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If you run or follow the ultramarathon world, you know who Harvey Lewis is. For the uninitiated, Harvey is a 15-time Badwater 135 finisher, including winning it in 2014 in 23:52:55 and in 2021 in 25:50:23, a time he almost matched this year at age 50. He is a backyard ultra recordholder by running 108 yards, which is 450 miles over 4½ days, at Big Dog’s Backyard Ultra. He is a worldwide running traveler adventurer, activist, vegan champion, and schoolteacher in Cincinnati who notably run-commutes to work. OK, that is the short list. And he is well-known as one of the truly nice guys in the sport. If you are watching this on the WASP YouTube channel, you can see Harvey in his other natural habitat, in his classroom wearing a shirt and tie. This wide-ranging episode follows a different format in that I gathered questions from runners that I posed to Harvey. Harvey had just returned from running the Last Soul Ultra in Germany, so many of the questions came from a run club over there that my good friend Artem Bituzki runs with. We cover everything from how he pulls off his run commuting, his sleep patterns during his backyard ultras, his recent 250 mile run from New York City to Washington, DC to highlight the civil rights in American history that was lost when the Treasury department changed the coin designs issued to commemorate the U.S.’s 250th anniversary, why he keeps going back to Badwater, and a lot more. If you wonder how Harvey has stayed ailment-free through all of these extreme competitions, he attributes much of it to his vegan diet. He gives the best explanation about why he is still a vegan, and all of the positives that diet has for animal welfare, the environment, and the planet in general. I loved that because he perfectly hit the nail on the head with his very logical and compassionate points, which are also the reasons I’ve embraced that diet, along with simply feeling great and more energetic. I greatly appreciate Harvey sharing so many tips with our listeners, and making this a really fun chat.

Harvey Lewis

Instagram @harveylewisultrarunner

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Bill Stahl
silly_billy@msn.com
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Instagram and Threads @stahlor and @coachstahl
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Witness the birth of a new performance fuel called Raw Spark Energy. Through pure serendipity, I met Ryan Hanlon near the finish line of Boulderthon, where he was handing passing runners free samples of his Raw Spark Energy bar. Ryan is an entrepreneurial 21-year-old who has spent hours in the kitchen tinkering with ingredients to come up with an all-natural fuel made from actual whole food ingredients. It consists of honey, dates, oats, agave, chia seeds, lemon juice and zest, tapioca, and sea salt, and I can tell you that it tastes pretty darn great. Each package weighs in at 120 calories, including 28g of carbs. It’s rather fascinating listening to Ryan describe how he’s tweaked the recipe and his production techniques. Of course, his next steps lean heavily on getting these into athletes’ hands and stomachs through marketing. If you’re a local athlete, hit him up at rawspark@gmail.com and perhaps you two can come up with a partnership. This is a young man’s cool startup story and it has me pulling to see him succeed in the fast-growing endurance sports marketplace.

Ryan Hanlon

rawspark.com

rawspark@gmail.com

Instagram @rawspark.energy and ryanhanlon_2

Bill Stahl
silly_billy@msn.com
Facebook and LinkedIn Bill Stahl
Instagram and Threads @stahlor and @coachstahl
YouTube We Are Superman Podcast

Subscribe to our Substack for my archive of articles of coaching tips developed from my more than three decades of experience, wild and funny stories from my long coaching career, the wit and wisdom of David, and highlights of some of the best WASP episodes from the past that I feel are worthwhile giving another listen.

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Register for the American Heroes Run: https://ultrasignup.com/register.aspx?did=133138

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Colorado is known as a hotbed for running talent, and here’s an emerging star who accomplished something pretty extraordinary this summer. With cross country season upon us – my team’s first meet is this weekend – I want to introduce you to Golden High School’s Jackson Ferguson. Jackson had a very, very solid year as a sophomore, including finishing fourth at the State 5A Cross Country Championships, notching a 5K PR of 14:49.33 while finishing 12th at the Nike Southwest Regional cross country meet, and lowering his time in the 3200 meters by 30 seconds from his freshman year to 9:11.09 and placing second at the State track meet. Jackson parlayed all of that to be chosen for a spot on the USA team at the International U18 Mountain Racing Cup, a 4.6K competition in Gagliano del Capo in southern Italy on a rugged course with 191 meters of vertical gain that had many others at times hiking with their hands on their thighs. Competing against teams from 16 other countries, and despite getting knocked down in the first 100 meters, 16-year-old Jackson came away with the victory. Oh, did I mention that this was Jackson’s very first trail race? Jackson then parlayed that into another big win, notching the gold medal at the National High School Trail Championships in Salida, CO by 28 seconds in a very strong 31:39 for 5.4 miles. Jackson is a super nice guy who does a great job talking about this rather unique first international racing experience, as well as what it was like to duke it out this year with some of the big names in Colorado high school running, and what his hopes are for his next couple of years of high school and beyond.

Jackson Ferguson

Instagram @jackson_fergy

Bill Stahl
silly_billy@msn.com
Facebook and LinkedIn Bill Stahl
Instagram and Threads @stahlor and @coachstahl
YouTube We Are Superman Podcast

Subscribe to our Substack for my archive of articles of coaching tips developed from my more than three decades of experience, wild and funny stories from my long coaching career, the wit and wisdom of David, and highlights of some of the best WASP episodes from the past that I feel are worthwhile giving another listen.

Search either We Are Superman Podcast or @billstahl8

Register for the American Heroes Run: https://ultrasignup.com/register.aspx?did=133138