Curtis Hargrove is the first Canadian to join the Finish Lines & Milestones podcast. When I saw a video of Curtis running Chicago in heels I knew I had to meet him.

During this episode, sponsored by Pure Fuel and Cure Hydration, we talk about:

• Where Curtis is from in Cold Lake, Alberta, Canada (recording during extreme -49°F conditions)
• His work as a derrickhand on a service rig with 12-14 hour shifts
• How he completed the Chicago Marathon in red high heels - not his first time in elevated footwear
• That he'll only run in heels again if using Sneex (Sara Blakely's running shoe heels) for Run DV Out of Town at Chicago 2025
• How he's completed 310 marathons since starting at age 15
• His fundraising of $50K honoring his grandfather and Terry Fox
• Surviving a dangerous party scene period before reclaiming himself by running across Canada in 2012
• Walking 185 miles in 10 days wearing 4-inch heels just two weeks after his Canada journey, raising $15K for YWCA
• Why he's participating in the 2025 Boston Marathon for the Boston Bulldogs Running Club supporting addiction recovery DONATE HERE
• His 2025 plans: 3 marathons across 3 countries within 13 days and 5 of 7 World Major Marathons.. and a 100 miler... and more!
• Attempting a 100-mile race while intoxicated, running 7 hours before DNF'ing, and seeking redemption this October
• What his training and nutrition regimen involves
• When he won $6K playing Guitar Hero

This is a SandyBoy Productions podcast.

Lisa Hursthas been running and raising money for Indy's belovedHolliday Park for 25 years.

During this episode, sponsored byBarilla Protein + Pasta andAthlete Bouquets, we talk about:

• The Holliday Park Trail Run (3/15 and 3/15)
• How she started dabbling in running after her favorite workout place closed
• Joining a training group for her first half marathon at the Indy Mini before turning 41
• Her unique experience of completing a trail marathon before ever running a road marathon
• Getting involved in theTransRockies Run and preparing forRun the Rocks in Moab with a women's group
• The family business,N.K. Hurst Beans, and saving a 100-year-old building in downtown Indy
• Meeting her husband of 44 years during college Spring Break
• Sharing a connection through running at Lake Wawasee in Syracuse, IN
• Her role as grandmother "GoGo" and running her granddaughter, Mia's, first half marathon at theMonumental Marathon last year
• Her British heritage and father's running background
• Creating a woman's hiking group at age 40
• Insights from over four decades of marriage
• Her passion for gardening
• The history and significance of Holliday Park's ruins

Register for the Holliday Park Trail Run here.

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Dena Lewis is an avid endurance athlete despite not lacing up her running shoes until later in life.

**This episode does talk about assault and may be triggering for some.**

During this episode, sponsored by Barilla Protein + Pasta and Athlete Bouquets, we talk about:

• The fact that she runs 10-12 miles a day, 6 days a week

• The SNOW they got on the beach in the Florida panhandle and what that was like

• How she didn’t become a serious runner until later in life - about 21 years ago

• The non-traditional sports her kids chose

• Some of the races she’s done - a Ragnar in Hawaii, a triathlon after an encounter with a GREAT WHITE SHARK, Key West bridge run, her Thanksgiving Day tradition, Disney races, Rock ‘N’ Roll

• Her career in medical device sales, as a stay at home mom, and a 4X entrepreneur

• The not one, but two times she’s been assaulted while running and the story behind Running Mate, “Uber for runners” created to keep women runners safe

  
  

  This is a SandyBoy Productions podcast.

Michael Douglass has been running for decades. After listening to David Goggins on a podcast, he decided to take his running to an entirely different level and sign up for a 100 mile race.

During this episode, sponsored by Barilla Protein+ Pasta and Athlete Bouquets, we talk about:

- The temptation to address him as "Your Honor" throughout our conversation

- His two-decade journey as a recreational runner, primarily focused on personal fitness rather than races

- The unique lunchtime running community he's formed with fellow legal professionals

- Breaking ground as his immediate family's first college graduate and attorney

- Discovering and building relationships with his biological father's relatives later in life

- Taking on the Philadelphia Marathon in 2024 as his first (and only) 26.2

- Finding inspiration in David Goggins' philosophy, which propelled him to register for a 100-miler

- The dedicated support system that rallied around him

- His determination to push through mile 86, declining medical treatment

- What it felt like to cross the finish line

- A glimpse into his musical past, including opening a show for the Foo Fighters

This is a SandyBoy Productions podcast.

Joe Hardin is an ultra-marathoner, writer for RunTriBike, fellow podcast host (Beyond the Finish Line) and lives in Indiana.

