John Middlewick is a triathlete turned business man who started Carbon Endurance, a sports consulting distribution house that brings brands like Precision Fuel & Hydration and Pillar Performance into South Africa to support and fuel our incredible athlete base. He has years of endurance training and racing under his belt, this couple with a keen interest in the science of performance has developed Carbon Endurance into what it is today.

Stoked to welcome John to the podcast & for the great partnership between Carbon Endurance and Trail Culture.

// TOPICS COVERED

(0:00) Welcome!

(02:36) Enjoying sport and his entry to triathlon

(07:09) Stumbling into the trail community

(09:33) The start of his business venture

(16:00) Snickers bars as race nutrition

(24:22) Nutrition troubleshooting and finding precision fuel & hydration

(27:15) Why should we do sweat tests as runners?

(32:48) Salt, our sweat content and what we’re losing

(45:10) How to choose brand partners?

(48:50) When and why to use electrolytes

(1:04:10) Reading & inspiration

// RESOURCES MENTIONED

- Carbon Endurance / Precision Hydration: https://www.carbonendurance.co/precision-hydration-2

- Precision Hydration Instagram: @precisionfandh

Keep up to date with all things Trail Culture: https://www.trailculture.co.za/ Check us out on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trailcultureza/

// SHARE AND RATE THE PODCAST!

iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/trail-culture/id1709631577

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4eLM3gAMxZBOjUHAaGcBeu

Shafeeqah Gordon is a local favorite in the Cape Town trail community. She’s the leader of the legendary shafflers at Tuesday Trails. A pocket rocket with a sense of humor to match. She can be found on the start line of some pretty tough races & you’re always guaranteed a smile if you see her. Stoked to welcome Shaf to the podcast & to get to know her better during this conversation.

// TOPICS COVERED

(0:00) Welcome!

(01:44) Shaf’s entry to trail running

(08:26) Tuesday Trails & leading a group

(19:40) What does the retail space teach us?

(26:10) Outdoor education awareness (31:00) Kapaan Tours & her Dads influence

(38:40) Are you an overpacker? (40:22) Growth in the trail space & female participation

(44:30) Emotional finish lines & UTD

(52:50) What’s next for Shaf

(54:18) Reading & inspiration

// RESOURCES MENTIONED

- KapAanTours Instagram: @kapaantours

- Shaf Gordon: @shafgordon

Keep up to date with all things Trail Culture: https://www.trailculture.co.za/ Check us out on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trailcultureza/

What was it like to grow up with trail culture?

A Stellenbosch local & @salomon_sa athlete. Lijan Burger has grown up in the trail culture of South Africa.

In this episode, we cover:

• The story of her first trail experience with her Dad

• Movement as a family value

• Lijans holistic approach to life & running

• Defining good health in the trail space

• Her upcoming adventure 🌍

& more

An outdoor lifestyle in a comfortable society. One of the more philosophical chats on the podcast so far. Really enjoyed this conversation with Pierre, @the.flying.runner & co-founder of @mountainabandon

We cover:

• The role the Otter trail has played in his life

• Milers as emotional regulators

• Running vs training

• How to live an outdoor lifestyle in the current society

A follow up is already in the pipeline. Pierre has a wealth of knowledge & his love for the outdoors is the common thread throughout this episode.

“What if I can?”

Bianca Tarboton joins us this week with wise advice on positive self talk, working on a positive internal dialogue & balancing her training & work.Winner of the MUT marathon last year, these are her words of encouragement for those lining up at @georgemountainultratrail next week.

In her episode we go through:

• Her upcoming race season
• How she’s developed as an athlete across multiple disciplines
• The balancing act of training & work
• & more

Matt Bouch has always wanted to run 100 miles. In this episode we chat about:

• His inspiration

• What keeps him coming back

• His recent performance at UTD

• How he’s developed his nutrition strategy

& more!

Laid back but intentional, Matt’s approach to the sport pulls through in this chat. We’ll be following him as he takes on his next few goals this year.

Are thresholds important or is it just training hype?

