Episode 60: From DNFs to 200 Miles: Blake Colton’s Journey Through Loss, Grit, and Ultra Running
In this episode of the Endurance State of Mind podcast, Zach and Anthony sit down with ultra runner Blake Colton to talk about resilience, reinvention, and what it really takes to keep showing up when things get hard.
Blake shares his journey from high school running and BMX racing to tackling some of the toughest endurance events in the country, including the Mississippi 100, Run Rabbit Run, and Cross Florida 200. We dive into the viral “flood year” at Mississippi 100, pacing strategy, training while working full-time as an electrician, and the reality of balancing endurance sports with family life.
The conversation also goes deeper than racing. Blake opens up about battling multiple DNFs, dealing with gut issues during long races, meeting David Goggins at Cross Florida 200, and using running as a way to process the loss of his brother-in-law to cancer. Through it all, Blake talks about finding purpose through endurance sports and how the ultra running community helped shape his outlook on life.
We also cover:
- Running 200-mile races while working full-time
- Trail running vs marathon culture
- Mississippi 100 race stories and flood year conditions
- Nutrition mistakes, Taco Bell cravings, and ultra fueling
- Mental toughness and recovery during ultras
- Social media, content creation, and documenting the journey from day one
- The future goal of using endurance and content creation to give back
Whether you’re training for your first ultra marathon or just looking for motivation to keep pushing forward, this episode is packed with honest conversation, real struggle, and the mindset needed to endure.
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1 SPEAKER_03: All right, so uh for everybody listening, this is
gonna be a short, five, ten minute long pre-recording.
We just had Blake Colton on, who is from Iowa.
Uh he is honestly, he's come to the Mississippi.
It's crazy because I saw his Facebook post and was like, I
gotta have this guy on, and then come to find out, which we kind
of already knew him, but uh he comes to the Mississippi 50
every single year and does the 100 mile.
He's been the past three years.
He's came the first year, which was notoriously called the flood
year for a reason because it was waste deep water.
I remember Zach was I think his head was at some point.
That was the only thing you could see of Zach as he was
crossing water crossings during that time.
However, for everybody listening, Blake has an awesome
story.
He's done a honestly, I don't think he's let any race like
hold him down to a sense of like he will go anywhere and try
anything.
What do you think about that, Zach?
Is that a good question?
SPEAKER_01: No, that was really cool.
Yeah, correct.
I think it was the second year, just to keep it straight.
The flood year of Mississippi 100.
His little viral video went nuts.
And it's cool you'll hear him talk about why he comes back.
That's a great question, Anthony.
Like, why do you keep coming back to this race when you got
so many options to run?
And yeah, he's got a unique take take on how he puts himself out
there.
I think that'll be unique for our audience to listen to, like
capturing his journey.
SPEAKER_03: Yeah, absolutely.
He's also he's trying to make a name, which I think is super
cool because we see all these people.
And if you're listening to the podcast right now, you will be
very early on to this.
He's trying to create content, basically saying, like, he's not
trying to make money, and I think maybe I didn't inflect
that well enough.
All he's trying to do is show like how much content I have to
make to be able to pay for the travel and everything of a
hundred-mile race.
And he's on like, I think he's made like four dollars to this
day.
You know what I mean?
Like he he hasn't made anything, which I think is uh is awesome.
So if you're watching, if you keep up with him, you will now
you'll get to see like potentially the start to finish
of an Andy Glay style, hopefully an Andy Glay style future, you
know, which would I think would be cool.
Anything else about Blake that you feel like we need to mention
real quick?
SPEAKER_01: No, I'm glad we got to have him on.
It was it was cool how you kind of organically came to him and
connected the dots because I think he's kind of like a
Mississippi adopted son.
Like a lot of our audience will know who this man is, you know,
and it's cool how we had him on.
So no, I think we'll late leave the left left the rest of it for
you guys to get to in the pod.
Perfect.
SPEAKER_03: Yeah, so I think I think the rest of you can can
listen to the pod in the future and uh and let us know what you
think.
Also, just want to shout out a few people.
Lacey Saul just finished Iron Man Jacksonville this weekend.
What is that?
Her 14th Iron Man?
Like one a year type of thing.
I know she's done something.
I'm looking at her uh Striver right now.
She has 13 completed thus far.
I have no clue if she's updated this to this past weekend's Iron
Man.
So Lacey, if you're listening and you haven't, let us know.
So I think she's done 14 Ironmans.
She just qualified, Scott, correct me.
Legacy qualifier.
She officially got her slot for 2027, correct?
SPEAKER_01: That's absolutely correct.
Lacey, it looks like it all kind of came in and converged on a
similar weekend.
What let's just say that again for our audience.
And today's short-term gratification, nobody can make a
sacrifice for next week, next month, next year.
So this went on its like 12-year journey.
I had to stay active throughout the whole duration of that
journey.
So let that sink in, folks.
Millennials, Gen Z, Gen Z, Gen A's, you ain't as good as it
once was.
Like, I don't know if we'll see that type of commitment to reach
a long-term goal anymore.
You know what I'm saying?
So it's something I think we could really put a point on.
SPEAKER_03: Yeah, you know what I also love that she adopts and
she adopts it well.
Like she is phenomenal at it.
And ever since she's talked about it, I've watched her, I've
even watched her do it at races where she's on this.
I I know she didn't do it in Iron Man Jacksonville because I
watched her update, but the like four minute on, one minute off
type of run where she's like doing the shuffle.
I want to say Jacksonville, she did like a minute 30 on, 30
seconds off.
But she is so like clockwork and she ends up running faster than
so many people, and is like you're just like, wow, how how
is she doing that?
And it just goes to show you the consistency of doing something
like that and being so headstrong in it, as long as you
do it correctly, it can be more beneficial than just saying I'm
gonna go out and run 12 minute miles.
SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
Think about you trying to implement that strategy with
Hezekiah over a short period and how that helped him kind of like
distract himself and keep himself to a goal.
You know what I mean?
Like you'd make a beast of a 200-mile runner, probably.
SPEAKER_03: Absolutely.
I mean, I I yeah, I I literally was telling Hezekiah about Lacey
during the race.
I was like, let's try it.
And he was like, Okay, I'll try anything.
SPEAKER_01: Late Lacey, if you're listening or Dr.
Jeff and Kylie, and you you're listening and point Lacey to
this, we'd like to see your stats from all 14, I guess, over
the last 12 plus years, like which one's a PR, how close is
the average, comments and stuff around all of them, because that
would be kind of cool.
That's that's legit.
SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I would actually love to see that.
So, Lacey, phenomenal job there.
We're so happy for you to get uh to get into Kona.
That's I mean, just consistency is the best way to go about it,
and you did it right there.
SPEAKER_01: No doubt.
SPEAKER_03: We also had Grayson Taylor racing, uh, and I don't
remember what race it was.
I know I saw it.
Jed post Jed's perfect endurance posted on Facebook, but Grayson
was running in Jacksonville, Alabama.
Doesn't look like he had the best of races for himself.
The dude is I mean, he says he didn't have the best of races,
and he's just unbelievably fast.
So I can't really like I would love to have his worst race, I'd
love to have is my best race, you know, type of thing.
SPEAKER_05: Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_03: But unfortunate for him, I I know he's I know he's
hating on that, but dude's always always in the kitchen
cooking up something.
So I I'm I'm sure he's gonna bounce back in no time.
I'd love to get him back on the podcast so I can talk cycling
with him.
SPEAKER_01: I agree.
We we really missed one without having you on that because I
left so much meat on the bone.
It was intentional.
I'll say it was intentional.
You know, me and you were kind of talking offline too.
I think at this point with where he's at, it's like any
experience he can get, getting out of cat five, staying off the
pavement, it's kind of a good experience.
You know, he's not gonna win every race.
He probably has the talent to win every race, but all these
little things are gonna add up and make a great podcast down
the line when you'll be on and can ask him real questions with
respect to cycling.
SPEAKER_03: Absolutely, absolutely.
Dude, um so we'll we'll pretty much we've got um big
announcement coming June 3rd.
Zach and I will both be at the big run hosted by Fleet Feet
Hattiesburg and Sopro.
I have no clue where we're setting up yet.
We'll talk with the guys about that.
We will be there.
We're gonna do a live podcast.
We're gonna have both Ben and Chris on.
We'll have another guest on as well.
But we have a we have a pretty big announcement coming coming
during that.
So we hope to see everybody there.
I think we got a few more things that are that that Zach and I
are are working on right now that I'm not gonna mention.
But um, this is this is the one that's like a for sure thing.
So there's a there's a few other cooks in the kitchen, I guess
I'll say, is of to what's coming up in the future.
SPEAKER_01: Well said.
SPEAKER_03: Anything else or we should just might drop it there.
SPEAKER_01: Might drop it there, baby.
Stay tuned, everybody.
Thank you for listening.
Welcome back to Endurance State of Mind.
Today's guest is Blake Colton, a runner whose story is built on
resilience, reinvention, and refusing to quit.
Blake has carved out his path in ultra running, openly sharing
both the highs and lows of the journey online, including the
viral clip many people will remember from the flood year at
Mississippi 100.
Today we'll talk about the pivotal moments that shaped his
endurance journey from battling through across Florida 200 after
multiple DNFs to using running as a way to process grief.
This will be a conversation about self-belief, suffering,
healing, and learning that endurance sports are often a
reflection of life in itself.
Ladies and gentlemen, without further ado, let's get into it.
Welcome to the podcast, Blake.
SPEAKER_04: Hey, thanks a lot, dude.
That intro was awesome.
That's literally why I'm here.
So I can't wait to talk to you.
SPEAKER_03: Thanks for coming on, dude.
We're excited to have you.
I um Zach, I I don't even know that Zach Blake, I don't even
know that Zach knows how I like found you.
Because obviously we know that you did the Mississippi 50 a few
times, and then randomly I text Zach and I was like, hey, we're
gonna have Blake Colton on.
He's from Iowa, and he's like, What?
How did you find Blake?
And I'm like, I saw on Ultra on Facebook you were doing a thing.
Tell it tell me a little bit about that, and then we'll get
into your story.
But you were doing a little, you did a Facebook post essentially
saying, like, I want to be transparent transparent about
like how much money I make trying to make content for 100
mile races.
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, so well it all it all started because obviously
we kind of think running's a cheap sport, and then the longer
distance you go, you find out the more expensive it is.
And all these content creators online right now usually have
already made it.
You know, you already see them sponsored, you already see them,
you know, well developed in making content, and I want to be
the the proof, like I'm a full-time electrician and work
40 hours a week.
I'm currently at my kids' baseball game, I'm a father of
two and a dad, and I'm gonna show you that you can do it.
Um I didn't realize I had a big following until one day like
Facebook popped up and said I can monetize.
So I did, and I started seeing the numbers, so I've been kind
of working at it, and the full time I always feel like there's
a greater good out there, and eventually I'm gonna figure it
all out and use the views for a good cause.
So that's like why I'm driven.
It's not really about the money, it's I want to do it for a
better cause.
So if I have the views on me, let's do it.
SPEAKER_03: You know, I I honestly I like the fact of and
I get the greater cause things, and I think that that's an
awesome way to kind of go about it transparently.
But I also like the fact of, you know, we see all these creators
that are doing stuff, the Andy Glazes, the Elizabeth that are,
you know, they get let's say 20,000, 30,000, 40,000 views on
a post that they put up where they're hallucinating at mile
160 something of a 250-mile race.
But I thought it was cool from your perspective of like, hey,
this is day one post one type of thing.
