Inspired Soles

Got feedback about this episode? Send Carolyn a text

With the Tokyo Olympics set to start in just a few days, we feel today’s conversation with Dennis Lang could not be more fitting! Now 70 years old, he opens with a story from when he was just 13 years old about watching a Canadian win a silver medal on the track at the Tokyo Olympics in 1964, and how that was the first of several pivotal moments that shaped the rest of his running life. Through decades of hard work and dedication, Dennis would eventually go on to achieve his own silver and bronze medals for Canada on the world stage. This story is one of passion, perseverance, planning and most of all, patience. Dennis had us on the edge of our seats during this hour of exceptional storytelling but his underlying message is one we can all stand to hear on repeat. You don’t have to be gifted to be great, seize the opportunities before you, keep on showing up ... and you just never know where life will take you! Be sure to listen right to the very end to hear a hilarious story about the 1988 Bay to Breakers race in San Francisco. And now onto our conversation with Dennis Lang.

Resources we discussed in the episode:

• Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
• Favourite Mantra: Relax and do
• Favourite Place to Run: Whittier Park
• Bucket List Race: Falmouth Road Race 
• Favourite Running Books/Movie: Running With the Buffaloes; Fire on the Track: The Steve Prefontaine Story 
• Post-Run Indulgence: Cold beer

You can help spread the running love! The best way to SUPPORT Inspired Soles is to share your favourite episode(s) with friends, subscribe, or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Connect on Instagram @inspiredsolescast or email guest ideas to [email protected]. 

Got feedback about this episode? Send Carolyn a text

Today we’re honoured to be speaking with one of the great pioneers of Canadian women’s running, Diane Palmason. Now in her 80s and living in Comox, BC, Diane recalls how she discovered her love of running at a Sunday school picnic when she was just seven years old. By 12 she was recruited to train with the Mercury Athletic Club, a women’s only track club coached by the legendary 1928 Olympian Myrtle Cook. Diane’s career dates back to before women were allowed to run anything longer than 220 yards in competition, but in 1954 at the age of 16 she proudly represented Canada at the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Vancouver, BC. This was the same competition where both Roger Bannister and John Landy ran under 4-minutes for the mile in the same race, so Diane even got to witness the “miracle mile.”

With no more opportunities to pursue, Diane retired from running at the age of 17 and carried on with her life. She went to university, became a teacher, married and had four children. Over 20 years went by before she burst back onto the scene, inspired by Eleanor Thomas’ win at the inaugural National Capital Marathon in 1975. Since then Diane has broken Canadian records in every age group from W40-W70 and at every distance from 100m to 80k. In 2003 Diane broke seven Canadian records from 100m to the marathon all within five months, some of which were also world records.  

This conversation is a history lesson delivered through amazing storytelling. We owe Diane and the female runners of her time a debt of gratitude for spearheading a revolution and changing the commonly held beliefs about what women are capable of, particularly into their masters years.

Addendum

We can tell Diane has so much respect for the sport and its athletes because she immediately followed up with the name of the older woman who had run the National Capital Marathon multiple times...Judith Kazdan. Born in 1920, Judith was a barrier breaker much like Diane, running 38 marathons in total at a time when it was regarded as unacceptable and even dangerous. In 2010, the year after her death, she was inducted into the Canadian Masters Athletics Hall of Fame.

Diane also provided a correction for an error she made in the recording. She said that by the 1976 Olympics women were still only running 200m but in actual fact they were running 1500m by then.

Carolyn also made an error when we were talking about Malindi Elmore. She said Malindi represented Canada at the Olympics in the 1500m twice, but it was once...2004 in Athens. After narrowly missing making the 2008 and 2012 teams, she essentially retired from the sport only to make a huge comeback at the marathon distance 17 years later. 

Resources we discussed in the episode:

• Margaret Webb's book, Older Faster Stronger, where Diane is featured.
• Roger Bannister and John Landy's "miracle mile"
• Jim Peters marathon collapse
• Kathrine Switzer’s book, Marathon Woman
• Age grading calculator

You can help spread the running love! The best way to SUPPORT Inspired Soles is to share your favourite episode(s) with friends, subscribe, or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Connect on Instagram @inspiredsolescast or email guest ideas to [email protected]. 

Got feedback about this episode? Send Carolyn a text

Jon Paradowski is a runner from Regina, SK, who describes himself as just a regular guy who’s run some 100 milers, a 200 miler and some winter ultras.  Jon’s running resume includes such races as UTMB, Fat Dog 120, Cascade Crest 100, Sulphur Springs 200 and numerous appearances at the Spruce Woods Ultra.  He is a very diverse athlete who also excels at winter ultras such as Arrowhead and Tuscobia.  Jon runs for MitoCanada as it's a charity near to his heart for reasons he discusses on this podcast.  Most recently, on May 14 Jon completed a 7269 km virtual cross country run for MitoCanada.  In this episode, he talks about how he got into running and then what drew him to trail ultrarunning, tells us a crazy story about his Javelina Jundred experience and credits his family for being a huge support along the way.  We hope you enjoy this episode with Jon Paradowski!

