Sean Meissner
Sean Meissner has been coaching runners of all ages and abilities, in all distances and terrain, since 2002. He is the founder of the Peterson Ridge Rumble and has over 250 ultra and marathon finishes. Sean coaches through Sharm Ultra and works and plays, mostly with his dogs, in Vermont.

Kickin' It Old School

It’s been a while – years – since I’ve been in a racing groove. After a few lighter years of running, with plenty of other types of adventures in the mountains and on my bike, I recently got the itch, and I’m really look...

Trail Running Tuscany Style

Every year for our anniversary, my wife, Kristina, and I like to go on a fun trail adventure that includes summiting at least one mountain. Colorado’s majestic Rockies and the Appalachian Trail’s northe...

Finding Trails

I’ve been fortunate to live close to trails throughout my entire life. My adventures started when I was a kid while riding my bike and running on the local trails near my home. They continued into high school...

Different Goals for Different Seasons

My goals in both life and running have changed and evolved over my lifetime. It wasn’t just “running faster” that I craved, it was running more. I ran more miles because I simply loved running more. I ran more ultras because I quickly fell in love with the ultra community.

Fatboy and TFMs

In 2001, I ran my first ultra. In mid-2002, I moved to Sisters, Oregon, and became Sisters’ first ultrarunner. In late 2002, unbeknownst to me, the Sisters ultra community doubled. In January 2003, while running John Pea...

Trail Camp

Band of Runners Trail Camp participants include military veterans and their family members. Courtesy Liza Howard Early last year, I got a call. My friend Liza Howard invited me to be a mentor at the Band o...

Another Crack at 100 Miles

Vermont 100 runners and riders cross the the Ottauquechee River in the 2019 event. Ben Kimball Over the course of 22 years of ultrarunning, I’ve had a hate-hate relationship with 100s. I would...

Ascutney Adventures

I was all set to head to the Rhode Island coast for a weekend of fun and exploring (queue Barry Manilow, “Weekend in New England”) with my wife and dogs, but winter decided to return to New England. So instead of long...

Treadmill Trials

I was talking with two of my coaching clients today about treadmills. One of them commented how her perceived effort on the ‘mill is higher at any given pace than it is at that same pace outside. I agreed with her. Well,...

Slow and Steady Wins the Training Game

The summer of 1990 played quite a big role in my personal development as a runner. It was then that I realized my body could handle running longer distances consistently, which I’m not sure it could have handled earlier, as the gradual base-building over the previous few years helped set me up for success.

Adventure Ride Across America

Sean Meissner On May 9, I dipped the tires of my gravel bike into the Pacific Ocean in Pacific City, Oregon. On June 9, after 3,267.9 miles of pedaling, I dipped those same tires into the Atlantic Ocean...

20 Years of Rumblin’

Runners and their dirt-loving canines are all part of the Peterson Ridge Rumble experience in Sisters, Oregon. Paul Nelson It began on May 4, 2003. That was the date which started what has become my pe...

Fruita Desert Running

In July 2020, in the middle of the initial COVID lockdown, my wife and I moved from our little slice of paradise in Durango, CO, a few hours north to Fruita, CO. And really, we had no idea where we were moving. On...

Keep It Unstructured

Last June, I reached a big goal in my ultrarunning journey by finishing my 200th ultra. It was a goal that had been 20 years in the making, so when I finished it, I felt a bit tired. Not just tired because of the race...

Winter Multi-Sport Racing

Before diving head-first into the wonderful world of ultrarunning, I was seriously involved in winter multi-sport racing in the small mountain communities of Moran/Jackson, WY, and Steamboat Springs, CO. In the summer...

Montrail: The Original Trail Brand & Team

This year celebrates the 25th anniversary of the first ultrarunning team in the US (and probably the world). One Sport’s origins go back to the early 80s in Europe as an off-shoot brand that specialized in boots, incl...

200 in 20 Years

Nineteen years, ten months, four weeks, one day, five hours and six minutes. That’s how long it took me to run—and finish—200 ultramarathons. Yep, that’s about 10 ultras per year for 20 years. I know I am far from the fi...

