The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast

For the next two weeks, Rootstock Racing is taking over the Dark Zone feed, offering a limited series podcast chronicling the 2026 Endless Mountains Adventure Race.

In case you missed it, this is a rebroadcast of the teaser. Listen here for Episode 0.5 of the Endless Mountains Podcast, produced by Rootstock Racing.

Shownotes:

The Endless Mountains Adventure Race - www.endlessmountainsar.com

Rootstock Racing - www.rootstockracing.com

Bones Adventure - https://bonesadventure.com/

We love it when race directors send teams our way, and that's what RD Mark Lattanzi did in 2025 following his three-day The Cerberus Expedition Stage Race. Three-person team, One Degree Racing, tackled the course and stood out for their enthusiasm, high spirits, and teamwork.

This conversation is a clinic for newer teams. One Degree digs into strategic point-dropping, rotating the maps so everyone learns to navigate, and a mind/body/spirit check-in used by the team to squash trouble before it festers. These may be the most varied topics ever covered on TDZ: Paul Farmer and Mountains...

Twin sisters Jennifer Robertson and Jamie Miller of Team Overconfident and Undertrained join TDZ to talk about the greatest team name in adventure racing. Based in Oklahoma, Jennifer and Jamie discovered adventure racing two and a half years ago and never looked back. In this episode, they talk with TDZ about the accountability of training with your twin living across the street, learning navigation by stumbling into checkpoints, two 24-hour races that humbled them, and the third they're determined to finish.

It's a conversation about saying yes, and about getting past the what-ifs and the fear of...

Adam Rose joins The Dark Zone for a full debrief on the 2025 Bimbache adventure race in Morocco. Racing with Team Beacon, Adam has a lot to say about five days in the Atlas Mountains — the terrain, the race design, the decisions that cost them, and the moments that made it worth every dirham.

Race director Antonio de la Rosa leaves his signature on everything he touches. Bimbache was no different. Adam unpacks what that means for teams on the ground, what the AR community should know before they sign up, and why this race is already being di...

Returning guest Marina LeGree, Executive Director of Ascend Athletics, is always a delight to have on The Dark Zone. In this episode, we discuss her introduction to adventure racing, the parallels between Ascend and AR, and how her family is again returning to The Maine Summer Adventure Race.

LeGree founded Ascend Athletics in Afghanistan in 2015 — taking girls into the mountains to teach navigation skills, rope work, and what it feels like to be part of a team. The Taliban shut that down in 2021. Ascend pivoted to Pakistan, and helped to resettle 134 Afghan alumni across three continents. The wo...

Before we get into the race and event updates, we take a moment to remember TDZ Guest #2 Shelley Johannesson. Her loss has been a tremendous blow for our community, and TDZ wanted to join the community in honoring her and who she was.

We then turn to Jason's Adventure Bash, June 13th in Columbia, South Carolina, a race that Jason Schmidt designed himself before he passed away this past winter. His wife Liz made sure it's happening. Two formats, beginner to advanced, and 50% of proceeds go directly to a college fund for Jason's three kids. If you...

Kevin Tucker didn't find adventure racing through a slick marketing campaign or a friend with a team slot. He found it because famed RD Grant Killian left the door open to Untamed New England. Now, fourteen years later, Tucker is doing the same thing for Pittsburgh — and his team is taking the philosophy further than most race organizations would dare.

"His Pay What You Want" six and twelve-hour race on May 16th isn't just a pricing model. It's a statement about who this sport is for and who gets left out when we make entry too hard, to...

What do adventure racing and ultra cycling have in common? More than you think.

This week on The Dark Zone, Brian sits down with David Ayre of Lost Dot — the organization behind some of the world's most demanding ultra cycling events. What starts as a conversation about bikes across continents quickly reveals something familiar: dot watching, control points, self-sufficiency, volunteers as the backbone of the race, and a community built on the same ethos we live by in adventure racing.

