Community Trail Running

“I would run all through there when I was younger and my grandfather knew I'd love to run, he would get me to round up the horses. So I'd have to go spend some time out there in the buttes rounding up the horses and bringing them into the corral. So it was actually out there where he really realized I loved running.”

Tarrant Cross Child grew up running and credits his grandfather, Dan Weasel Moccasin, for encouraging him to take it more seriously. It was his grandfather who bought him his first pair of shoes, and his grandfather also brought him to his first track meet. That encouragement from family and his love for the sport was all the more important as Tarrant went through life.

His journey led down some dark paths, eventually to the point where Tarrant attempted suicide. Thankfully it wasn’t his time to go, and a year long rehab program, where he was able to run and dial into that love of running again, followed. What’s come of his second life is truly remarkable. Tarrant is an ambassador for the sport in many ways, including running “Prairie Run Crew”, which helps Indigenous youth get involved in the sport. Running has been a life changer and saver for Tarrant, and he wants to share that as much as he can.

“When I was in rehab, I was gifted a pair of gently used shoes. Celeste didn't have any money. We're just barely making it by. I was on social assistance. We had nothing. So the shoes that were gifted to me while I was in rehab were like a lifeline. It just meant so much on two levels. One, that somebody from the outside was thinking about me. And then number two is that I can now run in a good pair of shoes. And that gave me that inspiration to be able to get out, to keep running to the shed, to keep running over to the train, to the tracks. I started hearing about the youth suicide crisis in Indigenous communities. So I thought, you know what, since running's helped me, maybe it'll help them.”

That inspiration is where it all started for Tarrant and Prairie Run Crew. He’s been working on it ever since he finished his rehab and today the group is doing more than he could have ever imagined. Tarrant has created a group that shares hope with his community and it was all accomplished through the sport of running. He’s a truly incredible person making a difference in the world each and every day. We salute Tarrant and all he has done, and we look forward to seeing what the future holds for him, his family, and the incredible Prairie Run Club.

Tarrant was an incredible first guest for us on the Long Run. We’re so grateful he shared his time and story with us and we hope you enjoy hearing it as much as we did. Make sure to check out Prairie Run Crew and find out how you can get involved!

You can learn more about National Truth and Reconciliation day here:

The Indigenous Foundation

National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation

Government of Alberta information

Government of Canada information

“The long run is all about uncovering the runner behind the run.”

Chantelle Erickson is a Lethbridge, AB-based marathoner, ultrarunner, and coach with Personal Peak. She’s also a certified personal trainer, pre-and postnatal fitness specialist, and freelance group fitness instructor with her own company, Be Well Chantelle. She’s also my new co-host on “The Long Run”! We are very excited to be working together and it’s nearly time to share episode 1 with you all. Before we do that, we thought we’d preview the show this week and give you all an idea of what to expect.

“We talk so much about people's accomplishments and their goals, and it's all about the race strategy and the race itself. I think the long run is just all about sort of deconstructing and decomposing who the actual person behind that is.”

Monday, September 30 we are set to debut the show and I hope you will all tune in and let us know what you think. We’d love any feedback and we’re always open to suggestions. So reach out and let us know what you think already, and make sure to come back next week and do the same.

Get to know Chantelle a bit better from our previous episodes:

Food Fight Friday

The latest episode was fun as always. I really like doing this show with Jason. I was as mature as always when it came to making my choices for my foods this week:

#Naaksquad - Try it and get 15% off

I enjoy the Naak products, even if the sauces took a few tries to grow on me. They get the job done and they don’t give me any issues, and isn’t that the point? So I applied to be part of the squad to get a discount on the products I plan on using a bunch. Reach out to me if you have any questions and I’ll do my best to answer! They give me a referral code, so I’m including that today.

If you’re gonna check it out, click through this link (CTR15 for 15% off), I appreciate it.

Listen where you listen

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Music by Paolo Argentino from Pixabay

We’re on the journey to 2,000 subscribers, help us get there!

If you enjoy this podcast, I would really appreciate it if you could like, share, subscribe, or comment! I’m trying to make this the best trail running podcast it can be and I certainly appreciate your time. Thank you all and happy trails :)

It’s a special episode, so we’re doing things a little different here on a Thursday. We’ve got the winner of the Divide 200 Allison Powell on the podcast! Allison is also a fellow substack author and I’m so excited she was able to chat about her experience in Southern Alberta. She was a lot of fun to chat with, and it was very insightful to hear her talk about the race.

