The Steep Stuff Podcast
Welcome to the Steep Stuff Podcast, your source for all things Sub-Ultra Mountain Running
The Steep Stuff Podcast
Ruby Lindquist | TNF Athlete Development Team to Professional Mountain Runner
North Face athlete Ruby Lindquist joins us to share her inspiring journey from the wild landscapes of Moose Pass, Alaska, to becoming a formidable force in the mountain running world. Ruby's story is one of adventurous beginnings, with a childhood steeped in Nordic skiing and outdoor exploration, thanks to her parents' adventurous careers. Her love for the sport grew alongside the rugged beauty of Seward's majestic mountains, setting the stage for a stellar 2024 racing season, where she left a significant mark on races like the Mexico Sky Challenge and Minotaur Sky Race.
When life took Ruby from the icy terrains of Alaska to the snow-capped peaks of Truckee, California, she embraced the change with an adventurous spirit. The transition brought new challenges, including training at altitude and making Nordic skiing a central part of her regimen. Ruby opens up about her experiences in Truckee's vibrant racing scene and reflects on the balance between heart rate-based training and intuitive methods. Her adaptability and passion for blending running and skiing have contributed to her growth as an athlete, preparing her for more ambitious goals on the global stage.
As Ruby looks to the future, she's brimming with excitement for the 2025 racing season. She's setting her sights on the thrilling Broken Arrow race and plans to tackle the 70K Ultra Trail Mount Fuji in Japan. With aspirations to test her endurance in events like the Cirque Series, Ruby's strategic approach is matched by her enthusiasm for international trail running adventures. Her journey showcases not just the physical demands of the sport but also the cultural experiences and personal connections that make each race a unique adventure. Join us as Ruby shares her passion, insights, and the journey that inspires her, aiming to ignite a similar spark in listeners eager to explore the world of mountain running.
Ruby Lindquist IG - https://www.instagram.com/ruby_lindquist/
What is up, fam? Welcome back to the Steep Stuff Podcast. I'm your host, james Lauriello. Today we're going to dive right into another stellar episode.
Speaker 1:None other than Ruby Lindquist, the North Face athlete, is on the Steep Stuff Podcast. What a fun conversation. It was great getting to chat and get to know Ruby. It was really fun. We talked all about some of her races in the 2024 season, including the Mexico Sky Challenge, as well as the Minotaur Sky Race, where she had two absolutely spectacular races. We also talked about plans for 2025, including her entry into OCC that she stoked on.
Speaker 1:Ruby grew up in Alaska, not too far from the storied start line of the Mount Marathon race, so we had a lot of really fun bantering conversation around what it's like to grow up in Alaska and such a beautiful and magnificent location. We also talked about her history with the Mount Marathon race and some of her finishes over the past few years. So definitely one of my favorite conversations. I really want to thank Ruby so much for coming on to chat, looking forward to being the first of many, so wishing Ruby the best of luck in her 2025 season and, without further ado, let's get into it. None other than Ruby Lindquist, it's time. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, we are live.
Speaker 1:Ruby Lindquist. It's Lindquist, right, lindquist, yeah, lindquist. Welcome to the Steep Stuff Podcast. How are you Thank?
Speaker 2:you. I'm great. Thank you for having me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, this is a great, great conversation. I'm so excited to finally sit and chat with you. Yeah, there's a lot to talk about. I mean, I'm obviously interested in the Steep Stuff. It's what we like to cover with this podcast, so you do a lot of that, so it works out pretty well.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:So do me a favor if you wouldn't mind introduce yourself and just maybe give like a little brief synopsis of your background.
Speaker 2:Yeah, my name is Ruby. I grew up in Alaska, just outside of Seward, in a small town called Moose Pass, population like 250, so pretty rural. I grew up there, graduated and then I went to college in South Dakota, ran for four years and then moved home briefly and then found my way to Tahoe, truckee area, and here's this is where I am now.
Speaker 1:Very nice and there's a lot to like add in there too. Like you're an athlete for the north face um, we can talk to talk a little bit about that, but let's let's talk about your formative years. Like how did you growing up in alaska? I feel like everybody, every person I've met like has this like really tough mountain dna. Like every person I've met that's that's from up there.
Speaker 1:Or like like david norris is a great example, like the dude is, but there's so many of you guys that are just like you come down to the lower 48 and you just whoop our asses at at at mountain running. So like what got you into. Like what got you into mountain sports.
Speaker 2:Um, I think from a super young age, my mom, she worked for the Forest Service and basically her job was to like go and survey the trails and she would like push a little measuring wheel and measure the trails and we'd be out with like probably since I was like four or five years six day trips, hiking like seven to 10 miles a day. As we were super, super young kids, um and I'm well aware that's probably not not normal, um, but yeah, it was just normal for us. We'd like my dad also had a float plane and I remember there were days when we were super, super young we'd like be out camping and we'd like he'd put us, load us up in the plane on Monday for school and he'd fly us like back to Moose Pass and we'd get off the plane and we just walked to school with our backpacks like smelling like campfire. I don't know. That's just how, how I grew up, I mean we were outside, probably more than we were inside, definitely, and probably more than we were at school at that point.
Speaker 1:That's so crazy.
Speaker 2:Yeah, uh, so that's kind of where it started.
Speaker 1:Did you start at a young age um running and skiing as well, like Nordic skiing?
Speaker 2:started a young age um, running and skiing as well, like nordic skiing. I started skiing. I was super young when I started skiing. Probably like as soon as I could walk, they got me on like some little classic shuffler skis. Um, I definitely nordic'd long before I started running. I think I started running when I was in like fourth or fifth grade in elementary school. Um, but yeah, I think the majority of yeah it was probably mostly skiing.