During this episode, sponsored by Athlete Bouquets, we talk about:

His sobriety birthday and how his family celebrates it more than his actual birthday

The impact the pandemic had on him as he was newly sober

His upbringing that was divided between his military father and single mom

When he tried to join the military and follow in his dad’s footsteps but he couldn’t because he has asthma

His short stint in college after high school and finding a job in trade

Cassie, the mother of his kids and woman he’s married twice

The night he put down his last drink

How he got into woodworking and started his business, HT Hardwood Designs

His weight-loss journey that started the day after his first sobriety birthday

The first race he ever did at 38 years old, a Thanksgiving 5K, the Gravy Chase

Finding his way to the Prairie on Fire backyard ultra and running his first ultra marathon (link to the John Kuhn film)

The weirdest thing he’s eaten during an ultra marathon

His IT100 miler DNF (did not finish) and PSA to wear bug spray to help avoid getting Lyme disease

Hallucinating during an ultra and what he thought he saw (it’s so random)

RunTriBike and Joe’s friendship with the founders, Aum Gandhi (EP12) and Jason Bahamundi

This is a SandyBoy Productions podcast.

Betsy Mikel and I have known each other for over a decade because of our shared running hobby. But she is way cooler than I am. During this episode, sponsored by Athlete Bouquets, we talk about:

How we met through a mutual running friend (Kim Bowers) that I met through a running friend (Celina Bourgeois)

Her marathon PR at the Philadelphia Marathon and the fact that I was somehow her good luck charm

The 2024 Chicago Marathon, her 10th marathon and her first postpartum marathon, and the other Chicago marathons she’s run

How her son, Otto, was born on Chicago Marathon weekend, making it an even more special weekend for her

Her experience working with a sports nutritionist, Lydia Nader

Three Run Two, her Chicago running group

How interesting of a relationship it is to be running buddies with someone

How she got into running marathons in the first place (her first when she was 18)

Fueling for races and using Gatorade patches to measure sweat rate

Other race stories - St. Louis, Big Cottonwood, Philadelphia, Twin Cities

How she has no aspirations to run the New York City Marathon

How she knew she was going to be writer since she was a little girl

The fact that she grew up in a historic house built by the same architect who designed Chicago’s first skyscraper

The memoir she’s writing and how similar it feels to running a marathon

Her world travels before and after having her son, Otto

How she loves her Asics

Podcast episode Betsey mentioned - You're Wrong About with Rosie Ruiz

This is a SandyBoy Productions podcast.

Kallie Bonnell has been a friend of mine for a long time. We got closer during a Ragnar Relay adventure in September 2024. Read my recap here.

During this episode, sponsored by Athlete Bouquets, we talk about:

• How I roped Kallie into joining my Ragnar team because she is a yes person when it comes to new experiences

• The story of when we thought the battery on our Ragnar van died overnight

• Getting through her last leg of the race even though it sucked

• Her upbringing in a small farm town in Northern Indiana

• How her and some college friends came up with their own Little “Little” 500 at Indiana University that involved a stationary bike and alcohol

• Training for her first half marathon in 2009

• Calling off a wedding less than 30 days before the actual wedding and using running to get through it

• Losing her mom unexpectedly and not being able to move or run at all

• The car accident that happened the night before we were doing the Rock ‘n’ Roll Vegas half marathon (and how we both peed our pants)

• Her three knee surgeries in three years

• Traveling for fun and for work (she’s been to Russia and has a Russian visa)

• Why she doesn’t do the dating apps anymore (she’s looking for actual dates and someone with a passport, people!)

This is a SandyBoy Productions podcast.

Matt Ebersole is a staple in the Indianapolis running community and beyond. Thus why I introduce him as THE Matt Ebersole.

During this episode, sponsored by Athlete Bouquets, we talk about:

- How PBT (Personal Best Training) got the color of their singlets

- The fact that he’s from Northern Indiana (Fort Wayne) and wanted to play football but ended up running instead

- His first race, a local 15K on September 1, 1980

- When he was in cross country and the worst on the team

- How his career started with Finish Line in Atlanta

- Meeting Coach Roy Benson in Atlanta and how that changed the trajectory of his life

- Taking the leap and taking PBT full time

- His own PRs (all in the rain) and his high sweat rate

- Dropping out of a race - how he refers to it as a “disease”

- The team dynamic of PBT

- What he does when an athlete is heartbroken at the end of a race

- His thoughts on athletes chasing a Boston Marathon qualifying time

- Celebrating success and firing athletes

- Diversity in the sport of running and coaching Robert Jackson

- The elite athlete recruitment he does for Beyond Monumental (CNO Indianapolis Monumental Marathon)

- His interview with Olympic Champion, Cole Hocker, at the Monumental expo

- Becoming a grandpa for the first time!

This is a SandyBoy Productions podcast.