Adventure racing has always depended on people who love the sport enough to build it. Greg Callas is one of those people.

Greg is the new president of Gold Rush Adventure Racing, a nonprofit based in the foothills of the Sierras with a two-decade history on the West Coast. He inherited a legacy, and a responsibility, from the founders who built it, and he's determined to carry both forward.

But this episode isn't just about race directing. It's about a guy who found adventure racing the way a lot of us did, by doing something that looked a lot like it before he even knew it existed, and then couldn't stop. From his first race at Mammoth, where his team basically set up a picnic at the transition area, to a strong finish at Raid the Rockies, to lantern rouge honors at Expedition Oregon two years running, and then greater success, Greg has learned the sport the hard way and applied every lesson.

In this conversation, we talk about what it takes to grow a community, what a Bay Area sea kayaking club taught him about onboarding new athletes, and why he turned a 24-hour race into a 12-hour race — and why that might have been the right call all along. We also get into the Gold Rush Adventure Challenge, coming September 19th to the Marin Headlands, with a paddle to Angel Island, views of the Golden Gate, and yes — a cannon.

The sport grows when people like Greg show up. This one's worth your time.

Shownotes:

Gold Rush Adventure Racing - https://www.goldrushadventureracing.com/

Greg Callas Website - https://www.outdoorgoyo.com/

Sponsor Links:

Adventure Addicts Racing's Brake The Habit AR - https://www.adventureaddictsracing.com/copy-of-brake-the-habit-1

Shenandoah Epic Adventure Race - https://www.adventureenablers.com/

Photographer Nic Wynia - https://www.storycityfilms.com/new-gallery-3

Kate and Cliff White of Strong Machine Adventure Racing have been a fixture in the adventure racing community for over a decade — first as racers stumbling toward the back of the pack at a winter race in Wisconsin, and eventually as two respected race directors on the East Coast. The path between those two points is anything but straight.

In this episode, we trace that journey: how a family machinery business became a team name, how a land trust in Maine became their first race venue, and how the simple act of showing up in a state with almost no races led them to build the ones they wanted to exist. Along the way, they've developed the Strong Machine Development Squad — a structured mentorship program designed to solve what Cliff identifies as the sport's most stubborn barrier to entry: people who want to race but can't find anyone to race with.

We also talk about the big races. Cliff on going unofficial in South Africa after a teammate's injury on day one, and still grinding through nine more days. Kate on a moment in Spain when she asked her teammates to leave her at a river crossing — and what it meant to come out the other side of that.

And we talk honestly about the sport's ceiling. Adventure racing will never be mainstream. Kate and Cliff have made their peace with that. What they haven't made peace with is the wide audience of endurance athletes who have yet to dip their toes into the AR water. Bringing them into the sport is the work they're still doing.

Shownotes:

https://www.mainesummerar.com/

Sponsor Links:

Adventure Addicts Racing's Brake The Habit AR - https://www.adventureaddictsracing.com/copy-of-brake-the-habit-1

Shenandoah Epic Adventure Race - https://www.adventureenablers.com/

Episode 150 of The Dark Zone: An Adventure Racing Podcast honors a milestone with someone who embodies the long arc of endurance sport — Dan Brannen.

Dan was my first adventure racing teammate back in 2011, when I was just breaking into the sport. But long before that, he had already built a remarkable career across decades of endurance.

A winner of the legendary JFK 50 Mile, former American record holder in the 48-hour run, multi-day competitor, and inductee into the American Ultra Running Hall of Fame, Dan’s legacy extends far beyond his race results. He played a pivotal role in organizing and legitimizing ultra running at both the national and international levels, helping establish championship pathways and governance structures that still shape the sport today.

In this conversation, we explore:

1. How influential coaches shaped his early running career
2. The explosion of the American running boom in the 1970s
3. Multi-day racing on indoor tracks and the psychology of going long
4. Why adventure racing in his 50s opened up a new dimension of challenge
5. What separates strong teammates from fragile ones
6. The concept of “discomfort management” — and why endurance success isn’t about absorbing pain, but navigating it intelligently

At 72, Dan continues to race, design courses, and shape the adventure racing community through events like the Fool’s Rogaine. His story is one of patience, persistence, humility, and quiet leadership.

Episode 150 is both personal and historical — a tribute to a first teammate and to a man who has helped build multiple sports from the inside out.

Sponsor Links:

Adventure Addicts Racing's Brake The Habit AR - https://www.adventureaddictsracing.com/copy-of-brake-the-habit-1

Shenandoah Epic Adventure Race - https://www.adventureenablers.com/