Speaker 1:Wow, since I could walk, yeah, that's crazy, and I've met so many Alaskans that are like fantastic athletes, but like ski like I'd say specifically Nordic skiing is their first sport and like that's what built their enormous aerobic engine before they got into like like there's a great example. David Norris again. Yeah, yeah, david's awesome.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think. And in Alaska there's ski trails just connecting everything. I mean in Anchorage there's ski trails connecting the everything. I mean in Anchorage, um, there's ski trails connecting the entire city. So it's so normal to you know ski to work, ski home, ski to wherever you want to go. It's just kind of something that we do there. So it's pretty, it's pretty awesome to grow up like that.
Speaker 1:Now, how far is Moose Pass from Seward? Is it like kind of right there, or is it like within, like the general metropolitan area, like is it pretty close, or it's about like 25 miles, so it usually takes, you know, like a half an hour or so.
Speaker 1:So for the audience then that are not aware, seward is like one of the meccas of mountain running in the world, like it's Seward's awesome meccas of mountain running in the world. Like it's awesome where Mount marathon is held. Now you have obviously a substantial like history with that race. So like from a young age, like were you just aware of Mount marathon? Like how did that work?
Speaker 2:Yeah, Mount marathon has been there forever and it I don't know, it's just, it goes from. You know, we have a town of five, 6,000 normally, and it's been up to like during Mount marathon season, like 50,000, 40,000, 50,000. I might be butchering the numbers, but something like that. Uh, so it's a huge event, uh, and I started racing probably when I was 12 or 13,. I would do the halfway up, so you don't, you go to halfway and then down, and then when you turn, oh, I can't remember how old maybe, yeah and when you turn a certain age I can't remember 18, I think it might be, could be older, something like that.
Speaker 2:Sorry younger, yeah, then you do the full thing. So I'd been doing it for years and years and years and years. It's always been in my life.
Speaker 1:That's so crazy and you've had, I mean, what was it? I mean, based on the research that I did, what was it 20, was it 20, 21? You got second place, I think it was.
Speaker 2:I believe it was 2021. Yeah, right.
Speaker 1:Which is insane. Oh my God. I mean for people that don't know like mountain marathon is like one of the most competitive mountain races in the world.
Speaker 2:It's super competitive, yeah, and you get. Like you get the people, the people that win are usually you. It's not just you know you're a good climber, you have to be a super, super good technical descender. And I mean that's where I got caught that year was, on the descent, this local girl, hannah, she's awesome. Uh, I totally knew she was coming. She just is unlike anyone I've ever met. She can descend like crazy. So, yeah, it's. It's a super unique race where, like you think you might be really good at like climbing and descending, but you should, yeah, it's, it definitely tests you and it's so hard because I feel like it's all packed into such a small like I don't know.
Speaker 2:I feel like you've got that yeah.
Speaker 1:Well, here's the thing, but like, isn't like a half mile on the road first, or something like that, or somewhere?
Speaker 2:in that range.
Speaker 1:Okay, so it's like then it's really mostly packed into like I don't know, two miles then. So one mile up, one mile down, which is bananas for 2000 something feet.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's like pretty much 3000 feet it's. It's absolutely awesome. That's so crazy.
Speaker 1:Do you think you'll go back? Do you have any intentions of like going back to Mount marathon?
Speaker 2:I think I will. Yeah, um, eventually I think I burned out a little bit. And then the year after I got second, I felt like everyone was like oh, you're going to win this year, you're going to win this year. And I started feeling a little bit of pressure actually a lot of pressure and I didn't. My result that year wasn't as good as my second place result and I just felt like I needed a break from it. I'd done it for so long and I was like I don't want to feel like I have to do this race. I want to do it when I'm ready to come back and like, enjoy it and run it. Well, just like anything else. Sometimes you need a little break.
Speaker 1:So I took a break.
Speaker 2:I'm still. I'm still on my break.
Speaker 1:I don't blame you. I feel like that would be insane pressure, especially cause it's like basically your hometown.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and it's all my family and friends and every oh, you're going to win this year You're going to win, and it's like come on, guys, like give me a little break here, um, but yeah, no, it's super awesome. Um, I definitely will run it again, definitely.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So now that you found a home in Truckee um, at least for now, like what do you? Like? What are your thoughts on living in that area? Like that's the home of broken arrow. It's one of the most storied mountain areas, with like Tahoe, like there is in the world. Like, what do you think about that? Like, how do you enjoy the area there?
Speaker 2:is in the world. Like, what do you think about that? Like, how do you enjoy the area? I love it here. Um, I moved. I moved here two winters ago and I basically left Alaska because I don't know.
Speaker 2:I was kind of a little bit, I didn't know what I wanted to do. I had just signed, um, I was on the athlete development program for the North face, so I was getting some funding there and I wanted to move somewhere where I could train at altitude, cause I'd never really trained to altitude my entire life and it definitely can be helpful. So I was kind of picking places that could be good, like park city. I thought about flag staff and truck. He was the first place a room opened up, basically, and I was like I'd never been here. I had no clue what it was like here and I was just said, okay, cool, I'm moving to Truckee. And I gave my parents like a week and a half notice and I said, dad, you're coming with me, we're going to get a car and I'm moving to Truckee. And I remember we drove and I had I had come here planning on like running through most of the winter and training that way, and we drove into Truckee and it was like two feet of snow, absolutely blizzard. And I just remember looking at my dad and being like I have made the biggest mistake. Like why did I move here? What the heck. I have made the biggest mistake. Like why did I move here, what the heck.
Speaker 2:But then the next day I went out and I Nordic skied and it was like a bluebird, sunny day. The trail was like perfectly groomed and that like as soon as I mean it took me what like two days to be like, yeah, this is the spot to be, and since then I've just absolutely loved it here. The trails are amazing. There's trails everywhere, connected to everything. The nordic skiing is amazing. The downhill skiing is amazing.
