Day Fire Podcast

Clint and Dawson sit down with Shannon Keizer. Shannon had planned to hike the AT in 2020 with her daughter then Covid and her father in law passed away from cancer that May so the trip was put on hold. Shannon decided the best year to hike the trail was this year 2023 and even though her daughter could not join her she left in mid March and hiked the trail in under 170 days. Shannon lives just outside the Smoky Mountains National Park and whenever possible you can find her hiking in her "homewoods". Shannon has been happily married for 29 years, has three adult children and two grandsons. Shannon shares her AT story with us and also how her husband and family supported her on her AT journey. Shannon is an avid hiker who has hiked several long distance trails such as the John Muir and Benton MacKaye trails. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Lea Mulligan. Lea' s trail running results read like a highly successful 40 year old runner except she is 25 years old. Lea was born and raised in Chattanooga and has enjoyed exploring the woods since she was a little kid. She ran cross country since she was 8 years old and got introduced to the Ultra-Running world when she was in high school. Since she was young, Lea was inspired by her mom's running career and loved sweeping events with her as a teenager. Lea completed her first 50K, Run Amok, her senior year in highschool, and she has been hooked on trail running since then. After running cross country at Maryville College and exploring the Smokies for 4 years, She decided she wanted to be more competitive with trail running. Lea signed up for Pinhoti 100 in 2021 and loved every piece of the 100 distance ranging from the snacks to the wonderful community. Working as an elementary school teacher has allowed her to explore trails all over the US in the summertime, and she spent this last summer living out of a minivan in Colorado training for CCC 100K in France. Lea says; "it was an absolute dream getting to explore the alps before and during CCC, and I am even more excited to keep chasing my running dreams with my friends." Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

The week Clint and Dawson sit down with Jason Finnell and Josh Braun and take about their recent Caribou hunt out of Kotzebue, AK. Kotzebue is a city in the Northwest Arctic Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the borough's seat, by far its largest community and the economic and transportation hub of the subregion of Alaska encompassing the borough. They were also joined by Christian Jones who was not on the show. We talk about their transportation, the hunt itself, wolves, grizzly bears and delays with the bush plane picking them back up. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Tim Bell. Tim was a multi-time TN state champion in Track and Field (Decathlon and High Jump) and SEC High Jump Champion and 2 time NCAA All-American and Captain of University of Tennessee SEC and NCAA Championship Track Teams 2001 - 2002 (4 titles during that time period). Tim was an avid Rock Climber after college (that is what brought him to CHA - V12 and 5.13c) then started Road Cycling in 2010 (cat 5 to cat 2 in 3 months). Tim was run over by a car in 2012 (and got into MTB more seriously). After that he started commentating events in 2013 (River Gorge crits, etc). Tim has now commentated on Hincapie Gran Fondos in multiple locations from ME, to PA, to SC, and of course here in CHA... Seven Bridges Marathon, Chattanooga Marathon, Chattanooga Chase, Cam Run 5k and Magnum Mile, Asheville Turkey Trot, Stump Jump 50k and 10 miler, TN State Cyclocross championships, and a number of criteriums around the south. We will do another show with Tim soon. He has so many great stories. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Russ Clune. Russ just completed his first book, "The Lifer". Russ shares parts of his book, discusses writing styles and shares stories of his travels and climbing from around the world. Russ is a rock climber living in the Shawangunk Mountains of New York. His articles have been published in multiple journals, including Climbing, Rock & Ice, Mountain, Alpinist, Der Bergsteiger, Iwa To Yuki, The Patagonia Catalog, and Urban Climber. Clune has been climbing for over forty-five years and was one of America’s best rock climbers during his peak in the 1980s; he is also one of the world’s most well-traveled rock climbers. Clune was part of the employee group that created the leading climbing-gear company, Black Diamond Equipment, where he worked for thirty years. He remains an active climber and continues to travel the globe seeking new adventures. