Crazy Does It

In mid-February, 49-year-old professional triathlete Dede Griesbauer finished second overall at Ultraman Florida. The race covered a total distance of 321.6 miles around central Florida; each participant covered a 6.2 mile open water swim, a 263-mile bike ride, and a 52.4-mile ultra-marathon run. Day 1 consists of a 6.2-mile swim and 92-mile bike, Day 2 is a 171-mile bike, and Day 3 is a 52.4-mile run. Dede established a new race and world record. She now owns the women’s title and a new race record with a time of 22:48:31. Dede’s time was also the fastest ever turned in by a female at an Ultraman event. But the Florida Ultraman wasn’t the first highlight of Dede’s career. Since becoming a pro in 2005, she’s won 3 Ironman distance races. Dede is also a 3-time top-10 finisher in Kona and in 2009, was the top American finisher. Dede is the 2016 12-hour Time Trial World Champion, pedaling 258 miles in 12 hours. Today, at the age of 49, Dede is the oldest professional triathlete and still continues to compete at the highest level. I’ve had the pleasure of listening to Dede announce countless IRONMAN NOW events, so it was a really special experience to get to interview her after such a standout performance in Florida. I know Dede has a lot more where that came from, so I’m excited to see what she does next.

Just a couple of weeks ago, participants from around the world embarked on a 7-day challenge where they raced 7 marathons on 7 continents in 7 days. Jessica Jones was one of those participants. Spoiler alert - she came in 2nd overall and was the first American. Jessica lives on an island in Alabama with her husband and dogs and works for the USDA as a microbiologist. She has been training specifically for this challenge for the last year with virtually ZERO days off from running, averaging 70 mile weeks every. single. week. We chat about how Jessica got into running again as an adult in 2013 and how she has since run thirty-nine marathons (not including the 7 she added by completing the World Marathon Challenge) and 3 ultras, including a 50k, 50-miler, and 100k. Jessica isn’t a casual runner, either - she’s incredibly competitive with a PR marathon time of 3:09:13. We dive into preparations for the World Marathon Challenge, how each of the 7 marathons unfolded over the course of those 7 days, and how she’s rested and recovered since.

I met Scott Drehs at Orangetheory in Carmel, IN not long ago, and was captivated by his story. Now in his 50s and managing a very demanding job in the corporate world as a VP of Major Accounts for a publicly-traded company, Scott took up endurance sports just 5 years ago in 2015. His first race was a 5k that he remembers vividly - everything. hurt. But that finish line feeling was so strong that he kept going back for more and used training and running as a way to prepare himself physically and mentally for climbing glaciers with his friend in Oregon. Fast forward to today, and Scott has completed 50 races in just the past two years: everything from mud runs to Spartan races to trail races and even a 50k ultra. He uses racing to develop his mental strength and to excel in his career. Scott and I had a blast reliving some of his war stories from the trail and talking about how racing has changed his life for the better these past 5 years.

Ruth Astle lives just outside of London and a little over a month ago turned from a top age-group triathlete (literally, the top age-group triathlete in the world) to a professional triathlete. She quit her 60-hour a week high-stress job as Executive Assistant and now works just one day a week. Her life has literally flipped upside down as she’s training, resting, recovering, and thinking about her upcoming season and how she can get back to Kona - but this time as a pro, not an age grouper. Ruth’s list of accomplishments in triathlon is lengthy. Just a few recent performances include: 2nd (and second AG athlete overall) at The Championship, Samorin 1st (and second AG athlete overall) at the IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship, Elsinore  1st (and fastest AG athlete overall in a PB of 9:12:15) at Challenge Roth  7th (fastest Brit AG, 11th AG athlete overall) at the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship, Nice  And of course, the Crown Jewel, is 3rd at Kona in 2017, 1st overall female in 2018, and 1st overall in 2019. It hasn’t all been roses and podiums, though. This past year, Ruth battled injuries including a run-in with a car where she broke her collarbone just weeks before the 70.3 Championships in Nice and only a couple of months before Kona. Ruth was SO much fun to chat with. We had a lot of laughs as we talked about her adjustment to life as a pro, how she got into triathlon, and what she’s looking forward to in 2020. I hope you enjoy my conversation with my new friend Ruth Astle!