Speaker 1:It's like you have everything all in one spot the snowpack is so good, usually so good there, like I mean, yeah, we're, I'm in colorado and our snowpack is garbage compared to california. It's not that yeah yeah, so that's fun that you have the ability to like kind of train, do you? And so would you say you're then kind of a dual sport athlete in a lot of ways, like during winter, do you basically put the running shoes away and spend most of your time nordic skiing, or do you like find a good balance, or?
Speaker 2:I have noticed I kind of need a balance. Um, the winter I moved here. It was my first year with the North Face and I tried to train like pretty much every day, running through the of having to reset, and I realized that like I just can't, it's just not my style of training. I need to have the winter to Nordic ski Plus. That's what I love to do, like I love Nordic and and it only made sense. So, yeah, at this point I'm doing like like three days running focus, four, four days nordic focus and I'll nordic ski race through the winter.
Speaker 1:That's amazing yeah, and I love like I mean granted, like we don't have like the ability to nordic, like there's some nordic trails here, like when we have decent enough snowpack, so I do a lot of uh, roller skiing and that's nice, so much fun, like I just got into it this year, I was like where has this been my whole life? Like I could do this all day.
Speaker 2:It's so much fun so yeah, it's awesome because the downhills you're not like pounding your body, you're just flying and it's awesome yeah whereas running it's like when you're running downhill a lot of times it's not, it's not that easy. You're, you know thinking about when you're running downhill a lot of times it's not, it's not that easy. You're, you know thinking about where you're putting your feet and like technical running, and it's, it's a lot more than when skiing. You're just like flying, it's awesome.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, it's, it's. What is that? Um, so what is that like competing uh on the like the Nordic side, like is there a lot of good like solid races out there in like the truck area, or do you have to find yourself like traveling uh through the winter to go compete at some of these races?
Speaker 2:There's a lot of local races here which have been awesome. Last year I competed in quite a few Um and then I'll also be doing this year. I'll be traveling for the first time to race and it'll be for the Berkey. I'm going to do the yeah, I'm going to do the full Berkey this year, which I'm super, super pumped for.
Speaker 1:Nice, it's a Wisconsin right.
Speaker 2:Yep, yep. Cool, cool, yep so um, but yeah, I'd say. I mean, everyone here loves Nordic ski, it seems, so there's plenty of competition and plenty of races to keep me very occupied, so that's awesome.
Speaker 1:And it's. It's nice to be able to switch gears, like you have something to like actually compete at in the winter, where you don't even have to think really about like running that much, which is awesome, so exactly.
Speaker 2:And the way that I, my coach and I have kind of figured it out is like, okay, we're going to run, like focus on running three days a week, we'll do like a workout, um, but then the rest will ski, and it's been super good for my mind, super good for my body, just yeah, I feel like I need that.
Speaker 1:If you don't mind me asking this is just out of pure curiosity Do you do a lot like for your Nordic training? Do you do a lot more heart rate based stuff with your coach, or is it more like on feel?
Speaker 2:Um, I'd say kind of both. I'm trying to be more like pay attention to my heart rate, Um, but it's it can be hard, cause it's like you're at 7,000, 8,000 feet going uphill and like I don't know, it's hard to not want to just rip Um. But yeah, I'd say a lot of it mostly is based on like feel and time. So interesting.
Speaker 1:Yeah. Yeah, I'm like kind of a mad scientist coaching myself right now and I've been doing a lot of heart rate stuff and it's been I don't know. I've just found that, like huh, there's a lot more to this heart rate training stuff than than you'd think. It's just interesting. I don't like it, yeah, so you are on the North Face athlete team. I think you're the first athlete I've had that was on, are you? You're not on the development team anymore, right, or are you, or how does that work?
Speaker 2:That ended in July of this last year, and then I signed another contract in August with the North Face.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Can you talk a little bit about, because I'm sure there'll be athletes that are, you know, curious about the North Face and stuff like that. Or maybe, if they do redo the development program, maybe athletes that might be curious about that Can you talk a little bit about, like what that program was like and the value you've got out of that?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I thought it was awesome. I think I had a. They basically sent out an application, um, when I was a senior in college and at that point I knew that I wanted to get into trail running and mountain running, um, but I just wasn't sure how or how to get a sponsor, how to pay for all this travel, um, and so I applied and I got an interview and I think there were like 3000, two to 3000 people that had applied. So I felt super lucky to get like interview with them, um, and it ended up being the perfect transition, I think, from collegiate running to professional running, because I got, first of all, I was around, I think there were three or four runners, and then we had skiers, we had mountaineers, we had, you know, pretty much all the sports the North Face sponsored. So I was around kids that were all similar minded. Everyone was just stoked, everyone kind of wanted to go pro, but didn't you know it kind of just like bridged that gap between, you know, collegiate running and professional that I needed.
Speaker 2:I think it would have been. It would have been a lot tougher to try to go pro immediately and, um, it was just a good. I mean, we got connected to a bunch of awesome people. Um, we kind of learned about how, what it means to be professional athlete, the requirements of being a professional athlete.
Speaker 2:We got together a couple of times, um, but I think what I got out of it that was the most valuable was probably just the community and connections, not just with other runners but with the skiers and the mountaineers and, like I remember, when we first met up, I met like, who was there? Eric Leon was there and you know just all these these awesome people that I've I've just like heard about and idolized for years, and they were just there trying to support us and it was just such an awesome community. So, um, yeah, the program was awesome. I definitely, towards the end, was kind of feeling like all right, I'm like I'm ready to take the next step and I'm ready to sign like an actual, like legitimate professional contract. So I just think it bridged the gap really well.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's amazing. And so you just recently signed your your North face contract. Then right For professionally.
Speaker 2:Yep, it was back in, I believe, august.
Speaker 1:Wow, could you talk a little bit about that experience? Like, did you like with? I think this is something that's really interesting to me as a professional athlete. I think we it's not talked about that much is going to the negotiating table and talking to different brands and like presenting yourself or talking about like uh and like really selling yourself in a lot of ways. Like some brands, it's easy. They'll just come to you, especially for someone like you, for instance. I would imagine they'll probably be like hey, ruby, like we love you, you know, like come, but like there's a lot more that goes into it, right? Could you talk, maybe, a little bit about that experience?
