Long Run Labs: The Business of Endurance
Jonathan Levitt 72 episodes Nov 10, 2026
Long Run Labs is a podcast about the business of endurance sport. Host Jonathan Levitt talks with founders, operators, and investors building the running and outdoor industry. Episodes explore how brands actually get made, how sponsorships actually work, and what industry insiders know but rarely write down. Guests have included Precision Fuel & Hydration founder Andy Blow, Zuckerberg Media founder Randi Zuckerberg, and Ketone-IQ founder Michael Brandt. Levitt also hosts For The Long Run and lives in Boulder, Colorado, with new episodes every Tuesday.
Episodes
When Should a Brand Raise Outside Capital? | Force of Nature's Robby Sansom
Robby Sansom, co-founder and CEO of Force of Nature, joins Jon to discuss building a mission-driven food company that challenges conventional agriculture and traditional business growth models. From his early days at EPIC Provisions to launching Force ...
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Elyse Kopecky: Turning a Beloved Recipe Into a Food Business
What happens when a bestselling cookbook author decides to turn her most popular recipe into a food company? Elyse Kopecky is the co-author of Run Fast. Eat Slow., a three-time New York Times bestselling cookbook author, and the founder of Superhero Mu...
How to Build Financial Security as an Athlete
Being a professional athlete doesn't necessarily mean making a professional living. For many endurance athletes, even impressive race results aren't enough to create financial security or a sustainable career. Beau Riggs and Klodian Mitri of Resolute W...
How to Land Brand Sponsorships Without a Massive Following
Taylor Hoekstra, founder of Popfly, joins Jon to discuss the future of creator marketing and a massive untapped opportunity in the running and outdoor industries. Taylor explains why traditional influencer platforms are falling short, what brands get w...
Can Running Influencers Be Trusted? Raziq Rauf on Journalism vs. Paid Promotion
Raziq Rauf has spent more than 20 years working in journalism, from covering music to building his own running media platform, Running Sucks, and writing the book This Is Running. He joins Jon to unpack the increasingly blurry line between journalism, ...
From 24 SKUs to 3,500 Retailers: How Joe Earley Built Tifosi and Keeps Evolving
Joe Earley co-founded Tifosi Optics more than 20 years ago after spotting a gap in the market for high-quality eyewear at an accessible price. What started with 24 SKUs has grown into a brand carried by thousands of retailers around the world. Joe join...
Why Salomon Is Going All In on All-Terrain Endurance
Salomon has long been synonymous with trail and mountain sports, but the brand’s ambitions in endurance are getting much bigger. Erin Cooper, Director of Marketing for Performance and Sportstyle at Salomon North America, joins Jon for a conversation ab...
Science in Sport's Dan Lampard on When Athletes Don't Need a Gel
Dan Lampard is Chief Commercial and Operating Officer at Science in Sport (SiS), where his background in finance meets a lifelong interest in sport and performance. Recorded at SiS headquarters in Blackburn, England, Dan shares how he thinks about buil...
Why NNormal Hires Trail Runners and Builds From Inside the Community
Sito Luis spent more than two decades at Camper before an idea born during the pandemic eventually brought him together with Kílian Jornet to launch NNormal. Now, as CEO, he’s helping build a trail running brand around authenticity, durability, and a g...
How Lyft Stood Out When It Sold the Same Product as Uber | Brian Button
What makes someone choose one brand over another when the products themselves aren’t all that different? Brian Button joins Jon to talk about brand strategy, authenticity, and what companies can learn from his time helping build brands like Lyft, DoorD...
How Roll Recovery Built a Global Brand on Word of Mouth, Grit, and Zero Outside Capital
Jeremy and Adriana Nelson did not set out to build a company. Jeremy was a mechanical engineer tinkering in his garage with rollerblade wheels. Adriana was a professional runner from Romania training twice a day at altitude in Boulder. When Jeremy coul...
