This is the 80th edition of The Duluth Runner Interview Series, where I get in touch with (mainly) local runners and athletes to share a bit of their story while inspiring others to pursue an active lifestyle.

Intro

“Hi! I’m Lee Brown. I’m a carpenter by day and a trail zombie by night. I have two little girls, a wife, and a trail pup that I love dearly. My running career has been a slow steady progression all starting somewhere in high school.

During high school I hadn’t looked at running as anything but a means to improve for other sports. Basketball, football, track and field was my life at that time and when it all ended on graduation day I needed something to put all that focus into. One Grandma’s Marathon turned into two, then three, then one thought came into my head, “Hey let’s do a 50k trail race because if I can do a 50k then next Grandma’s is going to be a cakewalk!” I found out quickly on that 50k there is no hope for you if you send 7-8 min per mile splits at the beginning of a long trail race.

So after deciding to never do that again, a friend of my brother’s was a triathlete at the time so insert 8 years of insane swimming, biking, and running here. With 8 years of giving my body and mind not a lot of breaks came the burnout years and skipping town to live in the Colorado Rockies for two years only to find out I love where I grew up and moved back to the Northland. The burnout years provided 6 years of mental repair and growth. I was still running here and there but it was just enough to get the job done and keep my body at peace.

At the end of this 6 year hiatus I could feel some fire building in the back of mind. The one stoking the fire was my wife. Slowly egging me on to go for longer and longer runs with her. Not knowingly, she was opening a portal back into the endurance world for me. January 2023 I watched a documentary called, “REI Presents: How to Run 100 Miles” and I signed up for my first 100. It’s been all downhill from there ;)”

Interview

Why is running important to you?

Running is my way of escaping the mundane daily routines of life. I’m able to relax and just be in the moment without any thoughts toward what I’m supposed to be doing or what my brain thinks I should be doing. Put more simply just quieting my head-space. So mainly the mental benefits and of course the happy feels of a sore body every once in a while.

What are the top two or three things that you do to prevent injury? Have you been susceptible to certain injuries in the past?

I focus on my knees, hips, feet and shoulders. I’m a big fan of kneesovertoesguy and the.ancestral.athlete on Instagram.

What keeps you motivated when you don’t feel like heading out the door for a workout?

I just don’t go run when I don’t feel like it. Which leads into putting on some serious miles when I do feel like it. The winter months are usually when I don’t feel like it as much and so I tend to mix things up with snowshoe running and just hoofing it through some seriously deep snow. I look at those deep snow days as extra strength days because they can make for solid hip flexors leading into the spring.

I’m not skipping weeks of training ever cause I don’t feel like it, just a couple days sometimes. I usually chalk it up to my body telling me it needs some time. So I listen and I end up coming out of those days off ready to rip.

Who is in your workout support group (training partners, people to bounce ideas off of, etc.)?

My wife and brother. I mostly train solo which is purposeful for the events that I like to do. Spending a lot of time solo has massive strengths later in races. We have two littles so getting in the miles early morning or late evening is my prime time.

Running with my wife was a BIG part of my training before the little ones came into the world but now we all group run as a family which makes those family training days all the more fun. During my long races my wife is my rock. Pacing, crewing, motivation, medic, you name it, she has seen me through all the battles. 

My brother is a fantastic addition to my support group as a pacer, training buddy (we don’t run a lot together, but I am always wishing we could more), and conversationalist. We can easily get lost in a random conversation for hours which comes in handy very much during long races.

I can’t forget my in-laws and parents also which they provide us the means to do our races by watching the kiddos. 

When/what is your next race?

I’m signed up for Jigger Johnson 100 over yonder on the east coast and I’m wanting to do something earlier in the year but not quite sure what yet.

Do you prefer roads or trails and why?

Trails. 100%. If I could only run trails I would, but there is a 2 mile section of road from our house to the trailhead, which I tolerate. 🙂 I can solve all the world problems in my head on the trail and on the road I’m too worried about where to turn and watching out for cars. Trails bring out the young kid in me with all the rocks, roots, and hills to navigate. 

What do you think about while you run?

Life, problems, answers, what I’m going to eat later. So many things to think about and sort through. I think of my brain like the living room after the kids have played in it. So so so messing as the day goes along, but one good clean up at the end of the day and the room is back organized. Same thing happens with my brain. The time in between runs all the thoughts gets messy and all over the place, but as soon as I go for a run they are all organized in the cupboards of the brain.

What is your most memorable race or running achievement?

Ouray 100. Never been so worried about missing cutoff times in my life! The last 4 cutoffs or so I thought I was a goner.

Name one racing experience you would like to forget (please describe).

Rocky Raccoon 100 in 2024. We ran through calf deep mud and puddles the ENTIRE time. And I was sick for two weeks before the race, which yes, was a questionable decision to proceed anyways. But that’s why I love doing these. Because they suck. So I was setting myself up for fun before the race even started! 🙂

What is something non-endurance activity related you would like to share with readers?

I’m going deep with this question, so I hope I understood it correctly… I think a lot of people chase being happy and I think that chase turns into never ending mental struggles. I think instead we should be looking/waiting for peace. Just being at peace with ourselves is very underrated.

Closing

Many thanks to Lee for stopping by Duluth Runner to share some of his knowledge/experiences with everyone. I hope you enjoyed this edition of the Interview Series – stick around for more to come!