You know what I mean?
So it was kind of a cool way to see it from a different
perspective.
I thought that was a great idea.
SPEAKER_04: And go ahead.
I'd like to add it also holds you know me accountable for
keeping up with my run in life, because a lot of us get burnt
out and we give up, and that's why we never progress.
So it's a thing to hold myself accountable and keep on with
goals, and I never thought I'd be talking to you guys.
So literally that one post has got me here.
What can a hundred more posts get?
So that's what I'm saying.
Self-believe, man.
That's that's why I was I like talking about it.
SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
If you need any encouragement, I think last year Rachel intrican
was still working like 50 hours a week, and uh I know I think
she just cracked one as a pro, so she's so awesome.
SPEAKER_04: I that's what's so cool about the squares, like
there's so many awesome things that happen, and it doesn't it's
not linear, you know.
That's that's why I enjoy this.
SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
Blake, so typically I normally start the podcast out with this
question, so I'm gonna start it out after our second question.
Why don't you uh just tell us about yourself, tell us a little
bit about your background and kind of how you got into running
200 mile races with David Goggins.
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, so ran high school.
I ended up making varsity like my sophomore year for cross
country.
And it was fun because my coach was awesome enough to do like a
summer program, and we were the first ones to do it, and it was
like you had to run 400 miles over the summer and you you get
like this huge achievement.
So he kinda introduced me to the drive back then.
But finished high school.
I kinda knew I didn't want to go to college, so I didn't really
go with a collegiate running career, which good and bad, I
guess, but I'm still with the career that I chose, which was
being an electrician, which has helped me a lot with running,
because obviously I can afford stuff and take time off.
I didn't really get back into running till after I met my wife
through BMX racing.
So I used to be competitive pretty much my whole life, but
sports have changed.
And like with racing BMX it's more of like sprinting and
lifting weights.
So it's not nothing endurance.
It's a it's a sprint, but I later try I think I was
twenty-six or like twenty-seven, I decided I wanted to run a
marathon again and train for that because I wanted to qualify
for Boston and attempted in like October of that year and ended
up getting sick and running like uh like a 314 my first year,
which is still pretty good.
I'm not I'm not saying it's not bad or good, but just didn't
qualify for Boston.
So I I thought it was just a race or me eating something bad,
so me being naive and young, I went a month later and tried
another marathon, not being rested, not being you know,
properly ready for it, and tried again and failed even harder.
So I took probably a six-month break in between that and then
tried for another marathon.
So I trained another probably 16 weeks and failed another
back-to-back marathon, and I almost gave up.
And that's when I kind of got into the trail running.
And I had a buddy that was like, Hey, take a break from the
marathon, you need to come try this uh six-hour looped race.
And I'm like, Oh, that sounds fun, kind of easy in my mind.
I don't know what I was thinking, but I was gonna go try
this trail run.
I was never so humbled by someone that was power walking
the whole time, and I just had this whole new outlook on
running from that moment.
That was like a pivotal moment was like, these are my people.
It doesn't matter like body shape or size, or as long as you
don't quit, like you can achieve pretty cool goals.
So that's when I kind of discovered the trail running and
the distance running, and and then once I got hooked, it
literally went from like a six hour run to January.
I ran a hundred K and that one was crazy because I it was my
first hundred K and it ended up being negative 17 degrees when
we started.
Yeah, I just that was another race where I I met good people.
It was negative 17 degrees, and I'm not even kidding, me and my
friend were wearing snowboarding goggles, we were wearing like
almost like Carhartt jackets, it was that cold.
And we were getting ready to jump a creek because it was
frozen, and I didn't clear it quite right, and I slipped on my
back and like the win out of myself at mile 20.
And I just remember I had a a person I met just one time at a
different race a six-hour race before she actually came over
and helped crew me, and she's like, Hey, you need to take all
this this ibuprofen and stuff, and she fixed me up and got me
back on the trail.
And that was like another trail magic kind of moment where I'm
like, holy cow, like there's no competition here.
You know, everyone's helping each other.
It's negative 17 degrees, it's cold for everybody.
Let's just work together and you know get through it, and after I
finished that one, that's when I signed up for the Mississippi
race.
And that's when when we arrived to Mississippi for the 100, so
that was the 100k was in January, and the 100 miler was
in March the same year.
And when we arrived in Mississippi, it was pour and
rain, and I'm like, what am I doing here?
I'm like, I mean, I had all this confidence because I came from a
race that was so cold, and like everyone dropped out, and
somehow I managed to make that one work.
I'm like, I can make I can do the rain, I can do it.
And the whole time you're watch like you said, you watch you
know the Andy Glaze videos and stuff, and their feet are so
beat up and blown up from being wet for a little bit.
I'm like, how am I gonna hold up for a hundred miles?
And I'm just like, just one mile at a time.
When that race started, or before the race started, they
did the the pre-race meeting, and he's like, You're gonna go
through a creek or through a water passing up to your waist
at least five times the lap.
And I just remember laughing because I'm like, my goal now is
just to have fun.
Like, I know I'm gonna get wet, I know I'm gonna be swimming.
It's like the only way I'm gonna get through this is to have to
have fun.
So that's how this all started is like just that moment
realizing you know, as long as you have fun, you can you can
make it through a lot.
SPEAKER_01: My man's going from minus 17 F in January to the
flood year in his first 100 at Mississippi.
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, I guess yeah, I guess that's just the start.
I you know, like you I guess you asked about across Florida and
like DNS and stuff.
So those were all pretty good.
I the next year I go out to Colorado.
So I know I could finish a hundred miler.
And I was kind of curious about a a mountain one, so we head up
to m Steamboat Colorado.
This would have been two years ago, and the funny thing was I
signed up really late for it, so all that was left for register
is the hairs.