What UTMB Gets Right About Supporting Women Beyond the Podium
Karen Merlin on UTMB, women’s trail running, and growing the sport sustainably. Karen Merlin, elite athletes and inclusion programs manager at UTMB, joins Jon to talk about how UTMB is evolving its race ecosystem, how athlete feedback drives change, an...
How Osprey Thinks About Creators, Athletes, and Authentic Brand Building
Leland Kohere is the marketing manager at Osprey Packs, one of the most trusted names in outdoor gear. He oversees their athlete program, field marketing, content, and social media. And after five years on the inside, he has a pretty clear view of what...
How the RiNo 5K Is Building Community, Funding Impact, and Proving a Neighborhood Race Can Be More Than Just a Race
John Gonzalez started the RiNo 5K in 2017 as a passion project while working full time in cybersecurity. Named after River North, one of Denver's most vibrant neighborhoods, it is a road race, a run club gathering, a fundraiser, and a community event a...
Dr. Marc Bubbs on the Fueling Mistake Even Elite Athletes Still Make
Dr. Marc Bubbs has spent twenty five years on the frontline of performance nutrition. Working with Canada Basketball, US Soccer, NBA teams, Olympians, and elite endurance athletes. And after two and a half decades of watching the same problems show up ...
Rabbit and Halo on Missing the Middle of the Pack and What Real Event Activation Looks Like
Monica Devreese is the CEO and co-founder of Rabbit, a running apparel brand celebrating its tenth year in business. Hilary Fenet is the founder of Halo, a platform built to solve the logistics and community gap that exists when runners travel to races...
From Porsche to Nike to OnWater: Alex Maier on Product-Led Growth
Alex Maier has spent his career building brands that actually listen. From Porsche and Audi to Nike to onX Maps to his current role as president of OnWater, he has consistently chosen the path of product led growth over marketing led noise. And the thr...
The Business Case for Diversity in Trail Running | Vivek Gowri, SFRC
Vivek Gowri has spent his career at the intersection of technology and community. Six months ago he added running store owner to that list, buying San Francisco Running Company and stepping into the shoes of a brand that has been a pillar of Bay Area t...
We Asked AI 2,200 Questions About Running. Here's What the Machines Actually Think.
What does AI actually think about the running industry? Not what brands want it to think. Not what their SEO teams have optimized for. What does it actually say when nobody is watching? Michael Rueckert of Centium AI ran the biggest AI visibility study...
From Olympic Rower to Employee #3 at Momentous to Building the Water Brand Doing What Nobody Else Will
Sara Hendershot has spent her career at the intersection of elite sport and early stage brand building. She rowed at the 2012 Olympics, was employee number three at Momentous before it became one of the most trusted names in performance supplementation...
Why the Creator Economy Is Just Getting Started and What Investors Are Betting On
Megan Lightcap runs the creator fund at Slow Ventures, one of the first venture funds built specifically around creator entrepreneurs. Her thesis is simple: creators are just a new type of founder. And the ones who own a niche, build a world around the...
How LSKD Went from $3M to $200M by Going Back to Basics
Jason Daniel didn't set out to build a global brand. He set out to race motocross, and when that didn't pan out, he spent years working as an electrician, a bricklayer's yard manager, and a carpenter while quietly building a clothing brand out of a nic...
Building the Event Trail Running Has Been Missing
Trail running is growing faster than anyone predicted. New brands are entering the space, race fields are selling out, course records are falling, and the sport is attracting capital, media attention, and mainstream audiences it has never seen before. ...
The Accidental Business Owner Who Built the Science of Endurance Fueling
Andy Blow didn't set out to build a company. He set out to stop ending up in the medical tent. As a triathlete who kept collapsing in the heat, Andy discovered that electrolyte loss is deeply individual, got a sweat test, changed his nutrition, and rea...
Des Linden: Build the Audience. The Deals Follow.
