In this week’s edition of Singletrack News, Brett Hornig and I wrap up the Backyard World Team Championships at Big’s. That includes the Belgian pair’s decision to stop together at a new world record, and whether backyard specialist Mark Dowdle belongs in the UROY conversation. We also get into Ryan Montgomery calling his shot at 200 miles in 24 hours at Desert Solstice, the Golden Trail World Series final in South Korea, and a new segment we’re testing called Keep, Cut, Fix. We close with Camille Herron’s return to Javelina, Sage Canaday’s jump into backyard ultras, and Cameron Balzer’s Breaking 42 transcon record attempt.

Partners:

• Norda - check out the 005: the lightest, fastest, most stable trail racing shoe ever made
• Precision Fuel and Hydration - use code SINGLETRACK at checkout for 15% off your next order
• Janji - running apparel that goes the distance
• Raide - Making equipment for efficient human-powered movement in the mountains
• Kodiak Cakes - my favorite oatmeal and pancakes

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Finn Melanson, Brett Hornig, and Leah Yingling provide in-depth analysis, commentary, and predictions for the competition at this year’s Javelina Jundred.

Partners:

• Norda - check out the 005: the lightest, fastest, most stable trail racing shoe ever made
• Precision Fuel and Hydration - use code SINGLETRACK at checkout for 15% off your next order
• Janji - running apparel that goes the distance
• Raide - Making equipment for efficient human-powered movement in the mountains
• Momentous - use code SINGLETRACK for up to 35% off your first order
• Kodiak Cakes - my favorite oatmeal and pancakes

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In this week’s edition of Singletrack News, Brett Hornig and I discuss Jim Walmsley and Courtney Dauwalter heading to China for Tsaigu Trail and what that says about where the sport’s investment is going. We also get into the latest from the Backyard World Team Championships, results from Diagonale des Fous and Templiers, and the addition of Innsbruck Alpine Trail Run to the World Trail Majors circuit, then close with Engo’s heads-up display sunglasses and RaceGoat, Aravaipa’s new in-house registration platform.

Partners:

• Precision Fuel and Hydration - use code SINGLETRACK at checkout for 15% off your next order
• Janji - running apparel that goes the distance
• Raide - Making equipment for efficient human-powered movement in the mountains
• Norda - check out the 005: the lightest, fastest, most stable trail racing shoe ever made
• Momentous - use code SINGLETRACK for up to 35% off your first order
• Kodiak Cakes - my favorite oatmeal and pancakes

Support the show

In this week’s edition of Singletrack News, we discuss the mid-race cancellation of the Moab 240, Ben Dhiman’s public search for a coach, Jim Walmsley’s tease of an October start line, and a preview of the Big’s Backyard World Team Championship.

We also cover results from Défi des Couleurs and Kodiak, then New England FKT news from David Sinclair on the Pemi Loop and Will Peterson on the Hundred Mile Wilderness. Alyssa sets the table for Diagonale des Fous, and we dig into the Ultra Monuments site.

We close with Alexi Pappas’ new sweatproof glitter brand, Glop, and the Sandbar Stream smart ring.

Partners:

• Precision Fuel and Hydration - use code SINGLETRACK at checkout for 15% off your next order
• Janji - running apparel that goes the distance
• Raide - Making equipment for efficient human-powered movement in the mountains
• Norda - check out the 005: the lightest, fastest, most stable trail racing shoe ever made
• Kodiak Cakes - my favorite oatmeal and pancakes

Support the show

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In this week's edition of Singletrack News, I'm once agan joined by Alyssa Clark, calling in from Paris on her way to Diagonale des Fous.

We discuss Courtney Dauwalter's open call for 2027 racing and project ideas, the Hardrock lottery, highlights from The Mammoth, the triple crown record watch at the Moab 240, a few other key races on the schedule including Kodiak and Défi des Couleurs, and we close with Vinny Mauri's remarkable treadmill marathon training, Dakota Jones' upcoming run around the Great Salt Lake, and trail brands at Paris Fashion Week.

Partners:

• Precision Fuel and Hydration - use code SINGLETRACK at checkout for 15% off your next order
• Janji - running apparel that goes the distance
• Raide - Making equipment for efficient human-powered movement in the mountains
• Norda - check out the 005: the lightest, fastest, most stable trail racing shoe ever made
• Kodiak Cakes - my favorite oatmeal and pancakes

Links:

• Where The Water Was

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Joe McConaughy returns to Singletrack, fresh off his fastest known time on the John Muir Trail, one of the world's premier FKT routes.

The JMT runs 221 miles through California's Sierra Nevada from Happy, with more than 46,000 feet of climbing and nearly all of it above 8,000 feet. It's often called America's most famous trail and is named for the influential environmentalist John Muir.

The conversation covers Joe's full experience on the route, where he stands among the sport's multi-day legends, and what he's learned and experienced across three attempts in six years, including his encounter with the third man factor during his 2024 run (fascinating).

Sign Up For The Antelope Island Fall Classic

Partners:

• Precision Fuel and Hydration - use code SINGLETRACK at checkout for 15% off your next order
• Janji - running apparel that goes the distance
• Raide - Making equipment for efficient human-powered movement in the mountains
• Norda - check out the 005: the lightest, fastest, most stable trail racing shoe ever made

Support the show

Sign Up For The Antelope Island Fall Classic

This week I'm joined by Alyssa Clark, just back from Mammoth Trailfest.

We talk about what Tim Tollefson has built there, the 13-year-old who podiumed the Ascent, and where Mammoth fits in the fall 2027 competitive picture. I share my weekend crewing and pacing at the Bear 100, where Kristin Johnson ran 18:50:37 to break the women's course record by over an hour and a half.

It was a big FKT week too: Joe McConaughy's new supported John Muir Trail record, Aurélien Dunand-Pallaz on the GR20, new unsupported marks on the White Mountains 100, and Lindsay Webster on the Presidential Traverse, several tied to Andrew Drummond's $10K bounty purse.

On the business side, we try to make sense of UTMB's 2027 changes to direct qualification and a Trail Waves piece applying game theory to the Run Rabbit Run purse. We close with results from around the world and a 2009 Brett Maune passage on throwing away the other person's timesheet.

Partners:

• Precision Fuel and Hydration - use code SINGLETRACK at checkout for 15% off your next order
• Janji - running apparel that goes the distance
• Raide - Making equipment for efficient human-powered movement in the mountains
• Norda - check out the 005: the lightest, fastest, most stable trail racing shoe ever made

Support the show

Sign Up For The Antelope Island Fall Classic

As the voice behind Talk Ultra and one of trail running's most prolific photographers, Ian Corless has been monitoring and contributing to the development of our sport since the early 2010s.

In this three-and-a-half-hour conversation, we cover the new Run Rabbit Run's $100K prize award, the impact of Ben Dhiman's 18:16 UTMB win, which pros are most at risk in the current era, the post-COVID podcast glut, the skyrunning golden age and other key historical markers that have influenced the current era.

Partners:

• Precision Fuel and Hydration - use code SINGLETRACK at checkout for 15% off your next order
• Janji - running apparel that goes the distance
• Raide - Making equipment for efficient human-powered movement in the mountains
• Norda - check out the 005: the lightest, fastest, most stable trail racing shoe ever made
• Kodiak Cakes - my favorite oatmeal and pancakes

Support the show