This week on Conversation Pace with FRE, we get a full race recap of the Boston Marathon from Esteban Trujillo and Calbert Guest.

Esteban finished as the 2nd OA Master's with a time of 2:16:19 and Calbert completed his Boston Marathon debut in 2:18:05. They both had quite different training leading up to the race and wildly different race experiences so it was fun to hear them get into it and reflect on lessons learned and things that went well.

We also get to hear what they have coming up next and what is exciting them about running right now!

Enjoy!

On this episode, we catch up with Calbert Guest to talk about his build toward the Boston Marathon and his breakout 2:19 performance at the Chicago Marathon.

Cal grew up in Fort Collins and found his stride early through cross country, track, and trail running. He went on to compete at Appalachian State, helping lead his team to back-to-back conference titles while breaking multiple school records and running 8:42 in the steeplechase at Penn Relays.

Now back in Fort Collins, Cal is building momentum in the marathon and trail scene, recently running 2:19 at the Chicago Marathon in his debut. He has big goals that include qualifying for the 2028 Olympic Trials. We talk about his journey from team-centered racing to longer distances, what’s fueling his recent success, and the experiences that continue to shape his love for running.

We talk about Courtney's broken elbows episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6FaC4CGWZDCzhOYTxRCzMj?si=kdXg3Kp4R-mvTpydhOtyVw

and

M1LE Nation: https://runsignup.com/Race/CO/Anywhere/M1LENationChallenge

In this episode, Sophie Seward joins us to to recap her experience at the 50K World Championships. On March 14, Sophie lined up with Team USA to compete in New Delhi, India. We go through her workouts leading into the championship, travel to India, and, of course, the race itself. Spoiler: most things did not go to plan. She walks us through the whole experience and how she was able to pivot and adapt throughout all of these experiences.

We are so proud of Sophie for competing for team USA and had so much fun hearing all of her stories from India.

In this episode, I’m joined by Maddie Alm, registered dietitian and founder of Fueling Forward, to break down what ferritin actually tells us — and why optimal levels for endurance athletes may look very different from standard lab ranges.

We talk about early signs of low ferritin before anemia develops, why runners are especially susceptible to iron depletion, and how low iron can show up as poor recovery, higher perceived effort, or workouts that just don’t land.

Maddie also walks through practical strategies for improving iron status, including nutrition, supplementation protocols, and when athletes should consider getting their labs checked.

If you’ve ever wondered why training feels harder than it should, this conversation might help explain why.

Follow Maddie:

@fueling_forward

fuelingforward.com

We’ve officially launched the Front Range Elite men’s team and this episode has all the tea.

This has been a long time coming and was boosted by our youth boys team made up of athletes from across the Poudre School District who chose to come together, train as a unit, and extend their XC season running the USATF XC Youth Series. They went on to win USATF Cross Country Districts, State, and Regionals, and competed at Nationals.

Then they asked us to start a men's team so when they graduated after competing in college they could come back and train and race with us.

Today we sit down with one of the first men to join this next chapter, Esteban Trujillo, an Olympic Trials qualifier, fresh off a half marathon PR of 105:58 with the Boston Marathon coming up. We talk about what it means to build something like this, how team culture shapes performance, and why chasing big goals alongside other people matters.

This is the beginning of something we’re really proud of!

IG: @front.range.elite

This week on Conversation Pace with FRE we get to chat with Clara Mayfield.

She is an elite American distance runner whose performances span from middle-distance track events to the marathon. She competed collegiately at Carleton College, where she established herself as a nationally competitive distance runner, earning 9 NCAA Division III All-American honors. She went on to compete Division I at the University of Utah, while earning a Master of Public Health degree.

Her progression from collegiate success to elite road racing culminated in a breakthrough performance at the California International Marathon, where she ran 2:34:26 to earn the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials qualifying standard.

Following her competitive collegiate running career, Clara has gone on to medical school, continuing to pursue excellence at the highest level both academically and athletically. She balances the demands of medical training with elite endurance running, exemplifying discipline, resilience, and long-term commitment to performance.

Enjoy!

Follow Clara on IG: clara.mayfield

Podcast Sponsor: M1LE Nation

This week on Conversation Pace, AnnMarie sits down with friend and teammate, Dr. Courtney Bouchet to talk about exercise neuroscience.

They dive into the research behind the stress-protective effects of exercise and how exercise during development (think middle and high school) can have lasting positive impacts on the brain. 

Courtney did her undergraduate at CU Boulder, then got a master's degree from CU Denver. She went to Portland, Oregon to study at Oregon Health & Science University for her PhD, and now has landed back in Fort Collins for her postdoctoral fellowship. We hope you enjoy this chat!

Follow on IG: @front.range.elite

Citations: 

David C. Glass, Bruce Reim, Jerome E. Singer,
Behavioral consequences of adaptation to controllable and uncontrollable noise,
Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 1971.

Amanda E. Baker, Adriana Galván, Andrew J. Fuligni,
The connecting brain in context: How adolescent plasticity supports learning and development,
Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, 2025.

Esteban Trujillo is on Conversation Pace with FRE by special request! A personal trainer and passionate marathon runner based in Fort Collins, Colorado, he began running at around 10 years old and found early success through high school and at the collegiate level at the University of Oregon. After stepping away from the sport for seven years, Esteban returned to competitive running at age 35 with a renewed focus on the marathon.

In the five years since his return, he has achieved notable success, including a 2:48 marathon debut at the Lincoln, Nebraska Marathon and an Olympic Trials qualifying performance at CIM, where he set a personal best of 2:14:30. He has also raced several half marathons, with a current personal record of 1:06:09.

For Esteban, running is about connection, using the sport to motivate others to pursue their own goals. Over the next few years, he aims to continue competing at a high level while helping bring greater awareness to aging runners and proving that strong performances are still possible as the years add up.

Outside of running, Esteban enjoys spending time with his husband and their sassy schnauzer, often heading out for long walks or road trips. He also values time with friends and family and embraces a good dose of shenanigans. When he’s not training, he works as a strength and running coach at Genesis Health Club, firmly believing in practicing what he preaches.

Follow Esteban on IG: @frontrangerunner

Follow Front Range Elite: @front.range.elite

In this episode, we sit down with Lisa Becharas, a seasoned endurance coach and professional triathlete with years of experience guiding athletes through both peak performance and the often-overlooked recovery phase. Lisa just returned from an amazing performance at the Ironman World Championships in Spain, and we talk about what it really means to recover well after a major race or goal—physically, mentally, and emotionally—and why the post-event window can shape what comes next.

Whether you’re coming off a big race, a long training cycle, or a personal milestone, this conversation offers a grounded, practical look at how to recover with intention instead of rushing ahead.

Follow Lisa's racing, recovery and dancing: @lisabecharas

Follow Front Range Elite: @front.range.elite

This week on Conversation Pace with FRE, we sit down with Sarah, Sophie, Taylor, Courtney, and Kristyn to recap the California International Marathon. It was a historic day in Sacramento. Fifty-five women and fifty-two men qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials, and the race also served as the USATF Marathon Championships. We talk about the strategies they use to get through tough moments, what it feels like to run a personal best by ten minutes, and what it is like to share the course with Courtney Dauwalter.