Dirtbag Diaries Goes Plus

One of my favorite outdoor podcasts extends their product offering by adding a ‘member level’ tier. Several podcast, not just in the outdoor space, have moved into that direction with sponsors leaving the space and creators opting to finance their projects through the community.

In one of the newest episodes titled ‘Race Day’ they dive into trail racing:

Chances are at some point you’ve signed up for an organized race or event. Maybe you’ve participated in a local turkey trot or maybe you’ve run Western States. You register, pay the entry fee, train, show up and try hard. Race day can almost feel like magic. This is a story about the people behind the scenes making all that magic happen.

This feels like a sign that trail running and trail racing is not just becoming more mainstream but through this gaining a bit more adoption by the classic ‘dirt bags’. My take has always been that trail running, and especially racing has been sort of at odds with the ‘John Muir’ mindset of outdoor lovers of the West, who are out there to seek untouched wilderness and solitude. Inviting conversations about organized trail races into the mix of the classic adventure stories is big.