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Borderlands Trail and Ultra Running

Borderlands Trail and Ultra Running

Josh Rosenthal | Ultra Runner 310 Episodes Aug 22, 2026

Borderlands Trail and Ultra Running is a storytelling podcast for ultra runners, hosted by Josh Rosenthal. It covers iconic races, legendary athletes, gear reviews, and the culture of trail and ultra running. The show features deep conversations with runners like Scott Jurek and Dean Karnazes, as well as race coverage of events like Western States and UTMB. It aims to provide stories, perspectives, and gear knowledge for those passionate about the sport.

Episodes

Why the World’s Biggest Trail Race Happened in France
Why the World’s Biggest Trail Race Happened in France Aug 22, 2026 39:09 UTMB is the biggest trail race in the world, but why did it happen in France? The easy answer is Mont Blanc. The better answer has more to do with culture, timing, and the kind of endurance tradition that was already there long before UTMB existed.Josh talks with Doug Mayer, founder of Run the Alps and author of The Race That Changed Running, about the deeper conditions that made UTMB possible, fr
With Tara Dower | Built Different
With Tara Dower | Built Different Aug 20, 2026 40:08 Ultra running rewards obsession, but Tara Dower seems wired for something beyond results. She wants to solve hard problems, chase the best competition, run faster, and keep finding out what she’s capable of.Tara joins me to talk Western States, her planned Pacific Coast Trail attempt, why she hasn’t raced UTMB, learning from Karl Meltzer, and her evolution with Altra from the Lone Peak to the new
Karl  Meltzer | Speedgoat, UTMB, and Trail Running’s Boom
Karl Meltzer | Speedgoat, UTMB, and Trail Running’s Boom Aug 17, 2026 01:02:04 Trail running has exploded into a global business, and Karl Meltzer somehow ended up at the center of it. HOKA turned his Speedgoat nickname into one of trail running’s defining shoes, Red Bull paid him to chase the Appalachian Trail record, and UTMB eventually bought the race he created.Karl came up when ultrarunning was tiny and has watched the money, brands, athletes, and races transform around
Harvey Lewis | The Mind Behind the Ultras
Harvey Lewis | The Mind Behind the Ultras Aug 13, 2026 39:37 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, t
Harvey Lewis | The Man Behind the Ultras
Harvey Lewis | The Man Behind the Ultras Aug 10, 2026 34:47 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 16t
Ciele Athletics and the Rise of Running Culture
Ciele Athletics and the Rise of Running Culture Aug 4, 2026 15:47 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 skat
Satisfy x Adidas: Who Won the Circle Pit Backlash?
Satisfy x Adidas: Who Won the Circle Pit Backlash? Jul 27, 2026 19:26 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
This is Trail Running Without Mountains.
This is Trail Running Without Mountains. Jul 21, 2026 31:03 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
What If Your Best Running Is Still Ahead?
What If Your Best Running Is Still Ahead? Jul 16, 2026 22:07 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
They Refuse to Make Toy Shoes. | Inside HOKA's Culture Strategy
They Refuse to Make Toy Shoes. | Inside HOKA's Culture Strategy Jul 13, 2026 29:56 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 f
What is Borderlands Actually Building?
What is Borderlands Actually Building? Jul 7, 2026 21:34 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
Western States 2026 Analysis | 10 Things I Couldn't Stop Thinking About
Western States 2026 Analysis | 10 Things I Couldn't Stop Thinking About Jun 29, 2026 28:57 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 s

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