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Dawson and Clint reach back into the Day Fire vault and share some of their favorite short stories with you! Some you may have forgotten and some you may have missed! Enjoy! The 1st story is from episode #46 with Rob Robinson talking about climbing! The 2nd story is from episode #100 with The Bargo Brothers! Story number 3 comes from episode #139 and Brad DeVaney talking about tire tread and Mars! The 4th story is from episode #122 and Carl Roundtree talking about Burning Man! Story 5 is from episode #134 with Jessica Howell-Edwards talking about The Cumberland Island. Our last story is from episode #93 with the Brad Miller who serves as the Elk Program Coordinator for the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency! Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Luke Swab. Luke just completed the famed TNGA bike race where he took a 3rd place finish. Luke may have been the only person to ride the route in "Jorts"; haha. With over 56,000 feet (17,000 meters) of climbing, the TNGA is physically demanding, to say the least. But it’s not all about the challenge. The route is an incredibly beautiful stitchwork of roads and trails that explore the southern heel of Appalachian Mountains. It traverses a variety of landscapes that include pristine hardwood forest, fern-lined waterfalls, rocky ridges, and stands of pine. The TNGA is at times very remote and offers riders the opportunity be fully immersed in the Appalachian wilderness. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Tab Tollett. Tab started road cycling in the mid 90s on up until the mid-2000s. Picked up mountain biking and almost immediately signed up for the Leadville 100 mountain bike race with a great group of guys. He did the Leadville 100 three times with two being on a single speed. From that point he did several other mountain bike races and stage races in Tennessee, North Carolina Georgia and Colorado. Also twice he did the La Ruta de Los Conquistador stage race in Costa Rica. It was all fun and good as a mid pack racer with the occasional surprised good result. Working full time and trying to train 12-14 hours a week to be reasonably competitive in my age group grew tiring and became stressful. He felt guilty training all of the time so in his early 50’s he hung up the bike. Later, Tab was lucky enough to secure a position on the Rock Creek All Mountain Team! He found this super motivating! At age 53 he signed up for a trail race in the Tennessee mountains called the Fiery Gizzard. It happened to fall on his 53rd birthday. He had never been a runner so he was starting from scratch. He figured he could get away with a lot less training hours and still stay in reasonably good shape. Then his daughter Camille, showed an interest in running and started cross country and track in high school. Since that first race in 2017, Camille and Tab have done a couple dozen half marathon-ish distance trail races together. It’s been a great father/daughter time being able to train and race together. Surprisingly, In early 2021 I had a stroke. Obviously this caught his family off guard because he has always been reasonably healthy, eats well and gets plenty of exercise. It was a setback but Tab recovered. Tab started training again as soon as his Doc gave him the go ahead. Tab says he has done well over 60 trail races so far to date. Tab is contemplating stepping up to the 50-100 mile distance for his 60th birthday in 2024. Tab has always enjoyed having destination races on the calendar. So this year he found a cool tour company (Vagabond Tours) that offered trail running tours on the UTMB course which is also called the Tour of Mont Blanc. It’s a huge hiking destination as well. His wife and daughter joined in and they trained hard for several months to prepare. They basically did the entire Mont Blanc Massif (UTMB/Tour Mont Blanc course) over six days which was a little over 106 miles with 34,000 feet of elevation gain and loss. They carried their hydration packs with foul weather gear, running poles, food, and water. The tour company moved their bags from one refugee to the next. From their start in Chamonix, they stopped overnight in several small towns throughout the week-long trail running tour. The tour covers three countries including France, Switzerland and Italy. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Luke Swab. Luke got his first dirt bike when he was 10, and when he was 12 he rode a Yamaha TW200 in Guyana South America. That started everything. He has ridden a motorcycle or moped in 35 different countries to date with traveling to 45 in total. Luke's first solo trip was in 2009 where he headed from Texas to the Panama canal. (He didn’t make it). The trip went viral on Advrider.com and people started sending money through Paypal to help fund the trip. In 2011 Luke rode from the southernmost point of Africa, Cape Agallius, to the northernmost point of Norway (Nordcape) Lots and Lots of breakdowns and logistical nightmares with border crossings. They had to sneak into Kenya and also Climbed Kilimanjaro. This story is "most of the podcast". Around 