Des Linden has spent two decades figuring out how to build a career that outlasts the finish line. The 2018 Boston Marathon champion joins Long Run Labs to talk about the business of being an endurance athlete, what loyalty actually looks like in a lon...
Why the Future of Endurance Brands Is Community, Trust, and AI | Randi Zuckerberg
Randi Zuckerberg has spent her career at the intersection of technology, media, storytelling, and entrepreneurship. But in recent years, endurance sports have become just as central to how she thinks about leadership, business, and personal growth. Fre...
Rethinking Outdoor Apparel for a Warming World | Doug Waters
Doug Waters didn’t set out to build another outdoor apparel company. He set out to solve a problem he kept running into himself. Doug is the founder of Terlingua Threads, a hot-weather adventure apparel company focused entirely on performance in extrem...
Why Entrepreneurs Stay Stuck (And How to Actually Move Forward) | Christian Rawles
Christian Rawles didn’t just build a brand in the outdoor industry, he spent nearly two decades learning what it actually takes to run one, eventually buying and leading the business himself. Christian is now an executive coach working with entrepreneu...
Turning Community Into a Running Brand That Lasts | Nick Dibos
Nick Dibos didn’t set out to build a scalable apparel company. He set out to build something that actually means something to the people around him. Nick is the founder of Greenville Uptempo Sports, a running apparel brand rooted in community, culture,...
Building a Business in Trail Running Without Losing Trust | Seth LaReau
Seth LaReau didn’t set out to build a media brand. He set out to create something he wished existed. Seth is the writer behind Trailwaves, a newsletter exploring the business, economics, and culture of trail and ultra running. With a background in fina...
Why Most Brand Partnerships Fail (And How to Actually Get It Right)
Erin Cooper built her career in the running industry by saying yes, learning on the ground, and working her way from run specialty to leading brand marketing at one of the most influential global brands in sport. Erin Cooper is a Brand Marketing leader...
Why Authenticity Wins in Running Marketing
Hannah Sedgwick Shin has built her career at the intersection of running and brand. From her early days in public relations to shaping marketing at Goodr and now leading sports marketing initiatives at ASICS, her work sits inside the evolving world of ...
$20K Launch Day: How Raide Built a Premium Gear Brand Through Word-of-Mouth and Elite Athletes
Kyle Siegel transformed a moment of peak frustration on Mount Rainier into the foundation story of Raide: a ski and running equipment company driven by an obsession to enable "the freedom and flow of human powered movement." Kyle Siegel is the CEO/foun...
The Custom Insoles Revolutionizing Elite Running Performance
What happens when a successful entrepreneur sells his lighting company, attempts to qualify for Olympic trials, and then decides to revolutionize the insole industry using iPhone technology? Cole Zucker is an entrepreneur with a running addiction. Cole...
From Kickstarter to a Brooks Partnership: PYNRS Founder’s Blueprint for Community-First Business Building
When immigrant parents chase opportunity across continents, their children often become bridges between worlds. Sid Baptista discovered that running could be the vehicle to bring transformative experiences back to the communities that shaped him. Sidne...
Consistency is a Competitive Advantage: Carbon Plates, Speciality Retail, and Smarter Marketing with Gelindo Bordin
From marathon champion to business leader, Gelindo Bordin transformed his Olympic gold medal triumph into executive expertise, now directing innovation at Italian running brand Diadora while bridging the gap between elite performance and everyday runne...
How Wilderdog Turned Dog Gear into a Profitable Business
From selling braided iPhone chargers on Instagram to building an outdoor dog gear empire - Rachel Friedline's wild journey started with a red iPhone cord and a weekend ski house. Rachel Friedline is the co-founder of Wilderdog, an outdoor dog gear comp...
The Evolution of Performance Marketing in Niche Markets
Jason Wiener has spent over 25 years navigating the intersection of sports and technology, transforming from an adventure sports agency owner who represented major brands like PowerBar and Specialized to a data-driven athlete development pioneer who's ...
