Community Trail Running

“They’re all the small moments that I realized that I trail ran for. Those small moments, not necessarily for running itself.”

Milo Zanecchia wanted to capture all the moments on a run when we aren’t running. We all know how distracted we can get on runs, for all kinds of reasons, but did you ever really think about how it all adds up? Milo’s film “The Reality of Running” features these moments in a beautiful way. It’s brilliant to watch, made me laugh out loud, and conveys all the feels of a full day on the trail, in a tight 3-minute package. I love it and it was clear from chatting with Milo he knew what he wanted to accomplish with the film. He loves the outdoors and the opportunity to showcase them, and certainly advises anyone chasing their dreams to do so with gusto.

“Make time for the projects you really believe in. It’s easy to get distracted by the money and the paycheque, and those are really important because they help you buy the gear and the equipment and everything that is necessary for these passion projects. Ultimately, the passion projects are the ones that open up doors to clients that you want to work with.”

Milo has some other ideas for future films and is thrilled to be included in the Trail Running Film Festival in the meantime. He was a lot of fun to chat with and I’m excited to follow him along as he seems like an easy person to cheer for. Come on out on Tuesday, April 18 at the Rio Theatre and see his film “The Reality of Running”.

Film Festival - 6 pm Tuesday, April 18 at the Rio Theatre

Click here for tickets!

Our sponsors include:

5 Peaks

Distance Runwear

Beast of Big Creek

Ridgeline Athletics

Thursty Elk Trail Race

Heads or Trails

Conquer The Vedder

Blumaka

Finlayson Arm Races

Social YVR

Harbour YVR

Galiano Trails Society

We’re busy getting ready for The Big Night! Tuesday, April 18 at the Rio Theatre where the doors will open at 6 pm and the show starts at 7 pm.

Click here for tickets!

We have 9 great films to watch, awesome door prizes, a 50/50 in support of SAR, and even some special treats courtesy of Tailwind Nutrition for the first people in the theatre, so show up early!

There is also…

Film Festival Special Guest Filsan Abdiaman

We’re so excited to chat with Filsan Abdiaman as our special guest! Filsan started Project Love Run which is “a running collective for all self-identified womxn seeking a space to connect with others and their own minds and bodies”. We can’t wait to learn more at the film festival. The film festival is going to be a great time and I can’t wait to hang out with all of you!

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Youtube: Click Here

Music by REDproductions from Pixabay.

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 :)

“For me, it started with a sketchbook. I’m dyslexic, so for me, reading and writing have always been a little bit more difficult and so when I wanted to share these wild crazy experiences outside, I didn’t do it through essays or a lot of words or poetry. It was always through sketches."

Max Romey learned how to express himself through his artistic side. Now his creations are inspiring the artistic side of trail runners and outdoor lovers all over the world. Max Romey Productions produced “Footprints Running Camp” and was able to blend the world of trail running and idea building at this unique conference. Max has a really fun way of blending sketches and film and part of his drive comes from inspiring others through things like The Trail Running Film Festival. His passion for the outdoors is evident and he adores the trail-running community.

“Having that community behind means everything. There’s probably more road runners on earth, but the trail runners, they’re down to earth, they get something. When you’re out in these places, you have this connection that I haven’t found anywhere else. And I’ve been lucky enough to look.”

Max is a positive person to chat with and I really enjoyed chatting with him. It was fun to hear some challenges he faces but also what made him want to create the way he does. His film is fun and beautiful so you will want to check it out.

You can catch Max’s film “Footprints Running Camp” Tuesday, April 18 at the Rio Theatre. Speaking of…

Film Festival - 6 pm Tuesday, April 18 at the Rio Theatre

Click here for tickets!

Our sponsors include:

5 Peaks

Distance Runwear

Beast of Big Creek

Ridgeline Athletics

Thursty Elk Trail Race

Heads or Trails

Conquer The Vedder

Blumaka

Finlayson Arm Races

Social YVR

Harbour YVR

Galiano Trails Society

We’re busy getting ready for The Big Night! Tuesday, April 18 at the Rio Theatre where the doors will open at 6 pm and the show starts at 7 pm.

Click here for tickets!

We have 9 great films to watch, awesome door prizes, a 50/50 in support of SAR, and even some special treats courtesy of Tailwind Nutrition for the first people in the theatre, so show up early!