This week Colin Fleming, coach, triathlete & physiologist, joins us to talk about metabolic testing. Why is it important, how results should be applied, the difference between our thresholds & more.

We chat through a case study and use test results from a real athlete to show how to practically apply results you get from this sort of testing, to your training.

The North Face athlete, Kyle Herring joins us from the Netherlands to share some epic stories. From some history facts about the Hoefyster to a dive into his different European race experiences. This guy has run every piece of trail in Stellenbosch & has made an appearance on the road scene in the Netherlands, running some blitz times.

We cover:

• His history with the sport
• The coaching journey
• Mixing up trails & road when he plans his season
• Some stories from the Hoefyster route in Jonkershoek

An advocate for women in sport. Meg Mackenzie shares an athlete & coaches perspective on women in trail running, the challenges, the obstacles & the change she’d like to see.

In this episode we cover:

• Her history with the sport

• Some recent career highlights

• Navigating the sponsorship space & contract negotiations as a female athlete

• Meg’s journey with RED-S & her advice for those working through it

This week we’ve got Dr Janesh Ganda joining us on the podcast. Janesh is currently the team doctor for the Springbok sevens, he’s a sports physician with years of experience in a range of different roles & an avid trail runner too

This week we dive into:

• The injury process

• When to push through

• Return to play after an injury

• Drug free sport & trail running

We look to the future of trail running & the anti-doping movement that’s quickly making its way into our sport. What does the drug free sport process look like & what can we expect from future testing?

From cross country, to a VK to marathon distance and ultra running. Kane Reilly as a broad experience in this epic sport. Todays episode takes a dive into:

• His training & racing process

• The athlete & Dad life

• His European racing experience & more.

This week we chat to runner and mountain legend, Jacques Mouton on the podcast. We cover all the need to knows for the George 6 Peaks route. Jacques is definitely the guy to ask since he did this route back to back 6 times in one go. We also talk about George MUT, the routes for this year, community & more. Enjoy!

Mount Co.

6 Peaks

The second half of the chat with James Montgomery from the Run Project on the Craft of Coaching.

We go deeper into the specifics of working with the person in front of you, how to make training relative to the individual, how to shape & improve your thinking as a coach and more.

This chat really left me inspired to keep learning and to really view each athlete and their goals as separate puzzles to be solved.

Special thank to Carbon Endurance for fuelling Season 2 of Trail Culture.

Carbon Endurance Instagram

Carbon Endurance Sport Consulting

The Run Project

This week we’ve got a family favourite, local legend & runner with the most energy joining us on the podcast. Mike Obery talks about his local crew, the significance of community and the massive role running has played in his life. Mikes story has great depth and it’s incredible to see how this guy just keeps giving back to the trail community.

We talk about his journey with running, how it was his saving grace while he battled depression & anxiety, why he is so invested in crew culture & what's next in the pipeline for him this year.

What is beyond the edge? This week we catch up with Brandon Hulley, New Balance athlete and George local. This episode looks to the mental side of Ultra running. We talk about the pain cave, what it takes to push through those moments where you want to quit & how to come back from a DNF. So great having an honest, easy chat & I hope it inspires you to be curious about what’s beyond the edge of yourself.

This week we’re stoked to catch up with Rebecca Kohne. We chat about her recent 6 peaks FKT, the long road of recovery from injury & her success in the sport so far.

Her segway into the sport came from a long and frustrating injury journey. This really is a story of perseverance through a devastating injury, making a comeback on the track then finding the trails.

This is definitely a name to watch in the coming season & I can’t wait to see her smash the races lined up on her calendar.

6 Peaks | Mount Co.

6 Peaks Info

Rebecca Kohne Instagram

Is this triathlon in 24 hours possible?

Calling Cape Town | 8km Robben Island swim, the Cape Town Cycle Tour, then the 3 peaks mountain challenge.

This event certainly isn’t for the feint hearted. All this happens to raise funds for Calling Education. An organisation that has set out to provide top quality education to low income learners in South Africa.

Links:

Calling Education

Calling Cape Town Challenge

How to donate?

What happens behind the scenes?