Want to be a Sponsored Trail Runner? Listen to This
The most successful trail sponsorships happen when brands stop asking 'what can this athlete do for us?' and start asking 'what can we build together that neither could create alone? Born in Bennington, Vermont and growing up on the Long Trail, Alyssa ...
How Michael Brandt Built Ketone-IQ by Failing Until He Won
From selling $30 shots that tasted 'completely crazy' to building a nine-figure business now sold nationwide in Target, Michael Brandt proved that scaling isn't about perfection—it's about refusing to stay in the ivory tower and dancing with your custo...
From Coca-Cola to KIPRUN: Launching a Running Brand the Hard Way
Would you trade 20 years at Coca-Cola and Amazon for the chance to democratize high-performance running gear? Meet Julien Vancauwenberghe, the Chief Marketing Officer behind KIPRUN, the most anticipated running brand launching in the USA this year. Jul...
THE Problem-Solving Playbook for Entrepreneurs with Moisés Jimenez
Being an entrepreneur and building a business is like being an athlete - you have no idea what's going to come out the other side, but you put everything you can into it and hope for the best. As a Venezuelan trail runner raised in the Chilean Patagoni...
How a Tech Exec Became a Running Store Owner
From tech hardware professional to trail running community steward - Vivek Gowri is rewriting what it means to own a running store. After a decade in the Bay Area running scene and two decades in tech hardware, Vivek is taking over San Francisco Runnin...
The Future of the Creator Economy with Demitra Carter
What if there was a framework you could follow as a content creator that would allow you to work with brands most effectively? Demitra Carter holds a Master of Science in Education in Sport Management and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Market...
Embrace Your Messy Story: Angie Lake’s Predictions for How to Stand Out in 2026
From first-time finisher to changing lives: hear about how Angie Lake is breaking down barriers in trail running, one story at a time. Angie Lake is co-director of Wild Woman Trail Runs and community manager of The Cairn Project, a nonprofit closing th...
Hydration Revolution: How Stefan van der Fluit is Disrupting Health Tech
From being bullied as a kid to becoming a national triathlon champion to building the world's first reusable sweat sensor… Stefan van der Fluit’s journey proves that our greatest challenges often become our greatest innovations. Stefan is a 4x founder;...
The Intersection of AI Innovation and Running with Jason Kuperberg
From pushing 2:46 marathon times to pushing the boundaries of AI, Jason Kuperberg discovered that the secret to both isn't about scale—it's about building exactly what you want to use yourself. Jason Kuperberg is a tech entrepreneur, marathoner, and th...
GOES Founder on How to Make Your Outdoor Trips Safer
A 67-year-old man gets bit by a snake in his backyard, nearly loses his leg at a trauma center, and his grateful donation to Stanford ends up funding a wilderness medicine app that's now saving lives across the country. Today, we're talking with Camilo...
Erin Bailey's Journey Building Momentum Management in the Creator Economy
From personal training certification to pacing athletes to PR breakthroughs, Erin Bailey turned her passion for empowering others into a thriving brand partnership agency. Erin Bailey is a founder and advocate who bridges the worlds of athletics and br...
Kevin Rutherford’s Leadership Playbook for Scaling Teams and Kevin Rutherford’s Leadership Playbook for Scaling Teams and Building Winning Company Culture
Most leaders think their job is to have all the answers, but Kevin Rutherford built a quarter-billion dollar exit by becoming the “expert of nothing and knower of all.” Kevin Rutherford is a business executive who has served as CEO for multiple compani...
Kelly Newlon on How to Secure Trail Running Sponsorships and Manage Athletes
If you have the luxury of getting an athlete manager to speak to you or respond to an email, I would not hang up that phone until you ask them, “what are the races that your company is focused on for this next year?” Kelly Newlon is an agent + manager ...