There is also…

Film Festival Special Guest Filsan Abdiaman

We’re so excited to chat with Filsan Abdiaman as our special guest! Filsan started Project Love Run which is “a running collective for all self-identified womxn seeking a space to connect with others and their own minds and bodies”. We can’t wait to learn more at the film festival. The film festival is going to be a great time and I can’t wait to hang out with all of you!

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Youtube: Click Here

Music by REDproductions from Pixabay.

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 :)

“She's so positive. She's wise. And she is so strong. She's so tough. And she inspires me. So yeah. It was an easy decision to pick Nettie to make my first movie.”

Jessica Vandenbush chose Aneta (Nettie) Zeppetella to feature in her first film and it was a great decision. The film is super fun and Nettie is a character you will fall in love with. Jessica’s film is beautifully shot and it was great to hear a bit about the challenges she faced as well as what lies ahead! It was also really awesome to hear about her inspiration.

“I was so inspired by the genre in the first place. Watching those trail running movies at the film fest changed my life. And when I came around to wanting to make a movie that really helped women feel possible in our sport, no matter where they come from, no matter how old they are, no matter having a family, having a career, no matter if they had mountains to train on. I wanted to make a movie about this beautiful woman I knew.”

Jessica also has an independent print issue trail running magazine called “Eat Clean Run Dirty”, which you can check out here.

Nettie From Ohio

By Jessica Vandenbusch

Aneta (Nettie) Zeppetella is an Ohio Ultrarunner tackling some of the least-Ohio-style terrain (Western States, Fat Dog 120, Hurt) and working to inspire more women in her area to tackle long distances.

You can catch “Nettie from Ohio” at the Rio Theatre on Tuesday April 18. Doors open at 6 pm and the show starts at 7 pm. About the show…

Film Festival - 6 pm Tuesday April 18 at the Rio Theatre

Click here for tickets!

Our sponsors include:

5 Peaks

Distance Runwear

Beast of Big Creek

Ridgeline Athletics

Thursty Elk Trail Race

Heads or Trails

Conquer The Vedder

Blumaka

Finlayson Arm Races

Social YVR

Harbour YVR

Galiano Trails Society

We’re busy getting ready for The Big Night! Tuesday, April 18 at the Rio Theatre where the doors will open at 6 pm and the show starts at 7 pm.

Click here for tickets!

We have 9 great films to watch, awesome door prizes, a 50/50 in support of SAR, and even some special treats courtesy of Tailwind Nutrition for the first people in the theatre, so show up early!

There is also…

Film Festival Special Guest Filsan Abdiaman

We’re so excited to chat with Filsan Abdiaman as our special guest! Filsan started Project Love Run which is “a running collective for all self-identified womxn seeking a space to connect with others and their own minds and bodies”. We can’t wait to learn more at the film festival. The film festival is going to be a great time and I can’t wait to hang out with all of you!

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Youtube: Click Here

Music by REDproductions from Pixabay.

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 :)

“Every single person, start to finish, is treated like they won the race, like they’ve been the most important person there. That’s a part of our DNA. Making sure that every single person that comes across the finish line feels celebrated.”

Coast Mountain Trail Running is a finely tuned machine at this point. The group has been putting on events in British Columbia for quite some time, and they’ve got it down as well as a participant could hope for. Gary Robbins and Geoff Langford are the two Race Directors for CMTR, and on top of their love for trail running events, they also have a passion for multisport events. That’s how they came up with Conquer the Vedder, the SUP, gravel bike, and trail run event coming to Cultus Lake May 27-28. This will be the second year for the event, and 2 years is about how long a race takes to put together, from concept to race day.

“That's always a two-year window and that's what I say to anybody who reaches out asking about the event side of things. Your best-case scenario is 18 months and that would need some luck and some connections. But you need to give yourself a 2 year window to bring something to life because the permit process and everything that goes along with it, and especially coming to a new community, a lot of relationships need to be established and a lot of new stakeholders need to be identified and connected with.”

Gary was great to chat with and it was fun to learn a bit more about how this event came together. I’ve always loved the events that CMTR puts on and so I was thrilled to be able to chat on the podcast and have Conquer the Vedder as a sponsor for the Vancouver screening of the Trail Running Film Festival!

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Youtube: Click Here

Music by REDproductions from Pixabay.

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 :)

Film Festival - 6 pm Tuesday April 18 at the Rio Theatre

Conquer the Vedder is a proud sponsor of our Vancouver screening of the Trail Running Film Festival!

Click here for tickets!