David walks us through the Lost Dot race portfolio, the legacy of TCR founder Mike Ha...

Adventure racing has always depended on people who love the sport enough to build it. Greg Callas is one of those people.

Greg is the new president of Gold Rush Adventure Racing, a nonprofit based in the foothills of the Sierras with a two-decade history on the West Coast. He inherited a legacy, and a responsibility, from the founders who built it, and he's determined to carry both forward.

But this episode isn't just about race directing. It's about a guy who found adventure racing the way a lot of us did, by doing something...

Kate and Cliff White of Strong Machine Adventure Racing have been a fixture in the adventure racing community for over a decade — first as racers stumbling toward the back of the pack at a winter race in Wisconsin, and eventually as two respected race directors on the East Coast. The path between those two points is anything but straight.

In this episode, we trace that journey: how a family machinery business became a team name, how a land trust in Maine became their first race venue, and how the simple act of showing up in a state wi...

Episode 150 of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast honors a milestone with someone who embodies the long arc of endurance sport — Dan Brannen.

Dan was my first adventure racing teammate back in 2011, when I was just breaking into the sport. But long before that, he had already built a remarkable career across decades of endurance.

A winner of the legendary JFK 50 Mile, former American record holder in the 48-hour run, multi-day competitor, and inductee into the American Ultra Running Hall of Fame, Dan’s legacy extends far beyond his race results. He played a pivo...

For almost 150 episodes, The Dark Zone has been free — stories of grit, uncertainty, partnership, and the long road through the unknown.

Now we’re turning those miles into something bigger.

From March 19–22, 2026, Bob Mina and Brian Gatens of TDZ will attempt to ride 400 miles from West Chester, Pennsylvania to The College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. No guarantees. No shortcuts. Just four days and a whole lot of pedaling.

We’re calling it Katie’s Cookie Ride.

For years, Bob has baked cookies for his daughter Katie. This time, he’s baking a b...

In this episode of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast, we sit down with the team behind a new and exciting expedition-length race — Ajita Madan and Sayeesha Kirani, founders of NthAdventure, alongside Heidi Muller and Stephan Muller, veteran adventure race directors. Together they unpack the story, strategy, and heart behind Adventure @ Mechukha, India’s first Adventure Racing World Series Qualifier.

Recorded against a backdrop of jaw-dropping landscapes and months of race build-up, our conversation explores what it takes to bring a world-class 450 km expedition to life in one of the most remote corners of Arunachal Pradesh. The...

You’re listening to The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast, where we try to understand how adventure races really play out—over long distances, under fatigue, and within the relationships that make or break a team.

Today’s episode is a conversation with Emily Panietz and Becca Lunnon, racing as The Wonky Donkeys, about their strong showing at The Legend Adventure Race in Tasmania.

That result didn’t come out of nowhere. In earlier races, Emily and Becca struggled at times with communication and teamwork—misaligned expectations, moments of frustration, and the normal growing pains that...

In this episode of The Dark Zone, we sit down with Slade Combs, a performance coach who helps people understand, confront, and work through fear — not by eliminating it, but by learning how to carry it well. Whether you’re standing on a start line, staring down a scary race section, preparing for a big presentation, or simply trying to perform when the stakes feel high, fear shows up. The question isn’t if — it’s how.

Slade brings a calm, practical, and deeply human approach to performance. We talk about why fear feels so powerful, how it is root...

In Episode 147, we step onto one of the most storied and demanding landscapes in European adventure racing.

Flavie Bahuaud of Raid In France, joins TDZ to pull back the curtain on the 2026 Adventure Racing World Championship, coming to Corsica in September 2026. This isn’t just another host venue—it’s an island defined by extremes: jagged mountains rising straight from the sea, historic trails, technical navigation, and terrain that demands respect from even the most experienced teams on the planet.

Flavie shares the vision behind bringing the World Championship to Corsica, how Raid In France approa...

