering the person he still imagines waiting for him when things get hard.Thumbnail photo by Romain MayambiPlease give us a follow, rate the podcast, and give a review.If you’re new to Borderlands, start here.Topics / Timestamps2:17 Harvey Lewis' Origins6:33 Harvey Lewis' Parents: The Dreamer and the Engineer18:39 Running and Teaching30:59 Running as PilgrimageResources / LinksTINAR Race Series | RegisterBorderlands.ccLa French TrailSubwhateverRelated EpisodesUltra Running isn't Just RunningPresented by Kiprun.----Borderlands explores trail running through culture, media, and the forces shaping it.Watch on YouTubeRead on Substack

August 4, 202615 min

Ciele Athletics and the Rise of Running Culture

Ciele helped change what running looked like, but the more interesting story is what sat underneath the aesthetic. This episode is for runners curious about how a hat brand became part of running culture without losing the product discipline that made it credible in the first place.What began as a film about Ciele turned into a deeper look at the rise of running as lifestyle, the influence of skate and snow culture, and the unreleased Miles hat that existed before Ciele had its name. Along the way, a portrait emerges of a brand whose visual identity was copied everywhere, while the craft, function, and ethos behind it were much harder to replicate.Please give us a follow, rate the podcast, and give a review.If you’re new to Borderlands, start here.Resources / LinksWatch the Ciele doc on YouTubeJosh Rosenthal on IGBorderlands.ccLa French TrailSubwhateverRelated EpisodesUltra Running isn't Just RunningPresented by Kiprun.----Borderlands explores trail running through culture, media, and the forces shaping it.Watch on YouTubeRead on Substack

July 28, 202619 min

Satisfy x Adidas: Who Won the Circle Pit Backlash?

The Satisfy x Adidas collaboration became one of the loudest moments in running, but almost none of the conversation was about the shoe. It became a fight over price, fashion, authenticity, and what running culture is supposed to protect.Josh and Inky Steve look at what the collaboration actually did, why Adidas seemed to gain all the upside while Satisfy absorbed the backlash, and what the circle pit revealed about how tribal running has become.Please give us a follow, rate the podcast, and give a review.If you’re new to Borderlands, start here.Resources / LinksBorderlands.ccLa French TrailSubwhateverRelated EpisodesUltra Running isn't Just RunningPresented by Kiprun.----Borderlands explores trail running through culture, media, and the forces shaping it.Watch on YouTubeRead on Substack

July 21, 202631 min

This is Trail Running Without Mountains.

Trail running in the Midwest looks different. No mountain towns. No towering peaks. Just a different kind of commitment. On the drive to Harvey Lewis's house, Josh and Sam Hartman explore what it means to build a trail running culture in flat country, and why some of the sport's deepest communities exist far from the places most runners imagine.Sam Hartman, founder of TINAR Races in Columbus, Ohio, argues that community matters more than scenery, why Midwest trail runners develop a different relationship with the sport, and how trail running becomes part of your identity when getting to the trails takes intention. It's a conversation about place, belonging, and a side of trail running that deserves far more attention.Please give us a follow, rate the podcast, and give a review.If you’re new to Borderlands, start here.Resources / LinksTINAR - Alley Trail ClassicBorderlands.ccRelated EpisodesUltra Running isn't Just RunningPresented by Kiprun.----Borderlands explores trail running through culture, media, and the forces shaping it.Watch on YouTubeRead on Substack

July 16, 202622 min

What If Your Best Running Is Still Ahead?

Hardrock 100 gave aging trail runners something many of us didn't realize we needed: hope. Ludovic Pommeret broke the course record at 50. Courtney Dauwalter won again and still walked away chasing something more. If you've ever wondered whether your best running is behind you, this conversation is for that part of you.Josh reads Bryce Carlson's essay Hardrock 100 in real time, stopping throughout to explore why Hardrock rewards wisdom as much as fitness, why experience compounds in endurance sports, and why the stories we tell ourselves about getting older might be our biggest limitation.Please give us a follow, rate the podcast, and give a review.If you’re new to Borderlands, start here.Topics / Timestamps00:00 The Unexpected Gifts of Hard Rock02:29 The Significance of Ludovic Pommeret's Wisdom as Performance06:21 Stripping Away Excuses and Embracing Aging in Running08:20 Ludovic Pomerret’s Record at 5009:39 Courtney Dauwalter’s Continued Excellence15:00 The Field Size and Competition Dynamics17:48 Remarkable Feats: Tara Dower’s Double22:37 Age as an Accumulation of WisdomResources / LinksBryce's articleBorderlands.ccLa French TrailSubwhateverRelated EpisodesUltra Running isn't Just RunningPresented by Kiprun.----Borderlands explores trail running through culture, media, and the forces shaping it.Watch on YouTubeRead on Substack