Our other sponsors include:

5 Peaks

Distance Runwear

Beast of Big Creek

Ridgeline Athletics

Thursty Elk Trail Race

Heads or Trails

Blumaka

Finlayson Arm Races

Social YVR

Harbour YVR

Galiano Trails Society

We’re busy getting ready for The Big Night! Tuesday, April 18 at the Rio Theatre where the doors will open at 6 pm and the show starts at 7 pm.

Click here for tickets!

We have 9 great films to watch, awesome door prizes, a 50/50 in support of SAR, and even some special treats courtesy of Tailwind Nutrition for the first people in the theatre, so show up early!

There is also…

Film Festival Special Guest Filsan Abdiaman

We’re so excited to chat with Filsan Abdiaman as our special guest! Filsan started Project Love Run which is “a running collective for all self-identified womxn seeking a space to connect with others and their own minds and bodies”. We can’t wait to learn more at the film festival. The film festival is going to be a great time and I can’t wait to hang out with all of you!

“It's one thing to prepare and succeed. It's another thing that's even more fulfilling to help others prepare and succeed”.

Dave Melanson is the 5 Peaks Race Director here in British Columbia. He’s been around the series for years and describes taking the role as a natural transition. It certainly sounds that way as his love for the trail community and hosting events is evident. Dave was an awesome guest who is clearly stoked to help 5 Peaks continue its excellence in hosting trail events, now into its 25th year.

“We can see what people want and give them more of that. More trails, more mountains. Good stuff.”

Dave got into what the 5 Peaks series in BC has in store for runners. From the season starter at Alice Lake, to his favourite course in Whistler, and he’s super excited for the season finale party at Mt. Seymour. The series sounds like a ton of fun and the 5 Peaks team is a polished group ready to host runners and show them an amazing time. The series has 5 stops:

April 15 - Alice LakeMay 6 - Golden EarsJuly 15 - Cypress MountainAugust 26 - Whistler BlackcombSeptember 23 - Mount Seymour

5 Peaks is also the gold sponsor for our Vancouver screening of the Trail Running Film Festival happening Tuesday, April 18 at the Rio Theatre. The doors will open at 6 pm and the show starts at 7 pm. Come early to meet Dave and some other 5 Peaks ambassadors! They will make it easy to learn more about them and sign up for their races. You won’t want to miss out, so get your tickets now!

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Youtube: Click Here

Music by REDproductions from Pixabay.

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 just incredible to be around the stoke that so many BIPOC folks have for being in the mountains. It’s a privilege to be able to help them overcome some of the barriers and intimidation that people experience.”

Safder Raza is a trail runner originally from Pakistan who calls Vancouver, BC, home these days. He got into trail running after seeing a few trail runners while he was orienteering and since then he has finished on a 50-mile podium! His passion for the outdoors was only overmatched by the passion he has for helping others like himself get outdoors. He does this with a group called “Colour the Trails.” Colour the Trails advocates for inclusive representation in the outdoors.

Safder leads a 12-week trail running course with Colour the Trails throughout the summer. It’s not just about trail running itself, but everything around it, from teaching the 10 essentials to nutrition tips. He loves leading the trail runners but also noted that Colour the Trails is all about the outdoors, not just trail running.

“We also do skiing events that are happening right now that it’s ski season. We do a lot of mountain biking events and hiking, bird watching, and all sorts of things in the outdoors.”

Safder was a lot of fun to chat with and his joy was contagious. I had a lot of fun learning about Colour the Trails and Safder’s love of the outdoors. I think you will too!

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Youtube: Click Here

Music by REDproductions from Pixabay.

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 :)

Film Festival episodes start next week

Perhaps you noticed, but it’s been a minute since we last posted around here. That’s because we’re busy getting ready for the Vancouver screening of the Trail Running Film Festival! Tuesday, April 18 at the Rio Theatre where the doors will open at 6 pm and the show starts at 7 pm.

Click here for tickets!

Starting next Monday, March 27, we’re gonna start the hype train around here and share some awesome interviews with filmmakers and our amazing sponsors! There is so much fantastic content, we might even be dropping episodes twice a week ;)

Film Festival Special Guest Filsan Abdiaman

We’re so excited to chat with Filsan Abdiaman as our special guest! Filsan started Project Love Run which is “a running collective for all self-identified womxn seeking a space to connect with others and their own minds and bodies”. We can’t wait to learn more at the film festival. The film festival is going to be a great time and I can’t wait to hang out with all of you!

“When I first started researching, I didn't really see many people like me out on the mountains.”