Speaker 2:Yeah, when I, when I first started kind of looking around and talking to brands, it was like, okay, I'm definitely, I don't want to be a road runner, I don't want to be like I, I'm a big mountain runner. That's like what I love. I love big mountains and I love that kind of style. So it was kind of like what brands fit into my style and like the goals and values that I have, um and like. For me, nordic skiing is a huge part of my training and my life as well. So what brands could support both? And there were a couple I talked to. I mean, it was I don't know.
Speaker 2:I've always felt supported by the North Face and there weren't many. There wasn't much of a doubt in my mind that that's who I wanted to stay with. I just feel like I've built a community and a team. So all along I was pretty set on and hopeful to re-sign with them, I think. But yeah, when reaching out to other brands, it was definitely kind of it's tough because I think at the point where I was reaching out, there was there was OCC and there were all sorts of things happening and so I wasn't getting a lot of like movement in like the conversations and yeah, and I just hadn't always really had my eyes set on the North face anyway. So yeah.
Speaker 2:When that opportunity arose, I was like yeah, definitely.
Speaker 1:It's interesting how like certain things fit and you guys have a great athlete manager too, like Esther's awesome, like it's a good team.
Speaker 2:I think, don't people, don't think people understand how much athlete managers are dealing with? Um, there's so much and yeah, it's pretty impressive to just kind of watch from the side and be like, wow, you're a badass, there's a lot going on. Yeah, there's a lot. Yes, that's so cool.
Speaker 1:Well, congratulations to you, because that's amazing. Thank you, yeah, and I wish you a lot of success with it. I feel like last year we did a lot of race previews for Mexico Sky Challenge and Meet the Minotaur Broken Arrow your name came did a lot of race previews, like for Mexico sky challenge and meet the Minotaur broken arrow, like your name came up a lot, so I'm so happy we're finally having this conversation to kind of reflect on some of those races and then talk about your 2025 plans. What did you like better? Did you like Minotaur better or did you like a sky challenge?
Speaker 2:Uh, Minotaur was like my favorite race of last year. That's a rad race, yeah. It was so sick and I think the mountains there are similar to Alaska, so I kind of felt almost at home in those mountains. And the sky challenge in Mexico it was pretty brutal. It was like a hundred degrees and there wasn't a lot of actual trail. You were kind of bushwhacking a lot of it and it was a. It was an absolutely brutal race, Probably the hardest race I've ever run. It was like, yeah, it was brutal.
Speaker 1:That's crazy yeah.
Speaker 2:But the um, the, the one in Canada, was awesome. Minotaur was just the community. I don't't I, I just totally vibed with that race and it was I mean, I wouldn't say it was like the most technical race ever, but it was a lot of ridge running where you know you're, you're not really running, you're basically like just scrambling along these ridges and you have these awesome views.
Speaker 1:It was just yeah, it was pretty, it was pretty awesome everyone that I've talked to has told me that it was truly like one of the most beautiful courses they've ever been on. Like it's crazy so.
Speaker 2:I would go back there in a heartbeat, yeah.
Speaker 1:It's on the list. What are you thinking for 2025? Do you think you'll be doing um? Or? I know you're signed up for broken arrow? That's a different kind of a different conversation, but is it the same weekend as Minotaur this year? I don't think so. Is it really?
Speaker 2:I'm pretty sure it's the same week. Yeah, I just looked at that a couple of days ago. So I am going to do Broken Arrow, I'm going to do the 50, 50k, so I won't be able to do Minotaur this year.
Speaker 1:It's both a bummer but also really exciting, because what Broken Arrow represents because that's going to be, uh kind of a selection Well, definitely a selection this year for worlds. Is that something you have your eye on as potentially a world spot or?
Speaker 2:I think if it, if it happened, that's awesome. I wouldn't say I'm going into it Like this is my main goal to get a world's qualifier, but I think my goal is to race as hard as I can. I mean, it's my where I'm living right now. I have access to these trails all the time, so I have a huge advantage being able to train out there like as much as I want, and I think it could be just I don't know I have a lot of friends coming to race and it's just going to be a great time, so I'm super, super excited for that race.
Speaker 1:So it's going's gonna be. That's a wild weekend.
Speaker 2:I mean, yeah, and we have the uh, what was it? 26k is the golden trail again this year. It's gonna be pretty wild.
Speaker 1:Vk will be the selection race for the ascent as well, which is like, yeah, it's gonna be bananas weekend, like it's gonna be. Everybody will be out there. So it's gonna be, it's gonna be fun, it's gonna going to be wild. What else do you, what are you thinking, what else do you have on your like plans for 2025?
Speaker 2:Um, I'm going to go to race the ultra trail Mount Fuji Kai, which is the 70 K in Japan, in April. Nice, it's going to be my first 70 K ever and my longest race and I think, with the type of training I'm doing this winter on skis just a lot of aerobic volume I think that it could translate really well. Um, so I'll have a couple of months to prepare for that, after my Nordic skiing season is over, which I think I think it'll work out really nicely. Um, so I'm going to go there and do that. Um, I'm planning on broken arrow, I want to throw in some Cirque series races this year. Okay, I love the Cirque series I did Well, I've only really done one, which was Alieska.
Speaker 2:I did it a few times, um, but I just think Julian and everything that he's doing in the races themselves are so rad and they're legitimate. Like I think in the U S it's hard to find like legit mountain running races. A lot, of, a lot of the races we have are like very runnable. Besides, like the rut, it's also an awesome race. But, yeah, I want to throw in a couple of those this year and then August I'll race OCC. Okay, I got a qualifier for that from speed goat last year. Um, and then everything else is kind of to be decided. Yeah, whatever, I've kind of I'm leaning more into what I get stoked on, less like feeling like I have to do something. So if something's just not stoking the fire, I'm just don't do it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, exactly I think that I perform better when I'm stoked on a race. I just I train better leading up to it. I think there's just it's all connected like that and yeah, so I'm I'm just kind of trying to pick races that are, you know, that the North face also wants me to do, but that I'm inspired by and actually want to do.
