#51 Skip Brand | Founding HRC, Growing the Lake Sonoma Race Series, & Building Community

The MidPacker Pod is part of the Freetrail network of Podcasts. You can now support the MidPacker Pod on ⁠Patreon⁠. Make sure you leave us a rating and review wherever you get your pods. Looking for 1:1 Ultra Running Coaching? Check out Troy’s Coaching Page HERE Want to leave Troy some feedback, recommend a guest, or make a suggestion? ⁠LINK HERE ⁠"Community is everything in the running world" In this episode Troy Meadows talks with Skip Brand, the founder of the Hillsborough Running Company (HRC), Skip shares his journey in the running community and his involvement in the Lake Sonoma 50 race series. He emphasizes the importance of community and building relationships through running.Skip took over the Lake Sonoma 50 race from John Medinger and has put his own mark on the event, creating a unique and iconic race experience. He also expanded the race series to include a marathon and a trail half for women. The races have a strong focus on giving back and supporting local charities. The conversation covers various topics related to the Lake Sonoma races, including the culture of surf contests, the history and community of the Lake Sonoma races, the challenges and experiences of running the races, and the upcoming addition of the 100-mile race. The races are known for their focus on the runner's experience, the involvement of the local community, and the support of vineyard worker kids through charity.  The conversation also touches on the importance of trail work and the impact of fires on the races. In this final part of the conversation, Skip and Troy discuss their experiences in various races and the challenges they faced. They also talk about the unique aspects of trail running on the East Coast and West Coast. Skip emphasizes the importance of diversity in the running community and the need for transparency in race participation. He also shares his favorite trail to run on locally in Healdsburg.  The conversation ends with Skip inviting everyone to participate in the Sufferfest races and be part of the running community. Skips Links  IG - @healdsburgrunningcompany Website: https://www.healdsburgrunningcompany.com Donate to the Firefighters Run Free Gofundme Things we talked about on the show MPP #27 with Chris ThomasTropical John Redd Antler Running Healdsburg Running Company Leadville 100 Lake Sonoma 50 Lake Sonoma 26.2 Lake Sonoma 13.1 CFC - Lake Sonoma 100k CFC - Lake Sonoma 55k Gina Lucrezi - Trail Sisters Keira Henninger - Lake Sonoma 100k RD Lake Sonoma 100 miler - Suffer Fest Lake Sonoma 100 mile - Relay Little Baby Backyard Kids Run Rob Farver Broken Arrow Sky Race Mammoth Trail Fest Kodiak 100 Firefighters Run Free GofundmeT ahoe Rim Trail HellBender 100 Crazy Mountain 100 Here For The Women's Race Lake Sonoma - Lake Loop If you are enjoying the content, please consider supporting our sponsors using the links below. Sponsor Links:  ⁠Run Trail Life⁠ Use code: midpackerpod to double the donation from your purchase.  Visit RunTrailLife.com to check out our line of Hats and Organic cotton T's. ⁠Freetrail⁠  Visit Freetrail.com to sign up today. MidPacker Pod Links: ⁠Instagram⁠ | ⁠Patreon⁠ Troy Meadows Links: ⁠Instagram⁠ | ⁠Twitter⁠ | ⁠Website⁠ | ⁠Strava⁠ Freetrail Links:⁠ Freetrail Pro⁠ | ⁠Patreon⁠ | ⁠Instagram⁠ | ⁠Website⁠ | ⁠YouTube running, community, Lake Sonoma 50, race series, HRC, trail running, ultrarunning, relationships, marathon, trail half, giving back, surf contests, Lake Sonoma races, community, challenges, experiences, 100-mile race, runner's experience, local community, vineyard worker kids, charity, trail work, fires, races, challenges, trail running, East Coast, West Coast, diversity, transparency, favorite trail, Sufferfest