On this extended episode of The Dark Zone, we head into the rugged heart of Monterrey, Mexico, home of La Ruta Madre—a race that blends blistering heat, steep technical terrain, cultural immersion, and the kind of navigational complexity that defines true expedition racing.

Our guests—Una, Joel, and Zach—join TDZ to unpack the story of their team’s experience on this iconic course. But rather than spotlighting individual accomplishments, this episode explores how the team operated as a single unit: how decisions were made under fatigue, how pacing and strategy evolved across the Sierra Madre, and how...

In this episode of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast, we shift gears—literally and figuratively—to explore a different kind of endurance adventure. Our guest is Tyler Stancill, a passionate bikepacker who pedaled more than 6,000 miles from Key West, Florida to Newfoundland, Canada along the newly established Eastern Divide Trail.

His journey captures the same spirit that fuels every adventure racer and explorer: resilience, curiosity, and a deep love of the road ahead. From the logistics of a months-long solo ride to the mental highs and lows that come with such an undertaking, Tyler’s story...

In this episode of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast, host Brian Gatens welcomes John Karlsson, captain of Team SAFAT, the reigning Adventure Racing World Champions. Known for their precision, discipline, and calm under pressure, SAFAT has come to define the standard of excellence in expedition racing.

John shares his introduction to the sport, his growth as a racer, and the lessons learned on the journey from first-time competitor to world champion. He offers an inside look at the team’s mindset, their approach to success, and the chemistry that fueled their dominance. But with whispers th...

Happy October, TDZ Nation

Here is a quick 5-minute update following the Adventure Racing World Series AR World Championship in Penticton, British Columbia. TDZ was onsite to help with media, and the race was quite the ride.

Per the episode, everyone involved in the race - racers, supporters, volunteers, family, media, EVERYONE - is encouraged to record and send a 90-second (or so) voice message/memo to brian@ardarkzone.com or send via WhatsApp if you have that info. Include your name, your role, and your team (if applicable) and share your thoughts on the...

Welcome to The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast. From time to time, we like to support our companion podcast, The Course Reveal, by crossposting special episodes.

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Welcome to a special episode of The Course Reveal Podcast, a companion show to The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast. Today, we turn our attention to the 2025 Subaru Canada Adventure Racing World Championship, where the best teams on the planet will converge in Penticton, British Columbia, to chase the ultimate prize in the sport.

This year’s race features an epic 799-kilometer course, with teams racing for up to 9 days across glaciers, m...

Welcome to The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast. From time to time, we like to support our companion podcast, The Course Reveal, by crossposting special episodes.

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Welcome to a special episode of The Course Reveal Podcast. Today, we turn our attention to the 2025 United States Adventure Racing National Championship, where the best teams in the country will gather in Northwest Arkansas to battle for the top of the podium.

This year’s Nationals features a demanding 230-kilometer course, with 78 teams racing against the clock for up to 30 hours across trekking, mountain bi...

Welcome to a special edition of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast. Our sister show, The Course Reveal Podcast, is your spot for adventure racing course breakdowns and interviews with race directors, but for championship races we like to crosspost those episodes to what we call The Big Feed. See below for this show's highlighted race.

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Welcome to the Course Reveal Podcast.

Join Course Director Lauri Hollo as he breaks down each stage of Endurance Quest Saimaa.

As the Adventure Racing European Championship, this race will bring 60 teams from 12...

In this episode of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast, we welcome Olga Huber of Team Fragile Flowers. A well-known racer, Olga has taken on a growing number of events, both with teammates and solo. She loves AR, and she enjoys learning from all of her experiences. Wise, direct, and thoughtful, Olga shares so much with TDZ. When she speaks, school is in session. Enjoy!

Thank you for listening. If you like what you hear, please like, click, and subscribe on your streaming platform of choice. This helps spread the word about Adventure Racing and TDZ's...

