Sarah Lavender Smith – Speedgoat, Hardrock, Outdoor Retailer, and Ultra Training

Sarah Lavender Smith joins me give a fun and informative Speedgoat recap–she ran the tough 50k for the first time and has some great advice if you plan on running one day. Is it really as tough as we’ve heard? (Answer: yes.) Sarah also talks about pacing Hardrock and the mystique that goes with the run.  Just like runners, when there’s a problem on the course–in this case, her runner was behind schedule–you adapt to the situation and move forward.  We referenced Mark Tanaka (her runner) numerous times….here is his URP interview from 2015. What the vibe like last year and who’d she see out on the course? We also chat about her time at Outdoor Retailer (OR) in Utah. Sarah’s not a gear junkie, but she did make some observations about what gear she saw, which companies caught her eye, and the entrepreneurial spirit of this ridiculous sport.  Here’s the article featuring the billionaire founder of Patagoina Yvon Chouinard we spoke about. At the end of the show, we discussed some ultra marathon coaching questions posed to Sarah on the URP Patreon Page: Mental strength, altitude, build-up races and more. Sarah chose one of the questions and sent a signed copy of her fantastic book The Trail Runner’s Companion to Julie Koepke (here’s Julie’s blog) from Texas. Cool!  Interested in learning more about it? Here’s Jade’s review. Outro music by David Stango.