This week, we’re joined by Ben O'Connell, who many of you will already know from the coaching world and from YouTube, where he shares practical, grounded advice for runners of all abilities. Ben has taken on some iconic ultras — from Centurion 50‑milers to the South Downs Way 100, and the Swiss Alpes 100 — but this weekend, he stepped up to one of Britain’s most notorious winter races: the Arc of Attrition 100.

And this year’s Arc wasn’t just tough — it was savage.

Storm Ingrid brought 60–65mph gusts, torrential rain, flooding, and conditions that turned the Cornish coast path into a test of pure survival. Ben battled through the storm, into the night, and all the way to Land’s End before making the difficult decision to stop at mile 55. A DNF is never easy, but with over 60% of runners not making it to the finish, this is a story worth telling.

In this episode, we dive into the weekend, the weather, the decision, the lessons, and the Arc experience as a whole. We talk about what the race taught him, how he approaches big efforts as both an athlete and a coach, and what comes next.

Plus, we’ve got our usual mix of icebreakers, truth‑or‑lie, and a quickfire round to wrap things up.

We’re proud to be supported by ⁠⁠Protein Rebel⁠⁠ — get 15% off with code TTF15 — and by ⁠⁠Beta Outdoor Sports⁠⁠, where you can get 10% off ⁠⁠BV Sports⁠⁠ compression and apparel, plus 10% off ⁠⁠Näak Nutrition⁠⁠ products to fuel your adventures using TTF10.

Don’t forget to⁠⁠⁠⁠ click here⁠⁠⁠⁠ to join our Strava club to connect with fellow trail lovers and celebrate your own achievements.

👉 Join our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Trails, Tales, and Fails Facebook Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to continue the conversation and connect with fellow trail and ultra runners.

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Let’s get into it.

This week on Trails, Tales & Fails, we’re joined by co-host Sarah Page, fresh off an incredible performance at the Montane Winter Spine Challenger South 2026.

In her first-ever Spine, Sarah claimed 1st female, 3rd overall, and ran the fastest women’s time ever recorded on the Challenger South, stopping the clock at 29:03 — nearly 40 minutes quicker than the previous best.

All of this came in truly brutal conditions. Storm Goretti dumped snow across the Pennine Way early on, followed by driving wind, rain, and ice through Saturday night and into Sunday. Classic Spine weather.

We break the race down in detail:

• The emotional build-up to her first Spine

• Snow, darkness, navigation, and the mental grind of the night section

• A pivotal 40-minute stop at Hebden Bridge

• Running deep into the race with Rich Bryars

• Picking off competitors and opening a decisive gap

• Diversions

• A tense podium battle in the icy final miles

Sarah reflects on the highs, lows, lessons learned, and what this race revealed about her as an athlete — and answers the big question:
👉 Does this performance tempt her toward Challenger North… or even the full Spine Race?

An honest, insightful deep dive into one of the standout performances of the winter ultra season.

We’re proud to be supported by ⁠Protein Rebel⁠ — get 15% off with code TTF15 — and by ⁠Beta Outdoor Sports⁠, where you can get 10% off ⁠BV Sports⁠ compression and apparel, plus 10% off ⁠Näak Nutrition⁠ products to fuel your adventures using TTF10.

Don’t forget to⁠⁠⁠ click here⁠⁠⁠ to join our Strava club to connect with fellow trail lovers and celebrate your own achievements.

👉 Join our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Trails, Tales, and Fails Facebook Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to continue the conversation and connect with fellow trail and ultra runners.

If you enjoy the episode, please leave us a rating and share it with your running buddies.

Welcome back to Trails, Tales, and Fails — the podcast where we celebrate the highs, the lows, and everything in between on the ultra-running journey.

Today’s episode is a little different. It’s just the three of us — Max, Rob, and Sarah — catching up, talking training, and looking back on 2025 with a fun (and slightly chaotic) quiz based on our previous guests. Expect confident guesses, very shaky answers, and a surprising amount of disorder.

We also dive into where everyone’s at right now:

• Sarah is deep into her build-up for the Spine Challenger South, juggling winter miles, kit admin, and long dark days.

• Rob is gearing up for the Arc 100, while Max is preparing for the Arc 25.

We talk honestly about training through winter — the highs, the setbacks, the kit that’s actually working, and the mindset shifts needed when motivation dips and conditions get tough. As always, we share lessons and tips that might help you navigate your own winter running.

We’re proud to be supported by ⁠Protein Rebel⁠ — get 15% off with code TTF15 — and by ⁠Beta Outdoor Sports⁠, where you can get 10% off ⁠BV Sports⁠ compression and apparel, plus 10% off ⁠Näak Nutrition⁠ products to fuel your adventures using TTF10.

Don’t forget to⁠⁠⁠ click here⁠⁠⁠ to join our Strava club to connect with fellow trail lovers and celebrate your own achievements.

👉 Join our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Trails, Tales, and Fails Facebook Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to continue the conversation and connect with fellow trail and ultra runners.

If you enjoy the episode, please leave us a rating and share it with your running buddies.

Ultras aren’t usually lost because you’re not fit enough — they’re lost because of one bad decision made when you’re tired, cold, or emotional.

In this week’s Ultra Tip Tuesday, we introduce the Traffic Light Decision System: a simple framework to help you make smarter calls during long runs and race day.

Learn how to:

• Keep moving when things are green

• Monitor and manage problems early when they’re amber

• Act immediately when things turn red — no ego, no delay

This episode is all about staying calm, avoiding unnecessary stops, and knowing when stopping is the smartest move you can make.

Train smart. Race smart. Finish strong.

For coaching enquiries, DM me on Instagram or ⁠click here⁠.