The mountains, midges, and lochs of Scotland are putting racers to the test at ITERA and ITERA-Lite. In this Flash Episode, Race Director Paul McGreal joins The Dark Zone to share not just the leaderboard highlights, but the many stories from the trail — teams helping each other through brutal weather, challenging stages, in-race competitions, and gritty comebacks after early setbacks. From the sharp end of the race to the determined mid and back of the pack teams, this update captures the iconic ITERA.

Thank you for listening. If you like what you hear, please like, click, and su...

Welcome to The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast. Today’s episode takes us north to the wild, water-rich terrain of Finland, where host Brian Gatens is joined by Lauri Hollo —longtime racer, passionate advocate for the sport, and Technical Director for the 2025 Endurance Quest Saimaa, the European Adventure Racing Championship.

In this wide-ranging conversation, Lauri reflects on his path into adventure racing, what kept him coming back for more, and how the Finnish AR community has grown over time. Whether you’re new to the sport or a seasoned expedition racer, this episode is a great look a...

Today’s episode is a special one — it’s a course reveal for the 2025 Wilderness Traverse, the iconic Canadian adventure race and this year's ARWS North American championship. This event has long been a staple in the North American adventure racing calendar, known for its challenging terrain, demanding navigation, and classic Canadian spirit.

Joining the show are Event Director Bob Miller and Race Coverage Lead Wayne Leek. Together, they pull back the curtain on this year’s course, offering a preview of what lies ahead — strategic route choices, paddle lengths and portages, and the sweet spot between challenge...

In this episode of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast, we welcome Ashley Cheney and Greg Schmidt of Team NYARA/Trek or Treat, a pairing whose journey through adventure racing has been marked by determination, resilience, and a deep commitment to helping each other. Their story isn’t just about racing—it’s about the intentional work of building a strong partnership, pushing personal limits, and finding meaning in the challenges of adventure racing.

Their conversation is a thoughtful exploration of what it means to build trust on the course, navigate setbacks with resilience, and grow throug...

In this episode, we speak with the new leadership team behind Expedition Africa as they carry forward the legacy of one of the world’s most iconic expedition races.

With roots in Heidi and Stephan Muller’s multi-year stewardship, Expedition Africa is turning the page while honoring its past. The new team brings decades of racing experience and a deep love for the sport to their new roles, and they’re already hard at work preparing for the March 2026 race in South Africa’s breathtaking Drakensberg Mountains.

Expect 500 kilometers of true expedition racing—technical trekking, rugged bik...

Adventure reporter Jim Clash of Forbes Magazine joins The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast for a wide-ranging conversation that explores the intersection of storytelling and high-stakes adventure. With a passport stamped from the South Pole to spaceflight training grounds, Jim has chronicled the lives and pursuits of the world’s boldest adventurers—and taken on quite a few daring feats himself. In this episode, he shares how curiosity, preparation, and a nose for a good story have led him to interview legends like Buzz Aldrin, Chuck Yeager, and Sir Edmund Hillary, and what it means to carry their stor...

In this freewheeling and reflective wrap-up to the 2025 Endless Mountains Adventure Race, TDZ hands the mic to Zoe Freedland and Mary Foster for an end-of-race coda soon after the final team crosses the line. As racers catch their breath and stories settle into memory, dedicated volunteers Zoe and Mary capture the emotion, exhaustion, and triumph that define The Endless Mountains Adventure Race. It’s a fitting close to an unforgettable week in Vermont.

Thank you for listening. If you like what you hear, please like, click, and subscribe on your streaming platform of choice. This helps spread th...

Welcome to The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast, and this special Flash Episode from the 2025 Endless Mountains Adventure Race.

Abby Perkiss joins us with a timely update from deep inside the race experience. From the pointy end of the field, the surging pack, weather and course challenges, and how all the teams are managing this handful of a race, Abby gives us the lay of the land as the event unfolds in real time.

Alongside her is EMAR racer and USARA Executive Director Michael Garrison, fresh off the course and full of hard-earned insight...

Welcome to The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast.