Resources we discussed in this episode:

• MitoCanada - donate to Jon's virtual run across Canada
• Favourite Mantra: It’s all good;  Make friends with pain and you’ll never be alone.
• Favourite Place to Run:  Rocky Mountains
• Bucket List Race: Infinitus 888
• Favourite Book: Born To Run
• Post-Run Indulgence: Pizza and beer

You can help spread the running love! The best way to SUPPORT Inspired Soles is to share your favourite episode(s) with friends, subscribe, or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Connect on Instagram @inspiredsolescast or email guest ideas to [email protected]. 

Got feedback about this episode? Send Carolyn a text

Donna Bishop-Malapad is the wife of Junel Malapad whom we interviewed in Episode 19. We asked her to come on the podcast to talk about what it’s like to be the spouse and crew chief of someone who found their running passion later in life and hasn’t stopped running since!  She talks about crewing Junel in the middle of the night, driving all over the province keeping track of him, and the day-to-day ups and downs of being the wife of a runner.  She also touches on how she has learned to maintain her boundaries and remind her husband of her needs, and how Junel makes sure she always knows what a “wicked awesome wife” she is.  Donna is a breath of fresh air and we think you will love listening to her stories during this episode!

You can help spread the running love! The best way to SUPPORT Inspired Soles is to share your favourite episode(s) with friends, subscribe, or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Connect on Instagram @inspiredsolescast or email guest ideas to [email protected]. 

Got feedback about this episode? Send Carolyn a text

Kirsten Parker is the host of Women Run Canada where she talks with Olympians, running legends, race directors and community builders who share our passion for this fantastic sport. Carolyn even had the pleasure of co-hosting an episode with Kirsten where they interviewed her hometown running Shero, Paula Wiltse.

In this episode we pull back the curtain on:

• Her decision to start the podcast
• How she books such incredible guests
• Whether she ever gets star struck, and 
• Who’s still on her dream guest list. 

In her day job Kirsten is the Operations Manager for the Manitoba Marathon. We get into the challenges of event management during a global pandemic and what changes we can expect as in-person races start to return. 

Kirsten began running in her late 20s during a Winnipeg February (pretty hardcore!) and has racked up her fair share of miles on Garbage Hill on her lunch breaks. As a runner, event manager and podcaster she is certainly giving back to the running community in more ways than most.

Connect with Kirsten on social:
IG: @womenruncanada

Resources we discussed in the episode:

• A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Ali on the Run Show
• Favourite Mantra: Joy finds space
• Favourite Place to Run: Anywhere when her mindset is right
• Bucket List Race: Chicago Marathon; Freakin Fast Marathon
• Favourite Book(s)/Movie: Let Your Mind Run; Bravey; Tracktown
• Post-Run Indulgence: Americano and pain au chocolat from Park Line Coffee

You can help spread the running love! The best way to SUPPORT Inspired Soles is to share your favourite episode(s) with friends, subscribe, or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Connect on Instagram @inspiredsolescast or email guest ideas to [email protected]. 

Got feedback about this episode? Send Carolyn a text

Joel Toews is a husband and father from Winnipeg who loves trail running and organizing races for trail runners under On The Edge Running. During the day (when not shut down by COVID) he’s a Personal Trainer and Group Training Coach at North Star Fitness.

He’s been running since high school and almost exclusively trails and ultras for 10 years. His most notable finishes include Superior 100, Bighorn 100, Canadian Death Race, Actif Epica and Voyageur 50.

In this episode we discuss:

• Joel’s running origin story
• Lessons learned from his first 100 miler
• Crewing at Western States and how this year will be different
• His 2019 Canadian Death Race mud story
• The trials and tribulations of being a race director for grassroots trail races during a pandemic

Joel is such an easy person to talk to and listen to that we are sure you will enjoy our banter with Joel!

Connect with Joel on social:
IG personal: @joelatoews
IG personal training: @joelatoewspersonaltraining
IG trail running events: @ontheedgerunning

Resources we discussed in the episode:

• Favourite Mantra: It never always gets better.
• Favourite Place to Run: Falcon Ridge, Birch
• Bucket List Race: Western States, Hardrock, Leadville, Arrowhead, Fat Dog
• Favourite Running Move: The Runner
• Post-Run Indulgence: Fries, Chips

You can help spread the running love! The best way to SUPPORT Inspired Soles is to share your favourite episode(s) with friends, subscribe, or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Connect on Instagram @inspiredsolescast or email guest ideas to [email protected]. 

Got feedback about this episode? Send Carolyn a text

Jeff Vince is a 73 y.o. Winnipeg running legend who has been inspiring his community to lace up their shoes for well over 40 years. A retired Chartered Accountant, by his mid 30s Jeff described himself as a stressed out overweight workaholic couch potato who desperately wanted to change his lifestyle. Since then he has run over 87 marathons and 107 half marathons that have taken him all over the world, including each of the six World Marathon Majors (London, New York, Boston, Chicago, Tokyo, Berlin). So far he has logged over 71,000 miles in his running career, which is enough to almost circumnavigate the globe three times! 

