Three weeks out from Badger, Bob recaps crewing and pacing his buddy Kevin Jordan at Western States — the giraffe-themed crew shirts, the Olympic-village pageantry, the 30-hour cutoff drama — then comes home to a tweaky ankle that wipes out his peak training week. Sass falls hard for vinyl records (blame Ten Junk Miles), and the two of them land somewhere unexpected: maybe running doesn't have to be medicine anymore. Maybe it can just be fun.

Bob and Sass dive into the great question of “why?”

Check out the other Team Puma Knife Podcasts at www.teampumaknife.com, including Subtle Interference which you can find on Spotify and Apple Podcasts or download directly here: SubtleInterference – Team Puma Knife

Theme song courtesy of Pommelsmith

Heads up: this one goes deep. Bob covers the lighter stuff first — volunteering at Sugar Badger in a hot dog costume, pacing his buddy Paul at Kettle Moraine 100 — and then opens up about the trauma underneath the training: his daughter Izzy's NICU stay, an ADHD diagnosis that should have come decades earlier, and losing his mom to addiction. It's the "why" episode. Content warning for addiction, loss, and mental health; SAMHSA hotline at the top.

• SAMHSA National Helpline — 1-800-662-HELP (4357), 24/7 mental health and substance use referral line Bob mentions at the top

• Ronald McDonald House Charities — supports families with hospitalized children; Bob and Erica stayed at one during Izzy's surgery

Bob and Sass dive into the Ice Age 50K.

We were special guests on Ten Junk Miles, check them out here: https://www.tenjunkmiles.com/

Check out the other Team Puma Knife Podcasts at www.teampumaknife.com, including Subtle Interference which you can find on Spotify and Apple Podcasts or download directly here: SubtleInterference – Team Puma Knife

Theme song courtesy of Pommelsmith

Bob unpacks the Ice Age 50K — a hilly Wisconsin trail race where he PR'd in 7:17 despite blowing his nutrition plan, walking three miles after a hard crash, and getting carried home by Bad Romance blasting at the start-finish. Then things get real: post-race nausea, a 10-minute wave of loneliness sitting alone on the ground, and a pretty honest conversation with Sass about weight, heat, and finding your people in the trail community.

We discuss Bob’s last two races, birding, the invention of Reese’s and how Sass is now the Hoka lady.

Check out the other Team Puma Knife Podcasts at www.teampumaknife.com, including Subtle Interference which you can find on Spotify and Apple Podcasts or download directly here: SubtleInterference – Team Puma Knife

Theme song courtesy of Pommelsmith

Sass got sick (again) and missed the 5K, so Bob bumped up to a half — and finally cracked the sub-two-hour barrier in teen-degree cold on a course that turned out to be a tenth long. Then he flew to Washington for a stupid-pretty rainforest 50K put on by a friend, took the ferry across Puget Sound, and rediscovered why timed races are just more fun. Plus: super shoes, BOAs, and why podiatrists evidently know jack about running shoes.

Bob and Sass have an upcoming 5K – maybe. Recovering after races. Bob’s next 50K and a realization of how little time he’s actually been running. The impact of hitting a goal – whether it’s a mile or 100 miles. What would we want out of a pacer? And Gio is going down at Badger.

Check out the other Team Puma Knife Podcasts at www.teampumaknife.com, including Subtle Interference which you can find on Spotify and Apple Podcasts or download directly here: SubtleInterference – Team Puma Knife

Theme song courtesy of Pommelsmith

A quieter month between races, but plenty to chew on: Bob lays out the build to Badger 100 — Ice Age 50K, a 5K with Sass, and the Wonderland Trail bucket-list daydream — while Sass figures out whether her back will let her line up at all. Then they hatch an extremely unserious psychological-warfare plan to beat a Coloradan named Gio at Badger, complete with hiding behind trees and shouting about his mother.

We talk about Bob’s race at St Croix 40, Bob and Sass are going to do a 5K, and get into some deeper discussion on “why” we race.

Check out the other Team Puma Knife Podcasts at www.teampumaknife.com, including Subtle Interference which you can find on Spotify and Apple Podcasts or download directly here: SubtleInterference – Team Puma Knife

Theme song courtesy of Pommelsmith