Everyday Runners

EDR #43: "It's a nice day out, but someone has to organise the picnic": Learnings from 2024 with Niels Esmeijer (of MTFU Coaching)

Hey! Welcome to Episode #43 of Everyday Runners. 
How was your 2024 running year? Heb je iets geleerd? In this episode, I sit down with Niels Esmeijer of MTFU (Pink Hippo) coaching to discuss what we can take away from our year in running (and coaching). 
Niels speaks about what he learned from his athletes and how this shapes his coaching practice going forward. I speak about my transition from my long-time coach, Joji Mori, to the aforementioned Pink Hippo. I thought the break-up with Joji was going to be hard. But, it wasn't: break ups can be understanding and respectful, it turns out. (For what it is worth, Joji is now my go-to person when I look for advice about coaching.)
Niels and I also what we learned from watching the great performances of two great Dutch athletes: Sifan Hassan and Abdi Nageye. Both Hassan and Nageye seem to run with a lot of joy and play. While virtually none of us can do what they can do on the marathon course, we can still join with them in running joyfully and playfully. 
Because it's almost the end of the year: I want to give a massive shoutout to everyone who has been on the show, listened to the podcast, or simply just passed on a message to me about it. I've probably put about 260 hours into it. Which, well, is quite a lot. If you feel like supporting, become a subscriber via Patreon. That would also mean quite a lot. 
Everyday Runners podcast will continue in 2025 for a Season 2. Yep. Let's rock'n'roll.
Don't forget: If you are out on a run, give the next runner you see a smile or a wave. 
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Andy Fuller/Reading Sideways Press
Strava: Andy Fuller
Instagram: Everyday Runners Leiden
Email: everydayrunnerspodcast@gmail.com 
https://www.patreon.com/EverydayRunnersPodcast 
 

EDR #42: "I think people love Sifan Hassan despite the fact that she's Muslim", Part Two of Conversation with Jasmijn Rana

Hey! Hello! Welcome back to Everyday Runners. Jasmijn Rana is a cultural anthropologist at Leiden University who researches sport and the way people move their bodies in the Netherlands. Jasmijn is also a runner (and former kickboxer). 
I was lucky enough to spend a good hour talking running, training, anthropology matters and Dutch running culture with Jasmijn a few weeks ago.
I have tried to maintain the relaxed nature of the conversation by doing as little editing as possible. Jasmijn speaks very softly but makes some very hard hitting points. If you're going to be critical, I guess it's very wise to do so while laughing :) 
This was yet another episode which made me so grateful to the people who have shared their time, thoughts and stories with me on this podcast. 
Topics include: 
De Bois: double consciousness
Franz Fanon
Zuiderpark vs Haagse Bos or Meijendel as running spaces 
Tim Ingold: “there’s nothing between the body and the environment”;  Sarah Pink, enskilment and the body as part of the environment
Marcel Mauss and bodily techniques: how we learn to move our body.  
the whiteness of the dunes (in between Den Haag and Leiden)
Dutch sports policy; hockey clubs; diversity
Sifan Hassan: “I think people love Sifan despite the fact she’s a Muslim”
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Andy Fuller/Reading Sideways Press
Strava: Andy Fuller
Instagram: Everyday Runners Leiden
Email: everydayrunnerspodcast@gmail.com 

EDR #41: Valencia Marathon Review with Three Superfast Dutch Dudes: Dominic Bersee, Emiel Berghout and Bas ten Dam

Hey! Heb je zin in?
Well what a tasty race that was. Dominic Bersee broke 2:20, Emiel Berghout and Bas ten Dam went heartbreakingly close. 
And all have their own intriguing stories to tell. 
Emiel: how to turn the marathon around when things looked like they were going pear-shaped and of course how to back from an October marathon (Eindhoven) with one in December. 
Bas: how to maximise a variety of surfaces to stay (mostly) injury free during a marathon build and get the most out of (relatively) low-mileage weeks.
Conditions no doubt are great in Valencia, but no one earns a sub-2:20 (or just over) for free. Dom, Emiel and Bas each had their own paths to their times. Each enjoyed the race in a different way; and it means something different to all of them. 
While these three guys might be officially sub-elite and this podcast is for 'everyday runners', we don't discriminate against them just for being fast. :) 
 
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Andy Fuller/Reading Sideways Press
Strava: Andy Fuller
Instagram: Everyday Runners Leiden
Email: everydayrunnerspodcast@gmail.com 
 

EDR #40: "Jasmijn Rana: how do we move our bodies in social-cultural worlds?" (part one)

