Marz van der Merwe: A commitment to adventure

Join us this week as we chat to a local favorite, a tremendous talent & a well rounded athlete. So stoked to have @marz_merwe on the podcast this week 🎙️

We’ll be talking about everything from her sports journey to her professional development. 🤙🏼

🎥 Chapter Markers:

00:00 - Welcome to 2025: Season 2 continues

02:36 - Goal orientation: Finding trail running

04:37 - Early days: Racing & early mistakes

08:05 - The Coaster: Race directing & the Canada adventure

16:37 - International Events: Navigating UTMB & Western States

23:38 - Working with the GOAT: Jim Walmsley & sports media

31:03 - Western States: Backpack sprints & race highlights

39:32 - The comeback: Injuries & mindset

45:35 - The race calendar : Wildstrubel & racing emotions

52:55 - Outro: What’s next for Marz in 2025

🌄 Whether you’re a seasoned ultrarunner or simply love incredible stories of human endurance, this episode is packed with inspiration, practical advice, and captivating adventures. Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more episodes featuring extraordinary guests like Mars van der Merwe. 🙌

🔗 Links & Resources:

Trail Culture Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trailcultureza/

Trail Culture Coaching: https://www.trailculture.co.za/

From the Ghosts Above : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8G0fNkk4g0A

Sherpa : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMWtu8Gb_HU

Marz van der Merwe website: https://www.marzellephotography.com/

Back like we never left 👋🏼

For those who are new here, once a month Trail Culture releases a more scientific episode, recorded with @dewaal.simon from the legendary @rootedindirt 🤙🏼 Simon is a runner, a coach & a scientist. We talk about various hot topics in the trail running space & unpack the relevant research surrounding them. We also have some not so relevant banter & we’re so grateful that you all tune in.

This weeks episode brings us an update on Simons PhD. We talk about some of his most recent findings, the progress of his publication journey, the vision for the 2025 trail science episodes AND we manage to find time to rip each others Stravas stats. 😆🎙️

Article: Physiological Indicators of Trail Running Performance

Simon Pocock: The art of story telling and human connection

Join us this week as we chat to a local talent & friend of the trail community, Simon Pocock. A wizard with the camera, this guy has a gift for storytelling and connecting with people. We explore that as well as his entry in the sports media space & some of his creative experiences over the years.

🎥 Chapter Markers:

00:00 - Welcome to 2025: Season 2 continues

01:34 - Raised outdoors: Falling in love with sport

05:49 - Entry to film: Finding filmmaking

13:15 - Team Terrex: The event space and the teams season

21:47 - International Events: Sport media in different cultures

26:24 - Event media: Where it all began

38:16 - The future of the sport: Simons take on the growth of sport media and what’s next

45:30 - Personal projects: Skill development and working on passion projects

51:23 - Human connection: Empathy in the work place

56:42 - Running goals: Balancing work and training

1:09:00 - Outro

🌄 Whether you’re a seasoned ultrarunner or simply love incredible stories of human connection and creativity, this episode is packed with inspiration, practical advice, and captivating storiess. Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more episodes featuring extraordinary guests like Simon Pocock. 🙌

🔗 Links & Resources:

- Trail Culture Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trailcultureza/

- Trail Culture Coaching: https://www.trailculture.co.za/

- Simon Pocock Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/si_pocock/

- The Creative Act: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/717356/the-creative-act-by-rick-rubin/