EP 28 - TRAIL RUNNING TIPS

In the beginning, episode 28 and Courtney, Mark this one down. If you're listening to this right now, this might be the most significant episode in the history of the podcast so far in its short history because we are starting today with a very big announcement, a special announcement. We've been hinting at it for weeks now that we have. We were working on something. We had things in the pipeline. We didn't want to say anything until it was locked away and we

were organised. We can announce today that we are beginning a new series. We are. Called in the beginning, runs Gold Coast Marathon. Just so you know where we're going. We are, we are for the next 12 weeks, starting on Wednesday, we are going to be doubling the fun for the In the Beginning family and we will be dropping every Wednesday. A special In the Beginning Runs Gold Coast podcast episode all about getting ready for this year's Gold Coast Marathon.

Yep. So we'll be going through all the training. It's about the audience. Yep. So we're hopefully, you know, it's really targeted also at, you know, figured about me and this one. Yeah, it's all targeted at those first time runners and those middle, middle of the field runners. But we won't get ahead of ourselves and let you know. Should we let the audience know who we got on board? Well, we have because you and I,

we love chatting running. One of the things I love about you is despite your success and your elite level capabilities as a runner, you refuse to tell people how to train. You refuse to tell people who you don't know. This is we see this everywhere throughout running content, Instagram influence, all this sort of stuff.

All these people telling you how you can achieve your running goals with no knowledge of you as an individual and in some cases with no expertise to actually tell you any of this stuff. You would be more than within your rights to actually offer advice as an elite athlete, right? You could, but you you choose not to. So we so we found someone so. You have gone out and got. Should we just say let's just say who it is? Well. It is the best ever distance runner in Australia.

Benita Willis is officially coaching me for the Gold Coast Marathon, and we'll be. We'll be doing it live. He's going to be in, in, in here with us in the studio live, going through your week to week. And if you don't know who Bonita Willis is, if you are a new runner, you might not be aware of Bonita Willis, the greatest distance runner in Australian history. 4 Olympics, 2 Commonwealth Games 2 Commonwealth Games but. The big one, the only, only Caucasian Did we say the other? She's the.

Last non African. That's correct. Yeah, to win a world cross country championship. And the only ever Australian and the. Only ever Australian, in 2004 she triumphed at the world Cross country championships in Belgium. Only non African. No, no non African runner since then has won a world championship, which is an incredible accolade when you think about it. We're talking 20 years on and she's the only non African to have done this and he's still. Second all time Australian and

this thing held the world. So held the marathon. Australian world record. First Olympics in Sydney as a 5K runner, then she was at 2 Olympic Games as a 10K runner, then she went to Olympics as a marathon runner. She's still got the second fastest ever marathon. Time for an Aussie female. What this woman doesn't know about running is not worth knowing. She is now. She's now a run coach.

Race up, lunning, lace up. Running is her coaching company and she is. It's almost a charitable act by her to take on me for this. But this Wednesday we dropped the first episode with Beneda. And before we get into her coaching and before she takes the whistle and tells that, telling me what to do for the next 12 weeks, we dive deep into Beneda as a runner. And it was great. And her history? And it was great.

The story she it is, even if you're brand new to running, you've been a runner for ages, you love following it as a as an elite sport or you've never watched an elite race. The stories Benita tells us in this episode that's coming on Wednesday, it's such a great listen. For those who like old school, we've got old school. It's such a great listen, the stories about winning that world championship, cross country level coming out of. Highway. Sorry, sorry, sorry.

Yeah, Wednesday morning. It'll be years and then so Wednesday this first episode comes out and then every Wednesday after that you are going to get an A special episode of In the Beginning Runs Gold Coast. And if you've got your 12 week programme in place, it's a great way to follow along. Your highs, your lows, your UPS, your downs. Questions you might have about your marathon training programme and how it's going. Send them in. This is going to be a lot of

fun. Got the best in the business to answer. I am genuinely thrilled about this. I cannot wait for it. Let's go back to in the beginning as per Yeah, so, so and to that point, these the Saturday episodes will continue as normal. No change to that. You still get your your Saturday morning episode every week A. 100% right. But we've got today as you're hearing this today on Saturday, we are down in Tasmania.

So before we get to Gold Coast Marathon, Liam, we've got another little run, little run, little steep run, I'd say in the Solomon Golden Trail, Kanani. And we're we're gonna be there today and we're gonna have a special app also. So it's gonna be a triple treat. It's. Gonna be a triple treat. Please, please. For those of you who've been saying we want more, you're getting what you're asked for. If you find that one a week is a perfect amount, we apologise, be patient.

But yeah, we've got we're travelling down on Friday, the race is on Saturday and then on Saturday after the race we're getting the chance to talk about the race thanks to Salomon and also talk to a few of the runners who are taking part in it as well. Well, mainly your competitor, who is Pete from Salomon. Pete from Salomon. Yeah, Jeez, I have. I beat him. But I'm like, I'm looking forward to, I mean, you're going into this not really knowing what you're in for.

So I can't wait to chat to you after to just find out what it's like. It's 25K I've. Got some questions but like we said. Well, like the website said, you're expecting probably more like an average 4 hour time out there. Is that what it says I. Think that's what you told me it said when you're reading the website. Oh, geez, all right, I've got I do I I have. I want to talk to you a bit about the race and mindset.

And I don't want to get all airy fairy about it, but I do want to because we know you've you've been amazing in talking about your the way you structured training and all the rest of that. But I actually want to pick your brain about what's going on between your ears in a race like this. But we'll get to that a bit

later. We'll get to that a bit a little bit later on. We were looking to lock down a a guest to talk to Mr Logan Martin, but he's had to disappear on the other side of the world. Yeah, like, like I do sometimes, you know, life of professional athletes. One day you're here, One day you're gone. We are going to keep chasing him. 100% I'm very interested in that story of how he how he ran the marathon so well as a as AB mixer. Now you know what, let's stay with Kanadi.

Now let me talk to you about this now. Right now I've got 26K run with a hell heap avert ahead of me. Honestly, in my head, I'm nervous about this. I'm anxious about this. How do you, how did you over the course of your career and still now when you go to these races, you're physically prepared? Do you mentally prepare for racing? In the early days when I was racing professionally, I did, yeah.

As much as this pains me to say, Liam, I probably did it through visual visualisation and not even knowing it at the time. You know, like when, when it's your job and when every, your whole livelihood stems on a race, you that you go over that race in your head over and over and over again. And different scenarios play out how you would like the race goes to play out. You probably then get a bit, you know, nervous and stressed if the race doesn't play out.

And this I was talking triathlon. So there was a lot of different variables in triathlon, but it's the same with running. You know, though all those different variables can happen. And I think trail more than even road running offers all those different variables like will I keep up up up the first hill? And what happens if I then I'm I'm, I'm on my own and I can't keep up in the front pack. How do I respond? Do I run overrun myself early to stay with them? Do I, you know, step back and

kind of just run my own pace? All of these things go with your head, but I always used to deal with that before the race. So when I talk about visual visualise visualisation, it's more about like I'd just be sitting there thinking about the race and how ought to react to certain things that would go on in the race if they happened. So you're already ahead of the game in that respect. OK.

So you have thought through any number of ways that the race might pan out and how you'll react if it pans out in one of those ways. Correct. OK, Did I always react that way? Probably not. But at least you were comfortable thinking of having thought about that. Because there's nothing worse than, you know, being in anything, not just a race, but not suddenly being hit with a scenario and you've got to make

decisions while you're tired. You're, you know, at that stage, you're probably thinking about 100 other things. It's always nice to know that you've already gone through certain scenarios in your head. OK. And that's from a competitive point of view, right?

