Mike Foote is a Montana-based professional ultrarunner and ski mountaineer who is best known for his inspiring performances in 100-mile ultramarathons and multiday endurance expeditions through wild landscapes. In 2018, he set the world record for the most vertical feet climbed and skied in 24 hours– a mind-blowing 61,200 feet. And in addition to his impressive athletic career, Mike is also a committed conservationist, serving on the board of directors of the Five Valleys Land Trust, an innovative conservation organization that serves the five valleys surrounding Missoula.
Mike grew up in Ohio and had never visited the American West until a life-changing college road trip took him to Moab, Utah. He instantly fell in love with the wide-open landscapes of the American West– so much so that he left college in Ohio and moved to Steamboat Springs, Colorado. During that first year in Steamboat, Mike became obsessed with the mountains– skiing, running, and enjoying all aspects of life in a Rocky Mountain ski town. Although the learning curve was steep, Mike loved every minute of his new life in the mountains, and he gradually became more and more obsessed with endurance sports. Fast forward to today, and Mike’s list of endurance accomplishments is astonishing– he’s earned podium finishes at some of the world’s most notable races, including the Hardrock, UTMB, Big Horn 100, and more.
Despite all of his world-class athletic accomplishments, Mike is an amazingly down-to-earth and humble guy. We had a wonderful conversation and managed to cover a lot in a little over an hour– topics that will be impactful to runners and nonrunners alike. We started by discussing his early years in Ohio and that fateful, life-changing trip out West. We talked about his progression in endurance sports, and his transformation from complete beginner to North Face sponsored athlete to race director of The Rut Mountain Runs. We spend a lot of time talking about mental health, and Mike graciously shares some of the techniques, books, and resources that have helped him manage the inevitable ups and downs in life and sport. We also talk about his hands-on work with the Five Valleys Land Trust, and why he has chosen to be so deeply involved in conservation. And Mike is a voracious reader, so he offers up quite a few excellent recommendations throughout the conversation.
This is an excellent episode, and I can’t thank Mike enough for being so open and thoughtful throughout the entire conversation. I hope you enjoy!
Header photo by Steven Gnam, headshot by Clayton Boyd
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EPISODE NOTES
Topics Discussed:
- 4:00 – Where Mike grew up
- 5:45 – What drew Mike out West
- 11:50 – What was Mike’s first year out West like
- 14:25 – When Mike first started running
- 15:45 When did Mike realize he had a talent for distance running
- 19:10 – How did Mike end up in Missoula?
- 21:20 – Mentality shift from ”just going running” (paraphrased) to professional, goal-oriented training?
- 27:35 – What drives Mike on his runs?
- 32:00 – Community of ultra-endurance events
- 35:47 – Mike getting into the race directing business
- 39:57 – How does Mike deal with the mental struggles when running.
- 46:20 – Mike’s book recommendations for setting his mind right
- 49:00 – The importance of having deep conversations about mental health
- 50:30 – Mike’s commitment to land conservation
- 59:00 – General book recommendations
- 1:02:42 – Film recommendations
- 1:06:00 – Parting words of wisdom
Information Referenced:
- Mike Foote Instagram
- Catalina Marathon
- The North Face
- Wasatch 100
- Hardrock 100
- UTMB
- VIDEO: Mike Foote breaks world record for most vertical feet skied in 24 hours
- Ben Parsons
- The Rut Mountain Runs
- Mountain & Prairie: Live in Bozeman
- Essentialism by Greg McKeown
- Tim Ferriss
- Daring Greatly, Brene Brown
- Wendell Berry
- Mary Oliver
- Hafiz
- Wherever You Go, There You Are, Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD
- Pema Chodron
- Land Trust Alliance
- Outdoor Retailer (“OR”)
- Five Valleys Land Trust
- Collapse by Jared Diamond
- Ed’s book recommendations
- Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck
- East of Eden, John Steinbeck
- The Brothers K, David James Duncan
- Hamilton
Enjoy this episode? Then you might like these as well:
- Steve Casimiro – Voice of Adventure
- Chris Burkard – The Art of Suffering
- Kyle Richardson – Mountains & Music
- Juanita Vero, Part 2 – A Deep Desire to Serve
- Pete McBride – A Passion for Water & Wild Places
- Heather Hansman – Demystifying Water in the West
- Chandra Brown – Fostering Creativity Through River Adventures
- Hampton Sides – Live at the Aspen Institute
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