Speaker 1:Isn't it a crazy difference when you're getting ready for an event that, like you're genuinely excited for, versus one that you're like ah, I feel like I have to do this. It's like night and day, absolutely. It's a yeah. I kind of lucked out this out this year because I'll be doing most of the Cirque series as many of them as I can.
Speaker 2:Oh, that's right. Laspo is the new Cirque sponsor.
Speaker 1:Yeah, which is super exciting. I think that I couldn't have. It's a perfect.
Speaker 2:That's a perfect partnership, I think.
Speaker 1:Yeah, well for me. I'm like perfect. This is what I did last summer I I was like might as well go do it again. Um, and there's a lot of new. Like what I'm excited for is there's a lot more like new courses this year, like there's some courses in the Northeast which will be fun. Obviously, alyaska I'll go to um, my favorite one is that in July it's July 20th or 26th or 28th.
Speaker 2:I think I'm going to try to be home for that one no-transcript well, I, I personally would probably, if I were to go out on like my own little hike and adventure, I would much rather go to Girdwood and do that course. Uh, mount Marathon's awesome. I'm not putting it down by any means, but Girdwood is like one of the coolest places ever and there's a lot of more running on a ridge on the Cirque series course and you see the view of the ocean and I guess both spots you see of the ocean. But yeah, I think they're both awesome. They're both totally different. They have their own. Yeah, they're both just totally different, but the Cirque course is super awesome.
Speaker 1:It's inspiring I mean I, it is bananas. Like how beautiful that course looks Like. Like I said, I can't ever. Can't speak to it cause I haven't been there yet, but just in photos you're going to love it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, what Julian's been able to put together there is cool. And it's so cool because it seems like I don't know and you can speak much more to this. The Alaskan mountain running community is like there's a like a big contingent of Alaskan mountain runners, like in that Anchorage or greater Anchorage area. Um, I feel like that go and do these events and there's like a lot of them like everybody, from like older folks all the way down to, like you know, high school kids, like it's kind of cool that it's like a it's a very large community, that it's like a it's a very large community.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I think because that was, I mean, at least where I around, where I grew up in Seward and Anchorage I mean the mountains are your playground and they're right there and it's like 3,000, 4,000 feet straight up and I don't know. I haven't been to many places besides like Europe, where you go out your door and like a mile away you just hit a mountain and then you climb like 3000 feet plus and every single mountain is like that. So I mean the kids in Alaska grew up doing that. So it makes sense that everyone's just absurdly good. And yeah, I mean it's not uncommon to go out and get crushed by like a 40, 50 year old woman you know it was just everyone's super talented and the community is wonderful.
Speaker 2:Yeah yeah, Alaska's like no other place I've ever. Yeah, then it is.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm so excited for it's crazy. I feel like I've you know cause I've never been there. I'm just excited to see something new. Like last summer I got on out to like Montana and Wyoming and did a lot, just most of the cirque series, races or a lot of racing in general, like in the mountain west, and I was like man, like I gotta get out of my bubble of colorado because it does become a little bit of a bubble and you realize that there's just so much more to it, like there's some wild awesome too, though yeah, it's cool.
Speaker 1:There's lots of cool stuff there there is it's, it's a, it's a, it's a crazy fun place. But it's just crazy how big the west is and just like how much there is to do, like there's a lot of mountains and a lot of places like wyoming. I would actually suggest to you, if you haven't been yet, to grant targhee. That's a series race, that's dope, just because you got teton national park to go run around in oh, yeah, I'd love that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I need to look more into that, but yeah, I I definitely. The Cirque races they've hit a lot of the coolest resorts in the U? S and I think, yeah, kind of doing a few of those would be really, really awesome.
Speaker 1:Julian's awesome. What did you think of the rut? I haven't been there yet I know that's like a big North face gathering where, like, all the athletes go out Like how is that? I hear that's like an amazing event too.
Speaker 2:The rut is wonderful. Like how is that? I hear that's like an amazing event too. Was it's amazing you have in the rut is I mean it's a super technical, very sky runner-esque race which you don't find many of in the us. But yeah, awesome community it's. It's a wonderful race. I highly recommend it to pretty much anybody because just the environment and everything is awesome. You can finish the race and go and get like a little rut tattoo after, like in a tent. It's, it's pretty cool. Yeah, um, it was kind of my introduction to longer mountain racing and definitely the best introduction I could have had.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah.
Speaker 2:That's a great impression.
Speaker 1:I think it's like the biggest mountain race in the country. If not, I mean it's. It's gotta be up there between. Broken I would not be shocked. Yeah, broke, I would not be shocked. Yeah, I would not be shocked. Yeah, that's crazy. We need more mountain races like. I feel like we need some more quality. Solid like, big, burly like because broken arrow is great. Lots of vertical gain, but it's fast, it's a fast race, right?
Speaker 1:I feel like the ride is like proper mountain running where it's let's punch you in the face hard, Like my one of my best friends shout out to Nick Tusa. He, uh, ran the 28 K last year and he, like he's top of the food chain athlete like really, really good, and I was very surprised by how hard he said it was. Like he's just like that's the hardest race I've ever done.
Speaker 2:So interesting, yeah, no, I agree, I think, interesting yeah, no, I agree, I think I'm more drawn to races that are way gnarlier and more technical than like go out and run as hard as you can for a 23k and like it's all runnable. I don't know, I'm just very drawn towards like longer, more suffering, like up on the ridge, like yeah, those are my style for sure.
Speaker 1:Do you think, uh, cause, especially now, like you've talked about Mount Fuji, you've talked about OCC Do you think some of the longer stuff will probably be in your future, like you know, like a CCC or something like that down the line?
