Samples of Articles
The samples below show the variety of my articles’ topics, format and style. (Scroll down for examples of UltraRunnerPodcast.com episodes I co-hosted and recommend.)
“I had the privilege of working with Sarah on many of her articles for Trail Runner magazine during my time as Associate Editor there. She is an exceptionally talented writer with a knack for generating wonderful, human-interest story ideas and seeing them through. Having met Sarah in person as well, I can say that her friendliness, warmth and ability to connect with others has no doubt helped establish her as an inspiring figure and knowledgeable authority in the trail-running community. Sarah’s work ethic, sense of responsibility and attention to detail are much appreciated, too!” – Yitka Winn
“Sarah Lavender Smith has long been one of trail running’s finest and most insightful writers, and her first book, The Trail Runner’s Companion, ties everything together for all trail runners, from newbies to veterans and all abilities in between.” – John Trent, longtime ultrarunner, race director, Western States Endurance Run board member and award-winning sportswriter
“West End Renaissance”: Feature for Telluride Magazine, with first-person voice, taking a deep dive into the history, economy and culture of a struggling working-class region in between Telluride and the Utah border. (Summer 2021)
“High Drama at the High Lonesome 100”: Race report for UltraRunning Magazine about a 100-miler in Colorado that had an unforgettable ending. (August 2021)
“Coronavirus Hits a Colorado Trail-Running Family”: First-person feature in Trail Runner magazine about the gut-wrenching experience of being hospitalized for COVID-19 at the onset of the pandemic. (April 2020)
“Choice Cuts“: Profile for Telluride Magazine of entrepreneur Sadie Farrington, who opened and operates a butchery to promote more sustainable, locally sourced meat eating. (Summer 2020)
“More than a Job: A Profile of Western States 100 Race Director Craig Thornley“: An in-depth feature for iRunFar.com about the life of ultrarunner Craig Thornley and how he took the helm of the iconic Western States Endurance Run. (June 2020)
“Know Your Motivators”: In my column for UltraRunning, I examine the pitfalls of running a 100-mile ultra “just for fun.” (March 2021)
“Of the Heart and Mind: Nick and Jade de la Rosa’s Journey“: An in-depth profile of a couple at the top of ultrarunning until hit by a serious heart condition and mental illness. (November 2019)
“A Marathon Can Rev Up Your Ultrarunning”: First-person column in which I compare ultrarunning and road marathoning to different vehicle types, and I try to embrace the more rugged, “truck-like” runner I’ve become. (May 2019)
“Hoofing It”: First-person column on training my horse to be a trail-running partner, which injects excitement into an otherwise mundane training run. (April 2018)
“Old School Hero”: An in-depth profile of legendary runner and race director Scotty Mills, who ran his first ultra in 1981 and became a mentor to many. (April 2018)
“Starting Over Again”: My column on how a familiar path and an old friend bring relief from disappointment and anxiety. (January 2018)
“What It Takes to be An Ultrarunner”: My essential advice to successfully—and happily—graduate from shorter-distance running to ultras. (May 2017)
“Three Strategies to Finish Fast In Your Next Trail Race”: A coaching column with advice on how to be “a closer” in a challenging trail race. (August 2017)
“How to Know Mid-Ultra Whether to Tough It Out or Quit”: This article for the UK site RunUltra opens with first-person narrative and gives advice on whether to drop out or persist in an ultra. (June 2017)
“Mountain Outpost: The Jackass of Ultrarunning”: Profile of the guys behind an irreverent and informative YouTube hit show. (April 2017)
“A Trail Runner’s Resolutions”: Humorous column on six habits to break for the new year. (January 2017)
“Get to the Starting Line Stress-Free”: My tips for getting to the starting line to optimize chances for reaching race-day goals. (August 2017)
“Five Ways to Know if a Stage Race Is For You”: Back-to-back long runs plus camping make for an unforgettable ultra experience. But it takes a certain kind of person to enjoy it. (March 2017)
“Avoid the Crew Snafu”: How to assemble the right crew to run your best ultramarathon and avoid a DNF. (February 2017)
“Is Running a Threat to Your Relationship?” This in-depth feature combines first-person writing with interviews from couples and counselors to recognize and resolve conflict over one partner’s passion for running. (June 2015)
“The Injury Games” feature on coping with the psychological impacts of long-term running-related injuries. (October 2014)
“From War and Addiction to a 100K: One Soldier’s Rebirth as a Trail Runner,” an in-depth profile of a veteran with PTSD and substance abuse who attempts an extremely challenging ultramarathon. (April 2016)