But I think you can also look at that from just purely, I want to, you know, I want to achieve my best point of view as well, because I always had this saying that and someone else gave it to me. So I want to take full credit for it. But it was always like around the start of a race. Like what, what, what would you give me advice to start a race? And I'd always say if you run out and you feel like you're running too hard, you are.

If you feel out or feel like you're running at the correct pace, you're probably still running too hard. And if you run out for that start line and you're like nice and comfortable thinking I'm not running hard enough, you know, you know what, you're probably running the right pace because it's gonna catch up with you sometime on that. Course, give this, give that to me again, clean because already in my head I'm seeing I'm seeing the real for this episode, for

the Instagram page. So Courtney Atkinson's race start line advice. If you're running off the start line and you feel like you're running too quick, you're 100% already. If you run off the start line and you feel like you're running the correct pace, you're still probably running too hard. If you're on off thinking hey this is too easy, I reckon you're at the correct pace because one thing is for sure, in distance running it's going to eventually catch up with you. I love that.

I love that and that for me, someone heading into karate this weekend who has every intention of walking up that hill at the and you're. Going to hit a hill very soon. And the thing with hills is, you know, another thing I'd I'd say around hills and trail running, especially even the top guys walk power hike, There's a, there's a, there's a certain elevation or a certain like steepness to a hill gradient that it's actually more efficient to just walk up it.

OK. The amount of energy it's gonna take most people to run up that hill is actually detrimental to the like the speed you're going and what you could walk up there. So this is good to know. You'll often hear it as power walking. So what even in, I used to think of this in a race, even when I was out the front of a trail race, like if I was in something like a six foot track race and I've won in the past, you know,

43 K, what is it? 3 1/2 hour run, there'll be times there where I'm thinking, Oh my God, I'm blowing up, this is just too hard. And I'd get into like maybe a, you know, have a little bit of a walk at a certain part of the steepness of a hill thinking, oh, someone's going to catch me. But you got to realise that most people are in the same situation and that's always the key with running, especially trails, is if you're hurting someone at the same standard as you is probably

going through the same scenario. It's not like someone is going to be running up like they're springing 100 metres, like gawk out at ya. Everyone's in the same situation. So that's, that's always reassuring to me in trail races is that I always think, OK, if I'm feeling like this, the likelihood is most people around me are feeling like this. So if I can tough it out a little bit more, I'm all good, OK. As you've been and I love, I'm loving hearing this.

And I can guarantee there's probably people out there who are listening who might even be power hiking as we speak, or at the very least tackling a hill. Quick Google Trail runner Mag. There's a study, a 2016 study in the Journal of Applied Physiology. Well, some science. Yeah. Yeah, Bit of science for you here because I don't normally bring the science chat. Here we go. The authors of this study sought to find the grade when walking becomes more efficient than

running. So you're going to tell me this obviously or tell all of us this so. Taking a page from the spinal movie Spinal Tap, they cranked a specially designed treadmill up to 11, in this case, allowing it to reach 40°, while most treadmills only get to 15°. The study found that on incline steeper than 15.8° gradient, athletes can reduce their energy expenditure by walking rather than running. So. 15% so that's interesting.

You can take your iPhone with the with the gradient or calculator on it, pop it on the ground and then go here we go while the. Study looked at relatively fresh athletes. It's likely that the optimal grade for walking decreases as the length of the race increases and muscles fatigue. So if you imagine that that's most treadmills will take you up to a gradient of 15°, right.

So basically if anyone wants to conduct the exercise jump on a treadmill, take it to a Max incline, that is the statements at which it becomes more efficient for most runners to walk instead of run. Yeah, I'll. Just argue you go by feel like if you're, if you're trying to run up a gradient and you're feeling like this is harder than this is hard. This is way harder than me

running hard on the flat land. Like I'm going harder than I couldn't possibly hold going flat just to start to power hike through that section until it gets, you know, the gradient reduces enough that you can run on. And I guarantee you if you're able to run on from that, you're going to pick up so many places and so much more speed than putting yourself into the red line going up those hills.

I've. Just now taken that number from Trail Runner Mag and looked at the gradient of Mount Wellington. OK, sadly it's not 15° at any point. The average gradient of Mount Wellington is 6.6. OK, so I expect no walking, Liam. That's fine. You can. Expect whatever you want, Courtney. I'll tell you what I'll be doing is walking. Can we just stay with mindset during a race for a moment? Because I love that start line stuff you've just given me and everybody else.

What about when things go wrong? What about in the middle of a trail run or a marathon or whatever and you realise this has all fallen? Apart, I think you just gotta learn to reset and when I say reset, these are long races from and for most because we're talking for a wide variety of runners here for most people, these runs are all really long and that's the nature of distance running.

You go through your ups and downs even in a, you know, even in a, you know, a hard 10 kilometre race at the top level, you'll still go through phases where it's a bit harder and then you come better again. And you know, this is natural. I think that's the the key to know it's natural for everyone from the elite right through that you're going to go through

bad periods. And if you've got your head in the game and you can reset, you can also come back out of that and go through good periods, if not actually, you know, recapture yourself and run on better than you were. That happens in racing and that happens in running, and that happens definitely in distance sports. So my 1 is always like, you know, accept whatever's going on and then reset. Work out a way that you can reset yourself. Whether that's.

So another one I always had and again, it was given to me. You know, I got all this advice over the years given to me. Some things work, some things don't. Another one that always worked for me was when I'm overthinking it, like it's getting too hard, just go back to the basics of counting your steps. So don't think how far you know, I haven't got another 20 K of this pain to go or whatever. Just start counting your steps on each leg.

So 10, do the best 10 steps you can do on your right leg. Do the best 10 steps you can do on your left leg. All of a sudden what happens is you're concentrating on, you know, some it's like county sheep going to sleep. You're concentrating on something that isn't really a factor into your running. You're trying to do it the best possible and that's what you're focused on. But what happens is you do 20 steps, and suddenly you're 40 steps down the road, then you're 60.

And then you've forgotten about what you were actually, you know, trying to work out. But at the same time, you've actually focused on just form. And the form often is what falls apart when you get really tight and your legs are stuffed. This is just you. Starting to talk about counting your steps has prompted something in my mind. Jackie Bell, who some people might know, some people might not know. I think she's the youngest ever.

Well, she's certainly the youngest ever Australian to have done it. She might be one of the youngest ever people to have run an ultra marathon on every continent. Yeah, right. She does a lot of long, lot of days day races. Recently she raced in Tanzania and I just wanted to can I quickly read out this Instagram post of Jackie's. I'm a big fan of Jackie. I love her content. I love the way she talks about her running. She was doing a race in Tanzania, in Africa and she put this post up.

She said big days last week, equal parts unreal and brutal. 80% of the time I was smiling. But this race pushed me. I spent a lot of it solo, seeing if I could keep pace and stay in the second place for females overall. That voice kept creeping in. Slow down, have a walk on the flats. I gave in twice briefly, then snapped out of it. Walking just meant even more time out there. I'd tell myself, come on, legs,

just one more step. But when my mind wavered, and it did, I counted 1234. She hit 100, held down a finger and started counting again. She made it to 600 once. If she lost count, she'd start over. It pulled her back, kept the present steady running. It's just it's. Just taking the focus away from what you're, you know, doing and putting your like ultra focus on something you control and so. She was just, she was literally counting and then she'd take fingers down as a way of keeping

track. But it's that so is it sounds like from what Jackie said there and what you were, it's that mine reset and distraction almost from I guess what you're actually feeling, yeah. And that's it. But it even can be used as a performance boost at some stage. So like, if you were, it might be necessarily you're going through like a absolute, you know, disaster period.

Or you mean pain? It might be just like, I need to, I want to, I want to try and catch that guy or, or girl that's 100 metres up the track from me. Yeah, a good way to do it is again, to concentrate on your form in distant running, because generally when your form picks up, your hips pick up, everything comes good, you're running more efficient, you're running more efficient and then you can peg that back. So you might go.