Speaker 2:Yeah, definitely Um. I think, while I still have some speed like in me, I think it'd be good to do a lot of the shorter stuff and just see how I do. Like OCC, for example, is a great test of, like you know, what you're capable of speed wise and just with that group of competition it's. It's going to be awesome just to see Um. But yeah, I definitely think eventually I'll transition to, you know, 50 to 100 K and then I definitely want to go longer than that Um, but I think it's going to take a while and I'm in no rush. I have a lot of years that I can do this. So it's cool to kind of be able to experience it all.
Speaker 1:Yeah and just grow and you know, into the sport it's. It is cool. It's interesting to see like a lot of how everybody comes in and like that's mostly like the sub ultra fashion and then kind of just starts to grow and go into the longer stuff in some cases yeah, and I think after, like especially after collegiate running, it didn't make.
Speaker 2:It would make no sense to go from you know running a mile in the steeplechase to like 50 to 100 miles. It just it makes much more well. You have the speed just to do like like 30 K and under, is it's really? It's a good transition.
Speaker 1:Were you a steeple in college.
Speaker 2:I ran the started running the steeple my senior year, which I kicked myself because I think I could have been um much better at it. Um, I made my, not made my uh a national meet my senior year in the steeple, um, with a coach that I'd only had for a year, and I just wish I'd had more time with that coach at that event. But, um, yeah, for what it was worth, I I love the steeple.
Speaker 1:It's so interesting how, like the steeple has produced some of the best trail runners in the world, like Max was a steepler and, like joe, gray was a steepler, yeah it's interesting, like the ones who stick with it or like get into it like it's. I don't know what it is, if it's like just different leg path, I don't know, like what the biomechanics are hard.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it is. It's crazy, brutally hard. Um yeah, I'm, I don't know. I'm kind of glad those days are over, cause that was, that was brutal.
Speaker 1:What was?
Speaker 2:it like going to college in South Dakota, like that's a. It's a different place. I had a few friends more like acquaintances I guess who had gone there and ran and just talked super highly about the team and the environment that they had going there and I went and visited and it was like, yep, I love it here. This is where I'm going. So, yeah, I had a great four years. I had three coaches in four years, which was not ideal. Um, the coach that I had my senior year we call him B med. He was just the best and I wish I'd had more time with him because within that year I improved like a stupid amount and, yeah, it just goes to show like what good coaching can really do. But, um, yeah, uh, I enjoyed my time there. I was definitely not like I'm going to stay here longer. I was ready to leave, Is it?
Speaker 1:is it like, or is it like middle of nowhere, Like, when I think of South Dakota I've never actually been there, but like I think of like North Dakota, South Dakota, like I don't know, like Mount Rushmore, that's like all that comes to mind.
Speaker 2:Yeah it's. It is kind of in the middle of nowhere, but we had, like it was, a kind of a little hub for rock climbing. There's some beautiful canyons there, there's hills there. I mean, it wasn't just flat, um, I could definitely not have moved to, you know, like Sioux falls, where it's just flat, um, but the black hills are really beautiful. So, yeah, it was, it was a good spot.
Speaker 1:That's cool. Yeah, I don't know. I always like the idea. It's interesting talking to people that like go out of state and like go to like very different places, like I have, uh, like friends that have gone to college, like in Hawaii or like go to college in Hawaii. It's just like really interesting. I'm like wow, that's very different different dichotomy about Hawaii.
Speaker 2:Um, I grew up going to Hawaii like every year and I really wanted to go, uh, and run for a team there, but I just never got much of a response back. And then I was yeah, I don't know, It'd be pretty vast change to be running in that much heat.
Speaker 1:So it is really hot, like I just got back from Hawaii. I went in in october, november, yeah, it's really, and I grew up in florida, so like for me to say like something's hot and humid, like it's got to be like hot and humid, but hawaii was legit. I was like man, this is yeah, I'm like really colorado now, like this hawaii is super humid.
Speaker 2:Uh, I love it there, though good trails.
Speaker 1:I mean there's some good trails, at least maui, where I went, like it's all right, like I don't know, but from everybody shows me all these like awesome volcanic trails and I'm like, oh man, I really missed out.
Speaker 2:Like yeah, I grew up going to oahu like every year. At one point we were there for like two or three months, I can't remember. We kind of like lived out there for a while, uh, but oahu is where we would go in the north shore and, yeah, the trails out there for a while, uh, but Oahu is where we would go in the. North shore and yeah, the trails out there are insane.
Speaker 1:It's like not a bad plane ride from Alaska either. Like I feel like that's pretty. We had a direct flight at one point.
Speaker 2:Um in time, it was just a direct flight from Alaska. I don't know if they have that anymore, but it was. It was like the coolest thing ever.
Speaker 1:So I know you go from, like the frozen tundra and the frozen mountains what a nice break.
Speaker 1:Yeah, speaking of Alaska, so like I know I kind of touched on a little bit in the beginning like growing up there and what that was like, but like I don't know, I always have to ask the grizzly bear question because, like in Colorado we don't have grizzlies and I'm just like what is it like? Like running in a place like where, like the, like the apex predator is not us? I mean, it's arguably that like colorado is the same, like kind of the same thing, as we have mountain lions but like, yeah, very few people get eaten but, like you know, it's different in alaska um, yeah, the grizzlies and the black bears.
Speaker 2:I think you're always aware of them and I mean I've been running by myself for years and years and years and I'm still kind of like a little nervous when I go out. I always have a bear spray in my running vest. I pretty much take that with me everywhere when I'm running at home and I don't know. It's like you can't control. You can only control what you can control. And if you run into a bear, I mean there there's, you're kind of taught what to do, what not to do, and you just I mean there's not much else you can do besides hope that there you don't surprise one and yeah, but I think I mean it's their home too and you just have to be positive about it.