In this special Voices of the Racers episode, we bring you directly into Transition Area 1, where we spent an entire day capturing the thoughts, experiences, and enthusiasm of every team during their 5-minute media timeout. What follows is unfiltered, on-the-ground audio: the sounds of rain, barking dogs, cheering children, and the ever-present wind. It’s real, raw, and as close as you’ll get to the race without a map and compass. Audio quality may vary, and if your voice, or someone you love, didn’t make the final...

Welcome to The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast. Today’s episode marks a special moment on the AR calendar: the official course reveal for the 2025 Endless Mountains Adventure Race presented by Rootstock Racing.

For the first time, Endless Mountains heads north to Vermont, where over seven days, teams will face a demanding and beautifully crafted expedition-length course through the region’s rugged forests, bike trails, and beautiful waterways. Over the next hour, we’ll walk through the full course—section by section—with race directors Abby Perkiss and Brent Freedland. No vague hints. No redacted routes. This is th...

On this episode of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast, we shift gears—literally—with ultra-distance cyclist and adventure writer Meaghan Hackinen. From solo rides across continents to podium finishes at grueling endurance events, Meaghan brings a unique perspective on resilience, mindset, and the beauty of long days in the saddle. She shares stories from her global rides, lessons learned while pushing physical and mental limits, and what it means to find strong efforts in the midst of fatigue. Whether you're navigating a remote bike leg in a multi-day race or dreaming of your next expedition, Meaghan’s insigh...

TDZ is happy to support The Checkpoint, presented by the United States Adventure Racing Association, through this crosspost of Episode #12. Thank you for listening and for supporting USARA.

Episode Details Below:

Welcome to Episode 12 of USARA's The Checkpoint Podcast.

On this episode of USARA's The Checkpoint Podcast, host Brent Freedland is joined by Brian Gatens, host of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast, for a deep dive into the world of expedition-length racing. From choosing your first race to travel logistics, international race prep, and lessons learned the hard way, Brian shares...

On this episode, TDZ steps off the course and into the heart of the Copper Canyons with the Korima Health Initiative. Founded with a mission to bring essential healthcare and education to the Indigenous Rarámuri people of northern Mexico, Korima is powered in part by a unique crew of volunteers—many of whom are also adventure racers. Just as they navigate wild terrain and unpredictable conditions in their athletic pursuits, these racers bring their endurance, teamwork, and grit to the challenges of remote medical work.

The connection is clear: in both arenas, success demands resilience, teamwork, and...

TDZ is happy to support The Checkpoint, presented by the United States Adventure Racing Association, through this crosspost of Episode #11. Thank you for listening and for supporting USARA.

Episode Details Below:

Welcome to Episode 11 of USARA's The Checkpoint Podcast.

On this mailbag episode of USARA’s The Checkpoint Podcast, host Brent Freedland is joined by adventure racing veterans Mari Chandler and Andy Bacon for a lively and wide-ranging conversation. Drawing from listener questions, the trio dives into gear preferences, sleep strategy, and team communication among other topics. With decades of experience between them, Ma...

Adventure racing thrives on passion, and nowhere is that clearer than in the story of Frank Johnson and The Wild Driftless Adventure Race. A longtime racer turned first-time Race Director, Frank is stepping up to give something back to the sport he loves. On this episode of The Dark Zone, we talk about what it means to start something new, why smaller races matter, and how community fuels everything. Big thanks to Frank for joining us, and don’t forget to check out the race website in the show notes.

Thank you for listening. If you like wh...

This episode of The Dark Zone explores a creative partnership between a college classroom and the course. Students from Washington and Lee University’s Leading Public Relations Campaigns class teamed up with Adventure Addicts Racing to support the Adrenaline Rush Adventure Race. As part of their coursework, students developed and implemented real-world media strategies to promote the event, offering a fresh perspective on how adventure racing is experienced, marketed, and understood.

Throughout the project, the students gained knowledge of communication, storytelling, and the unique culture of AR. But they didn’t stop there, students also came away with...