Well, until I until I catch that person 100 metres down the track, I'm just going to count 10 steps on one leg, 10 steps on the other tends to be the other. It's amazing what, you know, just takes this is and like, I'm not. That's why I said at the beginning I didn't really think I'd be saying this type of thing because these are things that naturally occurred to me. I never put them into the, you know, the mental space. Yeah, I just put them into, that's how I do things. Better space deal.

With it, Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And I think but to that from the average person's perspective, I think sometimes we can get with all the noise that can be out there, you can get caught up in thinking, well, I have to visually it's a bit like the journaling stuff we talked about. If you brand it or think of it or put it under a heading of. Mental exercise, blah blah. Some people can just go, uh, I don't know. Yeah, that's not who I am.

Which is what? I'd do I'd as soon as someone says, as soon as someone mentions some type of mental yeah, clinic selling me something in that space, mental health space, I am out. You switch. Off. I'm off that post or I'm out the door quicker than you say Boo. If someone gives me a, a way I can perform better. And it's just keep it simple. And this is something that might have a cue. We, we talked about cues before. Yeah, here's a cue.

You know, whether it's physical man or whatever, this is going to help me better then oh, listen, 100% try it doesn't work. Throw it out. It works. For you. Yeah. I love it. I love it. Can we talk about. You've given me actually some. Speaking of cues, I'm going to use a lot of those in this race. Oh, the steps one's amazing. Yeah, I can. Like, I'm going to use it. It's so easy. And it's so useful I'm looking.

Forward I'm now I'm really excited about when I get to try it today in the race quickly Salomon amazing. Thank you to Pete and the crew at Salomon for kicking me out because come to the party. I tried it on fun little reel up on the Instagram page I did getting it all on. I'm really excited. Do I need some warmer stuff? Well, how? Cold. Is this going to get? Well, it is.

How do you say that Liam, because even though I'm, I can't run with you, I looked, I thought what do I need to take down as we go down there and Mount Wellington? So like it is quite what do we say the elevation at the top was 1000 metres or someone correct us on that. It's on Saturday, going to be 6° at the top there mate. It's definitely not Queensland Weather 6. Degrees. You know what?

Though 6° when you're running, unless there's a massive wind chill, which obviously isn't gonna be windy. On that day, I can't say if it's. Windy 6 can be really cold up in the mountains. If it isn't when you're running and you've just sweated your, you know, ass off going all the way up there, you ain't even. It's like 6° is perfect running. It's really nice, but up there is gonna be a Max of 11/6 so it doesn't look too bad. I see the next day on Sunday drops to one up there.

Now that would be probably a different story. One especially for. Like it's different if you live down there and that's what you, you know, you're being the environment you're being exposed to every day. But when we're up here in Queensland, you know what it's like when it drops to 11 in winter. We're we're in our clubs 26. Degrees outside today, it's a bit fresh. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Top of Mount Wellington's at 12171 metres. OK, so. That makes sense. Yeah.

So 6° up there, down, down low. I'm seeing Hobart's gonna be, what are we looking at, 12 to 21? So it'll be good. It'll be good running conditions for us, yeah, might even be too hot for the Southerners. Do I need? To bust out my Do I need to make a return to the long fluoro socks? Do my knee socks need to come back? No. No, we don't. We're not already mixing Salomon with fluoro knee socks. You're just like talking. How nice. Those new Genesis, those SLAB Genesis you've got.

Amazing. Shoes we don't wreck. Them with some fluoro. But you reckon no need for like thermals or anything? No SO. They'll be compulsory gear you've got to take. So you've got the jacket, I've got the jacket, got the jacket. Yep. So pretty much like a. Feels a bit late to be checking compulsory. I would say, and I haven't checked it yet, I'd say these types of runs you're going to do, they'll need you to take a

space blanket. So if you've got in that specific, I've got one of those, you know, if you you rolled your ankle or something, you couldn't move for a while and you've got to sit down in six degrees and you're sweating. It's always good to have that. You'll have the same sealed wear the jacket. Yes, I've. Got one of those, thank you. Salman OK, so that's all sorted.

And in this run, I would say unless they consider 6° at the top, which I don't think they will, they may throw in thermals and things like that, which we're gonna sort you out with just in case. But look at six degrees. I can't see them saying you need thermals jumped. On the mandatory stuff I need to take a rubbish bag, so anyone?

Who doesn't run trail races? This is the, this is the extra things you do besides like compared to running a road marathon because you're out there on the trails on your own, you're often facing different conditions, the chance of getting, you know, injured and cars can't get you and all that type of thing. There's always compulsory gear you got to take depending on the run and depending on the weather dictates how big that compulsory list needs to be.

So like if you do something like coast to coast, you need multiple, you need wet weather pants, a wet weather jacket, multiple thermals, thermal socks, thermal gloves, thermal beanie. By the time you start putting that in a pack, it becomes like you're running with a backpack. Like a serious backpack. I have to take a snake. Bandit, but for all the road runners. Who give, you know, look at the trail runners with packs on.

Not the ones running down the beach, but, you know, out on the trails with packs on. That's the reason why packs exist. You've got to carry your own gear and your own nutrition and your own fluid. Yeah. Anyway, mandatory gear. The checklist doesn't look too bad, should be able to tick it off. Done. This is going to be fun. It's going to be fun and. We will. We'll be able to. We'll recap all that. Ideally we'll get it out either Sunday night or Monday morning. Yeah, next week.

You are in for a treat because we got some, we got some seriously good stuff coming your way on the podcast feed. And I would say if you're a listener to this and you're enjoying the Saturday apps, now is the time to bring in your running friends who might be tackling marathons. Now is the time to get on board because this stuff we start dropping from Wednesday with Benita Willis.

It's it's our usual style, it's Courtney and I doing our style, but we're bringing some serious running coaching credibility here. So get on board now. Now's the time all. Right. Let's move on, Liam. Hey, have you? Seen the stuff about Olympics is on the it's on the news at the moment. I've got a few things I want to chat about First. We've got croc. They they're put in the rowing up in Rocky, they reckon Rockhampton. I mean, it's a it's a bit of a

stretch with Crocs on the river. I think that's what spotted that guy got taken the notion that it's. Taken by the police the other day. But I mean the notion. What's the definition of infested? Because this the fact that it keeps being referred referred to as the croc infested Fitzroy River. If they could have picked. Any news story that the international media were going to pick up on? Yeah, even the fact there is a croc every so often. Yeah, down the river.

The definition of. Infested is that that is that of insects or animals is that they are present. So yeah, look, they're by that measure it is there's a crocodile there's there have been and there probably are some crocodiles in that river at some point. I would love to get. Into more of like someone who is across these decisions better because there's a few in there around sports and what they've announced. I've just gone. Wow, that's Oh well, tell me.

What do you think about them? Because, OK, the Crocs, the IT going up to Rockhampton. You just think that's a short sighted look. I understand. I. Understand the the soccer and and the different like net, like sports that have to have a lot of venues. Yes, that's amazing. Like under Cairns Townsville, supporting the regionalization of it. But if you're coming to an Olympic Games and you're racing and you're in the Olympics, you

want to be at the site. Because I've been in this situation of I've raced Beijing Olympics where I was literally an hour and a half out of the city and it just feels like you're in another event. It really does compared to London. And I was racing in Central Hyde Park with a half million people watching. Suddenly you're in an Olympic Games. So I want to see, it's a Brisbane Olympics.