This week we catch up with @zaneschmahl the race director of George MUT by UTMB. From where the race started to becoming part of the UTMB World Series, to the operations that lead up to a favourite event on the trail calendar.

What brings the running community together? 🤘🏻This week we caught up with Erin Groll, co-founder of the @communitytrackclub ⚡️We chat about how CTC came to be, what goes down every month & the importance of epic groups just like this, that add so much to the running community.

Erin Groll Website

What does it take to run a sub 5:30 Comrades?

Four wins, 12 gold medals for a top 10 finish and the first person to break the sub 5:30 barrier, this week we chat to Comrades legend Alan Robb.

Alan has completed 42 back to back Comrades. He took his first win wearing Tiger Bostons & fuelled by just coke and water. This legend has some incredible insight to share & we talk about the training principles that still apply from his era of racing.

How to plan my race season well?

This week we’ve got Coach Cobus from @ststri joining us. With 25+ years of coaching and racing experience across multiple disciplines, he shares his wisdom & insights on how to plan your year for training and racing. We cover everything from strategic planning, common mistakes athletes make, how to view your training overall & more.

Is a double DGT possible? The Drakensberg is a mysterious place that challenges even the most daring of Adventurer. Caro Jordaan takes us through her double DGT attempt, 450km with +19 000m of vert. She was the first woman to complete a double traverse & was part of the first team to do a double, back to back.

We dive into everything from packing, preparation and route tips all the way to her highlights and low points. This will leave you inspired to take on adventure.

Caro Jordaan Instagram

An injury is so much more than just losing physical fitness. Today Biokineticist, Francois Janse van Rensburg join us to talk about injuries. We look at how to treat them, prevent them and the role your Bio plays in that journey. We also touch on strategies for the modern day athlete to combat their desk job & to line up on race day in the best shape they can even when life happens to them.

The craft of coaching 💭 Part 1

So stoked to have James Montgomery on the podcast to share his extensive experience & talk about what it takes to be a great coach. 🏃🏽‍♂️ 🏃🏼‍♀️📈 We talk about the evolving athlete, the balance between fun and hard training, the structured vs intuitive approach to running & more.

Special thank to Carbon Endurance for fuelling Season 2 of Trail Culture.

Carbon Endurance Instagram

Carbon Endurance Sport Consulting

The Run Project

Fooled by Randomness

Damien Schumann joins us to talk about his journey with trail running, adventure and his involvement with Run West. A project in collaboration with Protect the West Coast that uses trail running for environmental activism against the mining projects along that coastline.

Protect the West Coast

Run West Instagram

Run West Article

Damien Schumann Instagram

Wild Air Podcast with Damien

Salomon athlete, Daniël Classeen joins us after his victory at Cape Town Trail Marathon as well as his decision to not race UTCT.

We get into how deep does the pain cave go. What does it look like to train with a process focus & what some of the highlights and lowlights of the last two seasons have been for him.

Instagram: @daniel_claassen_

Brad Williams joins us to debunk some of the myths surrounding strength training, We talk about the S&C complex and how strength training fits into our world of trails and mountains.

Instagram: @bwss

Cape Town Studio

From research to running, this guy does it all. Simon de Waal joins us to discuss his latest research in trail running as he works towards his PhD. We discuss how the trail running world has changed and developed, our responsibility as scientists and what Trail Culture means to him. The founder of Stellies Shakeout and a hero in the trail community.

Instagram: @dewaal.simon ; @rootedindirt

Twitter: @dewaal17

E-mail: s.dewaal@glos.ac.uk

Part 2: Training as a women in South Africa. The pros and cons, challenges and limitations. We then talk about trail culture and what local trail crews mean to the community around them. Stellies Shakeout Whatsapp Bulletin Instagram: @stelliesshakeout ; @shaunyd_8

Part 1: Dr Shaundre Jacobs joins us to discuss Sport Policy within the context of South Africa. We talk about accessibility, safety, social factors, the growth of the sport and backing our athletes who represent us at a national level. The chat then transitions into training as a female athlete in South Africa and what that looks like.