“Math On the Run”: How it feels to make major calculations in a high-stakes 100-mile race on the way to reaching a goal. (October 2016)
“The Ultra of Lotteries,” a first-person column on the long odds and high tension at the Western States Endurance Run lottery (April 2016)
“You’ve Run a Long Way, Baby,” my column about striving to be a better role model to my daughter than my mother was to me. (June 2016)
“Reality Check,” first-person essay on running the Grand to Grand Ultra—an extreme lifestyle challenge as well as test of endurance. (February 2015)
“The Man Behind Ultramarathon Man,” cover story profiling Dean Karnazes and how he became the biggest celebrity in the sport (January 2012)
“Friends for Miles,” first-person column about a “long-running” friendship through life’s milestones with my pacer (January 2016)
“What Makes a Trail Run”: First-person essay about persevering through a 24-hour event on a flat one-mile loop course while contemplating trail running and observing the day in the life of a place (October 2015)
“What Every Trail Runner Should Know About Iron Deficiency,” a health article explaining nutritional imbalances and other factors that can cause anemia (August 2015)
“A Trail-Running Treasure Hunt”: A first-person introduction to the sport of “rogaine” (Rugged Organized Group Activity Involving Navigation and Endurance) experienced in New Zealand (February 2015)
“Fear the Worst”: How an off-the-radar, impromptu short trail race delivered enough joy and triumph to soften the blow of an earlier failure. (March 2019)
“Van Of My Dreams,” first-person humorous essay and an example of the “Last Gasp” column I write for Trail Runner every other issue (Aug. 2014)
“No Mountains, No Problem”: how to train for trails in the heart of a city (Dec. 2015)
“From Top Model to Top Ultrarunner,” profile of Italian athlete and former model Michele Graglia and his personal transformation (Aug. 2014)
“The Journey of ‘Kiwi Paul'”: Profile of ultrarunner and race director Paul Charteris of New Zealand, who overcame many setbacks to finish his race, the Tarawera 100K, in 2015; published on iRunFar.com (June 2015)
“Smile Away the Miles,” profile of 71-year-old 100-mile runner Eldrith Gosney (Jan. 2013)
“Feeling Frozen,” a training feature filled with anecdotes and advice about how endurance athletes can prevent pre-hypothermia in extreme conditions (Nov. 2015)
“Stage Fright,” first-person feature on running a wild 167 miles in North America’s first self-supported desert-crossing stage race. (Jan. 2013)
“How My Trail Running Got Its Groove Back”: My column on trying something completely different—a “shimmy pop” urban dance class. (April 2017)
Samples of Episodes for UltraRunnerPodcast.com
For five years, until I relocated to Colorado, I contributed to this program, and these are a few favorite episodes I co-hosted with UltraRunnerPodcast.com founder Eric Schranz:
“Kami Semick’s Fresh Outlook”: We talk to the former UROY about why she disappeared from the sport and then after 50 started running ultras with a different approach.
“Buzz Burrell and Understanding FKTs“: We interview one of the pioneers of the fastest-known-time craze about how this branch of the sport has grown, how it works, and where it’s heading.
“Katie Arnold: Just Smile & Flow”: We talk to Katie about what it took to win her debut 100-miler, and her forthcoming book. (See my book review.)
“Courtney Dauwalter: Big’s Backyard & Big Plans”: Courtney had a phenomenal 2018. We talk to her about what it took to be last (wo)man standing at Big’s Backyard Ultra, her unstructured training and her plans for 2019.
“Pam Smith Interview”: We talk to Pam about Badwater 135, the arc of her ultrarunning career, parenting, and how social media is changing the sport’s culture.
“Bob Shebest’s Western States 100 Sufferfest”: Bob talks about how is plan for this 100-miler fell apart, and how humor, optimism and watermelon finally got him to the finish.
“Jenny Jurek Interview”: After crewing her famous ultrarunning husband Scott Jurek to his FKT on the Appalachian Trail, Jenny co-authored the riveting memoir North with him. We talk to her about their running, writing and marriage odysseys.
“Brendan Leonard Interview”: Brendan of Semi-Rad.com humorously opens up about his documentary How to Run 100 Miles plus his path to sobriety, climbing and ultrarunning.
“Angela Shartel Inerview”: Want to know how to go from obesity to wins at ultras? Then how to recover from surgery and get back to 100-milers? Angela explains how she did it.
“Soon-Chul Choi Interview”: Eric and I interview my friend Soon-Chul about how he got into this sport and became a successful mid-pack runner tackling ever-more-challenging routes and distances.
“Sabrina Stanley Unbridled”: We talk to the women’s 2018 Hardrock 100 champ about her competitive spirit and her relationship with Avery Collins.