Tackling White Rim on Two Wheels

Riding the White Rim jeep road through Utah’s Canyonlands National Park in one day has been on my to-do list ever since moving to the southwest in 2012. In October 2020, I was able to gather four like-minded friends (four ultrarunners and one ironman) to join me. We loaded up our bikes and packs with six liters of water each, as well as plenty of snacks to last at least 12 hours.

Easy Like Spring Training

If you’re like many runners, you likely took it a bit easy over the winter, as well as throughout much of 2020. Now it’s time to get back outside and get yourself in shape for upcoming races. But where to start? Grad...

Winter Running: Kauai-Style

Winter running adventures can come in many different forms. There’s the stereotypical Rocky Mountain winter run which includes snowshoeing through 3 feet of fresh powder. Winter runs in the Pacific Northwest bring to...

Distances in Between

As a reader of this magazine, you’re likely an ultrarunner. And as an ultrarunner, you’ve probably run at least one ultramarathon race that’s a standard ultra distance: 50k, 50 miles, 100k or 100 miles. Or perhaps you’ve...

Drop Bags vs Crew Bags

One of the cool things about racing versus a long adventure run is that you don’t have to carry all of your gear and calories with you. Aid stations offer general food and hydration needs, but if you have specific requests, using drop bags or having a crew with a dedicated crew bag can help, if your race allows them.

Coaching Amid COVID

I don’t have a single coaching client who hasn’t expressed frustration about the hard work they’ve put in, not knowing when their next “official” race will be. This is definitely a very common thought amongst runners. To...

Adventures on the Three Sisters Loop

As late spring morphs into summer, it’s time to think about adventure runs. For me, adventure runs are the best part of running long. Often times, it’s just me and my wife or dog, playing in the mountains all day. It’s a...

Shopping For Running Shoes 101

As the dark and cold winter months slowly start to fade, a new season of mud and sun begins to surface. If you’re like many runners, you likely took it easy over the winter with some skiing, time in the gym, chilling wit...

Winter Running Gear

There’s an old saying that goes, “There’s no bad weather, only bad gear.” Well, I’m here to tell you that saying is wrong. There is bad weather, and often times it’s in the winter when the temperature is minus 20 degrees...

A Running Hero: Gunhild Swanson

Ultrarunning has had a major impact on my life for almost two decades, and there are a few people who have been part of my journey from the beginning. I remember training for my first ultra in the summer of 2001. I was l...

Tough and Determined Women

The sport of ultrarunning is pretty cool for many reasons. For me, people are at the top of that list. I’ve met amazing people and made great friends over my almost two decades of running ultras. Here are stories about t...

Ultrarunning for a Living

Making a living as an ultrarunner can be challenging and fun and with some hard work, it can be done. I’ve been fortunate to make a living as a sponsored runner, race director and running coach – three things that I neve...

Canyons and Wonderlands

Adventure runs are the heart of my running. Sure, I love being competitive, training hard and lining up for races. What I get most excited about, though, is playing outside in the mountains or desert with my wife and dog...

100-Mile Race Strategy

Racing 100 miles is hard. There, we got that out of the way and now we can focus on the nuts and bolts of how to navigate a 100-mile race. There are numerous parts that go into a successful 100-miler, and finishing is a...

Tackling Longer Trails

For the last 20 years, I’ve had the pleasure of living within 15 miles of some of the longest trails in North America. While I haven’t actively sought them out, living near these iconic trails has been a huge perk. In ad...

Tricks of the Trade: Mud Running

Spring is a time of the year when the snow is melting, birds are tweeting (old-school style) and the sun is shining a bit brighter. A combination of warm sun and melting snow creates one of our furry running buddies favorite things, and one of the worst substances to get off running shoes – mud.

Eating Whole Foods

Ultrarunners are typically healthy eaters. By healthy, I mean, we eat a lot. And we run a lot. Running and eating go well together.When it comes to being a healthy eater, there are different definitions. Diets or types o...

Mud Running

March is a time of the year when the snow is melting, birds are tweeting (old-school style) and the sun is shining a bit brighter. A combination of warm sun and melting snow creates one of our furry running buddies favor...