So you get no no pacers, and you start a little bit later in the
day, and I had no altitude training.
And I remember listening to Joe Corcion.
And he's like, as long as you're racing within 48 hours of being
there, you'll be assigned.
So I kept living by all these little I don't know, what would
you say?
Like uh I don't know, recommendations.
I don't even know if it was even Science at that moment, but I
just went out on like faith and belief that okay, as long as I'm
racing within 48 hours, I'm fine.
So the whole race, I'm just letting everyone pass me because
I'm like, what am I doing in the hairs?
And I remember just trotting along the Colorado race and
having fun, and like halfway through, I started passing
people, and I realized that me going slow really helped me out
without getting burnt out, and I started passing people.
SPEAKER_03: I I can help steer you a little bit here.
So you're you're running run rabbit run, I'm assuming, in
steamboat, Colorado.
Yep.
You've done something that Zach we've actually had somebody on
the podcast, Warren, not Warren.
Warren, am I right on that?
No.
SPEAKER_01: What's not sure what question you were going to.
SPEAKER_03: I'm gonna talk about um your race, your hundred-mile
race where you went super slow and um Oh yeah, yeah, Warren
Kimball.
Warren Kimball.
We just had a we had a gentleman on probably first 15, 20
episodes.
Warren Kimball.
He talked very similar to what you're saying, but like where
you're talking like it's almost like all episode in your first
like 50 miles of your run.
And then the last 50 is where you start like picking it up a
notch and bringing out the zone three back before.
And eventually what what do you end up doing a hundred miles in?
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, right at 15 hours, you negative split the
second half.
SPEAKER_03: You negative split the second half.
Yeah, it was it was unbelievable.
So you obviously run with the hair.
I'm looking at your time.
Looks like you covered 30 30 second overall.
Yeah, yeah.
So I surprised myself.
Yeah, and that race, which I mean, uh Zach and I were talking
about in Arizona last week where you don't realize how much
elevation plays a part in like your overall spot.
If you're not up there training and doing stuff, I want to go
back to the if you don't mind, I want to go back to the Metrop50
real quick and talk about that.
You obviously, first year, I want to say you're like top five
on course on course record right now.
Still to the my PR.
Yep.
Awesome.
So what was the difference in going?
Y'all will have to tell me because I remember watching this
race thinking, man, I wish I was there doing that.
Also, so thankful I was in bed while it was raining.
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
SPEAKER_03: Was it a humid race or is it just super?
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, it was just wet.
Honestly, like temperature was cool enough, obviously, where I
performed well.
unknown: Yeah.
SPEAKER_04: And like the last two years have been pretty warm.
So it's cooked a lot of people.
SPEAKER_03: Yep.
So what if I could ask you one question about this, because
you've come back to Mississippi 50.
This is the race that you've really come back to, it seems
like.
What bring what keeps bringing you back?
Just because you know you got the legs for for the 50?
I mean, for the 100 mile or there, or you just love it?
SPEAKER_04: I love it.
All right, so I think it's because I camped there.
That's the first thing, like the scenery's beautiful, and then of
course, second, the hospitality has been awesome.
Like, I mean, truly treat you like family.
I've had people message me and show up the night before and
have like stories at a campfire, and I don't it's just a good
community.
That's literally why I come back.
SPEAKER_03: Yep.
So what did what did you think?
I won't know about la I won't know about two years ago, but I
do know about last year.
What did you think about the pollen storms that you were
probably witnessing last year?
SPEAKER_04: Man, yeah, la that was bad.
I had like it was almost like a green or yellow powder on
everything.
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
SPEAKER_04: But I d I don't know.
It's just every race has something that pops up and you
kind of just learn to deal with it.
unknown: Yeah.
SPEAKER_04: It's all part of the fun.
SPEAKER_03: Zach's got a tent that I think will truly never
recover from the pollen that was uh that was there that day.
He brought it out for a race that we do every year fondering.
And it's a blue tent, and it was just like a mixture of blue and
yellow.
SPEAKER_04: It looked kind of like it had been tie-dyed, but
it was it's just pollen remnants from yeah, I that was the that
was definitely the first year for that.
SPEAKER_03: Yeah, but now I know.
Anything crazy with humidity whenever you come down here?
Like, does it affect you in any way?
SPEAKER_04: Okay, so I should be used to it, but the thing is I
don't get the humidity till like May or June, where you guys
obviously got it in March.
So um I just gotta be more cautious about it, which I was
this year, so I started way slow.
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
SPEAKER_04: I just I just knew with uh being a little bit out
of shape, I just had to be a little bit more cautious with
the heat down there.
SPEAKER_03: So absolutely.
Zach, you got any questions for him about any of the races we've
talked about thus far?
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, Blake, is Mississippi 100 a staple on your
calendar every year that you kind of make the case to come
back to and can we expect to see out there next year?
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, um definitely a staple.
I will be out there next year.
I love it just because it's for me, it's early enough in the
year where I have something to train through the winter for,
because like I said, in Iowa or the Midwest, we usually don't
start getting a lot of races till like May or June.
And that's that's too late.
I want to be running all year.
SPEAKER_01: So your video from that race went kind of like it
probably went bigger viral than I understand.
I don't know if you know the numbers off the top of your
head, but I remember that was 10,000 at least.
It was making all kinds of circles.
One thing I wanted to call out, too, you still claim that as
your TR.
If our audience isn't aware of this year, like literally some
errors you're having a points to remote up to your test 12.
You've got to imagine you've got a lot of time left on a dry year
out there.
You have any target of what you think your content could be at
on that course.
Okay, come back to 2027.
It's gonna be a cold year.
I don't know if you've got in a cold year, and it's gonna be a
burn year.
I mean it's gonna be runnable, dry, they just burned the
course.
What do you think you're capable of out there?
SPEAKER_04: Oh man.