“Courtney Dauwalter’s Blind Perseverance”: Courtney Dauwalter is perhaps my favorite female ultrarunner of all (which is saying a lot!). We interview her about how she persevered to win the 2017 Run Rabbit Run 100 in spite of temporary vision loss.
“Sarah’s Mauna to Mauna Ultra Report”: Eric interviews me about training for and racing the inaugural self-supported, 155-mile Mauna to Mauna stage race in Hawaii, which featured extreme weather and terrain.
“Sarah’s Western States Report”: Eric interviews me about racing the 2016 Western States 100-mile Endurance Run and the drama of trying to break 24 hours.
“Blake Wood Interview”: We talk to veteran ultramarathoner and 20-time Hardrock 100 finisher Blake Wood about the Hardrock lottery, his recent sub-3-hour marathon and how to achieve longevity in the sport.
“Stephanie Case and a Rescue in the Alps”: We interview my ultrarunning friend Stephanie Case about how she almost died in early 2017, and how she’s coming back to run top-level events such as Tor des Geants again.
“Liza Howard Interview”: We talk to the course-record-setter at the Umstead 100 about running through-and post-pregnancy, adapting to training with kids, wilderness survival, beer, coaching, and running camps.
“Hal Koerner Interview”: With a new book on the shelves, an infant at home, races to direct, and a running store, we pick his brain about training, being “Mr. Happy”, beer, obstacle courses, and the book.
“Skiing the Hardrock” Jason Schlarb interview: Ultrarunner Schlarb, along with two skimo champs and a filmmaker, took on Colorado’s Hard-rock 100-mile Endurance Run during wintertime. We talk to him about his harrowing adventure and banter about my memorable race.
“Stevie Kremer Interview”: We meet an up-and-coming mountain runner from Colorado and find out how she balances running with her profession (teaching) and her other hobby (skimo). We also talk about my win at my first 24-hour race.
“Dakota Jones Interview”: We talk to Dakota talk about Hardrock, racing overseas, RD’ing, running at the back of the pack, and what else? Literature and beer!
“Michele Graglia Interview”: Take a charming Italian guy from the Riviera who happens to be a top underwear model, introduce him to ultrarunning, and see what happens, right? Meet Michele (Mickey) Graglia.
“Jen Benna Interview”: We talk to Jen about her comeback from 2014’s birth of her second child, breast pumping while running, training for ultras, epic fails on the trails, and how she’s dealing with caring for her very sick girl.
“Sarah Lavender Smith interview”: UltraRunnerPodcast.com interviewed me in late 2012 after I ran and survived the extreme challenge of the inaugural Grand to Grand Ultra stage race, finishing among the top women and top 10 overall.
“2014 Year in Review”: Eric and I talk with guest Tropical John Medinger about the notable trends, performances and athletes on the mountain/ultra/trail scene in 2014 and make predications about the coming year. And, we laugh a lot!
“Mike Foote Interview”: We talk to Mike about his epic 600-mile, 23-day expedition with Mike Wolfe to traverse a region called “The Crown of the Continent,” from Montana to Canada.
“John Trent Interview”: We interview the president of the Western States Endurance Run board about his history as an ultrarunner, the future of the sport, as well as the history and future of the ultimate 100-miler.
“John Burton Interview”: Despite being freezing cold, shattering a finger, freaking out about passing one of his heroes and dropping his pacer, John came in at a very respectable 30 hours on the challenging course. How’d he do it?
Samples of Travel Writing
Here are some examples of travel pieces I wrote for other blogs and publications. On my Runner’s Trip blog, I also post features and guides to destinations.
“Five Reasons to Choose a Guided Trek”: A post for the Ryder-Walker travel site about the benefits of designing a custom trip with a guide (March 2020)
“Alaska Up Close and Active: A Family Tour of the Kenai Peninsula,” featured post for Ciao Bambino website (April 2014)
“An Ideal Summer Trip for Families: Rafting the Grand Canyon,” featured post for Ciao Bambino website (December 2014)
More Archived Articles on Health, Running and Parenting
“Every Bite You Take”: feature on how mindful eating can help you lose weight and make peace with food (Oakland Magazine Jan. 2009)
“The New You: 25 Ways to Reinvent Yourself Through Healthy Living,” cover story for Oakland Magazine (Jan. 2008).
“Ultrawoman,” a 1996 profile of ultrarunning legend and world record holder Ann Trason, published in the Berkeley Monthly newspaper. This is the first article I ever wrote about the sport.
“Camp Wishi,” a first-person parenting essay for the Berkeley Monthly written when my kids were 9 and 6. “This summer will be different. …” (July 2007)