In 2015, Ben Reisinger weighed 375 pounds and was living a very unhealthy and unenjoyable life. When he decided it was time for a change, he started observing how fit people lived their life: how they ate, how they exercised, what choices they made throughout their day. And then, on April 1st, he jumped in and began his journey. First, he started by learning to enjoy his food. Then, he began taking kickboxing classes, and finally, he discovered his love of running. Ben’s story is absolutely incredible. He shares what life looked like for him at 375 pounds and how he was able to transform his mind and his body into the talented athlete he is today. His determination and ability to endure has paid off; Ben has his sights set on some incredible goals this year, namely a BQ at the Chicago Marathon in October where he’ll need to run a Sub-3-hour marathon in order to qualify for his age group. Based on his training, he believes he can do it. No matter where you are on your fitness journey, Ben’s words are challenging and important for everyone to hear.

Keely Brown is about to take part in a 49-day, 4,000-mile relay run across the US to support young adults & their loved ones who have been diagnosed with cancer. Just 5 years ago, Keely began running for the very first time, and it pulled her out of a darkness to give her a joy, strength, and confidence that she thought she would never find. That’s why she keeps running and believes wholeheartedly in its capacity to heal and empower. This summer as she sets out for the 4k for Cancer Challenge, she’ll be running for those who can’t by dedicating each leg of her training and her trek across the U.S. to someone who has been affected by the disease. In this conversation, Keely shared about her running journey, how she’s preparing for running nearly 500 miles over 49-days while staying injury-free, and how running has truly changed her life and brought her courage and joy. Whether you’re a seasoned runner or just starting out, I think you’re going to enjoy this honest conversation with Keely Brown.

Danielle Kissel (muddywarriorchick.com) calls herself a runner, an obstacle course racer, and a lifter of heavy things. While she considers herself an elite, ultra runner athlete, her mindset is 100% family and team related. On the weekends, you can find her running around trail and obstacle course races, but when she’s not racing or training, she’s working her full-time job as a graphic and web designer, and she’s also in grad school pursuing an M.S. in Cybersecurity.  Danielle says she’s 80% driven by her desire to succeed at races and 20% driven by all things unicorn, glitter, and donuts.

Much like the story of many of the guests on this podcast, Amy Claire Patterson did not grow up as a runner or endurance athlete. It wasn’t until just a couple of years ago that she completed her first race. Amy Claire now serves as Team World Vision Indy Area Director at World Vision USA, an organization that is near and dear to our hearts. My husband and I have both raised funds for World Vision through training for 2 separate Chicago Marathons, and we’ve sponsored 2 boys in Africa for 6 years. During this episode, Amy Claire shares about the mission of World Vision as well as how she’s gone from not being athletic to running marathons and even climbing Mount Kilimanjaro where she successfully summited this past summer just a few months after breaking her foot. Amy Claire and I have a lot of fun in this episode as she shares her journey. And after we stopped recording, we bonded over the fact that both of us are from tiny towns in Northwest Iowa, neither of us were athletic in our high school days, and we both have a heart for Team World Vision. Whether you have heard of World Vision, have completed a race with Team World Vision, or simply like hearing stories of endurance, this episode is a fun one. 

Matt Comer has always been competitive but wasn’t always a runner… in fact, much like my own story, he couldn’t run a mile until the early 2000s when he picked up running as a way to lose weight and get back into competitive sports. As I’ve mentioned in a couple of prior episodes, my husband and I are avid Orangetheory-ers. That’s where we met Matt Comer about a year and a half ago. He’s broken pretty much every rowing record at our studio and is consistently one of the top rowers in the entire country. He’s also one of those guys that makes running at 12mph at incline look easy. But I didn’t know the extent of his athletic journey until we had this conversation today. We talk about how Matt dreamed up this crazy idea of running across the Grand Canyon and back (as if running it once isn’t enough) and how he and 2 of his closest friends are joining him for this feat. While it may seem like a simple enough goal - there is a LOT that goes into preparing for something like a 50-odd mile run with 20,000 feet of elevation change. So in this episode, we do something a little different. Matt hasn’t completed his goal just yet - the date is April 25th - but we talk ALL of the details and how he’s preparing both physically and mentally for this crazy challenge. We’ll catch up with Matt again after he’s actually completed the run across the Grand Canyon and back to hear how it unfolded.  

