EPISODE · Jun 17, 2026 · 29 MIN
New Mexico Pack Burros - Shane Weigand (Part II)
from Hiker Trash Radio · host Bleav + Doc
About the Guest Shane Weigand is the founder of New Mexico Pack Burros, based outside Albuquerque, New Mexico. In addition to running backcountry packing trips and clinics, he directs five pack burro races on the Southwest racing circuit, co-runs a beverage burro business for weddings, and works full-time in public lands infrastructure for the federal government. He has six burros, three acres, and a half-ton truck with a horse trailer. Links & Resources New Mexico Pack Burros — Website: https://www.newmexicopackburros.com New Mexico Pack Burros — Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newmexicopackburros Unbranded — Documentary (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unbranded BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program: https://www.blm.gov/programs/wild-horse-and-burro Backcountry Burro — Shane's book. Order from the website for a signed copy and sticker. OTTR (Off the Trail Recreation) — Durable, high-quality outdoor gear. Sponsors the Hiking Hack segment. Hilltop Packs — Lightweight, durable, custom gear. Sponsors the Off the Beaten Path segment. Pack Burro Racing — Key Events Fairplay, Colorado — Birthplace of pack burro racing, 1949. Annual race to the top of Mosquito Pass. Part of Burro Days festival. Leadville, Colorado — Flagship race, centerpiece of Boom Days festival. Shane completed 150 miles of the Colorado Trail before racing here with Comet. Tombstone, Arizona — One of Shane's favorite venues. Incredible burro race with strong historic atmosphere. Ruidoso and Silver City, New Mexico — Fall races on the New Mexico circuit. International — A race ran in France two years ago. The circuit is growing. Connect with Hiker Trash Radio Email: mailto:[email protected] Social: Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok — search Hiker Trash Radio. Leave a review on Apple Podcasts — it takes 60 seconds and makes a real difference. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
What this episode covers
In Part 2, Shane Weigand gets into what it actually takes to run New Mexico Pack Burros as a going concern while holding down a full-time federal job managing public lands infrastructure. This half covers the guided expedition experience in the Pecos Wilderness — a four-day working trip where guests are assigned their own burro and expected to pull their weight alongside it; the logistics and surprises of race directing five pack burro races on the Southwest circuit; the racing season that runs from January in Arizona all the way through summer in Leadville and Fairplay; and Shane's proudest achievement in the sport, which involved 150 miles of the Colorado Trail, a wild burro he'd adopted two years earlier, and a race finish that told him the burro was family for life.
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New Mexico Pack Burros - Shane Weigand (Part II)
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