Hey! Hello! Thanks for stopping by.  This episode features Assistant Professor Jasmijn Rana of Leiden University. 
This conversation was prompted by Jasmijn's article, "Gendered Enskilment: becoming women through recreational running" (2002, The Senses and Society, Vol.17, No.3) in which she explores how the way people move their bodies is mediated through particular cultural norms and expectations. 
This is a free-flowing conversation in which we discuss our processes of becoming runners, how we interact with other runners and what people say to each other at races. We talk about pomegranates, Strava, productivity, attire, Islamophobia and neoliberalism - all the fun stuff. There was so much fun stuff, I've had to break the episode in two: the second part will appear later this week (probably). There is a fair amount of laughter. (I wonder if this is enabled by the fact that the interview was conducted face-to-face rather than on the Zoom.) I also left the laughter in because it is part of the conversational dynamics. 
I hope this episode provides some kind of counter to things that may be disrupting or frustrating.
If you would like to support the show, please head on over to the Patreon page, which is just getting started. 
Until next time: doi doi. 
***
Andy Fuller/Reading Sideways Press
Strava: Andy Fuller
Instagram: Everyday Runners Leiden
Email: everydayrunnerspodcast@gmail.com 

EDR #39: "It's just one long block party & five bridges": Rebekah Kennedy and the New York City Marathon

Hello! And welcome to Everyday Runners Episode #39. 
This episode features Rebekah Kennedy, a second-time-round guest of EDR. Rebekah is a member of the Central Park Track Club and a friend of the show. 
I love the way Rebekah speaks about running and how she intertwines it with her memories of New York's geography and her knowledge of the city. 
In this episode she takes us on our tour of the city via the marathon course. I asked her the question of how it went and she narrated her experience with clear descriptions of the people, places, bridges, spectators and other competitors she engaged with along the way. Rebekah, also managed to run the course in a negative split, something that apparently isn't particularly common. 
I loved this conversation and I hope you enjoy the episode. 
*Also: if you'd like to support the show, please do so, via this Patreon page. 
**photo by Erik van Leeuwen :) 
***
Andy Fuller/Reading Sideways Press
Strava: Andy Fuller
Instagram: Everyday Runners Leiden
Email: everydayrunnerspodcast@gmail.com 
 

EDR #38 - 46 Years Running - Peter van der Velden: 55+ Dutch and World Champion

Hey! Welcome to Episode #38, glad you could stop by for a listen. Maybe you are walking somewhere, on a bus, on a train or riding a bike or running somewhere. I hope things are pleasant where you are. Whatever the case, I hope this podcast brings you a quiet moment. 
This episode features an interview with a Dutch legend, Peter van der Velden. He used to be elite and he still is elite. He recently earned a World Record for the 3000m in a smashing time of 8:55mins. He would have also got the Dutch record for the 5000m, but, owing to a technicality and extreme-fussiness from the officials (and a technology stuff up), it wasn't ratified. He'll just have to wait for another race to do it. 
We discuss Peter's career as an athlete and how he has managed his training within a busy professional life. 
Thank you to Dominic Bersee for inviting Peter to be on the show and for co-hosting the episode. 
If you're interested in supporting this podcast, here is the Patreon page link. 
***
Andy Fuller/Reading Sideways Press
Strava: Andy Fuller
Instagram: Everyday Runners Leiden
Email: everydayrunnerspodcast@gmail.com 

EDR #37: On doing running ethnography in Ethiopia and how to think better about East African running cultures - interview with Michael Crawley

Hello and welcome to Episode #37! 
This episode features an interview with Michael Crawley, author of two brilliant books: Out of Thin Air and the very recent To the Limit - both published by Bloomsbury (shout out to them for producing quality non-fiction books, btw). 
Mike is one of those rare beasts who knows the theoretical jargon, yet doesn't limit his writing or thinking to the academy. He is both well-read and an academic! It's possible! He's also a 2:20 marathoner. Just saying. 
This is (yet again) one of my favourite episodes. I loved the way Mike engaged with my questions on his writings where he explores technology, the agency of a runner, what running means, how 'energy' can be shared. And so on. And yes, we even discuss the controversy regarding Ruth Chepng'etich's marathon world record. 
He is based at Durham University in the UK. 
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If this episode tickles your fancy, don't hesitate to smash the review button on Spotify or to send me a message by one of the following means. Go wild. 
Andy Fuller/Reading Sideways Press
Strava: Andy Fuller
Instagram: Everyday Runners Leiden
Email: everydayrunnerspodcast@gmail.com 

