The race director for Shasta Trail Runs, Ryan Spitz, sat down with us to talk all things trail running. He has a long history in athletics, but it wasn't until a few years ago when he got talked into running a marathon without any training that he got the running bug. He moved into triathlon charging all the way to the Ironman. Loving the grind of long events, he eventually found trail running and hasn't looked back.
He moved his family to Redding, CA where the opportunity to buy Shasta Trail Runs fell into his lap. He snatched it up and has transformed it from a small set of local races into a growing collection of races that he hopes to make a splash on the trail running scene.
We go into what it's like to develop and organize these races. He talked about his vision for the future and how he reacted to the Carr Fire closing trails and the races held on them.
We touch on some big plans for future races including a race starting in Arcata and finishing at Mt. Shasta. Approximately 330+ miles! He's also developing a course that circumnavigates Mt. Shasta itself.
It's exciting times to be a trail runner with new trails being created and people like Ryan Spitz fighting for access to hold these events on them.