“Then the rain came in. And it just became a real mental battle. I don't think I've ever felt so low in a race. I've wanted to quit maybe a few times. But usually it's just like, “Oh, I'm tired. I wish I could be done. Oh, my legs hurt. It'd be nice to be over.” And this was like, “I think I'd rather be dead than take another step on this race course.”

Huge congrats to the amazing Allison Powell, it was awesome to hear her chat about her amazing accomplishment and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

The Long Run - Coming September 30

I’m super excited to be launching “The Long Run” with Chantelle Erickson! We will be premiering the show on September 30, and you can look forward to 5 additional episodes coming out on the last Monday of each month. We are excited to work together and do a bit of a deeper dive with our guests. The shows will be 45 - 60 minutes and we’re incredibly excited about our guests. More information to come in the weeks that follow, including some of those guests. Stay tuned!

Food Fight Friday

Our next episode will come out this week. The latest episode was fun as always. I really like doing this show with Jason:

Check out our fun and lighthearted side project and let us know what you think!

#Naaksquad - Try it and get 15% off

I enjoy the Naak products, even if the sauces took a few tries to grow on me. They get the job done and they don’t give me any issues, and isn’t that the point? So I applied to be part of the squad to get a discount on the products I plan on using a bunch. Reach out to me if you have any questions and I’ll do my best to answer! They give me a referral code, so I’m including that today.

If you’re gonna check it out, click through this link (CTR15 for 15% off), I appreciate it.

Listen where you listen

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Music by Paolo Argentino from Pixabay

We’re on the journey to 2,000 subscribers, help us get there!

If you enjoy this podcast, I would really appreciate it if you could like, share, subscribe, or comment! I’m trying to make this the best trail running podcast it can be and I certainly appreciate your time. Thank you all and happy trails :)

“I finish something and then I get to a next level and I'm like ”Oh, well, what else could I do?” I can get a master's degree. Like, oh, I got that. I guess I could get a PhD and I got that. And you know running, it goes like that too. I think I can do a 50k. Oh I did it I wonder what else I could do? I don't start out looking for something big, it's just kind of like okay let's go to the next thing let's do a little more.”

Michelle Goldberg loves to push herself and she loves helping others push themselves as well. The psychologist and coach loves trail running and ultras and the way she gets to see what she is capable of. This thirst for continuing to move forward has also led her to co-host a podcast “Let’s Run That Again”, where she and her co-host get to interview runners about races that didn’t go well. They deep dive into DNF’s in order to help people learn and move on.

“Some people, they would, you know, death before DNF. But I think in our culture and in our society, the notion of struggling and allowing ourselves to struggle is so looked down upon, which I think is ridiculous because it should just be okay to say, this is hard. I'm trying to figure this out. To be able to sit with it and work through it, that's how we thrive, you know?”

Michelle was great to chat with, I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did. Make sure to let us know what you think of the episode!

The Long Run - Coming September 30

I’m super excited to be launching “The Long Run” with Chantelle Erickson! We will be premiering the show on September 30, and you can look forward to 5 additional episodes coming out on the last Monday of each month. We are excited to work together and do a bit of a deeper dive with our guests. The shows will be 45 - 60 minutes and we’re incredibly excited about our guests. More information to come in the weeks that follow, including some of those guests. Stay tuned!

Food Fight Friday

Our next episode will come out this week. The latest episode was fun as always. I really like doing this show with Jason:

Check out our fun and lighthearted side project and let us know what you think!

#Naaksquad - Try it and get 15% off

I enjoy the Naak products, even if the sauces took a few tries to grow on me. They get the job done and they don’t give me any issues, and isn’t that the point? So I applied to be part of the squad to get a discount on the products I plan on using a bunch. Reach out to me if you have any questions and I’ll do my best to answer! They give me a referral code, so I’m including that today.

If you’re gonna check it out, click through this link (CTR15 for 15% off), I appreciate it.

Listen where you listen

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Music by Paolo Argentino from Pixabay

We’re on the journey to 2,000 subscribers, help us get there!

If you enjoy this podcast, I would really appreciate it if you could like, share, subscribe, or comment! I’m trying to make this the best trail running podcast it can be and I certainly appreciate your time. Thank you all and happy trails :)

“Lots of women contacting us through Instagram messaging asking “how do they join our group”, which we hadn't really considered or thought about. So we came up with a plan and decided that we just wanted to be this motivational group who had a safe space for people to go out and enjoy the trails, no matter what your ability and support each other. So we created the badass chicks race team.”

