Advertise on podcast: The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast

This is a special Course Reveal episode of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast, released just as the 2026 Adventure Racing World Championships get underway in Corsica. Nancy Bahuaud of Raid in France joins us to walk through the course she and her husband Pascal built: 505 kilometers and twelve stages across an island often called the mountain in the sea. From the start in Corte to the finish on the northwest coast, teams will face nearly every discipline the sport has to offer, and terrain that will test the best in the world. In this conversation, we explore: How Raid in France thinks about building a race as a journeyThe river and sea sections, and why this dry year has everyone watching water levelsThe stage Nancy expects to be the hardest, and how long it may take even the fastest teamsWhy compulsory rest remains non-negotiableA prologue that brings the town of Corte into the race Nancy also shares what this race means to her and Pascal after twenty years of directing, and why Corsica holds a special place in that story. Follow the race at www.arwc2026.com. ------------------------------------- Want more adventure racing stories? Check out Rootstock Racing's takeover of The Dark Zone feed during their Endless Mountains Adventure Race. This limited series of six episodes captures the race from start to finish chronicling the experience of the racers, the grandeur of the course, and the human experience borne from an expedition-distance adventure race. https://ardarkzone.com/the-endless-mountains-podcast-by-rootstock-racing/

Racing as Black Diamond NZ, Luke Jansen and Silas Jones of New Zealand traveled to Canada and became the first Junior Adventure Racing World Champions. In this episode, they recount a childhood of hut trips, orienteering before their teens, and cycling the vertical height of Everest for the fun of it. All of it compounded, quietly, into a team that could go around the world and come home champions. What comes through most is how much fun they're having. These are two friends who race hard and laugh the whole way through it, still finishing high school and already eyeing the next mission, the next film, the next start line. Youth is definitely not wasted on these young people, and as we like to say, the kids are alright. Shownotes: Instagram: Team: @Turbo.platypus.squadron.ss Luke: @luke_jansen101 Silas: @prodbysilas Chasing Seconds - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cW8fmwFFxnY Black Diamond - https://blackdiamondequipment.com/ Inspire Foundation - @inspire_foundation_nz AXICO Financial Advisers - @axicoadvisers Pure Sports Nutrition - https://www.puresportsnutrition.com/ Canterbury Sports Foundation - https://www.sportcanterbury.org.nz/funding/canterbury-sports-foundation-1

Rachel Nolan is back on the show FOUR YEARS (We can't believe it either!) after her first visit on Episode #35, and it's great to have her join us. In July 2026 she won PC12 in Colombia with Vidaraid, her first race with the team. Rachel and Brian also get into how she got there: solo bikepacking across the Atlas Mountains and the Pan Celtic, a training week built on hill repeats and packrafting off the west coast of Ireland, and a racing style she calls steady rather than fast. They also talk meat-free fueling in a meat-heavy country, sleeping (or not sleeping) through a five-day race, running her own tour company, and why she thinks waiting to feel ready is a mistake. Next stop for her is the world championship in Corsica. Shownotes: Rachel on TDZ #35 - https://ardarkzone.com/2022/06/27/the-dark-zone-35-rachel-nolan-irish-adventure-racer-bikepacking-champion-and-african-donkey-whisperer/ Jen Segger - https://jensegger.com/ Jill Mooney - https://barrultra.com/about-us/jill/ Northwave - https://www.northwave.com/en/bike/shoes Infinity Bike Seat - https://infinitybikeseat.com/ Albion Cycling - https://www.albioncycling.com/ Orbea Bikes - https://www.orbea.com/es-es Columbia Sportswear - https://www.columbia.com/ TransAtlanticWay - https://www.transatlanticway.com/ Montenegro Mountain Madness - https://www.montenegromountainmadness.com/ Super Jay - https://www.instagram.com/jay_jantaraboon/

