Episodes

The Charlotte running community continues to evolve. And with it, so do the many area events, run clubs, retailers, and so on who serve that community. The Charlotte Running Club is changing, too. Not only has the Club grown along with the community, it’s finding more ways to be a PART of that community. Another change is at the top of the club, where Philip Sanford is the new president. Philip, welcome to The Running Around Charlotte Podcast.

The Charlotte running store scene is changing again. Maybe you’ve even noticed a new sign there on Providence Road at the site of the former UltraRunning Company. Our next guest on the Running Around Charlotte Podcast has the scoop on that… Brett Albers is the operating partner for Fleet Feet here in Charlotte and Fort Mill. Brett welcome to the show.

There’s nothing like running in your own hometown. Waking up in your own bed. Enjoying breakfast in your own kitchen. Coming home to crash on your own couch… you get it. It’s also pretty cool to run an out-of-town event, and traveling to someplace you’ve never been, and experiencing everything that “different” place has to offer. But there is, of course, the headaches that come with all of that “unknown territory.” And that’s where Mark Janik saw an opportunity. Mark, welcome to the Running Arou...

We’ve talked to many a guest here on The Running Around Charlotte Podcast who’ve shared stories about how running helped them meet new people. Our next guest is on the program has a little bit of that to her story… and she’s also paying it forward, helping folks AND their dogs make new friends. Lindsey McGee has managed to mix a few things she’s very passionate about, and turn them into an award-winning new business. Lindsey welcome to the Running Around Charlotte Podcast!

Our next guest on The Running Around Charlotte Podcast “might” have one of the coolest jobs going. Chatting it up with celebrities, getting the good seats and backstage passes to ALL the big shows… or meeting and writing about “regular” people with incredible — and sometimes heartbreaking — stories. Théoden Janes is an Ironman, Boston marathon finisher, and then some. He’s also a father, husband, and lifestyle and entertainment writer for the Charlotte Observer.

There is something to be said about consistency. Like “The Rock” said, “success isn’t always about greatness… it’s about consistency.” “Consistent” is truly a word we can use to describe our next guest here on The Running Around Charlotte Podcast. In fact, he’s been a part of this event almost as long as we have! Dave Behrens has run EVERY iteration of the Novant Health Charlotte Marathon… and he’s back again this year for a run at making it 19 in a row. Dave, welcome to the program!

As the saying goes, “Girls on the Run is so much fun.” But the program is about a whole lot more than that. And, yes, it’s a whole lot more than just running, too. This homegrown program is truly one-of-kind, helping girls build the confidence, strength of character, and endurance to take on the world. Along the way, they’ll make new friends, and build healthy mental and physical habits that will truly last a lifetime. Karen Gipson is the Executive Director for Girls on the Run – Greater Charlot...

For folks who don’t know… Novant Health Hemby Children’s Hospital is the official beneficiary of the Novant Health Charlotte Marathon. The Marathon is proud to raise awareness – and money — for such an important and remarkable place in the Charlotte community. All that “remarkableness” doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Along with the medical team and staff, it takes folks dedicated to fundraising to make it happen. Amy McKinney is one of those dedicated people. She’s the philanthropy manager at the No...

Our first guest today was actually our very FIRST guest on The Running Around Charlotte Podcast. If you’ve been running around Charlotte at all, then you probably know Lisa Landrum. She’s the creator of the online and “in real life” community that is Run Charlotte Run. She’s the founder and head coach of Forward Motion. She’s a longtime pace team member here at the Novant Health Charlotte Marathon. She’s also a mom, spouse, all-around good people, and a personal friend… Lisa Landrum, thanks for ...

There’s lots of new stuff happening at this year’s Novant Health Charlotte Marathon and Marathon Expo. For starters, we’re expecting a whole lot more of you — that’s exciting! From live music, barbecue, a new Expo location, and a LIVE broadcast recording of The Running Around Charlotte Podcast, it’ll be a jam-packed weekend for sure. Tim and DC hit the highlights on this week’s show.

Here’s a hot take for you: The Novant Health Charlotte Marathon has donated nearly $300,000 to Novant Health Hemby Children’s Hospital since 2013. Last year, we upped our donation goals with the launch of Team Hemby. This year, a Team of Charity Chasers joins the effort… and there’s an all-new initiative you may have seen… the Miracle Miles. Betsy Zarzour joins us today to give us the ins and outs on ALL these new programs, and how YOU can get involved.

If you feel you’ve “been there, done that” with your running, we’ve got a different kind of challenge for you. Running the half-marathon with a weighted backpack. You may have heard of “rucking” — which is basically a form of military training where you run miles with a full backpack. In case you didn’t know, the Novant Health Charlotte Marathon has a Rucking Division in the half-marathon race, and on today’s Running Around Charlotte Podcast, our man Mike Sweeting joins us to explain more about...