I mean, I feel like with my fitness, as long as I train, not
like last year, but actually train I I think it's doable to
go sub-seventeen there.
I do.
But like I said before, every race is different, and obviously
I've raced it three times, I've finished three times, and all
three years have been obviously hours apart.
So I I mean I always have two goals.
Obviously, one's always finished, but if I could ever
hit even in the 17th, I would be happy there.
That'd be a good day.
SPEAKER_03: I think that's awesome.
Okay.
So you you've got a number of of races and big races that you've
done um throughout your career here.
Does any of them do any of them stick out significant besides
obviously Mississippi 50 and then let's say run, rather, run,
anything else just sticking out?
You've got St.
Augustine.
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, cross Florida was fun.
Uh it was a journey.
So that race, I I went to the start line coming off of two
DNFs off of Hundred Milers.
And I drugged the family out to Florida.
I I tripped I tricked them into saying it was a vacation.
I said, Hey, if I finish this race, I'll take you to Disney
World the next day.
And I didn't know what I was really getting into.
I just wanted to have fun.
But I got to the start line and I got to at the start line I got
to meet David Goggins.
I didn't know he was gonna actually run there until someone
posted something on Facebook, and I thought it was like a
joke.
Until I I ended up seeing his wife that somehow I knew her
from online, probably from somewhere, but um I heard
someone ask about David and she's like, Oh, he's he's
getting ready, he doesn't really like to talk to anybody, and so
I let I let him be and I got to meet Joe Corcion and uh a couple
other professional runners, so it was a cool, cool race right
off the bat.
But uh during that race, I was like mile twenty and I was this
whole ultra career I've been having some gut issues, hence my
two DNS before this, with I found out it was ketone.
Ketone ITQ, which I'm not bashing it.
Okay, this is not bashing by any means.
I I will recommend them, just test them out.
They just don't work for me.
But I was only 20 miles in on my 200 miler, and I took one and
started puking, and that did not stop for like 20 more miles, and
obviously coming from 2DNF from that same reason, my family kind
of got down, and I was kinda down because I'm like, man, I'm
gonna finish this, but like how can I fix this?
And by then it was I think I was twelve hours in and I was coming
in at to mile fifty no, it was it might have been a little bit
over twelve hours because I was coming into mile fifty eight
station and someone's like, Hey, David Goggins dropped out.
And I'm like, What?
And they're like, Yeah, David Goggins dropped out right here.
And I I f I feel bad saying this because it's he's a normal guy,
kinda, but I mean, you know, he has feelings too, and I I feel
bad, but I I'm like, Well, if David Goggins dropped out here,
this is my only chance to really say that I can beat him.
So I I ended up getting a little bit of rest at that aid station
and got some food down and slept through it, and that kind of
fixed my gut.
And after I fixed my gut, I figured out that it was the
ketone, so I didn't have any more gut issues that whole race.
So I stumbled through the night, it was like day two, I pick up
my friend Travis, and from that moment on I was I was pretty
beat up from being sick the day before.
I was so dehydrated that I I've I think I apologized to Travis
probably 500 times for not being able to move very well.
But I can't I can't move in.
And the problem with the race was a normal one I feel bad
passion, but I was pretty upset.
Um a normal 100 mile race will have a thousand flags out, and
this race had like 20 flags throughout the whole race.
So we're relying on GPS files and my wife Helen.
And like for a hundred mile straight, we would be running on
trail, then it would say you're off trail kind of thing, and my
wife would call and be like, Hey, you guys gotta go back, you
know, a block over and get on this street and go down till you
see some wood.
So it was an adventure, it was fun to have a friend during it.
I ended up getting it done.
It was a little bit longer than I I I mean a goal by any means,
but to say you got a 200 miler done was awesome.
And when I came into the finish line, my family was there, and
that was honestly a magical moment in itself, and it was
just funny because I laughed because a kid that I was working
with asked me today about my run at Florida, and I'm like, Yep, I
remember laying in bed and my wife asking me if we were still
going to Disney World the next day, and I said, I'm holding my
promise.
I finished the 200 miler and we all packed up our stuff and went
to Disney World, and we stayed till that park closed.
I think I got 10 miles a walking the next day.
But it was so it was so worth it.
SPEAKER_03: It's it's funny, it's funny you mentioned like
gut health and stuff like that, because we talk about this a
lot.
I think we talked about it last week with one of our buddies
that was doing uh Sedona 125, but he was he was real big on
goos whenever he first started his trick out, like leaving the
start line.
And by the time he got to the eight station where we could
help support him, I don't know that he had a single goo from
that point until the first time.
Um what have you found?
And I get your your statement on ketone IQ, like, hey, it's not
for me, it can be for somebody else.
SPEAKER_04: No, it's it's great.
It's just like when I stacked more than one, like my body did
not like it.
And all my friends, I have four friends that compete with me,
and they use them and they work, and I like I said, I won't bash
them.
I'll recommend them, just test them out.
SPEAKER_03: What um what are you using right now for nutrition
that that you're really seeing that's happening you?
SPEAKER_04: I've been switching it up.
I've been trying to find some more all natural stuff because
obviously I have not fixed my gut issue.
Last or this Saturday I raced an 11-hour race, and of course I
pushed hard in the heat and ended up getting sick around
nine hours in, so I haven't quite nailed my nutrition down.
But I've been using a lot of maple syrup, which might sound
funny, but it's easy and it's all natural.
And then for like big races, I use a lot of uh performance,
what's that?
Nutrition I'm trying to think of the brand.
Like it's a 90 gram carb gel.
SPEAKER_01: Precision.
SPEAKER_04: Precision, that's it.
Yep.
SPEAKER_03: A lot of people were switching to that precision.
Zach and I were talking about that last week.
SPEAKER_04: I don't know if it's because you can refeel it or if
it's just the large amount that makes it easy, you know, the 90
grams or what, but I don't know.