Just days before the ARWS European Championship Montane Adventure Race, race director Lars Bukkehave sits down with TDZ to explain the 48-hour course that he built. Showcasing the beauty and challenge of Denmark, the race runs 19 stages including a sea cliff where you can still see the black clay layer left by the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs, underwater checkpoints, a Cold War nuclear bunker turned checkpoint, a vertical orienteering stage that sends racers climbing into the trees, and a maze set in a public park so spectators can watch. Lars also gets into what holds it all together: 70+ volunteers, and the bonfires, stick bread, and shared meals that turn 50 teams from 17 countries into a reunion before the gun even goes off. His 22-year career as an adventure racer, race director, and championship-winning teammate has led to this moment, and he looks forward to sharing it with the world. Shownotes: Race Social Media - https://www.facebook.com/MontaneAdventureRace Atlas Explorers Expeditions - https://www.atlas-explorers.com/

New Zealand's Louie Burger is 18. He's also four expedition races deep, including a run at the iconic Godzone. He got there by way of one of the country's strongest school adventure racing programs, a last-minute addition to a team at The Magnificient, dedicated training and teamwork, and a lot of very long days in the bush. We talk about what it takes to trust people you've known for 24 hours versus teammates you've raced with since school, what actually goes wrong on a six-day expedition race, and the moments both fun and not-so-fun that always come along during a race. Along the way, Louie speaks about mentors, challenging moments, an unforgettable in-race surprise, and his own thoughts on how hard to push a young body built for a sport he wants to still be doing at 60. Shownotes: Facebook Page - Link Here Instagram Page - Link Here Godzone Report - Link Here Tasman Adventure Race - www.tasmanadventurerace.nz

In December 2021, Racer and Race Director Shawn Lemaster sat down with us for Dark Zone #16. He was building races through 361 Adventures and putting in his own long days planning race courses and personal adventures. This year, we hit five years of the show, so we're running it back with some of those early voices, and Shawn was first in the chair. A lot has happened. 361 Adventures continues to grow, this spring he ran his first hundred-miler, and connects even more with his community through racing, directing, and adventures both near and far. That's the thread running through the whole hour. Triathlon, then AR, then bikepacking, now ultras. Every time Sean moved to a new sport, what he was really looking for was his people. We also get into 361 going all in for 2026, their signature event The Fig growing to twenty-four hours for its twenty-fourth year, and a mountain bike race that broke his social media. The Dark Zone is delighted to welcome Shawn Lemaster back to the show. Shownotes: 361 Adventures - https://361adventures.com/ 361 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/361.Adventures/ 361 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/361adventures/ Stagecoach 400 Documentary - Click Here

Rootstock Racing is taking over the Dark Zone feed, offering a limited series podcast chronicling the 2026 Endless Mountains Adventure Race. In this, the final episode, official standings, returning to real life, and holding on to the magic of the adventure Shownotes: The Endless Mountains Adventure Race - www.endlessmountainsar.com Rootstock Racing - www.rootstockracing.com

For the next two weeks, Rootstock Racing is taking over the Dark Zone feed, offering a limited series podcast chronicling the 2026 Endless Mountains Adventure Race. In this episode, strategic route decisions, the field stretches to the max, and stress levels rise as the finish line is in sight. Shownotes: The Endless Mountains Adventure Race - www.endlessmountainsar.com Rootstock Racing - www.rootstockracing.com

Therapist, ultra runner, and race director Allison Marinucci joins the show for a conversation that starts with endurance and goes somewhere deeper. Allison traces her path from Couch to 5K, through COVID-era backyard ultras, to a double hip replacement that forced the question every athlete eventually faces: who are you when the sport goes away? From there, Brian and Allison dig into what therapy and adventure racing teach each other, and why the lessons of the racecourse matter most when life delivers its hardest disruptions. Allison also shares the deeply personal story behind Serenity on the Trails, the four-mile race she directs in Schenectady's Central Park on August 22 in support of people in recovery. Registration and resources in the show notes. Shownotes: Serenity On The Trails - https://runsignup.com/Race/NY/Schenectady/SerenityOnTheTrails NY State Office of Addiction Services and Support - https://oasas.ny.gov/ SAMHSA Drug and Alcohol National Helpline - https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/helplines/national-helpline