Tanya Seal-Jones loves doing hard things. She also loves supporting and encouraging other women to do hard things. This helped lead to the Bad Ass Chicks Run Trails group being started. Being part of the group is something Tanya really enjoys, as is the fact she has registered for the Divide 200 starting tomorrow in Southern Alberta. A huge challenge and a chance to push herself into the unknown, it’s something she’s looking forward to.

“One of the girls from the Badass Chicks asked me if I had ever heard of the Divide 200 and I googled it and and thought it looked really fun so I signed up and got in the lottery.”

Tanya is also raising money to help animals get vet care, which you can read more about here. She was a lot of fun to chat with, I’m excited to follow her through the insane 200 mile race and I hope you will too. Let us know what you think of the show!

The Long Run - Coming September 30

I’m super excited to be launching “The Long Run” with Chantelle Erickson! We will be premiering the show on September 30, and you can look forward to 5 additional episodes coming out on the last Monday of each month. We are excited to work together and do a bit of a deeper dive with our guests. The shows will be 45 - 60 minutes and we’re incredibly excited about our guests. More information to come in the weeks that follow, including some of those guests. Stay tuned!

Food Fight Friday

The latest episode was fun as always. I really like doing this show with Jason:

Check out our fun and lighthearted side project and let us know what you think!

#Naaksquad - Try it and get 15% off

I enjoy the Naak products, even if the sauces took a few tries to grow on me. They get the job done and they don’t give me any issues, and isn’t that the point? So I applied to be part of the squad to get a discount on the products I plan on using a bunch. Reach out to me if you have any questions and I’ll do my best to answer! They give me a referral code, so I’m including that today.

If you’re gonna check it out, click through this link (CTR15 for 15% off), I appreciate it.

Listen where you listen

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Music by Paolo Argentino from Pixabay

We’re on the journey to 2,000 subscribers, help us get there!

If you enjoy this podcast, I would really appreciate it if you could like, share, subscribe, or comment! I’m trying to make this the best trail running podcast it can be and I certainly appreciate your time. Thank you all and happy trails :)

“It was just eyeopening and being out there and meeting the community within running is also what got me hooked. So I was in from there.”

Liz Myers was into the sport the moment she was introduced to it. It was challenging and the people were inviting. This quickly became a full-blown love of the sport as she ran more and was introduced to trails. Fast forward only a few years and she finds herself coaching athletes and hosting a running podcast. She wants to be around the sport as much as possible and introduce others to it in any way she can. She believes everyone has a story and loves that our sport is made up of so many great people.

“I want other people to have the opportunity to share their stories. It could be a back-of-the-pack, mid-pack, elite front runner. I don't care. I don't care how fast you go. I don't care how slow you go. No matter what, we all have a story within how we got into running or during our running.”

Liz was great to chat with and it was awesome to turn the mic around on her as she recently had me on her show:

Let us know what you think of this latest episode, I hope you like it as much as I do!

Thank you Steve!

Huge shout out to our latest paid subscriber Steve! It’s a massive honour when any of you put your hard earned cash into this thing and I’m so grateful any time you can. So thank you Steve and thank you to all of you for supporting in all the ways that you do. It’s so much fun growing this thing with all of you and I’m pumped to keep moving forward. Speaking of…

The Long Run - Coming September 30

I’m super excited to be launching “The Long Run” with Chantelle Erickson! We will be premiering the show on September 30, and you can look forward to 5 additional episodes coming out on the last Monday of each month. We are excited to work together and do a bit of a deeper dive with our guests. The shows will be 45 - 60 minutes and we’re incredibly excited about our guests. More information to come in the weeks that follow, including some of those guests. Stay tuned!

Food Fight Friday

The latest episode went up last Friday, I really like doing this show with Jason:

Check out our fun and lighthearted side project and let us know what you think!

#Naaksquad - Try it and get 15% off

I enjoy the Naak products, even if the sauces took a few tries to grow on me. They get the job done and they don’t give me any issues, and isn’t that the point? So I applied to be part of the squad to get a discount on the products I plan on using a bunch. Reach out to me if you have any questions and I’ll do my best to answer! They give me a referral code, so I’m including that today.