Speaker 2:You can't just let it scare you off of the trails, so I don't know. Yeah, I've never had a bad encounter in my whole life Knock on wood, um. So yeah, I mean it's their home too.
Speaker 1:So yeah, that was so cool. Do you uh like, have you ever? I mean I'm sure you have, but like what is it? Like the? There's like a really sweet fjords national park, that's like over there, not too far from yes what is that? Is that like, just like a super beautiful place? Is that pretty cool yeah?
Speaker 2:yeah, we used to, we. You can take cruises out to keen eye fjords and kind of see, but there's the glacier, there's huge glaciers out there. They have some surfing out there. I know we have a couple surf guides that will actually take people into the fjords and there's like a nice swell and they'll be able to surf like by the glaciers and it's, it's stunning. It's totally worth the time, if you have it, to go and see, cause, yeah, it's, the glaciers definitely aren't as big as they were growing up but, um, yeah, it's beautiful out there, big mountain, just big, big mountains. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Is it worth like going up to and checking out like Denali and like seeing the National Park? Because I've heard like people go up there and like most of the time it's even in cloud cover so you can't actually see the peak. Is that true?
Speaker 2:Yeah, Um, I think if you have a lot of time to spend and kind of do a road trip, you should, but it's, I mean it is hit or miss with Denali. It's, it's beautiful out there for sure. Um, Denali is obviously so rad and like one of the coolest mountains on the planet, I think. But, um, yeah, I think if you have like an extra few days it'd be worth it to drive and see it. Um, but then again it's hit or miss, cause it is Alaska and it rains a lot and it's yeah.
Speaker 1:What's the mosquito situation? Like everybody's warned me, it's like mosquito central.
Speaker 2:They're like mosquitoes on steroids we've had some years where they're not bad at all and then some years where they're absolutely horrendous. So it depends on the year. I think that people kind of over-exaggerate. I don't think they're as bad as they're made out to be. Most of the time they're just like normal mosquitoes, but some years they can be absolutely awful. That is true.
Speaker 1:Interesting. Yeah, I don't know. We have like one range of Colorado that like always gets crazy mosquitoes and like other than that it's like never a thing. I don't know. It's very strange, so yeah we don't have.
Speaker 2:We really don't have much for mosquitoes and truckie at all or bugs in general. Yeah, it's definitely different. That's a good thing.
Speaker 1:It's a good thing I don't do, but I just had Laura Hamilton on the podcast. She's from Sydney, Australia, and like we got into a long conversation about the Huntsman spiders. Have you ever seen them?
Speaker 2:I do see videos of like normal Australian things, sometimes like on Instagram, and it's like spiders and kangaroos, and I have a friend page from Australia, paige Penrose. Um, yeah, and it's just. It's totally different place there. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I don't know if I'd ever go. I have to be honest with you, like I just don't do bugs in that way.
Speaker 2:Oh, it'd be worth it. It's beautiful there. It does look amazing, it does, it does.
Speaker 1:All right, let's pivot back. I want to talk to you about OCC because that, like are you, do you have, like are you starting to put together plans now, like to go out way ahead of time? Like how is that going to work? And like, does the North face like, like do you guys have like a team house going out there? How does that work with you guys?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I know we have a good group of the North face going, um, so there will definitely be like some team stuff happening there. Um, I'm excited for it. I don't really. I mean, that's pretty far in advance, so I don't think I'll start planning training around that until, um, you know, months a couple of months before, three months before but, um, yeah, I think it'll be awesome. I guess I've never, uh, I guess I raced broken arrow a couple of years ago and it's probably going to be a similar vibe where everyone's just super, super fit, super good and just the total test of, like mental, physical, everything. Um, but I think that's awesome. I have quite a few friends that are doing it, um, so I think it'll be just, I have quite a few friends that are doing it, so I think it'll be just a cool experience in general.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, that's like.
Speaker 2:I mean it's a Superbowl, it's like top of the food chain right there, for, yeah, exactly, it's like you really know what you can do when you go there. It's cool to be a part of it and to, yeah, have the ticket in and, yeah, pretty, it's going to be a great time have, and, yeah, pretty, it's going to be a great time. Have you ever been over in like Chamonix or that area? Yeah, I actually backpacked, uh, the whole tour de Mont Blanc this last uh fall, and so I I thought that would be really cool, cause then I could see the whole course, not running, and just like kind of enjoy the whole thing, cause I feel like a lot of times when I'm racing, it's like you're looking around, yeah, but you're not really able to focus on what's around you, right?
Speaker 2:So, yeah, I, I backpacked the whole thing, so I spent some time in Chamonix and you know, and did the loop and I thought it was. It's so beautiful there. Um, I'm really excited to go back. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Did you do like, did you stop at like huts? Or in like, do the like hut to hut kind of thing?
Speaker 2:or yeah, it was pretty much all hut to hut. Yeah, that's amazing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think I would just like go bakery to bakery, like croissant to croissant. Oh my gosh, yeah.
Speaker 2:We did that too. Yeah, it was amazing over there the food, everything, yeah.
Speaker 1:If that's one place if I ever disappeared, that's probably where I ended up is just like went to Europe and never left, Like go to that.
Speaker 2:It's amazing. Yeah, it's that area of Europe.
Speaker 1:I don't know, it's just so cool that it's like the epic of like the epic aspect of like our sport and like that's where, like everybody goes for our like proverbial Superbowl, if you will.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's crazy gonna be, such a cool thing have you sorry?
Speaker 1:yeah, I was gonna say have you ever been to japan? Like that's gonna be a cool experience too, going to fuji, like that's dope I, yeah, I've never been to japan.
