The Trail Team: Insights from Top Rising Athletes in Trail Running

When it comes to entering the sport of trail running, there is no “by the book” path that is clear on how to best approach it. While Track & Field and road running have that clearer path, trail is something that seems like it has been more of a “figure it out” operation for those who want to develop a career in the sport. That is why Andy Wacker, professional runner for Salomon, decided to create The Trail Team; a team designed independently support and develop rising athletes into the best professional trail runners in the world through mentorship, skill development, and media exposure. On the trail team, there are 6 rising athletes who are all names destined to become some of the top names in the sport of trail running over the years. And on this episode, we feature three of those athletes, along with Andy Wacker. And in this episode, the athletes share about their background, why it’s important for them to have a cross-athlete lifestyle throughout the program, and their best advice for those who want to pursue trail running. On top of that, Andy also shares the details about the Trail team, how he plans to run the program, and the why behind the organization. About the athletes featured: Anna Gibson is a collegiate athlete who runs for the University of Washington, where she anchored her team's Distance Medley Relay to the NCAA record. On the track she specializes in the 800m, 1500m and mile. She placed 5th at her first US Mountain Championships in 2021. Last year, she placed 4th at her first World Cup event in Saint Gervais, France. She aspires to compete professionally on the track and in the mountains. Christian Allen is a runner who currently runs for BYU and is a WSU alumni as well. He is a two-time All-American in Cross Country. Christian attended both Weber State and Brigham Young University. Christian holds track personal bests of 28:26 in the 10,000m and 13:34 in the 5,000m. Christian AKA Slim, is looking forward to hitting the trail circuit this summer, specifically, “the suffer fest of hammering grueling climbs”. Meikael Beaudoin-Rousseau is a runner for Stanford University, which he represented in four NCAA Cross Country Championships. In 2019, he raced internationally for the US at the U20 World Cross Country Championships in Aarhus, Denmark. His first trail race was the 2021 USATF Mountain Running Championship in which he placed 7th. In his free time, he enjoys climbing and mountaineering in the Sierra Nevada, where he holds a number of speed records (FKTs). Huge thank you to Andy, Anna, Christian, and Meikael for coming on the show! LINKS: Check out Zach Bitter’s training plans: zachbitter.com/training-plans Check out Zach Bitter’s coaching options: zachbitter.com/coaching Join the Everyday Ultra Patreon Community: patreon.com/everydayultra The Trail Team Website: https://www.trail-team.com/ Follow the Trail Team on IG: https://www.instagram.com/the_trail_team/ Anna’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/annaagibsonn/?hl=en Anna’s Strava: https://www.strava.com/athletes/57973023 Christian’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/ckonetherunner/ Christian’s Strava: https://www.strava.com/athletes/36817714 Meika’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/mountain_man_meik/ Meika’s Strava: https://www.strava.com/athletes/12445049 Andy’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/wackera/ ATRA Website: trailrunner.com