The Run Around Iowa

The podcast opens with Lance telling about an impressive performance by Iowa teams at the recent NJCAA National Cross Country Championships. Then, former Cedar Rapids Prairie prep star Jack Pendergast comes on the show to talk about the reasons he left to run at the University of Kentucky after graduating from Iowa. Jack describes the limited recruiting process that led him to Lexington. He also details a few of the improvements that have helped him stay healthy and post big personal-best times this fall. Jack tells of the goals the Wildcats have at Friday's Southeast Regional in South Carolina. He also describes some of his favorite places he's visited during his college career and his hope to return to the Drake Relays one final time. He also talks about a skill he has learned and one that he hasn't full developed while at Kentucky.

Mason opens the conversation, recorded on Oct. 17, by talking about his move to Las Vegas and lived a semi-nomadic lifestyle since graduating from Loras in 2018. Mason tells about a conversation that sparked his return to running competitively in early 2023. The former Loras College conference champion relives a race on the track during his comeback where he competed with a bit of a handicap. Mason talks about a turning point his freshman year of college where he knew had a lot of potential. He goes into detail about the running philosophy at Loras under former coach Bob Schultz. Mason talks about a sickness that partially derailed his senior season at Loras and about a track where he never fulfilled his potential. He tells why he has never run a marathon or half marathon and why he is inclined not to join a running club. Mason looks ahead to his 2025 schedule and mentions two of his passions outside of running.

The podcast begins with Lance highlighting some of the college cross country performances over the weekend that stood out to him. He also looks ahead at a couple of conference championships coming up. The focus turns to Sunday's IMT Des Moines Marathon, where former Central College star Angela Chaney talks about her first marathon victory and surviving a warm second half of the race. Former Hansons-Brooks runner Danna Herrick, the women's half marathon champion, details her impressive year of running that culminated in her first IMT title. Men's half marathon champion Cody Baele shares his thoughts on repeating as champion and when he knew he had the win in the bag. Men's marathon runner-up Ryan Root, a former Iowa resident, tells how his race went and one reason why he's glad he traveled from Colorado for this race.

Lance starts off the podcast with the news of Iowa State hosting the NCAA Division I Midwest Regional in 2026. Then, he pays tribute to former Big Ten Conference champion Diane Nukuri, who concluded her professional career at the Chicago Marathon on Sunday. The three-time Olympian for Burundi owns many incredible accomplishments, including several University of Iowa records. Lance details them all. He also picks out some notable accomplishments on both the roads and cross country since his last podcast. He closes out the show by looking back at the Blazing 5K, where former Loras College seven-time champion Kassie Parker blew away a strong field. He also looks back at what picks went well and which ones failed on the preview podcast.

Seth is the new coordinator for the Fitness Sports Distance Project and the former East Marshall prep outlines his goals for the team, which includes top former collegians as well as casual runners. Seth talks about his close relationship with Fitness Sports co-owners Jordan and Lindsay Andrews that goes back to his college career at Grand View. It led to him taking over the new store in Ames a year ago. Seth also looks back at improvement with his running he has made since high school and some key changes he has made. He also looks ahead to the IMT Des Moines Marathon, where he hopes to improve on his sixth-place finish from a year ago.

Lance interviews some of the top runners at the Aug. 31 meet in Ames, including women's 5K runner-up Bella Heikes of Iowa State, 10th-place finisher Emma Hoins of Northern Iowa and Panther senior Caleb Shumaker, who finished eighth in the men's 6K race. Iowa State director of track and cross country Jeremy Sudbury talks about the departure of Amy Rudolph to Tennessee, the target that is on his fifth-ranked Cyclone team and his strategy to get his team to peak in November. Former Cyclone Janette Schraft, seventh in the women's race, tells what she is up to now. Another former Iowa State great, Cailie Logue, talks about her move to the Minnesota Distance Elite team and her future event in distance running. Lance finishes the podcast with his opinion on the IMT Des Moines Marathon's decision to drop prize money for elite runners.

Artur comes on the podcast less than a month after finishing as the top masters runner at the Quad-City Times Bix 7, where he ran 38:12. He tells his story of how he returned to running at age 38 after being away from the sport for about 20 years and how he has had to overcome a significant health issue to exercise regularly. Artur, a 2003 Bettendorf graduate who came to America with his mother and stepdad from his native South Africa at age 9, talks about his diet and his go-to location for many of his workouts. He explains what he has learned from his first marathon in April in Champaign, Illinois, when he ran 2:40:21. Artur, 41, mentions why he goes to YouTube a lot and how important his family and faith are to him.

The new podcast covers a variety of topics in distance running, starting with Lance's initial thoughts from the Paris Olympics. Listeners then get to hear from former All-Big Ten runner Max Murphy after his 15th-place performance at the Bix 7. The former Pleasant Valley prep tells the decision behind his transfer to North Carolina. Former Loras College seven-time NCAA champion Kassie Parker also talks about her experience with the Hansons-Brooks team based in Michigan and what's ahead for the former Clayton Ridge (Guttenberg) prep for her racing season this fall. Lance gives his most inspiring performance from July and it came from a legend in ultramarathons. The podcast ends with a trip around Iowa and changes occurring with four road races.

Grace tells listeners all about how the Ames 5K race, coming up Saturday, July 27, got its start. The Ames High graduate details her story of how, with help from Blank Children's Hospital and medicines, she was able to overcome migraines. Grace felt terrible about the children who were not as fortunate as her in leaving the hospital so soon. She began a lemonade stand at age 11, raising $100 her first summer. From that venture came a Christmas toy drive and now the annual race, which is in its eighth year. Grace has now raised over $173,000 for Blank Children's Hospital through the race. The eighth annual race regularly draws Iowa State University athletes and she tells which athletes she was most excited to meet. The lifelong Cyclone fan is now a sophomore at Northern Iowa University and she tells where her true loyalty stands with the universities. Grace says her parents continue to be a driving force for this race and how grateful she is for their support. She also talks about a new charity that will benefits from this year's race proceeds and the future of the race going forward.