How Pete Nelson Built SISU Saunas One Step at a Time with Grit, Sweat, and Simplicity
Meet the ultra runner who turned grit into a sauna empire by selling one product really, really well. Pete is the Founder of SISU, a sauna and wellness product company, built with connection and grit at the forefront. He is also the Founder of Hell on ...
Christina Henderson on How to Maximize Trade Shows as a Running Brand
Trade shows are an important part of growing the running industry, but how do you actually get the most out of them as a host or attendee? Christina Henderson is the Event Director for The Running Event and Switchback. She is passionate about bringing ...
Movemint Founder Zack Isaacs on Going Against the Grain to Succeed with Fundraising
From Strava layoffs to building the Airbnb of endurance events - here’s how one engineer turned personal frustration into a platform that's revolutionizing race registration and athlete experience. Zack Isaacs is CEO and Founder at Movemint, a startup ...
How to Succeed as a Small Brand Without Selling Out with Lloyd Vogel
What happens when you refuse to sell out your community for a few extra percentage points? Lloyd is the Co-Founder and CEO of Garage Grown Gear. An avid backpacker and paddler, Lloyd first entered into the outdoor industry through trip-leading and outd...
Anton Krupicka and Kelsey Quinn on Ultra Running's Evolution and the Art of Brand-Athlete Partnerships
From $4,000 annual sponsorships to multi-faceted brand partnerships—Anton Krupicka and La Sportiva's Kelsey Quinn reveal how ultra running's explosive growth transformed athlete sponsorship from performance-only deals to authentic storytelling collabor...
How Ross Rutherford Builds Running Community Through Authentic Brand Marketing
What does it take to be more than “just a product” in the outdoor industry? Living the business and culture of running, Ross Rutherford is an ultramarathoner and led sports retail and partnerships at Cheribundi and probiotic juice brand GoodBelly. Ross...
Venture Capitalist Salomon Aiach’s Running Revolution: Becoming Journey-Obsessed Instead of Goal-Obsessed
What parallels can be drawn between training for/ finishing a race and building/selling a business? Salomon Aiach is a 37-year-old venture capitalist and entrepreneur who currently runs his own venture capital firm, focusing on sourcing deals, managing...
The Keys to Effective Community Building in Women's Sports with Oiselle CEO, Arielle Knutson
Everything is sales - and in today's job market, the person who gets hired isn't necessarily the best candidate, but the one who's best at marketing themselves. Arielle Knutson is the CEO of Oiselle, a women’s running apparel brand where she leads with...
How to Grow a Podcast to 1 Million Downloads with Matt Chittim
Every runner has an underdog story. Here’s how telling those stories resonates with other amateur runners and grew the Rambling Runner podcast to one million downloads. Matt Chittim is a podcaster in the running space and running coach. He is a founder...
How Lagoon is Revolutionizing Sleep for Athletes with Founder, Ryan Hurley
Athletes are spending $5K on cold plunges but $20 on pillows without realizing the role that sleep plays in performance. Ryan is the founder of the sleep & fitness business, Lagoon. The company's mission is to help people optimize their sleep and perfo...
How Ultra Trail Cape Town (UTCT) Created a Global Running Destination with Race Director, Stuart McConnachie
Starting and building a race isn’t easy, but Stu McConnachie’s passion and community-focused business strategy have led UTCT to what it is today. Stuart McConnachie is a prominent figure in South Africa's trail running community, best known as the Race...
Building Authentic Partnerships in Running with Garmin’s Sydney Tremaine
Sydney Tremaine turned her love of exploration into a career building relationships with trail running legends - but it all started with one family vacation run she'll never forget. A love for being outside and exploring have always been present in Syd...
Invest in Your Weaknesses: Eternal CEO Alex Mather on How to be in the Driver’s Seat of Your Own Health
Think about it… we know more about our fantasy football leagues and cars than our own health. Something needs to be done about that. Alex is the Founder and CEO of Eternal. Before founding Eternal, Alex was the founder and CEO of The Athletic, a subscr...
