Aside from the myriad of preparations I do for an ultra race, from the physical to the mental, I also bring my why to the start line. I’m never going to run a 50k, let alone a 100-miler, just for the hell of it. If anyon...
Articles by Clare Gallagher
I used to drown my ears on my runs. News podcasts, history podcasts, running podcasts, electronic, indie rock, audiobooks—the input was constant. Once while training for Leadville, I listened to Michael Lewis’s Boomer...
Luke Nelson started running, in part, because of his desire to be in the mountains with less of a risk than climbing or kayaking. After years of climbing, kayaking, ski patrolling and river guiding, Nelson readily too...
As ultrarunning becomes more popular, it’s imperative that we learn, follow, and share Leave No Trace (LNT) principles with our running buddies. There’s never an excuse to litter and we must continue to hold each other to these standards whether we’re in an urban park, a remote wilderness or at mile 85 of a 100-miler. Here are the seven basic tenets.
For the most part, runners don’t litter. According to legendary ultrarunner and adventurer, Buzz Burrell, this has remained true for generations. When Burrell and his FastestKnownTime.com co-founder, Peter Bakwin, al...
“I can’t do much by myself, but I can do this and that’s a good start,” said Tara Warren a few days before sending runners up Malan’s Peak in Ogden, Utah, for this year’s Running Up For Air (RUFA). Warren is the race...
When running on trails, it’s easy to dismiss the work it takes to maintain miles of natural habitat. Consider the number of trees that must be removed after a storm, or the wearing away of dirt after excessive water f...
This summer, instead of dreading forest fire season, I tried to roll with the punches. I made plans. I adapted my plans when the AQI was horrible. But I tried to not avoid making plans in fear of bad air quality. In a...
Running through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, America’s most visited wilderness area, is not for the faint of heart. But the views and wildlife – countless fish species, moose, loons, river otters, bears – make it so worth it.
From a young age, I’ve worried about the fate of humanity and planet Earth. Often, I feel hopeless and inconsequential as a mere individual, unable to help save our home planet without the collective action of governm...
I grew up in the sprawling suburbs south of Denver. It was on a 70-mile, crushed gravel path that runs through Denver – the Highline Canal – that my love for running blossomed. Even though I’ve spent years living in p...
Good races – races I want to run, crew and volunteer at – all have some key characteristics in common. It often boils down to leadership: good races have race directors who evolve.
In lieu of racing Western States this year due to its cancellation, I’ve renewed my general commitments and made my own backyard running goals. If I follow through, I think the payoffs will be much greater than finishing any race. I hope the following list inspires you to make your own set of goals.
“We all learn the pioneer or conquistador history of trails, but for some reason we are taught Indigenous people are of the past, and so is their ecological management and ecological history.”My friend and mentor Lydia J...
Gear is ubiquitous in our sport. This magazine regularly reviews gear, professional runners often promote gear, while others sell gear for outdoor companies.Regardless if we work with gear, we all wear it, and it’s impor...
Whether we realize it or not, runners are environmentalists.Most of us prefer to run outside. We would probably never exclusively run on a treadmill, so that means we care about running outside.Since I care about running...
How does one prepare for a race so unique, not even the race directors know what to expect? By running loops on tsunami evacuation towers, of course. The venue: Thailand’s first ever mountain ultramarathon, an 80k cou...