I want to see majority of those sports in close proximity to the city where they get crowds and you feel like you're part of the Olympics. That's me as an Olympian talking, and that's a great. Perspective because most people don't want to be up in. Rocky, I can tell you right now and that's not And look. And that's not against. Rockhampton. That's just like. It's the nature of. The Olympic Games we're talking about here, this is not an everybody gets a prize sort of

thing. This is the Olympics. I was, I made that joke on the radio show the other morning when this was announced that, you know, you imagine when you're Olympians in 20-30 years from now when they're telling their kids or their grandkids or whatever about the time when they're an Olympian and one says, yeah, yeah. What did you do? I rode in Paris. Wow. Yeah. Right in the heart of one of the most romantic, beautiful cities in the world. What about you?

Yeah, I rode in London. I was right in the. What about you? Rockhampton. Yeah. Where's? That it's about four hours, 650 KS north of Brisbane. Yeah. Where's that? Oh mate, like anyway it's it's it's interesting the stadium being proposed for Victoria Park. Are you for or against Greatest? The only decision they could have made. I know there's a cost associated. It's the Olympics. It doesn't come for free. We've made the decision to go

and get the games. Now we have to do the right thing by the games and by the city and invest some money into this new park. Gabba gets knocked down also. Right decision in my opinion. That vicinity is too small to ever redevelop. You knock that down, you put some high rise apartments in place, hopefully alleviate some of the housing crisis problem that that Brisbane and all of

Australia has at the moment. You still get that bang for buck and then you create this new precinct at Victoria Park which gives Brisbane a new identity aside from just the brown snake. Couldn't agree more. And what's? More as someone from Adelaide who has seen what a football big stadium can do in proximity to the city.

You revitalise Fortitude Valley, you revitalise Brisbane CBD, you give small businesses in there locked in crowds and and punters every time there's a football game, a cricket game, a concert, Yeah, and this guy's. Different even the Sydney Park, Olympic Park, because even Sydney Olympic Park's still at hour, like you still got to travel. This is Roma Street, Roma Street Station, walkable, you know, at Suncorp Stadium, you know, it's just adding to this whole area.

Yes, they're going to lose some Parklands, I understand that. And that's that. That's never great in a city. You want all the Parklands you want, but I think they can create it with Parklands and you're going to get other benefits. This is going to be the best legacy the Brisbane Olympics could leave. Couldn't agree more. CEO hope it happens but. Now the one that's the funny one. It's got nothing to do with Brisbane. This is even earlier in 228. Did you see the this modern

pentathlon stuff going on? Yep. So. What? What modern, modern pentathlon events? What do we got? We've got swimming in a pool. They swim. Fencing. They fence. They. Run cross country, run cross country, run, shoot and they horse ride they used. To horse ride, well they exactly they used to horse ride. The Olympic Committee. Have decided from now on they're going to throw in a bit of old Ninja Warrior obstacle course racing. Do you think this has gone too far?

Trying to chase the the young audience? Well, no, it's not. Trying to chase the young? Well, it probably is. It's a little bit to do with. The horses it achieves 2 purposes. Really one is there were a lot of I think it was the German coach or someone punched a horse. You can't punch. Horses right? Don't punch horses. We are not pro punching horses. But. So 1 is there's been complaints about animal cruelty as part of the Olympic Games, all right.

The other one is this idea of trying to attract this younger audience. Ninja Warrior is not attracting a younger audience. But hang on. Yeah, like I can even understand obstacle course racing, you know, high rocks. All this stuff's booming. It's an idea. It's still got a fence. It's not like they've just added a real like Gen Z sport in obstacle course racing. You've still got to do all the traditional stuff, I think. So they've.

Taken the most. Tradition, traditional event in the Olympics, which it really is 'cause it is a niche event. Yeah, that is, it is a legacy event. I'll go as far as saying that, 'cause if you look at like, my sport of triathlon, when I was at the Games, it was kind of the, in a way, it was the new, yeah, new kid on the block. New kid on the block. For modern pentathlon, it was the next, you know, evolution, evolution. But I love the fact they've always kept this legacy event.

And I love the event. I love watching it. Chloe Esposito big. Shout out Australian gold medalists so. Now they go around and take the oldest event and go. Let's just shove in there some action and and see if it works. I think this is just imagine if they said. To you Courtney, the bike race has gotten a bit dangerous in triathlon. Instead what we want you to sit down and play Fortnite. So we want you to swim 1 1/2 KS then play a game of Fortnite.

Then you can go run your 10K. It wouldn't surprise. Me that's that's the kind of stuff that's the logic they're flying. They're just throwing stuff up a wall. I hate it shit up against. The Wall. And hoping it sticks. Man I hate it. It is. It's such a it the Olympics to me as someone who's never, never competed, I've always held them as. This. Not antiquated, but. It's, it's a, it's a tradition, it's a, it's a historical event and it's something that shouldn't.

Be touched. In a way, which is why I'm not a huge fan of. I love Orissa True, I love the successes and I'm actually OK with the skateboarding being in. I hated break dancing. So I guess everyone will have their line as to what is OK to bring into the Olympic Games. I don't like cricket going into the Olympic Games.

I think it's going to be there as an exhibition sport in Lai don't like it. I don't think cricket should be in the Olympics. But this idea that we're going to start tinkering with the sports themselves, to me it's I'm, I'm trying to think of an analogy. It feels like you're you're drawing a moustache on the Mona Lisa. It feels like you're just it, you know, or, or or putting a speech bubble out at the moment. Lisa's mouth with some clever. Yeah, look, it's obviously, it's

obviously still very. Successful and working right and lots of money involved in the Olympics. But yeah, I I just don't know what what does it look like in 20 years if they continue down this route and will it work? You just gave me an idea and I'm going to go on the phone real tangent here. Let's go because you said cricket at the Olympics. Yeah. Do you think because I mean Commonwealth Games is is dying it well? And I think it's happening. I won't say dead. But it's it's it's on its.

Farewell tour it's got its challenges right. It's. On its farewell tour. So you talk about cricket then? Do you reckon they could? You reckon Commonwealth Games could work if they just doubled down the similar situation but doubled down on true only

Commonwealth game sports? If they actually went more traditional and went back to what are the sports that only realistically core Commonwealth Games countries really own and really play bowls, netball, netball, cricket, cricket, Some of the core football sports you keep swimming and you keep. The swimming track and field. It's the traditional sports, but then really played up what only. Exists. At Commonwealth Games, What sports truly are more

Commonwealth countries? To your point, yes you could, but I guarantee the organising committee would then find themselves making decisions like the IOC have of going well. But how do we attract the kids? Yeah, right. How do we make it? Relevant so the cricket wouldn't be. It'd be T20, you couldn't play one day or Test or anything. It'd have to be T20, but that's fine, it's still come off. Games the netball would be the. Fast 5 or whatever the shortened T20 version of netball like this

is my point that it it isn't. So I don't think it's so much about the sports. I think it's about making reactive decisions to trying to. Get a younger audience. To be interested in what you're doing, and I don't.

Know. If that's the right strategy, I think you've got to know what you are and sell what you are and celebrate what you are, not try and change what you are to appeal to. You know, people who I don't care, I. Got told a few days ago, maybe you just got to let go. And I said I don't want to. I like. I like, I like, I like sport the way it was. Did you see I was watching? Oh, you said you hadn't seen it yet, but I was watching Gal Gout's. Did his coach die?

No, I haven't watched this. He is amazing. Old school. They've got her on there and literally as she's walked in, she's she's playing out of the cameras a bit. But she said something along the lines of I make all of my athletes at the school sign an agreement and their parents and has certain things in that agreement and they've got to fulfil that agreements on them. So literally she's making sure that hey, this is a two way

street. If I'm going to commit to you, you're going to commit to me. And these are the things I expect. She is a real hard line. Old school coach. Die Shepherd. Die Shepherd. Yeah, kid, I told you like on the show. I told you again, no hat, no training. Like really. Also 22 years that Ipswich Grammar. Awesome. And then obviously now you know, he's put in the limelight. I she's worth watching.