If you’re gonna check it out, click through this link (CTR15 for 15% off), I appreciate it.

Listen where you listen

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Music by Paolo Argentino from Pixabay

We’re on the journey to 2,000 subscribers, help us get there!

If you enjoy this podcast, I would really appreciate it if you could like, share, subscribe, or comment! I’m trying to make this the best trail running podcast it can be and I certainly appreciate your time. Thank you all and happy trails :)

“I have to sing this from the rooftops that this is a safe place, come here, be with us. You're welcome all the time.”

Ally Gregory loves running. It’s something that has resonated with her for a long time and the opportunity to share the sport and expose others to it is something she also loves. This is why she started CUSS running (Curious Ultrarunners Secret Society). She knew she had the knowledge and skills to pull off hosting events and so she went forward with CUSS and the rest is history! Now she’s making a difference in trail runners lives through the Chicago area and enjoying the safe space she created.

I had so much fun chatting with Ally and learning all about here and CUSS. I’m sure you will enjoy it as much as I did! Let us know what you think and if you’ve had a chance to make it out to any CUSS events!

The Long Run - Coming September 30

I’m super excited to be launching “The Long Run” with Chantelle Erickson! We will be premiering the show on September 30, and you can look forward to 5 additional episodes coming out on the last Monday of each month. We are excited to work together and do a bit of a deeper dive with our guests. The shows will be 45 - 60 minutes and we’re incredibly excited about our guests. More information to come in the weeks that follow, including some of those guests. Stay tuned!

Food Fight Friday

The latest episode went up last Friday, I really like doing this show with Jason:

This week’s episode has Jason giving me three chocolate bar choices at a middle of the day aid station during a hot 100 KM race. Who wouldn’t want full size chocolate bars with no water or wipes to clean up after, right?!

Read full story

The next episode comes this week!

#Naaksquad - Try it and get 15% off

I enjoy the Naak products, even if the sauces took a few tries to grow on me. They get the job done and they don’t give me any issues, and isn’t that the point? So I applied to be part of the squad to get a discount on the products I plan on using a bunch. Reach out to me if you have any questions and I’ll do my best to answer! They give me a referral code, so I’m including that today.

If you’re gonna check it out, click through this link (CTR15 for 15% off), I appreciate it.

Listen where you listen

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Music by Paolo Argentino from Pixabay

We’re on the journey to 2,000 subscribers, help us get there!

If you enjoy this podcast, I would really appreciate it if you could like, share, subscribe, or comment! I’m trying to make this the best trail running podcast it can be and I certainly appreciate your time. Thank you all and happy trails :)

“The U.S. team was full, and Ryan Kerrigan and I were really good buddies, and we'd always talked about maybe creating a Canada team because I'm a dual citizen. Because there wasn't a Canada team. And I knew that the International Skyrunning Federation, they wanted to keep growing. So I was like, “Hey, let's make a team. Let's make a Canada team.”

Naia Tower Pierce loves Skyrunning. The sport and the competition are a big part of it, but the fact the 21-year-old is pushed physically in beautiful mountain landscapes is also a huge part of the equation. When the opportunity to start a youth Team Canada arose, she jumped at it, excited at the notion of growing the sport in one of the two dual-citizens home nations. She coached and competed for the first year and by year two was strictly coaching. It’s a role she has embraced, all because of her love of the sport and wanting more people to experience it.

“When I was 15, all of a sudden I met all these other people who just loved dying on mountains. And at the end of the day you're on the start line and no matter if you were first or last it was about the sport itself and it was you against the mountain. I think that's awesome and just beautiful.”

Naia was a lot of fun to chat with and learn some more about what she’s up to with Skyrunning and Team Canada. I’m sure you will enjoy the conversation as much as I did, make sure to let us know what you think!

The Long Run - Coming September 30

I’m super excited to be launching “The Long Run” with Chantelle Erickson! We will be premiering the show on September 30, and you can look forward to 5 additional episodes coming out on the last Monday of each month. We are excited to work together and do a bit of a deeper dive with our guests. The shows will be 45 - 60 minutes and we’re incredibly excited about our guests. More information to come in the weeks that follow, including some of those guests. Stay tuned!

Food Fight Friday

The latest episode went up Friday, I really like doing this show with Jason:

#Naaksquad - Try it and get 15% off

I enjoy the Naak products, even if the sauces took a few tries to grow on me. They get the job done and they don’t give me any issues, and isn’t that the point? So I applied to be part of the squad to get a discount on the products I plan on using a bunch. Reach out to me if you have any questions and I’ll do my best to answer! They give me a referral code, so I’m including that today.