Bobby Grangier had never completed a full Ironman-Distance triathlon… until the Norseman Xtreme Triathlon. He put his name in the draw thanks to the promoting of his coach, and against all odds, won a slot. Of course, he had to take it, which sprung him into action: copious amounts of planning, assembling his crew, and of course, training. Bobby and I talk about his journey into triathlon, how he prepared for the Norseman while living in the middle of the US where we have basically zero of the same terrain, and how he conquered his first Ironman-distance triathlon and took home the coveted black tee shirt. We also talk about some more serious topics like how the “post-race blues” are common but aren't talked about nearly enough. Whether you’re a triathlete or just like hearing crazy stories of endurance, I think this episode is going to keep you on the edge of your seat.

Triathlon Taren, or Taren Gesell, hasn’t always been the Speedo-clad, All-World Ironman triathlete, and IRONMAN U Certified Coach and ISSA Certified Specialist in Sports Nutrition that you see today. Although he grew up skateboarding, playing baseball and curling competitively, by the time he started university, he hit his all-time high weight of 215lbs… thanks to a steady diet of beer and bacon. At 5’8” tall, he was unhealthy and unhappy. A friend who was heavily into fitness got Taren into the gym, pushing weights and eating nothing but chicken and brown rice. He lost some weight but it wasn’t a lifestyle; he was getting bored with the workouts and always looking for something better. Right around that time, Taren noticed an old friend competing in triathlon and decided since he was already running, biking and swimming separately, he may as well try to put them together. He did his first Try-A-Tri (a total disaster, in his estimation), and he was instantly hooked. Now, almost a decade later, Taren has made triathlon and endurance sports a way of life, having competed in countless sprint, Olympic and half-Ironman races. It’s his passion to bring us beginner and age-group triathletes tips on healthy living and triathlon training which he does through his YouTube Channel, top-rated Podcast, and multiple triathlon-specific books. Taren is sort of a celebrity in the triathlon world, and it was a total privilege to pick his brain for an hour and hear more of his story. I think you’re going to love our conversation. So, with that, here’s my conversation with Triathlon Taren!

Chelsea Sodaro is a professional triathlete specializing in the 70.3, or Half Ironman distance. She and her husband live in Marin County, just outside of San Francisco. Chelsea ran for Davis Senior H.S. before competing for UC Berkeley. She was a 3X All American at UC Berkely and won 2 national titles before she had a disappointing run at the Olympic trials for the 10k. Just 3 years ago, Chelsea did her first triathlon and raced on the ITU circuit, where she won her last race in June of 2018. She then joined Coach Matt Dixon the Purple Patch Squad and switched to the 70.3 distance. Chelsea won her 2nd ever attempt at the 70.3 distance and hasn’t looked back. Since that first win, she’s been on the podium in every race except for the 70.3 World Championships in Nice, France, where she placed 4th in the entire world. While Chelsea may not be a household name in the triathlon world yet, I can pretty much promise you it won’t be long… Chelsea is the complete package. An incredible athlete, a hard worker, and she’s just an awesome person that I want to be friends with in real life.

Sally McRae, also known as Yellowrunner, grew up in Southern California. In 2009, Sally learned about “ultramarathons” and “trail running” and in 2010, she ran her first 50-mile trail race and immediately fell in love with the sport. Having been a competitive athlete for most of her life, she began focused training and setting goals for herself. Her dream of becoming a professional athlete was realized at the beginning of 2014 when she signed with Nike. Trail running has allowed her to see the world, meet people from every walk of life, and has challenged her to work hard, keep growing, and to NEVER stop believing that ANYTHING is possible. There’s a lot more to Sally’s story, which she’ll share throughout our interview. I know our conversation is going to leave you inspired and grateful for this life that we have.