It's not the easiest to get down, don't get me wrong, but it
works.
SPEAKER_01: Getting through that 200 miler, Blake, was that more
mentally or physically difficult, you think?
Physically, for sure.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, that like I said, that one I all all up my
goal was was just getting that one done and having fun.
Because I put all the stress on my last two one hundreds where
they weren't fun and I dropped out, and I'm like, that's not
why I'm running.
Like, it's way cooler to finish this thing to get than to get
first place or second place or third or whatever.
You know, just being out here, getting it finished, you know,
exploring, having the fun is is the main goal.
Sounded like you had that was the biggest change with the
hundred DNF to the Florida.
SPEAKER_01: Got it.
Sounded like you had a very limited interaction with David
Goggins as a fan.
Did you pick up anything in the aura of being around him?
SPEAKER_04: He just came off of I think finishing two 200 milers
before that.
SPEAKER_05: Correct.
SPEAKER_04: So he was he was beat up and he kind of kept to
himself, but there was uh maybe a ten mile road section that I
ran with him and you know kind of we kind of cheered cheered
him on, but he kept to himself mostly.
I think he was hurting.
SPEAKER_03: Understand that.
I mean two two two hundred miles before that.
I probably would be too, right?
SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
Well, for the guy for the guy to drop out of a race, he's gotta
be hurt.
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
SPEAKER_03: Yeah, absolutely.
What um so if you don't mind, I w I would love to talk to I it's
kind of gonna go back to Mississippi 50 because I did
some research on your on your Facebook recently.
You've got uh a buddy that you used to race with.
Do you mind if we talk about that for a minute?
SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
SPEAKER_03: Named Logan, I believe.
SPEAKER_04: Oh, that that's my brother-in-law.
SPEAKER_03: Okay.
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, yep.
SPEAKER_03: No, we can touch on it.
Yeah, what what was like I saw where it was kind of like he was
he was a momentum into this year's race.
SPEAKER_04: Big time.
So after the cross Florida 200, I've this whole time my
brother-in-law has had cancer, and I was always trying to
figure out what I could do for him.
And after the Cross Florida 200, after I finished that, my wheels
kind of got spinning, and I'm like, I'm gonna try to raise
some money for him because he has a little a boy and he has a
wife and stuff, and so I had this a cross or Cross Iowa run
planned out, and I was gonna get a charity and raise some money,
and in January he he passed away his fight to cancer, and at that
moment I kinda I was lost, and there was uh quite a bit of time
I didn't run, and I knew I had a free entry race at uh
Mississippi 100, and I knew I needed some time to myself, and
I thought that was a perfect opportunity for it, because I
knew I needed some healing.
So I went to that race, kind of knowing I was under trained, and
I do not recommend that to anyone.
Please let me tell you that I think it's stupid, but I went to
that race and I felt every mile.
I had I had my friend, one of my best friends, Travis, just
keeping me alive that whole race.
And I remember I I wanted to quit and I just kept remembering
Logan just going through all his chemo treatments and fighting to
the very end for his family.
And at that moment I'm like, I you know, this is a blessing to
be out here.
I can at least fight through this night, fight, fight these
miles, and honor my brother-in-law, and that's what
really kind of changed my path to kind of trying to figure out
how I can make this running thing into a positive thing for
people.
SPEAKER_03: If you if you don't mind me asking, what did he pass
away?
Like what kind of cancer was it?
SPEAKER_04: So it started as testicular cancer, and he was
actually going in, so he went through chemo and everything for
two years.
His tumor was in his lung, and his final option to kind of get
rid of the tumor was to remove the lung.
So we I mean, to the normal person it sounds scary, but they
say you can remove a lung and still run a marathon and be you
can still live a healthy life.
But his it was just it was way worse than anyone knew when they
removed the lung and detached it from I think the heart.
Don't quote me on electrician, but uh it sent the tumor cancer
everywhere and blood clotted everything.
So a two-hour procedure turned into our worst nightmare.
I don't think the the surgery didn't I don't think mattered.
I think it was that bad and I think he knew it and he just
thought to you know, honor his family and you know show his
love.
SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
Well we we are deeply sorry for your loss, and I mean it it's
it's always something, especially when somebody gets
taken away that young.
Yeah.
When they shouldn't, you know, like that's not something that
that that's too young for somebody that's in good Yeah, he
was yeah.
SPEAKER_04: But he was a few years younger than me, so he was
thirty-four years old and has a three-year-old boy at home, so
yeah.
That's why it's like I just try to be a positive role model and
carry on his you know, Logan's legacy.
So that's that's what that's my goal.
SPEAKER_03: I was just about to say you're talking if we go back
to the first part of this podcast, you're talking about
future things of what you kind of like, hey, I want to do
something bigger with this monetization of stuff.
Like that that is a huge storyline for potential in the
future.
SPEAKER_04: Start yeah, it started with money and now it's
just like, no, it's cool that that there's eyes.
Like I can I can have an influence, I can use it for
good.
Like for instance, I have a friend that is putting on this
is really cool next weekend at the University of Iowa around
the football stadium.
He'll host a run all night long.
It's called the Night Watch.
But People will dress up and do stuff because the children's
hospital overlooks it.
So they he raises money for how many labs people do, and then he
donates it to the charity, you know, for the University of Iowa
Hospital.
So it's really cool.
So he's been a huge inspiration for me.
And his name's Michael Price, but yeah, he does this thing
called the Night Watch.
It's it's a really cool charity.
So that's what kind of got me fired up and wanting to take
this running thing to the next level.
Begs the question.
SPEAKER_01: Begs the question, what's your costume's gonna be?
Yeah, and are you running?
SPEAKER_04: Man, I got to.
SPEAKER_03: There you go.
Sounds like Zach and I might have to get up there and run
this race at some point.
SPEAKER_04: It's so fun.