EDR #36: The Singular Life of Véronique Chance as Artist-Runner

Hello and welcome to Episode 36 of EDR. This episode features an interview with Véronique Chance a London-based artist who works with running. For Chance, running is a tool with which to ask questions about geography, the environment, space and our social, cultural and political context (my framing). 
I enjoyed this conversation a lot for it reminded me of how close running can be to being a game and artistic practice, rather than simply being a competitive sport with clear and fixed boundaries, mega-competitions with each competitor only fixated on getting a PB or winning. 
Chance speaks of her very interesting run, The Great Orbital Run, in which she ran around London roughly following the orbital road. We speak about her upcoming run from London to Cambridge and her project of running from London to Venice. And to think we didn't even mention the term 'ultra' once during the conversation :) 
So yeah, that's all from me. I hope you enjoy the conversation. 
Doi doi. 
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From Chance's website: 
Véronique Chance is an artist and academic with a long-term interest in the representation of the body and its relationship to performance, documentation, technology and the embodied dynamics of spectatorship. This is closely linked to her practice-led PhD research, completed in 2013 at Goldsmith’s College, University of London, during which she developed an endurance running-based art practice as part of a larger enquiry into the performative nature of human physical activity.
Véronique currently teaches on and leads the MA Fine Art and MA Printmaking courses at Cambridge School of Art, Anglia Ruskin University (ARU). She is based in London and her work has been shown across the UK and Internationally, in China, Canada, Korea, Spain, Italy, Belgium and France.
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Andy Fuller/Reading Sideways Press
Strava: Andy Fuller
Instagram: Everyday Runners Leiden
Email: everydayrunnerspodcast@gmail.com 

EDR #35: “If you can run today, then actually, that’s good enough”, interview with Sarah Ackland

Hello and welcome to Episode 35 of Everyday Runners. 
How do women experience space differently from men? What does it mean to run through a city as a woman? What is this thing with cat calls, harassment and interference of women while running? What is the gendered labor of fear? What does 'running to repair' mean? 
These are some of the points I discussed with architect, researcher, runner (and feminist) Sarah Ackland of Newcastle University. I enjoyed this conversation very much and I hope you do too. 
**
I can’t really choose between favourite episodes as each one has been special to me. So, although I can’t call this a ‘favourite’ so to speak, this one does hold a special place. I found myself being challenged a fair bit, both in my preparation and during the actual conversation. I say challenged because I got the impression that Sarah wasn’t taking any of my questions for granted and was answering each of them with a very straight bat, to use a cricket metaphor. Although I had sent questions to Sarah before the interview, I don’t think we stuck to the script. Each of her answers prompted a new question, probably in a different direction from which I had planned. 
 
This is also the first episode in which I must state a trigger warning, for this conversation does discuss male sexual violence against women. Sarah does talk about rape. At the conclusion of the conversation, I asked Sarah if we would need a ‘trigger warning’ and yes she said that would be appropriate. So, I implore listeners to listen with open and responsible ears. This is not a sensationalist podcast and we don’t look for controversy or polarisation. The issues Sarah and I speak of are real and embodied. Thus, I hope this episode is a part of a wider discussion on the gendered nature of public space and how access to running is not even. 
 
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Andy Fuller/Reading Sideways Press
Strava: Andy Fuller
Instagram: Everyday Runners Leiden
Twitter/X: @readingsideways
Email: everydayrunnerspodcast@gmail.com 

EDR.#34: “it is what I came for, but it also isn’t what I came for”: Noah Schutte on his debut marathon

Well, it turns out, it’s true what they say, the marathon is a bit of a difficult nut to crack: even for the elite of us runners. In this episode, I speak with local Leiden legend, Noah Schutte, about his marathon debut, which took place on 20th October 2024. 
I first interviewed Noah back in Episode 14, way back in July. In that episode, we talk more generally about his running journey - not sure how to not use the word ‘journey’ - and a fair bit about his coaches and training practices. 
In this conversation, we speak just about how the marathon went down: preparation, immediate post-race feelings, pacing and what happened when things started to not go as planned. One thing that struck me during the conversation, was that it seemed like Noah experienced something that so many of us experience in every race we do: our legs not working the way we’d like them to. Even though things went awry on this day, I’m pleased to have heard Noah say that it won’t be his last marathon and that - if anything - it has made him more curious about how to unpick the marathon puzzle. 
This a rather relaxed and unstructured conversation, but we do our best to stay on point. At the end of the conversation, Noah generously asks me about my Eindhoven marathon. I tried to keep it as brief as possible for those who have already listened to my review. Another thing that I took from Noah’s thinking about his marathon, was his beautiful simplicity in just stating, on his Strava post, ‘it wasn’t in my legs today’: yep, that’s just how it is sometimes. Or most of the times. There was no laborious mentioning of wind, circumstances or preparation. Just, ‘my legs weren’t up to it.’ One thing is for sure though, Noah will be back and firing sooner rather than later. 
This is probably the last marathon review episode for a while. Upcoming episodes include discussions on the gendered nature of running; making running-related art, as well as an interview with an author of a rather well-selling book on running in Ethiopia. As always, I seek to mix up the kinds of episodes I do on this podcast: from research-based episodes, to those which deal with the nuts and bolts of so-called ‘performance’ running. I’m trying to mix up the discourses of running: it’s something that many of us love doing and it is also a sport which is subject to various problematic cultural and political structures. But more on that another time. 
For the moment, enough of my chattering and I hope you enjoy this chat with Noah Schutte. 
*Accompanying image by Erik van Leeuwen
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Andy Fuller/Reading Sideways Press
Strava: Andy Fuller
Instagram: Everyday Runners Leiden
Twitter/X: @readingsideways
Email: everydayrunnerspodcast@gmail.com