Worth watching, but I. Can't wait to see as part of this whole what what's going on in in the future of this. I can't actually wait. I want to see more of her. Do you think she's a new? I think it's what I think my personal opinion. I would I'd love to see more coaches like that, you know, just discipline. But it's like hard love. So it's Dean Boxall. Style stuff? I think no. No, no, I think without the carry on, but not that hard love. OK, it's it's more nurturing

hard love. Interesting. Yep. I think there's. Yeah, we'll talk about it more in the future as we see more of her, but I think she's going to be actually the big story that comes. She will be a Dean Boxall style coach where like we'll be just as interest, just as interested in her as in die as we will. Yeah, Yeah. That's. A situation that's exciting to hear quickly. You've made, you've put

something in my brain there. Have you seen the story that's going around the football world at the moment with Simon Goodwin? No interested to get your take on this. So Simon Goodwin, who's the coach of the Melbourne Demons and sorry to drift off into AFL world. For those people that might not be interested, this is not about the sport specifically, it's about the coach athlete relationship. Last weekend the Demons got flogged.

They got really badly beaten by North Melbourne at a game that they win in as favourites. They lose off the back. Of it Max. Gorn. Who's their captain and who is? I don't know how many times he's been an All Australian, but he's been the best ruckman in the comp for the last few decade. Gets beaten one on one in his battle against Tristan Cherry, the Kangaroo's ruckman. Quite badly, obviously. Goody.

Gets asked about in the press conference and he comes out and basically defends his captain and said yeah he got beat blah blah blah blah and then. Offered up the information. That there's some personal stuff going on in Max's life, which is part of the reason that maybe he's underperformed today, right now, That. Hadn't been public knowledge. Previously, but all of a sudden what that does is it's, you know, it's a rag to the bloodhounds of the bull.

All the media want to go to Max. Want to know what's going on in Max's? Personal life Max, to his credit, fronted up on his media commitments on Triple M, the company I work for on the breakfast show and talked about it and talked about it really well. But it's raised the conversation about did Goody do the right thing in offering up that information? And he's come out and I think he said I probably would have handled it differently in hindsight.

But it's that idea what you mentioned about dying gout gout of that nurturing coach athlete relationship. And this is a because I asked Damien Hardwick that the Gold Coast Sun's about and he said I've got no doubt what good he did came from a place of care. For his athlete and friend, trying to protect him. Trying to protect. Him, but inadvertedly it actually piled the pressure open the door. Yeah, so.

And interestingly, today, if you're listening to this on Saturday, Melbourne are playing Gold Ghosts. So it'll be really interesting to see how Jared Witsy, you know, Witsy goes against Max Gorn. Because I would imagine that regardless of what Max Gorn has got going on, and I don't actually know, he'll be looking to put in a very big dominant performance against Jared Wits and Sons. Yeah, Witsy. Oh mate, I'm an I'm an unashamed QLD supporter so hard not to be

a fan of Big Witty yeah. Yeah, yeah. All right, let's move on. What do? We got next. Mate, I've got last week. Remember we were talking about, I think, that we finished our last episode about Ron etiquette. Yes, funny enough. And this. Is complete coincidence Matt Hauser So Australia, Currently Australia's best Olympic male triathlete. He has just starred or starred's probably a overstatement of being on Instagram, but he's attempted acting. He's attempted. Acting in.

In in this street smart commercial. Listen to this well, Queenslanders. It's a new. Year, which means new goals lots of people have health and fitness on their mind for 2025, which we love whether you're. Going for 1/2 marathon. Or your local fun run. Let's make sure we get from the start line to the cafe as safe as possible. Even if you're a local legend and know the loop like you're back of your hand, make sure you keep your wits about you.

Jeez, that was close. Better switch sides when running in a group. Communication is key. Make sure you look out for each other. Use hand signals and your voices. Stay safe out there. Let's go get a coffee. Have you? Have you ever hand? Signalled running. We have made it. Runners, we have made it. This is it. That that's that's government. Investments to tell people how to run. I love in a group on the right.

I kind of feel for Matt, but I also understand the exact situation he's in where someone's offered him some cash. Someone's offered you cash and a script. And it's a government script. It's hilarious, but it's also. Good that they're investing. I think he's done a great job of presenting. That like I actually think well done Matt Howser that is that performance is great and I'm not taking the piss. I actually think he's done a really good job of that. This is have you ever?

Hand signalled. Running No. Oh, sorry, I. Lied. No, no, no. I hand signal most mornings if we run, if I'm out running with Azi's crew at Main Beach, we're on the trails and there's something in the middle, like if there's a hole I pointed out like you're on a. Bike. I do a little point, absolutely. Depending on what side it is, we'll do a little point within the group on the trails. Absolutely. I've never hand signalled like to turn a corner. Corner. Who's that's not that's not

seriously in the video, is it? He doesn't hand signal too. Yes, that was what it. Is make sure you're hand signal. So like if you're running around, I think he's running in the back streets of Miami or somewhere and they're on the road and as a like you're a bike, if you're going to go around the corner, put your hand out. It's Matt Hauser might run at a pace that.

Requires hand signalling. I don't right And no I. Just after last week I was talking about etiquette that just popped up in my feed and I was like oh but this is brand new. This has only. Just come out so clearly. This is a it's part of the what is it, The Street Smart, Street Smart campaign. Which it's a road safety camper. Well, the first thing I said to

my wife was. Can you believe they're spending money on trying to teach people running etiquette and they haven't even bothered to do the electric bikes and scooters yet? Yeah, yeah, I was wrong. Because I went to the web. Page and they actually do do this, I just haven't seen it. There's a whole hasn't reached me. There's a whole heap of. Other parts of this campaign, but at all. Yeah, this is.

This is a moment. Mark this down as the moment we talked about you know, run clubs were a moment that government is now providing guidance, safety videos on how to run in the streets safely when you're training for these marathons this. Is this is another moment? It's another moment. Well, remember the time before they used to do the I remember when I'd go running and they didn't tell you how to run around the streets. Anyway, this is over. This this is.

Overreach. This is overkill, to be clear. This is, hey, unless, unless Queensland state Government, you want to throw some of that sweet Matt, how's the cash away? And we'll do the videos for you. That's true. I'm just jealous. No, I do. If that, if that one came across my desk, I reckon I would. I I what there were. You know when people ask you, what's the price? Although hey, if you guys want a trail. Safety running video. I know, I know a guy. A trail's fine.

Trail's fine, yeah. Well, you now you're the you're the head of the head of the trail society. Next, next one I've got going. Have a listen to this one. What's your name? My. Name is Dante and. What are you? About to do in a couple of months. I'm about to run 500 miles on psychedelics. Stop it. So press. The button I stopped it. This is we talk about things going and going and what's next and what's next. This dude. Is going to run 500K for.

A movie and promoting it, asking for money and running mushrooms. I don't care. This is dumb. This is just dumb. Like I thought this one might rub you up the. Wrong way. It has, it has and if you. Look at the caption. Of this. Instagram video it says if you like. Concept. I assume the concept if. You like the concept of this documentary we're filming? Support us by tagging Joe Rogan, which says everything you need to know. This guy is doing it because he wants to become famous.

This guy is doing it for the sole reason of trying. To this is this is. The bad runner we talked about the other week? This is not Jelly Roll, who started his dumb run club or whatever his run club was called because he's fallen in love with running despite being a person of profile losers. Run club losers. Sorry, not. Dumb losers run club. Jelly Roll is a known person who's fallen in love with running great this is someone who wants to become famous.

