Ep. 42: Spike Camp - How to Pace Yourself in the Backcountry
In Pursuit
MeatEater
4.9 • 6.8K Ratings
🗓️ 28 May 2026
⏱️ 48 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
On this episode of In Pursuit, Rich is joined by Jeff Dodds and Angelo Dicicco. They sit down for another Spike Camp episode to talk through one of the most overlooked parts of western hunting: pacing yourself.
From training and rucking to e-scouting, nutrition, recovery, and knowing when to push versus when to back off, this episode is packed with practical advice for anyone getting ready for hunt season. They break down what it actually feels like to spend long days in the mountains, how fitness impacts decision making in the field, and why being underprepared can ruin a hunt before it ever really starts. The guys also share stories from past hunts, lessons learned the hard way, thoughts on training with your hunting partners, and why the mental side of hunting can be just as challenging as the physical side.
Connect with Rich Froning
MeatEater on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and Youtube Clips
Subscribe to The MeatEater Podcast Network on YouTube
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | This is an I-Heart podcast. |
| 0:02.5 | Guaranteed Human. |
| 0:05.2 | Join me and follow the podcast conspiracy theories, where we explore what's really going on behind the official narrative. |
| 0:13.5 | Like, what if the Loch Ness monster isn't a monster at all, but an elephant? |
| 0:17.6 | What do the richest 1% know that we don't? Why are they building all those |
| 0:22.4 | bunkers? And really, what the heck is going on with the Denver airport? Join me every week to see |
| 0:28.9 | just how high up this goes on the Spotify podcast, Conspiracy Theory. Listen on Spotify or wherever |
| 0:36.2 | you get your podcasts. |
| 0:42.5 | There are days. There might be days where you're going to be, it might be easier than you thought. |
| 0:46.4 | There's definitely going to come a time where it's going to be either harder than you thought or physically it's going to be so hard that mentally you start to shut down a little bit. |
| 0:50.4 | So if you can hedge that fitness side of it to make it more enjoyable. |
| 0:55.6 | Here's a good thing to think about. Have you, Rich Ferroning, ever been on a hunt that you thought |
| 0:59.3 | you were over-prepared for? You were like, ah, this is too. A Western hunt. I was going to |
| 1:03.1 | a Western hunt that you're like, dude, I shouldn't have done that extra workout. No. Yeah, |
| 1:08.6 | not once. |
| 1:13.6 | Out here, the stakes are real. Effective preparation starts with fitness, but it requires so much more. |
| 1:19.6 | This show explores the tools, knowledge, resilience, and skills needed to be ready when it matters the most. |
| 1:26.6 | Join me, Rich Broning, as we apply the decades of wisdom |
| 1:30.5 | I have gained through training and competition |
| 1:32.6 | to hunting in the backcountry. |
| 1:35.7 | This is In Pursuit. |
| 1:38.7 | Brought to you by Mountain Ops. |
... |
Transcript will be available on the free plan in 20 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from MeatEater, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of MeatEater and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.