In 2013 Jeff was inducted into the Manitoba Runners’ Association Road Running Hall of Fame for his contribution as an athlete and a community builder. He has volunteered countless hours of his time with the Manitoba Runners’ Association and Athletics Manitoba to grow the sport of road running, and his Facebook group Runners Over 50: You are only as old as you feel now has over 18,000 engaged members from all across the world. 

Every running community has those incredible leaders who work tirelessly to leave the sport better than they found it, and here in Winnipeg we’re fortunate to have Jeff Vince.

Connect with Jeff on social:

• FB group: Runners Over 50: You are only as old as you feel
• IG: @Jeff.vince

Resources we discussed in the episode:

• Favourite Mantra: We’ve got this!
• Favourite Place to Run: Canmore, AB
• Bucket List Race: Marathon by the Sea (Saint John, NB)
• Favourite Running Books/Song: Jeff Galloway’s books, Born to Run (Bruce Springsteen)
• Post-Run Indulgence: A beer

You can help spread the running love! The best way to SUPPORT Inspired Soles is to share your favourite episode(s) with friends, subscribe, or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Connect on Instagram @inspiredsolescast or email guest ideas to [email protected]. 

Got feedback about this episode? Send Carolyn a text

Heidi Schmaltz is a trail ultrarunner, nurse, and mother of 2 from Saskatchewan, Canada.  Heidi and Kim have literally crossed paths on the trail but have never officially met in person.  That said, thanks to modern technology and the relatively small trail running community of the Canadian Prairies, Kim & Heidi have gotten to know each other over time and Heidi feels like someone Kim has known for years.  

Heidi is an independent free spirit, a thinker and a running philosopher.  We think you will find this episode relaxed, introspective and insightful as you hear Heidi’s thoughts that come from a place of deep knowing, of grief, of joy...and of lots of time on the trails.

Connect with Heidi on social:

• FB & IG: @HISchmaltz

Resources we discussed in the episode:

• Favourite Mantra: No one is coming for you, so figure it out!
• Favourite Place to Run: Anywhere with friend Robin; river valley
• Bucket List Race: Lost Souls 200-MILER (doesn’t exist), Badwater
• Favourite Book(s): Explorers of the Infinite; Eat and Run
• Post-Run Indulgence: Sipping a big coffee while cheering people in; black licorice

You can help spread the running love! The best way to SUPPORT Inspired Soles is to share your favourite episode(s) with friends, subscribe, or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Connect on Instagram @inspiredsolescast or email guest ideas to [email protected]. 

Got feedback about this episode? Send Carolyn a text

How often do you think about your teeth in the context of your running?  Kim comes from a family full of dentists, so dental health has always been something on her radar.  Despite it being something she thinks about, there doesn’t seem to be many people talking about dental health in running and endurance sport, so she invited her cousin, Ken Pierson, to come on the podcast to discuss this unique topic.  

Ken is a married father of 4 girls.  He is a dentist who spent the first 18 years of his career in general dentistry and he currently owns and works full time at Happy Bear Surgery Center, which serves children in central California who need sleep dentistry to accomplish their dental treatment.  

Ken has completed 6 marathons and 2 Ironman triathlons, but still states that mountain biking is his first love...we’ll forgive him for that.  This is a super interesting discussion on:

• how to minimize the impact of those sugary gus, chews, and sports drinks on your teeth 
• how mouth breathing can negatively impact not only your oral microbiome but your face structure, and 
• how stress related to high training loads (and life) can result in grinding your teeth!

He has several logical and simple tips for runners who want to protect the health of their teeth during training, racing, and life.  Honestly we found this conversation fascinating and we hope you do too!

You can help spread the running love! The best way to SUPPORT Inspired Soles is to share your favourite episode(s) with friends, subscribe, or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Connect on Instagram @inspiredsolescast or email guest ideas to [email protected]. 

Got feedback about this episode? Send Carolyn a text

Meet our second Couple of the Quarter ... Jenn & Brock Tadashore. Jenn & Brock are both health professionals in their 40s from Collingwood ON with two young girls and a very full life, yet they somehow manage to make running and their relationship top priorities.

In this episode we get into: 

• How they juggle it all
• If it ever causes friction between
• What happens when they’re sidelined with injuries, and
• If they ever book in with one another for treatment. 

As you’ll hear, Jenn & Brock are highly ambitious and expect a lot out of themselves, but they’re also incredibly fun and down-to-earth. These two dropped a lot of wisdom in our hour together so please enjoy this conversation with Jenn and Brock Tadashore.

Connect with Jenn & Brock on social:

• IG Jenn: @jenntadruns
• IG Brock: @brocktadashore

You can help spread the running love! The best way to SUPPORT Inspired Soles is to share your favourite episode(s) with friends, subscribe, or leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Connect on Instagram @inspiredsolescast or email guest ideas to [email protected].