Brian Metzler has been writing about running, in one form or another, for the better part of the last 25 years. From his early days pitching stories in Boulder, to having his work appear in almost every major outdoor publication, his writing has always stuck close to the roads and trails he’s passionate about running on himself. His latest book, Trail Running Illustrated: The Art of Running Free (which he co-authored with Doug Mayer), captures the playful side of trail running through illustration while also offering helpful advice for runners of all levels. It’s a genre-bending book with an interesting backstory, so we talked to Brian about how it all came together; his writing (and running) career, being a running shoe geek; and much more.
TOPICS & TIMES:
- Brian’s background (1:05)
- Connecting writing & running (4:31)
- Avoiding burnout in Boulder (9:51)
- Trail shoe trends (15:50)
- Lessons from >2,000 shoe reviews (18:36)
- Kicksology: The Hype, Science, Culture, & Cool of Running Shoes (26:57)
- Trail Running Illustrated: The Art of Running Free (32:25)
- “A graphic novel for trail runners” (34:53)
- Brian’s book recommendations (39:07)
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