He's gone to running to get. The expense of running? Yep. And I hate that. And we're talking about it, so we'll. We'll, we'll, we'll shut it down because look, this is hey, you give fuel to. The fire that's. That is the issue. The more I mean, that is social media, right? I, I, it's content. It is. It's content, Sure it's content. I won't lie, I'll probably keep tabs on it. Just because I don't know if he's done. It or not that? Just yeah, that from what I've

seen of people that try. And run 500 miles plus I think you get yourself in a headspace where you probably don't need the psychedelics. I think the experience of running 500 miles is enough of a drug anyway, right? Few more loose ends from. Last week, Liam, I I was wrong. Drive to Survive is coming back. Oh, this was. Yeah, you I that wasn't, I don't think you realised at the time what a bombshell it was. Yeah, well, I, I mean. This is made my ears prick up. Yeah, well, I was.

Thinking the same. What I did, the reason was I was reading all of these we talk about. I forget why I was actually saying this exactly, but it was all the wrong storyline. So I was promoting kind of the story they were promoting this season wasn't the real story. So there was backlash from the drivers saying like, that doesn't exist, Great, you know? Manufacturing story.

The producers are like. Pushing things around, making things appear what they're not, all for the case of a story which eventually is going to not make the drivers go well. I don't want to be involved in that. That's where I read there was no season. However, I've since read Netflix have renewed for season 8, but I

wonder whether. Season 8 will be noticeably different because to your point, reality TV producers famously in certain shows like The Bachelor and that sort of stuff, they use lack of sleep, they use alcohol, they use these tools as a way to get the drive a wedge between. People so they they want to create drama. Right. And that's their job. The difference there is those contestants in the lens of reality television are expendable because they don't come back, right?

If you're producing Drive to Survive, these drivers aren't expendable. They are your recurring characters who you need to have on board with the project again next season. And I noticed Max wasn't in a. Lot this year, I think he was probably like, I've had enough, I've had enough, you guys are painting. Probably ticked the box he had to do and then. Yeah, he wasn't. Wasn't too involved. Hey, I hope they get it right and I hope it. Keeps going. Well, yeah, the big question we

had after. Last episode and we did a bit of a, you know, shout out or and real was around. Do you actually? Care who wins a marathon. Race and I said care is a harsh word, but do you know who wins a marathon? Races, So we got plenty of feedback on the lots and. Most of it was in. Agreeance. We don't, we don't know. So Gordon Moffatt here was chatting to my group after this about winners of the races. They don't see running as a sport, they see it as a way to get fit and lose weight.

So could not care less one one lady I trained didn't even realise that the marathon she does is the same race the winner. Does she just? Starts miles away. In, in, in the F zone. And it blew a mind that there's actually another race going on. I love that. I love. That response? Yeah, what's he say? Which I'm saying people actually even the park run. Same thing. You know who wins the park one. No one really gives a gives a shit.

This is this is we're. I'm learning so much doing this with you Liam and and talking about these different things. I'm just having a look at through some. Because the only one you did go on to say. The only thing people really care about winning who are just running is at the Olympics and Commonwealth Games where they're watching it, yes. So if we wanted. To throw a broad. Blanket out over Do people care about the winners of the marathon?

Yes, if they're not competing, but know if they are. If you're racing, most people don't care, but if you're watching, of course you care. So that was Gordo I. Like it. What else have we got? We'll get to the pods people listens to in a in a future episode because I've got there's so many come through. There's actually. Too many and I want to. I want to. Make sure mine get in there too.

But yeah, thanks very much. Sending them in because we've got a heap of them as far as Luke Smith wrote into on our on the comments on on. Sorry, those who don't have Instagram can always leave comments in our Spotify. Probably the easiest way to do it as a running fans, you think you're we think you guys are looking at the marathon as a sport again, which it is, but a large percentage of the people look at the marathon as purely a challenge or a goal.

Most marathon runners would not follow major marathon results and don't care who the professionals in any given race are. That's why I've pulled out of our marathon series, Liam, and we've got a first time marathoner coming in to support you. So for everyone out there listening who think the same way, we've provided the perfect lead up for the marathon for you. Yeah, we should stop down.

On this point, we talked a bit about this new series that we're starting in first one drops Wednesday, but. We do have this is really. Exciting. We've got a young woman by the name of Bronte Langbroek who's also who works in radio with me and she's coming on this first ever marathon. She fell in love with running about 12 months ago. She's run a half before, but

this is her first marathon. She's thrilled at the opportunity to get to be trained by Benita and there's for everyone out there who might be first marathon, second marathon, still very much the goal is finishing. Bronte's going to be a great touch point through this series to see how she's travelling through the 12 week block and to hopefully reflect what your experience is or at least answer some of the questions or thoughts you might be having

across your journey. Yeah, if you're in the same situation and. Look, we're not going to just be focused on on Liam and Bronte. No, we want, well, I'm the one they're asking them those broader questions. And already in a few interviews we've learned a heap of stuff about kilometres run and recovery and what matters, what doesn't. So yeah, that's all coming. Yeah, now if you. I've actually got a shout. Out for the Queenslanders, we are Queenslanders up here.

So Holly Ransom, just this is a huge day. She's just run the 24 hour track race at Shrikon Show Crane. That's a Canberra place, you know that Trishimov well. Yeah, I don't. I know. I've always seen that he's have a triathlon. I used to know. It as a triathlon, not a run. But anyway it was the Australian 24 hour a 24 hour track champs.

That sounds awful. She's run 200 and. 63 point. 5 kilometres in 24 hours, a new Australian record, new Australian champ and the third best 24 hour female performance in history. Now I don't know that's Australian performance or it might be in history, full stop. So that's huge Congrats. Massive shout out holy. Ransom, well played. Better you than me. I'm I'm more than happy to be away from that one.

Can we just We did get another. Message back and now people might remember my misguided your lungs are a toilet theory. If you haven't, if you missed that episode, go back. It was medically disproved, which is great by a friend of mine, Farah, who's a a a cardiologist. And again, she explained why my half baked theory about your lungs being a toilet was wrong. But a woman by the name of Jess Baird Walsh has messages the show and she's a friend of Farrah's. And she said, hey guys, wanted

to say hi and introduce myself. I heard about you from Farrah, wanted to tell you about what I'm doing. She is up to this is incredible. Jess is up to 100. She's up to 995 days running consecutively, 995 days running consecutively. So that's over two years that she's been consecutively running and I believe minimum of five KS she might have cracked 1000. By now then?

Well, yeah, from when she she's. Probably through 1000 days and she just wanted to fill in the info saying that regarding marathons and winners and why people don't care, runners are racing against themselves. I reckon that's why it's less about the elites and more about breaking down your own barriers. She said she's running Sydney Marathon as part of her challenge and she's so excited to see Kipchoge. So just another perspective on that.

Marathon runners and finishing while I'm thinking of it, it just. Came across I got sent from one of your mates. You having a go at me about calling, weren't you? I was just disappointed to see you jump on a. Bandwagon like that. Oh no, who is this? I know where that's come from is. That you in a stadium. Let me let me explain. Singing, Yeah. Those. Who throw stones? No, Let me explain, Courtney. Yes, I have been very hypocritical that I know where you've got that from and Sam

gets stuffed. Sam has sent that to you, hasn't he? Yes, yes. So once a year on Anzac Day, my friends and I from school, it's I, I can't get there this year sadly, but we normally go down to the Anzac Day clash, Collingwood and Essendon. I am a Port Adelaide supporter, but for this game, once a year we all choose sides just to add some spice to it amongst us. So I am a Collingwood supporter for one game every year. And yes, Liam. I have been somewhat

hypocritical. And I've been caught out. You have been caught with. Your pants. That's the problem with social. Media and phones and doing things on camera. Anything more you've got on Liam, anyone? Sending in No I'm. More than happy to keep sharing, hey? If I'm not allowed. To read all the pages from your journals, you're not allowed to just ask for people to submit stuff on the on the. Running bandwagon, as we're talking about other sports people doing it, Mark Cavendish,

they're great, They're great. Ran in his first half marathon last week in Paris in a time of 157 one 57150. Seven O 8. Half marathon in Paris. OK, now. We are pro running off across all things. Yes, we we've talked about the average Strava time and all that sort of stuff, but Mark Cavendish ain't no average person, right? To me that seems slow for Mark Cavendish. Sir Mark Cavendish, Sir Mark Cavendish, he's a track cyclist.