I mean, it's for a good cause, so it even makes it better.
SPEAKER_03: So absolutely.
SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
SPEAKER_04: No, you're good.
You're good.
SPEAKER_03: Oh, I was just gonna say that's one of the coolest
things, like sometimes or one of the coolest things in college
football is watching the fans with the coverage.
The wave, yeah.
Yep, so that's awesome.
SPEAKER_04: Um that's that that's where it all comes from,
is like I've seen what my family went through with my
brother-in-law, and I I just you think of other families that
might not have the support like I do, or like Logan did, you
know, so that's where I you know maybe my views and stuff can
help out with.
SPEAKER_03: Absolutely.
I would be remiss to not ask you this because we had a few we had
a buddy that gave us a few questions to ask you because he
works in kind of trade industry as well.
What is it like working in trade like and actually getting those
runs in?
Because I know you're doing some like 4 a.m.
runs, Zach's no no stranger to four or five a.m.
runs, but I know you you kind of got some weird hours when it
comes to working out.
What's it like being in that kind of industry?
Yeah.
SPEAKER_04: Uh it's I kind of just have to float, you know,
make things work.
Every night's a little bit different, but I think if you
kind of put your I don't mean this meanly, but excuses to the
side there's 24 hours in a day.
You can make it work if you really want it.
That's the hardest part, you know, with being real with
yourself.
You just you gotta want it.
And it's it's not it's not easy every morning, trust me.
Obviously, you you said you know Zach.
It's 4 a.m.
is tough for anybody.
I don't care how tough you are.
SPEAKER_03: Dude, we've got a we've got a guy that was on the
podcast, his name's Jamie.
He's a great guy, but he he runs so early in the morning.
Strava doesn't even say early morning run, Strava says night
run.
He starts at like 2 a.m.
or something.
Yeah, it's it's unbelievable.
But yeah, I I think the mint kind of like what you're saying,
the mentality you gotta have to be able to actually hit some of
those runs.
SPEAKER_04: Um and be respectful of your body.
I'm not one of them like I like I said, I love David Goggins.
I read his book, but like I wanna do this forever, as long
as I can, you know, and I there's days you gotta rest.
Man, there's days that you feel like you're gonna get sick if
you wake up early.
It's like don't do it.
It's just you know, I don't know.
SPEAKER_03: Well, there's a reason he's uh he's at what 50
years old and has like no knees and no hips, and I mean he's
he's bro he's breaking down, you know what I mean?
Yeah, it's because he pushed himself so hard, which I I get,
like that was his mentality, and that's what he had to do, but
it's kind of like what you're saying.
You can have the mentality of that and still come back and
recover.
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, and that's what I I'm I just don't want to
be what I don't want to be like that hard influencer.
Like, I want to be the real person out here, like take care
of yourself, do this for the long hole.
This doesn't happen overnight.
SPEAKER_03: You got any big races coming up?
I don't.
So besides night watch.
SPEAKER_04: I got the night watch, and then I'm gonna do so
since I'm gearing up for the FKT the I across Iowa, it's 276
miles, and I'm planning on doing that the first weekend of
October.
So I'm like, what kind of races can I do to lead up to this?
And I'm really bad or I haven't done really good at a backyard
ultra.
So in September I'm gonna do the Broken Anvil, which is in I
think West Point, Iowa.
And I'm gonna try to at least make it over 24 hours for some
training for the FKT in October.
So September is really my first neck race that I have planned.
But I'm open.
I'm open to anything.
I'm always training.
You gotta be ready, but I'm just waiting for a friend to ask me
to like I have I have a lot of enjoyment with pacing.
Like, it's way more fun watching your friends suffer while you're
like I'm always the guy playing the speaker, like pumped up
while my friend's miserable, like that's way more fun.
SPEAKER_02: Yup.
Yep.
Absolutely.
Zachy questions.
Sorry, Blake.
SPEAKER_04: Oh no, no.
So that's why I I will say my friend Travis, I'm paying my my
dues to him this year, really, because he carried my butt
across Florida and he carried my butt across Mississippi, so it's
his turn to get some longer races in and for me to help him
out.
So that's why September's my my race schedule.
It's that's where that one panned out to be.
SPEAKER_01: Blake, we gotta get nerdy real quick with some rapid
pace, like fun stuff, man.
Um, do you have go-to trail shoe or shoes that you're looking
for?
SPEAKER_04: I love I love the Mount to coast.
I haven't tried them all, but the Mount Tacoasts have held up
for me, and I'm currently wearing them now, and I finished
Florida in them, so 200, and then Mississippi.
I ran uh from Cedarapus to Waterloo in them during like a
snowstorm.
Like I probably have at least 700 miles on them and they still
feel pretty boy.
SPEAKER_01: It just sounds weird.
I'm gonna need a picture of that.
That's where I was getting ready to go.
I I love nerding out on how much mileage I can get out of a shoe.
SPEAKER_04: It's like shoes are expensive, man.
And if they only last 300 miles, it's like it's not worth it to
me.
It's not so not because I you normally don't hype up shoe, but
I'm gonna hype them up.
SPEAKER_01: I love it, man.
Do you have a go-to food or snack you crave over, let's say,
100 miles or longer on some of these long endurance races?
SPEAKER_04: My friend Travis, his fiance is probably screaming
Taco Bell right now during the 200 mile.
She she texted me during the race because she was part of my
crew and she's like, What do you guys want?
I'm like, Taco Bell.
I'm like, I need a ton of chalupas.
Because at this time we haven't had hot food in like a day and a
half.
I'm like, that sounds awesome.
I remember like halfway sleeping, just slamming Baja
Blast and eating a chalupa, just smelling like a foot, just
having the time of my life.
SPEAKER_03: There's something there's something about that
Taco Bell.
It was good.
Zach and I's post-race.
We didn't even like talk about it.