We’re proud to be supported by ⁠⁠Protein Rebel⁠⁠ — get 15% off with code TTF15 — and by ⁠⁠Beta Outdoor Sports⁠⁠, where you can get 10% off ⁠⁠BV Sports⁠⁠ compression and apparel, plus 10% off ⁠⁠Näak Nutrition⁠⁠ products to fuel your adventures using TTF10.

Don’t forget to⁠⁠⁠⁠ click here⁠⁠⁠⁠ to join our Strava club to connect with fellow trail lovers and celebrate your own achievements.

👉 Join our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Trails, Tales, and Fails Facebook Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to continue the conversation and connect with fellow trail and ultra runners.

If you enjoy the episode, please leave us a rating and share it with your running buddies.

This week on Trails, Tales, and Fails, we dig into one of the smartest — and most overlooked — ways to build race‑day confidence: training on terrain that actually mirrors your goal route. Rocky, muddy, flat, hilly, or wildly technical, every surface teaches your body something different.

In this Ultra Tip Tuesday episode, we break down how to sharpen your weaknesses early in the training cycle, build durability without pressure, and dial in true race‑day specificity as your event approaches. You’ll learn how to balance technical skill‑building with injury prevention, get creative when you don’t have access to the perfect trails, and discover why even one long run on race‑like terrain can transform your confidence.

If you want fewer surprises on race day — physically and mentally — this episode gives you the blueprint for showing up ready, not rattled.

For coaching enquiries, DM me on Instagram or click here.

We’re proud to be supported by ⁠Protein Rebel⁠ — get 15% off with code TTF15 — and by ⁠Beta Outdoor Sports⁠, where you can get 10% off ⁠BV Sports⁠ compression and apparel, plus 10% off ⁠Näak Nutrition⁠ products to fuel your adventures using TTF10.

Don’t forget to⁠⁠⁠ click here⁠⁠⁠ to join our Strava club to connect with fellow trail lovers and celebrate your own achievements.

👉 Join our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Trails, Tales, and Fails Facebook Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to continue the conversation and connect with fellow trail and ultra runners.

If you enjoy the episode, please leave us a rating and share it with your running buddies.

Trish Patterson joins us fresh off her incredible Winter Dragon’s Back FKT — a huge achievement made even more impressive by the rocky road leading up to it. Weeks before the attempt, Trish sprained her ankle. Then came missed training weeks, lingering fatigue, and a build‑up that was anything but smooth.

In this episode, we dive into Trish’s journey: how she handled setbacks, what the Winter Dragon demanded physically and mentally, the conditions underfoot, pacing decisions, crew strategy, and the mindset required to keep pushing when the plan falls apart. We also explore recovery, long‑term health, and what it takes to stay motivated through big efforts.

We’re proud to be supported by Protein Rebel — get 15% off with code TTF15 — and by Beta Outdoor Sports, where you can get 10% off BV Sports compression and apparel, plus 10% off Näak Nutrition products to fuel your adventures using TTF10.

Don’t forget to⁠⁠ click here⁠⁠ to join our Strava club to connect with fellow trail lovers and celebrate your own achievements.

👉 Join our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Trails, Tales, and Fails Facebook Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to continue the conversation and connect with fellow trail and ultra runners.

If you enjoy the episode, please leave us a rating and share it with your running buddies.

Jade Barrett has taken endurance to extraordinary heights. In 2025 she completed the Centurion Double Slam on her way to running every Centurion event in a single year. She also raced the legendary ⁠Arc 100⁠ in January. Most recently, Jade conquered the Winter Downs 200, finishing in an astonishing 76 hours and 58 minutes.

This year’s Winter Downs was one for the history books, with Caspian James setting an epic course record of 43:38. Against that backdrop, Jade’s own finish was a masterclass in resilience, pacing, and determination.

In this episode of Trails, Tales, and Fails, we dive into Jade’s race experience: the conditions and the mental and physical strategies that carried her through nearly 77 hours of running. We also explore how she balances recovery, crew support, and the sheer mental toughness required for this scale of mileage.

While this time of year is exciting for many, we know Christmas can be difficult for some. If you’re finding December tough or feeling a bit lonely, you’re welcome to reach out on Instagram for a friendly chat.

If this episode inspires you, please leave us a rating and share it with your running buddies — it really helps the show grow.

Don’t forget to⁠ click here⁠ to join our Strava club to connect with fellow trail lovers and celebrate your own achievements.

👉 Join our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Trails, Tales, and Fails Facebook Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to continue the conversation and connect with fellow trail and ultra runners.

We are proud to be partnered with Protein Rebel. Use code TTF15 at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Protein Rebel⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for your 15% discount.

From signing up to her first ultra with just three days’ notice, to conquering the legendary Dragon’s Back and setting multiple Fastest Known Times, Lizzie — better known as Ultra Mad Lizzie — has built a reputation for resilience, grit, and determination.

In this episode of Trails, Tales, and Fails, Lizzie shares her journey through the unique world of backyard ultras — a format that tests mental strength as much as physical endurance — and her recent victory at the notorious Copthorne 100, a race infamous for its brutally low finish rate.

Don’t forget to click here to join our Strava club to connect with fellow trail lovers and celebrate your own achievements.

Lizzie is a proud ambassador for Protein Rebel and sponsored by Snack’d — fuelling epic endurance feats with sustainable energy.

If this episode inspires you, please leave us a rating and share it with your running buddies — it really helps the show grow.

👉 Join our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Trails, Tales, and Fails Facebook Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to continue the conversation and connect with fellow trail and ultra runners.

💚 If you enjoy the podcast and want to support what we do, check out our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠— every bit helps us keep sharing stories from the trails.

Use code TTF15 at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Protein Rebel⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for your 15% discount.