We talk about the aerobic base. We've spoken about what Logan Martin, the BMX, was capable of. I imagine if Richie Port turned his hand to oh, Richie came from triathlon. I mean, I think he'd he could probably switch and GoPro at it. That seems slow for Mark Cavendish. Doesn't it? Well, he does, but he's he's. Well, I'm I'm glad he's done. It if you've never run before and he might be. Someone who's come from the bike and just never run, so it's completely unnatural, but he's

out there. Just another one, another one. It's great to have every week. Just seeing them just keep flowing in. It's great the running it. Continues to grow. Can we get an injury update from you? How, how are we doing for time? We're we're going to have a long run. Today what? How? How are we doing for time? Where are we? At we're up towards an. Hour. But we've got some stuff to Yeah, we still got stuff to get to. We do. Have some stuff to get to so I'll.

Be very quick on my update because there is no running. I do have AI have a stress reaction in my bone. It's it's not too bad. It's not broken or cracked or fractured, which is good news. So I'll be back in no time, probably a timeline, probably about six weeks. Jeez, that seems like a long time. I'll. Rescan in six weeks. Yeah, right. And how you doing with that? That's all right. So I'm gonna.

I'll complete rest initially is the I suppose the plan and then you're gonna actually I'm on crutches for so this is this. The advice I suppose I've been given on this is don't necessarily need to be on crutches, but the longer I can keep on for weight bearing, the quicker it's gonna heal and the more chance it will come back better quicker. Yeah. So is that why I'm carrying all the? You're gonna carry everything.

To down to Tassie for me looking like my Porter, my Porter and I'm going to try and stand on those crutches as much as possible because I do I mean I'm jealous of everything going on and I want to get back as quick as possible. I will be able to do a bit of swimming and a bit of light riding in a few weeks, so not completely out of it fair enough, but give us a quick update on how you're going into this weekend. I'm feeling really good I've.

Been running. I have probably haven't run as as much elevation as as required to really ramp at this, but I'm actually I'm overall I'm running. I feel pretty good through my runs. I got up in the trails last weekend with mutual friend Reedy. We hit out 17 KSI ran in those the S Labs Genesis and they were they're a great race shoe. That is I'm excited to run in those because racing around the Nerang 17K loop, they feel great. Yeah, and that's in the thing with.

Those they were designed, they are designed for the elite runners at an elite level. So they are a great shoe, but when it comes to trail, you know, they haven't got there's no plate in them. No, no, it's good responsive rather, but it's not too soft either. But they just run like a they run like a really good shoe and like the grip on them, you're gonna have no trouble going across. I feel what they call it up at Mount Wellington. They're called the probably the

steamers. They call the rocks up there. Well, look and look if you're. Interested. Not cheap, they're 325 bucks or something like that but go and have a look. But if you are at the point where you feel like you want to try and get a great trail, shoot, from my experience you're liking them better than the softer. Pair right? I much prefer those to the other. Pair that I tried which? I would I would hike. In yeah, so that was an aeroglide.

Aeroglide yeah no, these are more like a training shoe, you know softer on the feet runner but yeah these are these are like yeah these are the top of the range racer can't wait to race in them at. Kanani, I am coming off. I'm just my kilometres and time on feet is coming down a bit because I've I'm gonna obviously racing this weekend and then I get into my 12 week block of training with Benita. So I am sort of tapering or having a bit more of an easy week under guidance from the coach.

It's not a decision I've made, but Anita has said ease up. That's the thing, right? You got to trust. Now I want you to trust 100% in everything after this weekend, trust in me to this weekend. Yep, hopefully don't hurt you. And then after that I want you to 100% as soon as I cross that finish line at. Kunani in Hobart today I I take my brain out and I put Anita's training notes in it's I stopped thinking for myself from a running perspective.

But what I will say just quickly, I was I hadn't thought about what this. Podcast might have done. For my Strava I. Reckon before. We started doing this, yes. I had maybe the 20 people that I run with following me on Strava. Yeah, right, right. And so I didn't. Think about it, I never. Thought of Strava in that sense of, oh, people can follow and see what you run. I got 250 followers on Strava now come right. They probably just checking in.

We're not we're not blaming full of shit each week, Liam, There's some level of. Responsibility to these people because for the most part they see me doing the same buddy 1015 K spot out there up at Main beach or down at Tugan. Hopefully none of them are stalkers, but. Yeah, you know what, it's a good call because I think anyone who does start listening to this twelve week programme and want to see what you're doing week to week.

Like obviously we'll touch have touch points with Benita each week. But if you want to see day to day what both yourself and then I'm assuming Bronny will be on there as well. Yeah, follow along. We'll get some, we'll get some info up. I'm going to. Try and be a lot more involved

with that stuff. Involved talking about what it's like to run trial running and what we've got, you know, compared to running and what you're in for since Stegman, who you would have met, he helped us run Red Bull Defiance. So he was the race. Director at Red Bull. Defiance set it up. He lives up in Townsville. He rode into us and he said, and Liam, you're looking at Kinani or Salomon Golden Trail. Kinani as a road racer, as a

roadie, as a roadie. Trail running is all about the journey and the course it will take you on. It will be just as spectacular and hurt just as much no matter how fast you run. And I agree because it doesn't matter whether you run it hard, fast or it it it trail running, the running up the hill is going to be hard, but you get to it's better than Rd. I'm going to say it.

It's better than Rd because you're going to be up there with all those views running up through the forest and all those places you've never seen before. You don't get that out or running around the roads. And that's what we love about it. Shout out Sammy, thanks for the message. What he also has said, and I am 100% on board with this. I haven't run this by you, but we were doing the WTF series. Yep.

He said. You know what may might be a good idea Let's call out some of the local little races. We talk about Gold Coast Marathon, we talk about, you know, some of these big sponsored trail races, city to surf Sydney Marathon. Let's let's call out some of the more unique smaller races and give them some support. I like it. I love it. So this is from the. Regional. Thing. So the first one I've got a few to four, got one straight off the bat.

I mean, it's his race, so but we'll start with Sammy's race. He talked about Let me see where is the first one he's got Magnetic Island. Have you heard of Magnetic Island? I've never been there off off Townsville in May get this. One has a finish. Line with kegs at the Arcadia Hotel. What's the race called? It'll be the magnetic island. Run. I'm assuming oh, it's the magnetic island. Run. OK, I. Like it so you get you get the ferry over. From Townsville, yeah.

It's a trail race, so there's actually probably trails. I've done some filming there for Tourism Queensland before on bikes. There's some trails, some Rd. But you think it's it's, I'm just trying to think. I think it's like limestone rocks. It looks like a, it's a, it's literally a tropical island. Like it's pretty much like you're up off in Fitzroy Island of Cairns or somewhere like that beautiful place the. Race to go and. Go tell me. More about the race itself. Oh my God, you don't.

Have it do you? Have any? So here's the thing, Courtney and I'm gonna bring races. I need the I'm gonna. Put my radio hat on here. And say that when you introduce new segments, right, This is how. No, I don't mean to go a radio on you, but if you're gonna introduce new segments on the pod without checking them with me first, you better bring all the information because guess what? I got questions, right? You should be able to answer these questions for me. I know it's a trail race.

