We're back in Arctic Sweden for the 2nd episode in a row, but this time we're exploring the Ice Ultra, a 5-day race across the ice and snow of Swedish Lapland. There are no skis or sledges here, but snowshoes and backpacks. Competitors carry everything but their sleeping bags and camp clothes on their backs throughout, so your ability to select and manage the right kit is a big factor in whether you end up a finisher or a shivery DNF. In this episode, Will speaks to the 2 winners of the race, and another runner who maximised their time on the course a little more, and digs into the choices the ..read more

The Montane Arctic Spine is a non-stop, 293 mile (472 km) foot race along the Kungsleden Trail in Arctic Sweden. This race captures the full self-sufficient, expedition-style feel of the Spine Race as we know it, but transported into the bitter cold of the Arctic. This year's event was the first ever edition of this race which is the first of it's kind. Athletes pull all of their kit behind them on pulks as they carve their way along the trail on backcountry skis, or snowshoes. Conditions were extremely tough with temperatures dipping below -30°c on the first day and not rising above that poin ..read more

In this special 'extra' episode Will chats with Jenny Hall who has just returned from completing Desert Ultra 2023, her first ever ultra-distance event. Jenny is the Marketing Manager at BTU/Spine Race and she signed up to the Desert Ultra less than a year ago having never taken part in an event like it. In that short time, Jenny turned herself into a succesfrul ultra-runner and grabbed a finisher's medal under incredibly tough conditions in Namibia this November. This interview represents a unique opportunity in that Will went through almost the same journey a few years ago, going from a stan ..read more

250kms over 5 days in the oldest desert on earth in temperatures of 50°c and higher. That's the challenge that faced the athletes who travelled with BTU out to Namibia just a few weeks ago for Desert Ultra 2023. The Desert Ultra is the longest race in the Global Race Series and this year's edition was the hottest race BTU has ever hosted. In this episode, you'll hear from race director Adam Kimble about why he's so happy to consider the Namib his second home, from our race winners Steve Williams and Ellie Milnes, and later in the episode an extremely inspiring interview with Andy Delderfield w ..read more

Beyond the Ultimate's first-ever Mountain Ultra in Kyrgyzstan took place recently and we are here today to hear all about it. The first batch of pioneering runners took on 200km of technical trail with more than 10500m of climb over 5 gruelling days, all against the stunning backdrop of the remote and beautiful Tian Shan Mountain Range. Will chats to Race Director and past co-host Kris King about the creation of the final race in the Global Race Series, and about his experience of directing an event in the Tian Shan mountains for the first time. Will then talks to winners Jon Shield and Kristi ..read more

Knoydart is a perfect backdrop for the Highland Ultra in so many ways. As well as being the ideal place to build a course for a 3-day, 125km race, full of technical climbs, breath-taking views and tranquillity, it is home to a positive and inspiring group of people working together to improve their community and the environment around them. We are proud to support that work through the Highland Ultra and also to be able to give these fantastic people a chance to talk to you via this podcast. In this episode, we will talk to the winners of the 2023 race in April. Lauren Gregory, Axel Jannson an ..read more

Kristina Madsen of Denmark was a highly decorated ultra-runner and a holder of multiple FKTs already when in February she became the first woman to be the overall winner of a BTU Global Race Series event. Kristina won the Ice Ultra, BTU's 230km, 5-day race across the ice and snow of Swedish Lapland, where temperatures regularly drop as low as -40°c. In this episode, we chat with Kristina about her historic win and about what it takes to be successful when running in the Arctic. If that wasn't enough, we also catch up with Karl Alvarez, who came 2nd in the same race and is currently part w ..read more

The Montane Winter Spine Races 2023 begin on Saturday 15th Jan, and in honour of this EPIC event, we thought we better make an EPIC podcast. Welcome to our Spine Race Special. Over the festive period, whilst many people were packing in mince pies and wrapping presents, the runners about to take part in #BritainsMostBrutal race were busy thinking about the 268-miles of non-stop racing waiting for them in the new year. And that's just those on the full-length edition. Across all 5 race classes, there were over 500 runners passing a nervous New Year thinking about the Pennine Way. This seemed lik ..read more

Sabrina Pace-Humphreys is an ultra-runner, a mother and grandmother, a founding member of Black Trail Runners, and now the published author of 'Black Sheep: A story of Rural racism, Identity and Hope'.  Sabrina will shortly be toeing the line at the Summer Spine Race 2022. In an episode, Will and Sabrina chat through her whole journey from starting out as a runner in 2009, to her first contact with ultra-running, the creation, and reason behind the creation, of Black Trail Runners, and her preparations for the Summer Spine Race.  We learn what helped motivated Sabrina to begin this r ..read more

Helen Murray is the producer and host of the wonderful InsideTri Show and, along with running buddy Richard Brown, recently completed the Highland Ultra, our brutal 125km, 3-day race around the West Highlands of Scotland. In this episode, we talk through their experiences in the Highlands, their transition from Tri to Ultras, the lessons they've taken from ultra-running, and the triathlon wisdom that helped them along the way. Listen to Helen's own episode on the Highland Ultra and you'll learn how you can get a discounted entry for next year's race: https://www.insidetrishow.com/episode/highl ..read more