Distance To Empty

FLAGSTAFF BOUND is BACK for 2026!

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⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Janji.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and be sure to select 'podcast' > 'Distance to Empty' on the post purchase "How did you hear about Janji" page. Thank you!

EPISODE DESCRIPTION
They grew up in Italy, moved to New York City at 24, and now live in Prescott, Arizona — which means they will be one of the rare Cocodona 250 runners who passes through their own hometown during the race. They spent most of their life as a swimmer and volleyball player who genuinely hated running. Two and a half years ago, something clicked.
In this episode of Flagstaff Bound, Kevin and Peter sit down with Fra Balbi; runner, community builder, and founder of TNBThrive, for one of the most meaningful conversations in the series. Fra talks about what it felt like to show up to Flagstaff Crest last year as the only nonbinary runner registered across all distances, why they ran with a sign that said "trans athletes belong everywhere," and what the finish line moment was that made them realize wanting it wasn't enough. They had to build something.
That something is TNBThrive; an organization working to make organized sport more accessible to trans and nonbinary people, starting with running. Fra talks about what they've learned from Trail Sisters and Native Women Running as models, what race directors can do right now to make races more welcoming, and why organized sport is one of the most powerful mental health interventions available to a community that is currently under sustained attack.
Cocodona 250 kicks off Monday, May 4th at 5 AM Pacific. Follow the action live on the Mountain Outpost YouTube channel.

FLAGSTAFF BOUND is BACK for 2026!

Become a Distance to Empty subscriber!: https://www.patreon.com/DistancetoEmptyPod

Code IRON at www.goodranchers.com and mention us in the post purchase survey!

Get some free DTE Swag by supporting out sponsors!
Check out Mount to Coast here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mounttocoast.com/discount/Distance⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Janji.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and be sure to select 'podcast' > 'Distance to Empty' on the post purchase "How did you hear about Janji" page. Thank you!

She represented Great Britain in the marathon at the European Athletics Championships and the Commonwealth Games, then decided that wasn't hard enough. She ran UTMB, TDS, Comrades, and the Annapurna Circuit solo. Last year she ran 300 miles from Los Angeles to Las Vegas at The Speed Project and finished second among all solo women — partly through a heat wave, partly running out of water in the desert, partly navigating on her own with an RV that couldn't go off-road.
Now she's coming to Arizona for her first Cocodona 250.
In this episode of Flagstaff Bound, Kevin and Peter sit down with Holly Stables, elite marathoner turned ultrarunner, co-founder of RushByNature, and co-host of the Running Won't Save You podcast, for a conversation about what happens when you can't go faster and start going further instead. Holly talks about the arc from running the same marathon time over and over again to eventually just wanting to do something completely different, what she learned navigating 300 miles of the American Southwest with almost no support, and what excites and terrifies her about a race that's actually organized, has aid stations, and goes somewhere on a marked course.
She's contractually obligated to play in the Mingus Basketball Association. It's in her sponsorship agreement. She knows this.
Cocodona 250 kicks off Monday, May 4th at 5 AM Pacific. Follow the action live on the Mountain Outpost YouTube channel.

FLAGSTAFF BOUND is BACK for 2026!

Become a Distance to Empty subscriber!: https://www.patreon.com/DistancetoEmptyPod

Code IRON at www.goodranchers.com and mention us in the post purchase survey!

Get some free DTE Swag by supporting out sponsors!
Check out Mount to Coast here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mounttocoast.com/discount/Distance⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Janji.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and be sure to select 'podcast' > 'Distance to Empty' on the post purchase "How did you hear about Janji" page. Thank you!

Last year she organized her entire race plan by fictional universe. It was Galaxy Quest to start, Dune through the desert, Game of Thrones when it was time to race. It ended up being pure Mad Max the whole way through.
She's back. This year the theme is Cocodona the Musical.
In this episode of Flagstaff Bound, Kevin sits down solo with Allison Powell — returning ultrarunner, storyteller, coach, Montana community builder, and Jeff Garmire's fiancée — for one of the most fun conversations in the series. Allison talks about what last year actually looked like out there when the weather came in and survival mode took over, why she's ditching the multi-universe structure this year in favor of one overarching theme of whimsy, and what it means to race the same 250-mile race as your partner while keeping everything completely separate — different crews, different bubbles, different tents the night before.
She also talks about the Montana chapter of Women in Ultrarunning, why she's running for Runners for Public Lands this year, and what getting more women to the start line of races like Cocodona actually requires.
Her chalkboard message at Mingus is about Air Bud. She has opposable thumbs. She can do this.
Cocodona 250 kicks off Monday, May 4th at 5 AM Pacific. Follow the action live on the Mountain Outpost YouTube channel.

FLAGSTAFF BOUND is BACK for 2026!

Become a Distance to Empty subscriber!: https://www.patreon.com/DistancetoEmptyPod

Code IRON at www.goodranchers.com and mention us in the post purchase survey!

Get some free DTE Swag by supporting out sponsors!
Check out Mount to Coast here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mounttocoast.com/discount/Distance⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Janji.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and be sure to select 'podcast' > 'Distance to Empty' on the post purchase "How did you hear about Janji" page. Thank you!

She came to Cocodona 2024 burnt out on running, couldn't run in the two months leading up to the race, cross-trained her way to the start line, showed up with zero expectations, and finished on the podium. Then she signed up for the entire Triple Crown — Tahoe, Bigfoot, and Moab — and broke the women's record by 29 hours. She is back for Cocodona 2026, and for the first time she gets to actually arrive before the race starts.
In this episode of Flagstaff Bound, Kevin and Peter sit down with Manuela Vilaseca — yoga teacher, Brazilian, Barcelona-based, and somehow one of the most decorated 200-mile runners in the world despite training on 20-kilometer runs and flying across three time zones to get to her races. Manu talks about what changed in her relationship with running — from obligation to opportunity — and what it feels like to come back to a race knowing you did it right the first time and still having plenty left to find. She talks about the sleep experiments she ran throughout the Triple Crown, what she's correcting this year, and why arriving a full week early feels like a genuine luxury.
She also has absolutely no confidence in her basketball game.
Cocodona 250 kicks off Monday, May 4th at 5 AM Pacific. Follow the action live on the Mountain Outpost YouTube channel.

Become a Distance to Empty subscriber!: https://www.patreon.com/DistancetoEmptyPod

Code IRON at www.goodranchers.com and mention us in the post purchase survey!

Get some free DTE Swag by supporting out sponsors!
Check out Mount to Coast here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mounttocoast.com/discount/Distance⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Janji.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and be sure to select 'podcast' > 'Distance to Empty' on the post purchase "How did you hear about Janji" page. Thank you!
Kevin and Peter take the podcast out of the studio and onto the course for the first time, recording live during the Badwater Salton Sea race. In this experimental field episode, you'll hear clips captured throughout the race stitched together into a full audio journey. Back in the studio a few days post-finish, Kevin and Peter recap how they're recovering, tease some of the highlights (including a missed vomit recording), and preview what's coming up fast — Peter has the Cocodona 250 Brute just days away. They also cover the upcoming shakeout run at Deep Canyon Ranch, how to snag a free MBA shirt at Cocodona, and the Mets absolutely falling apart.