Instagram: @shaunyd_8 ; @stelliesshakeout

Research:

Full PhD: A configurational evaluation of Elite Sport Policy in South Africa: A realist perspective

Sport Policy Article

Country Profile: Sport in South Africa

Coach Erin van Eyssen, founder of Flat Rock Endurance joins us to share some key moments from his coaching journey. The highs and lows, what he's learnt, how he has seen the sport grow and more.

Instagram: @flatrockendurance

https://www.flatrockendurance.com

The trail physio and Altra athlete, Tarrin van Niekerk, walks us through her successful 2023 season, her journey of "running brave", racing to win and how banana bread fuels her success.

Instagram: @tarrin.vn ; @vertandirt

Hoefyster (Jonkershoek Horseshoe): https://youtu.be/nlsfgbzVvo8?si=jAl_TCW9am9v1Xsx

Altra Elite: https://altrafootwear.co.za/blogs/news/meet-the-elites-tarrin-van-niekerk

The favorite child of South African trail running. The North Face athlete, Johardt van Heerden shares his build up to Otter, expectations for the "sub 4" goal, his experience of racing alpine athletes in Europe, his day out at OCC and more.

Instagram: @johardtvanheerden ; @vert.co_

Mafadi Peak Blog: https://livealittle.blog/2022/01/06/johardts-mafadi-fkt-attempt-the-back-story/

Mafadi Peak FKT Documentary (The North Face): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHhlA9aQKPs&t=2s

Does power have a place in trail running? We’re back with another Trail Science episode. This week, Simon de Waal from Rooted in Dirt joins us to talk about power as a performance metric.

• When should we use power?
• How is it measured?
• What should the real world application look like?
• & does power work as a performance measure in the trail running space?

The bigger picture & what athletes should consider when thinking of health and movement.

This week we’ve got Dr Hilton Lazar joining us to chat about health, movement & the role of chiropractic. An expert in his craft, we talk about pain management, injury diagnosis, what running does to our spines & the role of adjustment.

How should I approach my training load?

The Trail Science episodes are back, this week @dewaal.simon joins us to talk about Training Load Monitoring (TLM). We talk about how TLM has changed over the last few years to accommodate the growth of the sport & how this particular space is being influenced by AI. We discuss it’s history, the metrics that matter, some gaps in the current TLM tools & more

Hearing from the humans, the final episode of MUT Moments is all about the people. The athletes who’ve had the courage to show up for this event after months of preparation, each with their own story. From running for a cause, to the competition of the podium, to showing up for the first time on a trail start line. These are just a few of the moments captured as we’ve checked in with these amazing humans.

The links:

Donate to Usapho Indlu

A story of sportsmanship: Admire

Liv2Run

What goes on behind the scenes?

The next episode of MUT moments dives into the BTS of putting on a world class event. This episode shares a range of experiences & insights from a handful of incredible humans on the MUT team.

The guests:

• Zane Schmahl - Race Director
• Colleen Browne - Route Marker & Sweeper
• Juliette Berger - Operations Manager UTMB World Series
• Marelize Rhodes - Logistics & Control Manager
• Marta Parez - Marketing for UTMB World Series

The links we all need:

Southern Summits Tours Website

Southern Summits contact: info@southernsummitstrailtours.co.za

UTMB World Series Instagram

The MKT Show: Live from MUT by UTMB

The first episode of MUT Moments. Brining you coverage from the MUT by UTMB Race Village where we find out what's been going on behind the scenes, who is running for a cause, are the athletes ready to give it their all & more.

First up on MUT Moments is our chat with the founder of LIV2Run Lindi Meyer, the team manager Thamsanqa Nxumalo & one of the elite athletes Sinovuyo Ngcobo.

These guys have put in the work and they’re ready to race. This episode kicks off with the founder @lindi_elaine sharing what LIV2Run is, how they got started & what their vision is. Then we chat to the Sinovuyo about the teams training & what the feelings are ahead of Saturdays race.

LIV2Run Website

Email: run@liv-village.com

What are the psychological benefits to trail running?

In this episode we focus on:

• Exercising in a natural vs urban environment
• Effects of trail running on mental well being
• The psycho - evolutionary theory & attention restoration theory

We get stuck into the research after an anecdotal introduction round what trail running does for our mental well being personally.

Research & female endurance athletes - are we doing enough?

Our fourth Trail Science episode is all about the research journey & women in sport. Are we asking the right questions? How can we add to the body of research? We cover all of this along with an exciting announcement.

What is an injury risk factor? ⚠️ We’re back with another Trail Science episode ft. @dewaal.simon from @rootedindirt this week we’re unpacking what are potential injury risk factors for trail runners?

This episode is based on a living systematic review. We get into what that is, why this type of research is important and how to critically evaluate the information in front of you when reading research like this & looking into a topic like injuries 👣

Trail Science Episode 3 - enjoy! 🤙🏼

1 d

Is Ultra Marathon running bad for you? We’re back at it with the second Trail Science episode. This great sport is growing & the athletes taking on the Ultra distances seem to be getting younger. In this episode we dive into research on the acute physiological effects on the body during an ultra marathon. Things to note, how to manage adverse effects & what is good practice when prepping and building up to your Ultra?

Rooted In Dirt

Welcome to our Trail Science episodes! A collaboration with Simon de Waal and Rooted in Dirt. We're introducing a separate category of episodes where we take a deep dive into relevant trail topics and to explore the research related to these trends.

First up is pacing for ultra marathons, What is pacing? How does it differ from road to trail running? How do I pace my ultra marathon at UTCT? We chat through all of this and more.

UTCT

@rootedindirt

@dewaal.simon

@trailcultureza

The story behind Trail Culture and its creation. Tune in every second Friday for new episodes to kickstart your weekend. These stories will get you out of your chair and onto the trails for an epic adventure. Enjoy.

The difference | The family | The history 🦦

A magical stretch of coastline, it’s roots run deep with a special history. An incredible story of family, conservation, community and a single race making the greatest difference. Hearing these stories brings both memories & emotions to the surface. It’s a great privilege to share them with you. 🎙️ The Otter episode goes live tonight 💭 #trailculture

FACES AFRICA

THE OTTER TRAIL

A motley crew of friends, 100kms & a skeleton 🏴‍☠️

So stoked to kick off season 2 of Trail Culture with an absolute legend, Petrus de Klerk 🤙🏼 Famed for their presence at Kloof Corner during UTCT, we chat to Petrus about the the Mountain Mxn, tradition, trail culture & more.

An incredible human with a gees crew of friends, a wicked sense of humor & stories to match. We’re back and the stoke is alive, enjoy.

Mountain MXN

“The best way to learn is by doing” - @michael_bakes

From getting cliffed out on Mnweni, to a solo unsupported DGT, to a wedding at the top of the Amphitheatre. This weeks guest is Michael Baker. An athlete, a coach, an adventurer & captain of group missions. This episode really is one amazing story of adventure. The name speaks for itself & I'll let you find out more.

The Hiking Vikings

The Bakery

The Long Road Part 2! This week, pocket rocket and adventurer, Mari Marincowitz joins us on the podcast to talk about her miler journey and what happened out there on the course. Fresh off a win at the George MUT by UTMB Miler, she shares some of her stories & we experience the Outeniqua once again through her lens.

Taking her time in the day to day, running Milers is perfect for Mari. It's once step at a time with no need to rush in her words.

This episode covers:

• Running the miler is the easiest part of the process
• Her experience of the Outeniqua
• Challenges and highlights of race day
• Working through the outside noise & finding peace in the mountains

This week, pocket rocket and adventurer, Mari Marincowitz joins us on the podcast to talk about her life journey. Running has remained the consistent thing throughout her travels and exploration. Fresh off a win at the @georgemountainultratrail Miler, she shares some of her stories & in part 2 we experience the Outeniqua once again through her lens.

From India, to Shanghai to South Africa. Part 1 of Mari’s interview takes us on a global journey. Running in different spaces, cultures and places, we get to know Mari and her development into the athlete she is today.

Stay tuned for Part 2 & for now, Episode 29 is live!