Episode 161: Joe Gray: The best mountain runner ever, and you've never heard of him?

Category
Person-Person

We finish our 3-2-1 countdown interviews from the Men's podium of the US Mountain Running Championships with the winner, Joe Gray.  Joe is one of the best mountain/trail runners in history.  He is very articulate and insightful, and is extremely well respected by other runners, while some casual runners may not have heard of him.  How can that be?  Let's correct it!

Joe has won a ridiculous 20 National Championship races, as well as 2 World Championships, in addition to wins at countless (literally) other races - see his Bio below. 

Via Priula (Italy)

Submitted by aledpd88 on Fri, 10/29/2021 - 04:25am
Description

In 1593, the Venetian Podesta, Alvise Priuli, ordered the construction of a route that would connect the Po Valley with Valtellina and beyond the Alps: Via Priula, a route of great political and strategic importance that enabled the city of Venice to be connected with the passes of Spluga and Settimo, belonging to the Grigioni, without crossing the territory of the Duchy of Milan.

Camel Trail (United Kingdom)

Submitted by john.borton on Wed, 10/27/2021 - 09:38am
Description

The Camel Trail is an 18 mile largely traffic free, surfaced and virtually level multi use trail. It provides access to the beautiful Cornish countryside along a disused railway line between Wenfordbridge, Bodmin, Wadebridge and Padstow.

 It falls into three main sections:

Tuscarora State Forest (PA)

Submitted by Aidan Kane on Wed, 10/27/2021 - 09:38am
Description

A beautiful, secluded loop through the heart of Tuscarora State Forest in Blain, Pa. This route will take you up and over many prominent mountains, like Blue Mountain, Bowers Mountain, etc. It will also take you through a few natural areas such as Hemlock Natural Area and Frank E. Masland Natural Area.

Being an Appalachian Route, the climbs are short and steep, lasting anywhere between 20-30 minutes with avg grades of 7%.

Dolomiten Höhenweg Nr 4 / Alta via delle Dolomiti 4 (Italy)

Submitted by Werner Bergmann on Wed, 10/27/2021 - 05:58am
Description

A beautiful trail that starts in Innchen / San Candido and arrives in Pieve di Cadore.

The path is sometimes very demanding and there are two via ferratas to overcome.

On the way there are also some shelters where you can possibly stay overnight.