Finding Your "Why" and Creating a Value Set with Troy Meadows
Do you think “company culture” is irrelevant? It’s actually essential. Troy Meadows is a Culture Creator with a running problem. He helps founders, and athletes articulate their "WHY" in order to find clarity in how they build their businesses and pers...
How Shared Humanity Can Solve Climate Change with Erin Sprague
Climate change can be scary and confusing, so what actions can we take that actually make a difference? Erin Sprague is the CEO of Protect our Winters (POW), where she helps outdoor enthusiasts protect the places and experiences they love from climate ...
Building Community Through Content with Aaron Lutze
Want to close more deals? Don’t pitch your idea in the first conversation. Aaron Lutze is the co-host of Second Nature, a podcast about the business of the outdoor industry. He is also the founder and presenter on Super Rider, a YouTube channel that he...
From Tracksmith to Salomon: Navigating a Career in Marketing with Drew Hartman
Are you passionate about your work or just going through the motions? Sports have always been a throughline for Drew Hartman, and running graduated from "the way to stay in shape for soccer" to a primary athletic focus, social community driver, and cre...
Live Cushy™ Founders on Building a Community-First Brand via Better for You Skincare for Athletes
Want to support a brand? Then request that your local retailer carry their product! As athletes and adventurers, Adam Saks and Ben Parens know the importance of simplicity and high performance in their daily routines. After countless miles and too many...
UTMB Founders on Keeping Integrity in Your Race with Michel and Catherine Poletti
We're talking growth of trail running with the Polettis, the founders of UTMB! Jon sits down with Michel and Catherine Poletti, the founders of the UTMB race series. They share their journey of starting and growing UTMB, along with essential business i...
Being a Purpose-Driven Company Through Storytelling with Yuri Hauswald of GU Energy Labs
Does reaching a broader audience help or hurt your business? In 2013 Yuri discovered Unbound Gravel (formerly DK 200), arguably the most difficult gravel grinder in the country, and was bitten by the gravel bug. He won the 2015 edition, the hardest one...
Become a Disruptor: 3 Entrepreneurship Strategies to Focus on with Cadence Founder, Ross Mackay
Are you saying “yes” too much? Ross Mackay is the founder of Cadence, a performance supplement brand focused on endurance athletes. Jon chats with Ross about: •Running and Athletic Journey - From marathons to HYROX competitions, and the lessons learned...
Finding Running Success Through Authenticity with Olympian, Kara Goucher
Are you doing what it takes to stay relevant in the running industry? Kara Goucher is an Olympian and broadcaster whose career has featured elite competitions, endorsements, and broadcasting. Her story will inspire you to excel in both the performance ...
The Current State of Trail Media with Dylan Bowman of Freetrail
Dylan Bowman is a seasoned trail runner and entrepreneur based in San Rafael, California. Jon chatted with Dylan about: •going from amateur to professional athlete •how to build relationships in the running industry •the birth of his company, Freetrail...
Bringing More People to the Trails with David Callahan, Co-CEO of UltraSignup
David Callahan is the Co-CEO of UltraSignup, the industry-leading marketplace for races in the trail and ultra-running community. Jon chatted with David about: • his athletic background and introduction to trail running •his transition from law to acqu...
Marketing Your Outdoor Brand with Industry Expert, Allison Lynch
Allison Lynch is a marketing expert who has worked for companies like WHOOP, COROS, and Remedy Place. Jon chatted with Allison about: •working in a running store to becoming a marketing specialist •getting hired at WHOOP and the transition to COROS •na...
Welcome to Long Run Labs!
The outdoor industry runs on big ideas, relentless energy, and people who don’t quit easily. Sound familiar? Welcome to Long Run Labs, a new weekly podcast from the team behind For The Long Run, hosted by Jon Levitt. This show is all about the builders...
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