Speaker 2:I've wanted to go to japan for forever. My grandma's from japan, um, so my mom and I were, I mean, we're obviously Japanese, um, and well, not obviously, I'm sure I do not look Japanese. I like to guess that actually. Yeah, I like to throw that at people sometimes. I think it's funny. But, um, yeah, I've been wanting to go for years and years and years and the North base actually sponsors the um ultra trail Mount Fuji series. So, um, it just seemed like a good time to do it and I've talked to Patty. Patty has done it, um a few others I've talked to have done it, and they just can't speak higher of it than they do. So I'm I'm really excited to go, yeah, and just experience everything.
Speaker 1:Yeah, my sister, I think did she go this year.
Speaker 1:My sister like so my sister's a fiance boyfriend, I think, fiance fiance sorry, he has like this really sweet consulting job where he goes all over Asia and like she follows him and like she's in Southeast Asia, like the or no, she's where she at, she's in South Korea Sorry this week, but like she's good. They did Japan and like yo, it looks like the food looks amazing, the culture looks so much fun. Yeah, I've heard nothing but amazing things about Japan, so you're in for a treat.
Speaker 2:It's going to be awesome. My mom is going to go with me as well, so it'll just be a cool experience. Just to do all of that together.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I'm stoked for it, you got your crew.
Speaker 2:Then too, there you go. Yeah, we'll see. Uh, yeah, we'll see. They've never done, she's never done anything like that before, but I'm sure she could.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's funny like when you talk to your parents about like the sport, it's interesting because, like my parents like they've been to races before and they've kind of like experienced it, but like I don't think they really realize like what it like they don't realize like people running around on trails and in mountains and stuff like that, until like I'll send them videos of like some of the sky races and stuff like that, they're like oh, that's, that's crazy. It's like interesting to see how parents like perceive it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, sky runner. I think the sky runner series does the best with that, because their videos look insane, like the videos they came back with after minotaur and just I don't know. The drone footage, yeah, and then I like to, I send those to my friends and, you know, my parents.
Speaker 1:they're like this is not okay. What?
Speaker 2:are you doing up there on that ridge? It's, but it is so cool.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I definitely know what you're saying yeah, it's funny the way parents like perceive it. They're like this is what you're doing, like what the hell?
Speaker 2:yeah, it's rad, though it is it is.
Speaker 1:It's so cool. I want to you know what race I got to throw on my list. I don't know if you've uh looked into it at all, but, um, this is sky race day. I call it day math c. It's the one that's in france, but I think it's sky race day mathis, I forget how it's yeah, I know which one you're talking about that race. Race looks sick, and because it's so much snow too, which makes it look like way more fun.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I need to look at the series this year. Maybe I can throw in a race, but I feel like my schedule is already getting kind of full, so I don't want to overdo it. I'll definitely go back and do some more of those.
Speaker 1:We need more North American sky, like traditional. I'll definitely go back and do some more of those. We need more North American traditional sky stuff. I wish we got. I mean it's great that we have Mexico and we've got, obviously, crow's Nest and Minotaur, but we need a. Somebody's got to put together a USA one. The permitting could work or something.
Speaker 2:I think the rut could be a good one for that.
Speaker 1:maybe eventually yeah that'd be cool, but yeah, all those races are awesome. Yeah, have you done pikes yet? Have you thought about doing like the pikes peak, marathon or scent?
Speaker 2:I think I'm going to try this year. It depends how the um, how the season lines up, but the North face sponsors that as well and I think it'd be cool to get out there and to try it. I haven't done it, no only heard about it, but it seems again another absolute brutal race. It's amazing.
Speaker 1:I just got named to the board. I'm so excited to get to play around and like help make decisions for this race. So yeah, if you have any questions or need anything, let me know, cause that be awesome. Yeah, I'm trying to recruit everybody to come. We're going to make a huge push to get as many elites there over the next few years as possible. It's September 20th maybe.
Speaker 1:It's like yeah, I think it's like three or four weeks after. Well, it depends if they moved up OCC and UTMB for Worlds. It's somewhere around Worlds. It's like in that weekend group.
Speaker 2:Okay, yeah, yeah, I think everything will kind of depend on how broken arrow goes and how you know the season lays out. But yeah, I would love to. I would love to get over and do one of those.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, that's great. It's iconic, super iconic races.
Speaker 2:So lots of fun, sweet, well listen we're coming down on about an hour now. I feel like we got a lot of good stuff for for our first episode. So do you have anything you'd like to add or you think anything we missed? No, I don't think so. I think we touched on a lot. That was awesome.
Speaker 1:Yeah, thank you. Yeah, no, thank you. I really want to say thanks so much for coming on. I'm going to get this out in the next uh, like week or so and I think friday friday of next week we'll get this out. So I really appreciate it, and thank you for letting me help tell your story and yeah looking forward to a big 2025.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's going to be awesome. Hopefully we'll see you out there and meet in person.
Speaker 1:finally, Definitely, definitely. Well, thanks so much, ruby. Yeah, that was a good one. What'd you guys think? Oh man, what a fun conversation. It was great finally getting to meet Ruby and just learn about her background and just have a chat. It was a really fun conversation. I really appreciate her coming on the podcast and I'm going to wish her the absolute best of luck in her 2025 season.
Speaker 1:Guys, before we get going, hop on Instagram. Let's get Ruby some follows. You can find her at Ruby underscore Lindquist L-I-N-D-Q-U-I-S-T on Instagram. Hop on, give her a follow and send her a DM. Let her know what you guys thought about the episode and send her some words of encouragement with all the really exciting races that she has on the docket for 2025. All right, guys? Well, I really appreciate it. Thanks so much for tuning in this week. If you guys really enjoy these episodes, if you wouldn't mind doing me a gigantic favor, a five-star rating and review on Spotify and Apple would absolutely be amazing. That's how we can get this episode out as well. As you know, continue to cover the great sport of trail and sub-ultra mountain running and, yeah, guys really appreciate it. As well as. If you did enjoy this episode, please give it a share on Instagram as well. Guys, have a great rest of your week and lots of really exciting announcements coming around the pipeline for 2025. Thank you, I'm out.