I know it's a magnetic island. I know it's May. If anyone you everyone's got Google there, go and Google it. No, no, Sam. Sam puts on some really good races up around Townsville. They've had at the moment they're having a, I don't know how much you know about like, you know, we're focused on southeast QLD copying all this weather. North North Queensland at the moment are just continually copying it.

So he's telling me up around Pluma and areas north north of Townsville, they could be shut off up to a year. So while we're all down here in the southeast, Winchen, there's a continual, the rain just hasn't stopped up there. It's continual there, I imagine. It's what he's talking about is the two days trail run. It's on Magnetic Island which finishes at the Arcadia Village hotel.

There's a 6K12K all 21K course. They climb from Nelly Bay to the top of the hill above Arcadia Bay and into Horseshoe Bay. Saturday afternoon event finished. Sign inside the pub post drink racing meal. Yep, that's great. I like that. So what another one the hell of the West was on last weekend. A friend of mine finished. 5th in the women's race came in, I mean. What's going to windy from here? Probably 5 1/2 hours or so. So he's straight W along

Queensland, NSW border. Yeah. You. I saw a picture of people walking in the water. They have, I don't know the numbers, but like it looked like there was 1000 people at least going into the the river out there. Yeah. And depending on the water, you know the rivers. Have you ever raised north of the West? Never. Been out the hell of the. West Jacko from the run group takes some of the school kids out there, do the fun run that's on and then help out on the aid stations.

Cool. So there's plenty of people. I know they get really good professionals out there. So that's another one that's turned into a massive event. You know, one of it's been around for years. So I'm having a look at some of the photos in front of me. You know what that is? Great branding. We've talked about branding and running and all the rest of that. Hell of the West is a name you want to have gone for. You find out about. Oh, this sounds cool. Yeah, this sounds cool.

So you've instantly sparked that interest in people. You've broken through the barrier of whatever hell of the West. What is that, triathlon? Maybe we should have put some more effort. Into our podcast name, then Liam. Too late. It's too late now. We've already passed the boat out. Yeah, yeah, there's a few. I mean, I've been out to a few different Outback kind of festivals. So Dirt and Dust Festival is at Julia Creek. Who's that Julia? Creek.

Is you're gonna do a quick map check on me. It's inland from Townsville as well. Now I'm thinking it's gonna be like, I'm talking thousands of kilometres inland. So you got, so you got Mount Isa Klon Curry and this is coming from the West. Back in east you got Mount Isa, Klon, Curry, then Julia Creek, small little one street town and then you come back in through places like Ewarden, Charters Towers. It's on that road, that route. It's a 7 hour drive inland from.

Townsville, OK. Julia Creek. So, Julia. Creek Was it used to run a triathlon in the early days. I went there as a underage teenager drinking in the pub thinking how big and tough I was and and ordered kid you not, I remember this. I went up with this is when I raced for Zuccone right? Went up with the Zuccone team to do this triathlon and went into the pub and ordered a what are they called the red fire engines or whatever. Occa Red Bull No.

VOC Yeah, the fire trucks, the fire trucks, fire trucks, you know this underage. Red lemonade in. In in the most Outback. Town, you can imagine in Australia probably. Can you like, think of what people must have thought anyway, what you do as a teenager we got really drunk out there after they were travelling, but they supported travelling professionally for years and years. It's awesome. They've now evolved into a full festival where they have rodeo,

they have what they. Call the Ironman. Where they do like, you know, I think they might do wood chopping. So instead of having more running events, now they have the kind of like Outback events, put it into an Ironman event and they have that, yeah, cool. But they also have a like a adventure run as part of that out there. So you're right. Dirt and dust. Triathlon, yeah, just having a bit of a Google. If you are Dirt and Dust Festival Julia Creed, that is an experience.

Out there for the weekend because all you know, everyone from around the town come in for the weekend for all the events. It's only in a couple of weeks. From the 11th to the 13th of April. Yep, should get out there. 15 I don't think we'll get. Out there this year. But you know, in the future if if you want to see some stuff like there's so many good Outback QLD festivals going on, like, you know, they run in Australia's best. Butt competition, we get into that.

You could enter that, Liam. You could enter that. I'm more than happy to jump on the into. Into the triathlon. Probably the adventure run that's out. There now I don't actually think they're on the triathlon there anymore. OK, I think they've moved it to an adventure run. I'll leave some of these for for a few weeks time because we've got, we've got, we've got a lot of stuff we've been going.

Along we just keep. Finding more and more stuff talking about in though I'm going to throw a little bit of gear in here. Go ASICS. Have just released. Tradey shoes. I saw these. And they've got a boa. So Boa is like the ratchet system you use on your cycling shoes and some trail. Shoes now use. It as well, yeah. What do you reckon? It's like the shoe company. 'S just getting greedy. Well. Look, I think it's a case of ASICS have shoe expertise, they have footwear expertise, right?

And if that's your core business, why wouldn't you look at expanding into all avenues? Yeah, I suppose. And I think that's what they've. Done here and it doesn't seem like that much of A stretch for them. I look the. Irony, of course, is me talking. About a working booth that I will never need to wear. I have no need for working boots in my life. I'm not going to. It would be like me commenting on International Women's Day. You don't need to hear from me

on that one. I will never be on site wearing one of these boots, so I'm not going to tell tradies whether they're good or not, but it it. Made me think because I was. I did. When I first saw them I'm like, why the hell have they put out a tradie shoe? And then it made me think, actually Salomon, something I've always for years thought to order but never really kind of got around to ordering. They actually have tactical boots like for soldiers. For soldiers.

Why do you need those? Why not Liam? If you can, why not? When would you ever? I've just brought the. Picture of those up. When would you ever wear those? Actually you. Get Adam if I if I. Was probably liking. Those and stuff. Well. I. Wouldn't you wouldn't liking them but. If I was just, you know, walking through the Bush, they're stylish. Why not have the? Best they're they're. Those are those. I could see those becoming as is the that could become a trend. That's a trend.

Absolutely they don't, so This is why I keep. Forgetting about them and it was only the tradie shoes from ASIC that made me think of it was they don't sell them in normal channels. So you've actually got to go into it's like specialty stores around that. So if you're an influencer, who. Decides you want to be on trend? You're going to have to walk into a tactical outdoor. Probably going to find guns or something. In that store as well. You're out there. Yeah, like it. All right, Liam.

Well, good luck. For the run this weekend, which you by the time you're listening to this, you'll probably be right out there on the course and probably standing on the podium. At some point in the podium, so. I can't wait to speak to you and paid after this and and and hear all the war stories. Yeah, now this is going to be great. I can't wait to tell everybody

about the experience. I am going to take try and get a bit of footage while I'm running to give people a bit of an insight into what the whole thing's like. We'll get that up on the Instagram page as well. So don't forget this Kunani review race and and having a chat about it with Salomon after the fact. It will drop probably Sunday, Monday, Sunday, we'll have it. Ready for your Monday morning, Monday morning for if you're out

running and this is where. You marathoners, if you're running Gold Coast, if you're running Sydney later on and you want to get a earlier experience of what it's like, you've got your 12 week training block ready. We're not going to be providing you a 12 week training block. This is a this is a an assistant. This is what This is something for you to listen along to as you go through your own 12 week block journey leading into the Gold Coast. You'll be going through the

same. Things that Liam and Brawne injury go through nutrition. Recovery, not finishing sessions, overtraining in sessions, and we're going to cover all of that. To food, to recovery nutrition for a state into the taper we're going to be recovering. All of it. And this Wednesday is the first episode where you get to know how Coach Bonita Willis, Australia's greatest ever distance runner.

You'll get an insight into what has made her who she is today, why she coaches the way she does, all the achievements through her athletic career. She sits down with us. Incredible stories. You'll definitely want to listen to it no matter what level of running you're interested in. Can't wait for it? Get on board.