And one day we were just talking, I was like, dude, what
do you eat after race?
And he was saying Taco Bell's like every every time we leave a
race, I go straight to Taco Bell.
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, and now it's funny too, because I don't know
if you follow Max Jolliff, but right before right before Coca
Donut, he got caught dressed all dressed up, taking his fiance to
Taco Bell to pre-game before going to a fancy restaurant.
He's like, I'm just getting some beans and cheeses, man.
That restaurant's expensive.
So I'm not the only runner like a Taco Bell.
SPEAKER_01: So I've got a theory.
I think your body's really good about telling you what it wants
and needs over the course of an ultra.
And I think there's something with the sodium and Taco Bell.
You can get carbs, you can get fat, you can get protein, you
can get it all, sugar, you know.
I think it's something like that.
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, oh yeah, it does.
It knows.
SPEAKER_01: So Blake, um, do you follow who's your favorite run
influence or personality in our space?
Do you have one that comes to mind?
And why?
SPEAKER_04: I really I I really like Joe Corcion.
I do.
Um just because he's he he's really came from nothing and he
now he's competing at a pretty good level and like he doesn't
gatekeep anything, like he puts out good information um for like
racing.
I don't know.
I like Andy Andy Glaze.
Like I just read his book and which gave me a whole different
outlook on him, and I like that he's real.
Of course, like Courtney DeWalter and all the women,
they're fun to watch.
I don't know.
I don't really have a favorite.
I just I just like watching the magic happen when the races
start, and it's just it's cool to see.
SPEAKER_01: Love it, man.
Yeah, that's interesting.
I've heard Joe brought pop up, I think Sierra mentioned him on
her episode too, Anthony.
I'm not super familiar with with Joe.
I think he's got a podcast, is that right, Blake?
SPEAKER_04: Yes, yep.
SPEAKER_01: Himself?
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, yep, and now he's kind of growing, you know.
It could be you guys.
He's he's putting on races, and it he's just been a pretty cool
influence.
SPEAKER_03: I've got another sorry, I didn't mean to cut you
off.
He's got a uh a big sobriety journey as well.
I think he's having October as well.
SPEAKER_01: Yep.
Yep.
But do you have any like bucket list style races?
I don't know about you.
I I have Mrs.
5050 on my calendar every year.
It's I've been out there, I think almost a decade every
year.
I don't have finishes every year.
Sometimes I DNF, sometimes I'm just out there watching friends,
but that's one like it's a staple.
My wife knows the conflicts with taco kids, but I'm gonna be out
there.
But outside of like a few select races around Mr.
50 five, I think there's so many good fun races and experiences
and landscapes to experience.
I literally like have a bunch of races I want to run.
Do you have like bucket list races that you dream about
running one day?
And go ahead and rattle those off.
I'm curious what they are for you.
SPEAKER_04: Unfortunately, I had to turn down Leadville last year
because I didn't think I was gonna get into Steamboat, and
like I got into Steamboat, then literally three days later got
asked to be in Leadville.
Wow.
Which yeah, I already had everything booked for Steamboat,
so I had to turn down Leadville, which hurt.
SPEAKER_01: How'd you get asked to be in Leadville?
SPEAKER_04: I qualified the year before with a mountain race,
which that was I beat or I finished uh Steamboat, Run
Rabbit Run, which gave me a stone and I I talked to some
people and they helped.
But I got I got I got a shot in to Let Bell and I had to turn it
down, so that's definitely one I would like to run Moab 240.
Anything after finish a 200 miler, that one it kind of
changed me.
I really like the long distance, the extra long distance.
It's instead of a race, it's it's like an adventure.
So it's got me hooked.
SPEAKER_01: How'd you manage energy and sleep, sleep
deprivation, potentially hallucinations over the course
of 200 miles?
SPEAKER_04: I I'm a firm believer that your b obviously,
like you said, your body will tell you what it needs.
I mean, I was falling asleep on the trail and I would just I
would take a 20 minute nap, and just that little bit of nap
would get you moving a faster pace for a few hours, so it's
like I took as many naps as it took and I I wasn't really
ashamed of it by any means, so and it helped.
So lots of naps.
SPEAKER_01: That's awesome.
Leadville seems like such an awesome hundred mile.
SPEAKER_04: Well, I actually Mississippi this year I actually
took a nap.
I've never took taken a nap in a hundred mile before, but I was
running through the woods and I couldn't see very well.
It was at night and my friend was chasing me and I was
slamming caffeine, so I knew it wasn't caffeine, and we're
running through woods, dodging trees, and he's on chat GPT, and
he's like, Hey man, I think it's your blood sugar.
And we finally made it to like the fire road out back, and he
made me chug Dr.
Pepper, and I wasn't feeling good at the time, but I ended up
taking a nap right then and there, just on the road, and
when I woke up, I was a new man, and that's when we kind of
finished out that race pretty good and came back and got
third.
So I'm telling you, it's a it's a trick.
If you're if you're pretty bad in a hundred, just take a nap.
It's worth the the ten minutes.
SPEAKER_03: Perfect.
Zach, you got anything else for a minute?
SPEAKER_01: I think that's gonna wrap it up.
Thanks for coming on with us today, Blake.
And we look forward to seeing you out at Mississippi 50,
Mississippi 100.
I'll be there.
SPEAKER_03: I'll be there for the hundred.
We appreciate you for coming on.
We look forward to seeing your costume at uh at the nightwatch
race.
SPEAKER_04: So yeah, now I gotta post it.
Now I gotta post it.
There you go.
Awesome.
SPEAKER_03: Well, dude, we appreciate you again for coming
on, and uh, we look forward to seeing you soon.
SPEAKER_04: Awesome.
Well, thanks, guys.
SPEAKER_03: Yep.
All right.
SPEAKER_00: From back rolls to start last early morning to late
night, and then we're gonna do that.