Matt Bergum is an age-group triathlete. It wasn’t until 2016 that Matt found triathlon after he had pursued his career so intensely that he had completely lost touch with his friends. Working 80+ hours each week, he knew he needed a change… a change that triathlon would bring to him. Now, just a few years later, Matt is getting married in the Spring to his fiancé, Ali, and has a renewed and healthy outlook on life that doesn’t revolve around work. It was triathlon that flipped everything upside down – and he isn’t looking back.

Melissa Urie is in an entirely different category of ultra-endurance athletes. Getting her start in the endurance world to lose weight and get into shape, she’s now broken several world records. Melissa has completed the Epic 5 in Hawaii, 3 Ultraman triathlons, and is now the 1st female to have ever completed the Uberman, which she did just a couple of weeks ago. Melissa said that Uberman was always about the adventure… not so much the race… and she held onto that adventurous spirit for the entirety of the challenge, which took her 135 hours to complete. Melissa gives much-deserved credit to her crew members who were incredible, each one being integral to her success. After completing the Uberman, Melissa can now claim to be the: - 1st female ever to line up - 1st female ever to complete Uberman - Swim course record holder - Second fastest overall finisher When it was all said and done, Melissa smashed the previous course record by approximately 31 hours. I know you will be just as fascinated by Melissa’s story as I was.

In this episode, Scott Worthing, a 23-year old who lives in the UK, shared his journey to complete 24 hours of triathlon – with no breaks – to raise awareness for PTSD, a cause that’s very meaningful to Scott and his family. Over the course of 24 hours, Scott covered: - 6.4km of swimming - 320km of biking -75.68km of running By sharing his story on the Crazy Does It Podcast, Scott hopes that his journey will motivate you and help you believe that your dreams really can come true if you believe it will!

In this episode, I sit down in person with my real-life friend, Christi Dee. Christi and I met in Orangetheory about a year ago as you’ll hear us talk about, and we became fast friends. Christi has completed 31 marathons and 5 ultra marathons and has some incredible lessons to share about finding motivation and applying the lessons learned from running into her personal and professional life. Christi also shares some exciting announcements for 2020 and beyond! You’ll love hearing from Christi and will be able to relate to her as she started out as a 5-hour marathoner and has worked her way to now attempting to Boston Qualify at the Indy Monumental Marathon in just a couple of weeks. 

For this episode, I had the privilege of interviewing Yvonne Timewell. Yvonne is a 51-year old Canadian age-group athlete who landed herself a spot on the super-competitive Zwift Academy Tri Team.  Late last year, Yvonne competed for and earned her spot on the 2019 team and then faced the audacious goal of qualifying for the Ironman World Championship in Kona, which is taking place this Saturday, October 12th.  In this episode, Yvonne shares her journey to the start line and opens up about some of the challenges and victories she’s had as being a member of this competitive group of Zwift Tri Academy superstars.  Whether you’re a triathlete or not, I know you’ll resonate with Yvonne’s wise words of focusing on the here and now.

In this first episode of the Crazy Does It podcast, I share a short preview of my story of how I went from barely surviving the dreaded mile-run in high school to being a competitive age grouper in distances ranging from half marathons to IRONMAN distance triathlons. I also share my heart behind why I'm starting the Crazy Does It podcast: to inspire others to take their first step.  

In this episode, you'll hear 6 athletes share their incredible stories of overcoming immense obstacles as they prepare to toe the line for the 2019 Bank of America Chicago Marathon on October 13th, 2019.  These individuals have faced incredible challenges, ranging from a vehicle accident to PTSD and drinking issues to breast cancer to being deaf-born along with many other health issues. Rather than stop them or slow them, these obstacles have made these brave men and women even stronger and they will be arriving at the start line of the marathon ready to give the race their all.  These stories will give you a reason to run and courage to take your next step – or your first step.