For the next two weeks, Rootstock Racing is taking over the Dark Zone feed, offering a limited series podcast chronicling the 2026 Endless Mountains Adventure Race. In this episode, the first sleep, the cliff jump, and the race starts to take its toll. Shownotes: The Endless Mountains Adventure Race - www.endlessmountainsar.com Rootstock Racing - www.rootstockracing.com MRS Packrafting - https://www.microrafting.com Sound credits: Film clip: Up. Directed by Pete Docter, Pixar Animation Studios / Walt Disney Pictures, 2009.

Nathan Fa'avae returns to the Dark Zone — over 100 episodes after his first appearance as guest #50. A seven-time adventure racing world champion with Seagate and Avaya, Nathan officially stepped back from traditional AR in 2023, not to slow down but to redirect: growing youth and women's adventure racing in New Zealand through his events company, and chasing ultra-endurance paddling with longtime racing teammate Sophie Hart. In ten days, they head back to the Yukon River for their second attempt at the Yukon 1000, the longest kayak race in the world, after taking the win — and the second-fastest time ever — in 2024. Nathan talks candidly about why this retirement stuck when earlier ones didn't, the outdoor-education philosophy he and his wife Jodie built their family around, and his advice for anyone trying to break into adventure racing. He also opens up about a small moment with Sophie mid-race that's stuck with him ever since, and shares how listeners can support his $10-a-mile fundraiser for his family's foundation supporting Pacific Island youth in New Zealand. Shownotes: $10 Per Mile Donation Page - https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/httpsnathanfaavaenzfaavaefund The Yukon 1000 - https://www.yukon1000.org/

For the next two weeks, Rootstock Racing is taking over the Dark Zone feed, offering a limited series podcast chronicling the 2026 Endless Mountains Adventure Race. In this episode, the race kicks off at the summit of Mount Defiance in Ticonderoga, New York and teams push through their first night on the course. Shownotes: The Endless Mountains Adventure Race - www.endlessmountainsar.com Rootstock Racing - www.rootstockracing.com Old School Bagels Bakery and Cafe - https://oldschoolbagels.com/

For the next two weeks, Rootstock Racing is taking over the Dark Zone feed, offering a limited series podcast chronicling the 2026 Endless Mountains Adventure Race. In this episode, final gear preparations, race fuel, and packing your fears. Shownotes: The Endless Mountains Adventure Race - www.endlessmountainsar.com Rootstock Racing - www.rootstockracing.com Music credits: Mountain Sun, Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive, CC BY.

For the next two weeks, Rootstock Racing is taking over the Dark Zone feed, offering a limited series podcast chronicling the 2026 Endless Mountains Adventure Race. In this episode, teams talk preparation, goals, and the blurry lines between adventure racing and adventure parenting. Shownotes: The Endless Mountains Adventure Race - www.endlessmountainsar.com Rootstock Racing - www.rootstockracing.com Music credits: Crazy Folk-Rock Happy Timber, Vlad Annenkov, Free Music Archive, CC BY. Inspiring Acoustic and Strings, Vlad Annenkov, Free Music Archive, CC BY.

For the next two weeks, Rootstock Racing is taking over the Dark Zone feed, offering a limited series podcast chronicling the 2026 Endless Mountains Adventure Race. In case you missed it, this is a rebroadcast of the teaser. Listen here for Episode 0.5 of the Endless Mountains Podcast, produced by Rootstock Racing. Shownotes: The Endless Mountains Adventure Race - www.endlessmountainsar.com Rootstock Racing - www.rootstockracing.com Bones Adventure - https://bonesadventure.com/