One of the easiest ways to give back to your running community is to volunteer at a running event. There are lots of ways to do it, and most any kind of help is welcome. Arguably, one of THE most rewarding volunteer opportunities is serving as a pacer or pace team leader at an event. Guiding someone or a group of runners you might not know or ever see again… and getting them to the finish line for the first time or their best time. There’s really nothing like it. And once some runners get into t...

DC, do you have plans on Thursday night? Well, you do now… if you’ve yet to make it out to the Birdsong Run Club you’re missing out on ANOTHER excellent opportunity to do a little running around Charlotte. (See what I did there?) They meet Thursday nights at 6:30 at the taproom on North Davidson here in Charlotte. The Birdsong Run Club has a mix of a couple different routes, and some fun folks to run around with. We’ve got a couple of them right here on the program today!

Experience, they say, is the best instructor. Sharing that experience with others as a coach or teacher is a heck of a way to pay it forward. Here in Charlotte, we’re lucky enough to have LOTS of experienced coaches and guides willing to help runners of all kinds reach their goals. Angela Knepprath is one of those runners who do just that. She’s an experienced marathoner herself, a “Run Far” coach, and a newly-elected board member of the Charlotte Running Club. Even cooler, she’s our guest today...

Running is a lot of things to a lot of people. It’s a way to get or stay fit. It’s a way to unwind or get fired-up. It’s a way to get some “alone time,” or it’s a way to be around old friends and make new friends. Running is a way to connect with people and make a difference in many different ways. Ayumi Nagano is one of those people who seems to use running for ALL that it can be. She’s a mom, runner, coach, and activist … the kind of person you’d absolutely want in your corner. We’re excited s...

The running community is FULL of stories. From triumph to tragedy, success and failure… Some of our favorites are ones where running LITERALLY changes someone’s life. Today’s guest on The Running Around Charlotte Podcast has one of THOSE stories. Brad Pope says running SAVED his life, and he’s here to tell us about it. We won’t spoil this one for you, so let’s get right to it!

If you’re old enough, you probably remember the old school charity walks where donors would pledge a certain number of dollars for every lap you walked for charity. (Do they event still do that??) Either way, there’s a pair of runners who’ll put a new twist on that this year at the Novant Health Charlotte Marathon. Jimmy Molina and Sunkul Soni are running as “charity chasers,” to gin up money for the Novant Healthy Hemby Children’s Hospital. And if you’re wondering how this whole “charity chas...

If you’ve been running around Charlotte for any length of time – or swimming or cycling – you may know of our next guest. Dave Koontz is arguably THE OG in the Charlotte Trialthon scene. He and his wife, Sharon, have logged no telling how many miles around the globe training and competing for decades. After a 42 year career as an engineer at Duke Energy, Dave has retired from “that” kind of work, but he’s still an age group force to be reckoned in triathlon. He’s the publisher of the “Tri News”...

Boston. Berlin. Tokyo. Chicago. New York. London. They’re not just great places to add to your passport. They’re home to some of the most prestigious marathons on the planet. Running one is something special. Running them all and earning the six-star, World Marathon Majors is a bucket list for many a runner. Charlotte’s Anthony Butler earned his sixth star in April at the London marathon. And he may very well hold another unique distinction: Butler is believed to be the only visually impaired ...

Like we’ve heard countless times on this program, there are SO many reasons that we run. And many of us use our running as a vehicle to help others. The 2022 Running USA “Global Running Survey” shows that nearly 40-percent of runners are running FOR a cause. And their efforts add up to millions of dollars each year. Jessica Carranti is one of those runners. She’s a Novant Health Charlotte Marathon ambassador, a spouse, a mom, and a runner on a mission.

If there was ever a guy who could “walk the walk” AND “talk the talk,” it’s our next guest on the Running Around Charlotte Podcast. Cornell Jones has a resume of work at the Charlotte Hornets and ESPN, and can “talk the talk” about sports. He’s also a runner – and he’s “walking the walk” by bringing hundreds of runners along with him on his daily runs, both in person and across the country. It all started with a New Year’s Day decision 3 years ago – to run a mile a day, every day. Yes, Every. S...

Most every runner has their “why.” Why we get up in the morning. Why we go to bed early. Why we get outside in the worst weather or why we log so many miles… The reasons we run are special to each one of us, even if the pace or distance is the same as the guy running next to us. And it seems the longer we run, the more meaning – the more WHY – each one of those miles holds. Some of us may have difficulty articulating that “why.” And for some folks, like today’s guest, it’s part of their job. As...

Today’s guest has been coaching, training, and competing for more than three decades. TriYON Performance is the distillation of that experience, and his way of helping others successfully piece together a healthy lifestyle of running, triathlon, and multi-sport. His unique style of incorporating training and nutrition into real life schedules gets results for athletes of all ages and disciplines. This year that experience is part of the 2023 Novant Health Charlotte Marathon Official Training Pla...