If you’re gonna check it out, click through this link (CTR15 for 15% off), I appreciate it.

Listen where you listen

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Music by Paolo Argentino from Pixabay

We’re on the journey to 2,000 subscribers, help us get there!

If you enjoy this podcast, I would really appreciate it if you could like, share, subscribe, or comment! I’m trying to make this the best trail running podcast it can be and I certainly appreciate your time. Thank you all and happy trails :)

“As a slow pitch player, I really like to sucker the guys into running on me because I have a small arm but I have a cannon. So I'd be in the outfield and I'd be like “yeah, go go” and then I'd gun him down at second base and I'd be like “sorry you tried.”

Kate Olson organizes 150 run clubs around L.A. on her website and IG page, into a handy list for folks to know what’s happening all over the city, which is amazing. Because she is so thorough with it all, it enables folks to join runs they may not have before, because the information is more accessible. This is all fantastic, she’s getting more and more people running on the roads and the trails. But even more fun than that for me was the quick baseball tangent we got to go on. She loves playing defense as she grew up at second base and loved to dive all over the field. These days she doesn’t play as much baseball (but she’ll still throw you out), as she’s fully invested in running. It’s a big part of her life and the joy she gets from it is why she strives to make it accessible for others.

“Somewhere along the line, someone had noticed I started running with people and they asked me if I knew more clubs. They had a friend, a woman who wanted to run, but not alone. So I was like, I know this, I'm going to figure this out for you.”

Kate is full of ideas and a very creative person. She loves running long races and crewing her friends as well. I’m looking forward to seeing what she gets up to moving forward, as she doesn’t seem like the type to sit still! I hope you all enjoy our conversation as much as I did.

#Naaksquad - Try it and get 15% off

I enjoy the Naak products, even if the sauces took a few tries to grow on me. They get the job done and they don’t give me any issues, and isn’t that the point? So I applied to be part of the squad to get a discount on the products I plan on using a bunch. Reach out to me if you have any questions and I’ll do my best to answer! They give me a referral code, so I’m including that today.

If you’re gonna check it out, click through this link (CTR15 for 15% off), I appreciate it.

Listen where you listen

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Music by Paolo Argentino from Pixabay

We’re on the journey to 2,000 subscribers, help us get there!

If you enjoy this podcast, I would really appreciate it if you could like, share, subscribe, or comment! I’m trying to make this the best trail running podcast it can be and I certainly appreciate your time. Thank you all and happy trails :)

“When I got out here (British Columbia), I met so many athletes and I was like, you know what? I got to go 100% into the sports nutrition world. I'm just too passionate about it. So yeah, what's changed from when I started to now is I just take on athletes.”

Carol-Ann Rolle loves to trail run and is a passionate Dietitian. As a competitive athlete, she was fascinated by learning more about diets and knew the field was something she wanted to be involved with. She is always learning, meeting new clients, and growing as a runner. She’s thrilled she gets to work with people and help them achieve their goals, especially all the while doing something she enjoys so much.

“I was fascinated by how much nutrition could elevate performance. Seeing the difference it made in my own athletic journey, I was hooked. I knew I had to dive into this field and help others unlock their full potential. So now I combine my passion for nutrition with my love for endurance sports like trail running, anything to do with triathlon, guiding others to fuel their adventures and reach new heights.”

Carol-Ann was a lot of fun to chat with. I loved her energy and how positive she was. I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I do and I hope you will let us know!

Check out Beast of Big Creek.

#Naaksquad - Try it and get 15% off

I enjoy the Naak products, even if the sauces took a few tries to grow on me. They get the job done and they don’t give me any issues, and isn’t that the point? So I applied to be part of the squad to get a discount on the products I plan on using a bunch. Reach out to me if you have any questions and I’ll do my best to answer! They give me a referral code, so I’m including that today.

If you’re gonna check it out, click through this link (CTR15 for 15% off), I appreciate it.

Listen where you listen

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Music by Paolo Argentino from Pixabay

We’re on the journey to 2,000 subscribers, help us get there!

If you enjoy this podcast, I would really appreciate it if you could like, share, subscribe, or comment! I’m trying to make this the best trail running podcast it can be and I certainly appreciate your time. Thank you all and happy trails :)