2016 Luke got hired by RoadRunner to do some blogging, which morphed into writing Magazine Articles, with them sending me to Japan for a two week trip. In 2019 Luke rode around Lake Superior with his Dad which was the most special trip he has ever taken. He wrote a story about it, and got his dad on the cover of Road Runner Magazine. A career highlight for sure. Luke and Cameron Mullinburg during 2019 through 2022 did many amazing trips out west. Cameron made epic videos of the trips and Luke was the photographer and writer. They are all available online https://www.roadrunner.travel/author/luke-swab/ Moab: White Rim Trail, Moab, Utah | Dual Sport Motorcycle Shamrock Tour® | RoadRUNNER Magazine Kalispell Montana - Kalispell, Montana | Glacier National Park Motorcycle Tour | RoadRUNNER Magazine Idaho Hot Spring Trip - Idaho Hot Springs Motorcycle Tour | RoadRUNNER Magazine Chattanooga Chattanooga, Tennessee | Shamrock Tour® | RoadRUNNER Magazine August 25th 2023, Luke flies to Alaska to work as a guide for MotoQuest for 3 weeks. https://www.motoquest.com/ Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Shannon Burke. Shannon founded Velo View Bike Tours in 2012 and originally offered tours all over the country before moving from Austin to Chattanooga in 2016 and narrowing his focus to the world-class cycling available in the Chattanooga tri-state region. In addition to providing custom tours in the region, Shannon produces the Cycle Sequatchie Century & 3 MtnChallenge bike ride in Dunlap, TN, (annually the first Saturday in October), and also runs Tennessee Gravel, which helps cyclists explore the gravel roads of the Cherokee National Forest through downloadable routes, bikepacking info, the Three Rivers Individual Time Trial Series, and the upcoming RELIANCE gravel grinder the last weekend in April 2024. If you are within driving distance to Chattanooga Tennessee you should come cycle this event. https://www.cyclesequatchie.com and check out this gravel two day race in 2024 in the Cherokee National Forest https://www.tennesseegravel.com/reliance Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sat down with Justin Shipp Founder and owner of Site Seven Custom Van Conversions. We talked about building a custom van for you. Considerations when designing the perfect build. How much space, showers, AC units, seating and where do all the toys go? We are also talking about things no one tells you about living out of a van. Trash, water, human waste O My, haha it's just part of it. Living or vacationing in a van this is a fun podcast. Site Seven is a custom van builder based in Chattanooga Tennessee. For more information go to https://www.sitesevencampers.com Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Coree Woltering who is a Rock/Creek Outfitters staff and Northface runner. Coree, who’s known by some as one of the #cornfieldcowboys, was born and raised in Ottawa, Illinois. He began his running career in the 400m and 800m distances and had his sights on becoming a professional triathlete, qualifying for the Ironman 70.3 World Championships twice. But before long, he discovered ultrarunning and became mesmerized by the idea of running 100 miles in the mountains. Coree took his frontier to the next level in 2015, where he won every trail 50k he signed up for that year. In 2016, he averaged a 6:36 per mile to win the Tunnel Hill 50. At 30 years old, he set the fastest known time (FKT) in 1,200-mile Ice Age Trail in Wisconsin. And then followed that up with that Pinhoti Trail FKT in 2021. He ended up loving the trail so much that he moved to the south! Most recently, Coree finished Western States 100. When Coree is not running, he is probably sitting on his balcony drinking a cup of coffee, or selling shoes at Rock Creek! Stop by Rock/Creek Outfitters on Manufactures Rd in Chattanooga Tn and get advice from Coree. Accomplishments: Ice Age Trail FKT (~1,200 miles), Pinhoti Trail FKT 349 miles, 2019 World’s Toughest Race Eco-Challenge Fiji, 2x 70.3 World Championship Finisher, 7x 100 mile finisher, 2:26 Chicago Marathon 2016, 5:30 Tunnel Hill 50 Mile 2016, 25 + Ultramarathon podium finishes. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Matt Schweiker. Matt joined us on episode 203 sharing his bike packing race adventure from the Silk Road. This week Matt is back from the Tour Divide bike race. Matt had an amazing performance and recorded a 18 day finish/result. "The Tour Divide is an annual mountain biking ride traversing the length of the Rocky Mountains, from Canada to the Mexican border. Following the 2,745-mile (4,418 km) Great Divide Mountain Bike Route, it is an ultra-distance cycling ride that is an extreme test of endurance, self-reliance and mental toughness. The ride format is strictly self-supported, and it is not a stage race - the clock runs continuously from the start until riders cross the finish line." Matt is an experienced ultra athlete and Litespeed Ambassador with many adventures successfully accomplished; such as touring trips in Western China, New Zealand, Africa and South America. Matt moved to Chattanooga in 2019 and began bikepack racing. Completed TNGA in 2020, Colorado Trail in 2021, Silk Road Mountain Race in 2022 to mention just a few races and events. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Rachel Durchslag. What motivates a person to leave the comforts of home and travel alone to hike the mountains of foreign lands? Find out as author Rachel Durchslag walks some of the most beautiful hikes in the world in search of adventure, meaning, and an expanded version of herself. We had a great time discussing her poignant, honest, and funny memoir-meets-travel guide, Rachel invites you to set foot with her on trails spanning the globe from Chile and Nepal to Jordan, Spain, and beyond. Join us and listen to Rachel share how she discovers solo travel in the great outdoors has the power to take you to your limit, test your resilience, and ultimately show you the person you’re capable of being. While I Walk includes comprehensive travel tips for each hike, as well as delicious recipes from the far-flung places Rachel has explored. This book is an invitation to any curious traveler to grab a pair of hiking boots, board a plane, and see what is waiting at the intersection of adventure and wonder. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Jason Vance. Jason has been riding bicycles for 40 years. He began racing in the late 90’s while at Oregon, focusing on track cycling. After moving to Nevada to pursue graduate studies, He was introduced to MTB’ing by a colleague and would eventually abandon all skinny-tired aspirations. An academic position would bring him to Charleston SC; after navigating the hurdles of tenure (and addressing his neglected health), He fell in love with the rugged trails in Pisgah Forest. Through chance encounters, he stumbled upon the southeast ultra-endurance community in 2018, via Eric Wever’s Pisgah 36, Kim Jordan Murrell’s Dirty 130, and Karlos Rodriguez Bernart’s Cross Florida ITT. He soon found himself craving long miles across the beautiful forest roads and trails of western NC, Tennessee, Florida and Georgia -and any chance he is forced to take a 30 minute nap in the dirt. Currently, he is first to ride all of the ITT's in the Cherokee forest in 3 days. First to do all three on an single speed. First to do the Mountain 430 in the opposite direction. And the first to do the Dirty 130 in the opposite direction. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Dawson and Clint dig through the 2023 episodes and pull out a handful of their favorite stories to reshare with you! Enjoy! Story 1 - Episode 198 Ghost Fireflies with Catey McClary from the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont! This was so cool and we should all plan on going to see it if possible! Story 2 - Episode 202 Rigging and Cameras for the Olympics with Chris Watford! There is WAY more that goes into it than we thought! Story 3 - Episode 200 with Ben Friberg! Ben has traveled the world. This story is about his trip to Papua New Guinea and asking the Shaman the meaning of life! It's all about the translation in this story! Story 4 - Episode 199 with Kim Smith came on Day Fire to talk about caving and this story centers around access and best practices! Story 5 - Episode 191 The Great Western Loop with Nick "Chezwick" Gagnon! Skydiving and LSD - that is all that needs to be said! Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Joe Royer. Joe resides in Memphis and is the co-owner of Outdoors, Inc., which was founded 1974. Joe was a member of the U.S. Canoe and Kayak team in the late 60's and 70's, and is a world traveler, an adventurer and a lifelong cyclist. All these experiences influenced Joe’s vision for better access and inclusion for parks and recreation. Joe has volunteered on non-profit boards such as Tennessee Parks & Greenways Foundation (TN Green), Tennessee Environmental Council, Mississippi River Trail, Wolf River Conservancy, Friends of Shelby Farms, and Greater Memphis Green Line. His efforts, along with his business partner, Lawrence Migliara, have been instrumental in establishing Memphis's annual Canoe and Kayak Race on the Mississippi River. In addition, Outdoor, Inc. has acted as host for the longest-running cyclocross race in the country that is now a gravel bike race. Joe is a champion for the outdoor industry and for Memphis. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This Week Clint and Dawson sit down with Camila Simon. Camilla is the Executive Director for HECHO. She is passionate about elevating Latino voices in local, state and national conservation efforts, especially when it comes to accessing public lands. Since she joined HECHO in November 2014, she has worked to broaden the definition of a conservationist, and elevate the importance of Hispanic/Latino generational ties to the land and what that knowledge can add to public policy debates around access to the outdoors and conservation of land, water, and air for future generations. To support this, she has led many advocacy efforts that brought Hispanic/Latino perspectives to the forefront of national conservation campaigns. Camilla also has cultivated a prolific guest blog series featuring Hispanic/Latino stories of connection to the outdoors, stewardship of natural resources for future generations, and conservation leadership. In 2018, Camilla was instrumental in envisioning and forming a mutually beneficial partnership between HECHO and the National Wildlife Federation to collaborate authentically and intentionally lift up our aligned conservation missions and shared values in order to build an inclusive and equitable conservation movement—one that engages all communities in protecting the natural world for future generations. Through this partnership, Camilla is leading HECHO through the joint development and implementation of collaborative projects with the Federation family that bring financial resources, build capacity, and increase visibility for Hispanic/Latino conservation leaders across the nation. Prior to joining HECHO, Camilla managed the distribution of over $20 million annually in conservation funds at a major foundation, aimed at increasing the capacity of local, regional, and national nonprofits. She also started the foundation’s first composting program to dramatically reduce landfill waste. She has also worked on a number of programs to connect children with nature. Camilla graduated from Pacific University in Oregon with a degree in creative writing and literature; and then summa cum laude in environmental law and policy from Vermont Law School. From 2014-2021, she served as Treasurer of the board of the nonprofit Southern Appalachian Wilderness Stewards, which provides trail maintenance jobs, teaches traditional tool skills to new generations of stewards, and assists the recreating public. In 2020, she was appointed to the Virginia Board of Conservation and Recreation. Camilla lives in Virginia with her husband and two daughters, and is enjoying getting to know the outdoors on the East Coast after living most of her life in the west. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Cassandra Riddle. Cassandra's list of accomplishments, talants, and hobbies is impressive. Yet she also has suffered from Cystic Fibrosis all her life but wasn't diagnosed until last year. Cassandra was an international opera singer and performed all over the world. She was based out of NYC in the 90's and early 2000's, and in 1997 won an Emmy award. At the height of her career, she retired for new challenges and began to run marathons, triathlons and became a talented rock climber. She has climbed both here in the United States as well as internationally. In fact, she just returned from a climbing trip in Greece. She also owned a business that focused on private sport-specific training. She has been a music director for a private school and even taught motorcycle safety. Recently she received a Masters degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and now works as a Mental Health Counselor at UTC. How does anyone do so many amazing things, much less do all this with Cystic Fibrosis? Listen to this episode and you will realize that Cassandra is no ordinary person! Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

This week Clint and Dawson sit down with Bill Hodge. Bill became the Montana State Director for The Wilderness Society in January of 2023 after serving four years as the Executive Director of the Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation. This role withThe Wilderness Society is his second tour with the organization. During Bill’s first term he started the ground-breaking organization Southern Appalachian Wilderness Stewards (AKA -SAWS). Bill has spent the last 15 years fighting for the preservation and stewardship of some of America’s wildest public lands. From deep in the backcountry to the halls of Congress, Bill has been a champion of the National Wilderness Preservation System. He was the recipient of the Bob Marshall Award for Wilderness Stewardship from the United States Forest Service in 2013 and was recognized by the White House as a Champion of Change for building the next generation of conservation leaders in 2014. Prior to his work in conservation Bill was the Chief Marketing Officer of Action Sports Media and had spent 20 years in broadcasting and college athletics. Bill currently serves on the Board of the National Wilderness Stewardship Alliance. Bill and his wife, Laura, call the Flathead Valley of northwest Montana home. Thanks for listening! Find all our episodes at dayfirepodcast.com This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm