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Trail Runner Nation

Nike Trail Elite Team Introduction and First Race Domination

Trail Runner Nation

Trail Runner Nation

Fitness, Sports, Running, Health & Fitness

4.51.3K Ratings

🗓️ 12 March 2014

⏱️ 75 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

We talk with three of Nike's newly-formed Trail Elite Team: Sally McRaeChris VargoAlex Varner, and Team Manager: Pat Werhane.  This interview was recorded the afternoon before Chris and Alex finished #1 and #2 at a 1200-participant, Way Too Cool 50K.  Some of the topics we discuss are:

  • How to adjust for weather or course conditions?
  • Is there race-day cooperation between team mates?
  • Trusting your training
  • Pre-race pump up songs

Sally: “Back it up” by Gwen Staphanie

Chris: “Helecopter” by Bloc Party

Alex: “The Sign” by Ace of Base       uhhhhh, yea :)

Check out our video simulcast HERE

"Race Course in Review" by Vasque Running Shoes

Take the Tailwind Challenge at: Tailwind Nutrition   

Check out the cool headlamps made for trail running at Petzl

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

I don't know, Corey, what kind of tip do you have for us today?

0:26.6

Corey, what kind of tip do you have for us today?

0:28.6

I learned a tip from Ed Eddinghausen, who's the jester. He's run a ton of races and I was in the middle of the Havelina 100 running and I see this guy coming up dressed as a jester and he's he's wearing a cowbell ring that like crazy for me as it goes past and the Havelina 100 is a looped course and so you're seeing the runners all the time.

0:55.6

Ed was so happy and cheering everyone on and excited and so that the nuggets that I learned from Ed is that running especially Ultra Marathon should be fun and and I think you get you get back what you put into it.

1:15.6

Ed was so supportive and encouraging everyone and I think he got that back so that's one thing that I learned from him is that running should be fun.

1:25.6

You know, I think that when you're out there on the trail, especially racing, even if you feel like death warmed over and you're passing somebody or you meet somebody another racer and you try to be happy and say, hey, how's it going? You're looking good.

1:40.6

I think that that just be forcing that happiness or forcing that good attitude makes you feel happy.

1:47.6

Yeah, it's one of those fake until you make it things like if you're acting happy and having fun, it'll come to you.

1:55.6

Well, you know, that makes me think you get out what you put in and when you put in some tailwind nutrition, you're going to get some serious energy and electrolytes out of it.

2:04.6

So you get out what you put in. That's a great, great tip for us, Corey. We appreciate it.

2:10.6

Thank you.

2:11.6

Go to tailwindnutrition.com, take their tailwind challenge, get a reduced rate on the whole bunch of tailwind to train with.

2:21.6

They know how raspberry, which is caffeinated. I've tried it. Scott, you've tried it. Yes. I like it. Very good.

2:29.6

Scott, let's talk about audiblepodcast.com.

2:33.6

Hey, last time we talked, I told you about a book that I had listened to called Wild. It's a book that's being made into a movie about a lady that hiked the Pacific Crest Trail.

2:46.6

I finished that and I loved it so much that I went out to audible and bought another book called AWOL AWOL on the Appalachian Trail, which is on the other side of the United States.

3:01.6

It's about 20, I think it's almost 2200 miles and it's about a guy. He's in his 30s, I think.

3:08.6

And he decided he wanted to through hike the Appalachian Trail and his work wouldn't give him time off.

3:20.6

And he wasn't sure he could make it. So what he did was he talked to his boss and his boss said, OK, you have two weeks of vacation.

3:27.6

I'll let you have two weeks. And at the end of two weeks, you come back, you know, you're back and employed. If at the end of the two weeks, you think you can make it through the whole thing.

3:37.6

Scott, do we need any spoiler alerts on this? No, no, no, there's no spoiler.

3:42.6

So this is a story. I haven't finished it yet. I'm only about maybe five or six chapters into it.

...

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