Deon Barrett has started True North Project because he wants to inspire. Barrett started TNP in January 2022 when his research showed that 6,098 people have summited Mt. Everest and 10 of those were Black People. The reason this particular project made sense to him was because of its grandeur. Barrett wants to inspire on the biggest stage and I think it’s incredibly noble that he wants to be that beacon because to get to this point is pretty incredible. He’s had some dark days in his past. The darkness included an attempted suicide. Barrett found the outdoors quite therapeutic in his recovery but he didn’t find there were many visible Black People in the industry to draw inspiration from.

“There's not a lot of, I would say, people of inspiration doing that for the younger generation, especially within the outdoors community. So that's what I wanted to do. I wanted to open the doors, talk from a personal standpoint and experience and show them that they can find their own passion within the outdoors. Because I have.”

Deon gives some insight into his training as well as the cost of an Everest expedition in our chat. His plan is to get up the mountain by the 2025 season. His passion for the project is evident and it’s clear he’s already an inspiring individual. Enjoy the conversation, I know I did!

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Youtube: Click Here

Music by REDproductions from Pixabay.

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 :)

Trail Running Film Festival Tickets

We will announce the winners of the contests this week!

We are slowly rolling out our Sponsor announcements as well. The support here has been incredible. This really is an amazing place in the world to live and trail run. I’m incredibly grateful for it. Watch for more announcements in the coming weeks and get your tickets while you can!

After the announcement last week it only made sense to get a quick podcast in about the Trail Running Film Festival coming to Vancouver, BC, on Tuesday April 18 at the Rio Theatre! Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at the door.

Buy your tickets now!

I’m incredibly excited to host and celebrate this wonderful community with a bunch of amazing trail runners. It will be fun to hang out in a different context with everyone and be in a room full of awesome, together :)

The films will document the culture of trail running and the festival is committed to promoting inclusivity, adventure, wilderness, art, and diversity across the trail and ultra community. The theatre has a capacity of 420 and it should be a great time for all of us trail runners to get together and celebrate our incredible sport together. Vancouver is a very active hub in the trail running world and the event will give the community a chance to come together and celebrate trail running on the big screen and in the same room.

Buy your tickets now!

If you want to support this newsletter and podcast and get your tickets in one neat and tidy transaction, subscribe to an annual subscription now!

Similar Episodes:

Contest Time!

Let’s get this rig rolling and give away some tickets, shall we?!

3 ways to win

* Subscribe for free (your name goes in the draw with all the other free subscribers)

* Upgrade to a monthly paid subscription (only those who have paid subscriptions are entered in their own draw)

* Enter the contest on Instagram

* You must be following

* communitytrailrunning

* trailfilmfest

* riotheatre

* Follow those three accounts and mention your trail-running friends in the contest posts. Tag a friend and get an entry, it’s as easy as that!

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Youtube: Click Here

Music by REDproductions from Pixabay.

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 :)

“That's the part I'm enjoying the most right now, is just being able to kind of experiment and tell the stories I want to tell the way I want to tell them.”

Jeff Pelletier has been trail running for over a decade and he’s been creating videos about his adventures since 2018. In that time he’s wracked up tens of thousands of followers and made some pretty inspiring content to consume! Whether he’s running a crazy race, fastpacking a beautiful trail, or covering someone else’s FKT attempt, Pelletier enjoys the challenge of telling the story in an interesting way. He’s also learned over the years what kind of running makes for the easiest content creation.

“I would say, just really simply, the longer the race, the easier it is to tell a story with video. When you're trying to run fast, and by fast, I mean even in a 50 kilometer race, it's really difficult to be filming and messing around with gear, because you're worried about losing precious minutes. Whereas in, say, a 200 miles race, where you're out there for four days, minutes don't matter as much. So it's okay to maybe stop and film something or to mess around with camera batteries here and there. Definitely the longer the race, the less pressure I feel in terms of the clock.”

Jeff talked about the difference in stress when he is filming himself as opposed to someone else. He also got into how much trail running has changed since he started and what he thinks about the state of the sport currently. It was awesome that he came on the cast and I hope you all enjoy the interview as much as I did.

Please like, rate, subscribe, and share!

It all helps in the world of online algorithms. Thank you for your support.

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Youtube: Click Here

Music by REDproductions from Pixabay.

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 :)

Tickets will be available incredibly soon, stay tuned!!!

Galiano Trails Society is hiring: Trail Building and Maintenance Coordinator

I’m honoured to have joined the Galiano Trails Society board of directors! It’s a brand new role for me, and I will have some more to tell you all about it soon. But in the meantime, we are hiring and I must share the job posting with you all! Please share with anyone that you think would appreciate it.