July 13, 202629 min

They Refuse to Make Toy Shoes. | Inside HOKA's Culture Strategy

HOKA has become one of the few running brands to cross into culture without losing credibility with runners. If you're building a brand, launching new products, or wondering how companies grow without abandoning what made them special, this conversation is for you.Thomas Cykana and Travis Wiseman pull back the curtain on HOKA's collaboration strategy, why they refuse to make "toy shoes," and how fashion found HOKA before HOKA ever chased fashion. It's a conversation about culture, product, trust, and the surprisingly human decisions behind one of running's fastest-growing brands.Please give us a follow, rate the podcast, and give a review.If you’re new to Borderlands, start here.Topics / Timestamps00:00Resources / LinksBorderlands.ccLa French TrailSubwhateverRelated EpisodesUltra Running isn't Just RunningJohn Ruben, founder of UnnaPresented by Kiprun.----Borderlands explores trail running through culture, media, and the forces shaping it.Watch on YouTubeRead on Substack

July 7, 202621 min

What is Borderlands Actually Building?

For the first time in months, I'm stepping away from interviews and monologues for a Borderlands Trail Running founder update.By the time this episode goes live, my family and I will be somewhere over the Atlantic, leaving Paris after two years and moving back to Salt Lake City. I came to France thinking I was building one thing and left building another. I'm leaving with a much bigger vision for what Borderlands can become.In this monologue, I share what changed during our time in Paris, the mission that continues to guide Borderlands, where I want the company to be over the next month, year, and decade, and how everything we're building fits together.In this episodeWhy Paris changed the way I think about media, culture, and BorderlandsThe mission behind Borderlands: The Heart of Trail RunningOne-month, one-year, and ten-year visions for the companyWhy Borderlands is expanding beyond podcasts The role of the website, newsletter, documentaries, YouTube, live events, Arcade, and Live on CourseThe contributors helping shape Borderlands, including Bryce Carlson, Inky Steve, Stan Van Kimmel, Christian Brecheis, and othersA look at where Borderlands is headed nextPlease give us a follow, rate the podcast, and give a review.If you’re new to Borderlands, start here.Resources / Links8 Bit Trail Running | ArcadeLive on Course [LoC]Borderlands.ccLa French TrailSubwhateverRelated EpisodesUltra Running isn't Just RunningPresented by Kiprun.----Borderlands explores trail running through culture, media, and the forces shaping it.Watch on YouTubeRead on Substack

June 29, 202628 min

Western States 2026 Analysis | 10 Things I Couldn't Stop Thinking About

Western States 2026 is over. The course records have been set, the winners crowned, and the internet has already moved on. This isn't another race recap. It's a cultural breakdown of what Western States revealed about trail running, its media, and where the sport is headed next.From Dylan Bowman becoming the voice of trail running, to Hans Troyer's fearless pacing, to why Thomas Cardin exposed a storytelling gap, Josh shares the ten ideas he couldn't stop thinking about after the biggest weekend in trail running. Along the way, he asks whether Western States has outgrown its broadcast and why the next frontier isn't better cameras, but better context.Please give us a follow, rate the podcast, and give a review.If you’re new to Borderlands, start here.Topics / Timestamps01:05 Dylan Bowman is the Voice of Trail Running/Racing04:10 The Broadcast Knows Where Everyone Is09:05 We Don't Care About Places, We Care About Stories11:38 We Interviewed the Wrong People16:14 Whose Job is it to Find Tomorrow's Stories?20:21 Hans is the Rabbit I Was Asking For21:53 American Men Ran it Like Old Days at UTMB22:46 The Race has Outgrown the Broadcast26:23 The Next FrontierResources / Links8 Bit Trail RunningBorderlands.ccSubwhateverRelated EpisodesUltra Running isn't Just RunningPresented by Kiprun.----Borderlands explores trail running through culture, media, and the forces shaping it.Watch on YouTubeRead on Substack

June 22, 202622 min

Trail Running Culture Doesn't Scale | Bob Crowley's Response

Western States and UTMB are often framed as opposite visions for the future of trail running. One protects through limits. The other protects through growth. But after publishing an episode on that tension, I received an unexpected response from Bob Crowley, former President of the International Trail Running Association (ITRA).Bob argues that both sides may be focused on the wrong thing. What follows is a conversation about culture, stewardship, local races, and whether the values that built trail running can survive success. Somewhere along the way, the debate stops being about Western States and UTMB and becomes something much bigger.Please give us a follow, rate the podcast, and give a review.If you’re new to Borderlands, start here.Resources / LinksWestern States Wants to Protect, UTMB Wants to GrowBob's Full Op-edBorderlands.ccLa French TrailRelated EpisodesUltra Running isn't Just RunningPresented by Kiprun.----Borderlands explores trail running through culture, media, and the forces shaping it.Watch on YouTubeRead on Substack

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