Start Date: February, 2023Term: One Year Contract with possible extensionTime Commitment: Two 8-hour days per month on average with some flexibilityApplication Due Date: January 31, 2023

THE GALIANO TRAILS SOCIETY is a registered charity dedicated to the development and enjoyment of hiking trails on Galiano Island.

The Society is currently seeking a capable, Trail Building and Maintenance Coordinator (the "Coordinator") who has the skills to both organize and lead volunteer and summer student work parties, and undertake heavy-lift trail construction work, including clearing fallen trees by chainsaw and moving and laying gravel.

The ideal candidate will have experience building trails, be knowledgeable about good forest management practices; be able to operate a chain saw; can coordinate, lead and train volunteers and summer students; and has all applicable licenses and permits, including a Workers Compensation Board account, and liability insurance.

The Coordinator will be expected to work with the Trails Society Board to create, manage and report on an annual schedule for trail building and maintenance indicating at what stage of the project each trail is at; and, manage the general trail sites and working conditions, such as erosion and siltation control, barricades, signs, and maintenance of foot traffic past the site.

Please apply by January 31, 2023 by sending your CV and cover letter to:[email protected]

“What we've tried to do is work with events and work with media to try and represent the sport in the way that we would like it to be, which is one that actually represents the population as a whole.”

Sonny Peart is a co-founder of Black Trail Runners. Peart recognized that Black people were underrepresented in trail events across the UK and decided to do something about it. The group didn’t have any expectations of where it would lead, they just wanted to take action.

“We've been surprised because when we started this, we had no idea where it was going to go. It just felt as though something should be done and if anyone was going to do it, it might as well be us. So a few of us got together and started this.”

Black Trail Runners first move was asking races to include reporting ethnicities that were signing up for races. Through the data they found that although about 5.5% of the UK identifies as Black, less than 1% of runners at trail events were Black. Peart explained this stems from Black people having less access to the trails (both geographic and economic), being less skilled as a result of the lack of access, and being underrepresented in trail running marketing and media. Black Trail Runners is working on these issues in many ways and they really just want to make it possible for Black people to get on the trails.

“We have regular, free social runs with qualified run leaders around the country in the UK. And we also put on what we call trail taster events, which is an opportunity for people to, yes, go out for an inclusive, lead, run, but also to take part in workshops, learn skills, whether that's around navigation or gear or running technique or whatever it happens to be. And an opportunity for people to experience the trails in a relaxed, inclusive environment where they feel safe. They don't have to worry about being accepted or not.”

Black Trail Runners on Strava

Black Trail Runners on Instagram

Black Trail Runners on LinkedIn

Sonny shared a lot more about the organization and what he’s training for himself, including running the London Marathon for Sporting Equals and taking a crack at Wendover Woods 100. Super grateful he took the time over the busy holiday season to chat and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Spotify: Click Here

Google Podcasts: Click Here

Apple Podcasts: Click Here

Youtube: Click Here

Music by REDproductions from Pixabay.

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 :)

Galiano Trails Society is hiring: Trail Building and Maintenance Coordinator

I’m honoured to have joined the Galiano Trails Society board of directors! It’s a brand new role for me, and I will have some more to tell you all about it soon. But in the meantime, we are hiring and I must share the job posting with you all! Please share with anyone that you think would appreciate it.

Start Date: February, 2023Term: One Year Contract with possible extensionTime Commitment: Two 8-hour days per month on average with some flexibilityApplication Due Date: January 31, 2023

THE GALIANO TRAILS SOCIETY is a registered charity dedicated to the development and enjoyment of hiking trails on Galiano Island.

The Society is currently seeking a capable, Trail Building and Maintenance Coordinator (the "Coordinator") who has the skills to both organize and lead volunteer and summer student work parties, and undertake heavy-lift trail construction work, including clearing fallen trees by chainsaw and moving and laying gravel.

The ideal candidate will have experience building trails, be knowledgeable about good forest management practices; be able to operate a chain saw; can coordinate, lead and train volunteers and summer students; and has all applicable licenses and permits, including a Workers Compensation Board account, and liability insurance.

The Coordinator will be expected to work with the Trails Society Board to create, manage and report on an annual schedule for trail building and maintenance indicating at what stage of the project each trail is at; and, manage the general trail sites and working conditions, such as erosion and siltation control, barricades, signs, and maintenance of foot traffic past the site.

Please apply by January 31, 2023 by sending your CV and cover letter to:[email protected]