On The Run With Beards And Dun

Beards and Dun return to the mic for a jam packed episode. They fill us in on what they've been up to with Dun spending the summer back in the Midwest, and Beards spending it out on the boat. We get their thoughts on current events as well as some events from the past, a sneak peek for future plans, and so much more!

Beards and Dun have the pleasure of getting together with their first "repeater", Bart Yasso. Bart joins Beards and Dun to share information about his new book "100 Runs Of A Lifetime".

This week on the podcast Beards and Dun sit down and have a conversation with Jeff Benjamin. Jeff has written for more than 30 years for American Track and Field magazine along with RunBlogRun.com. He is also a columnist for SILive.com's monthly "On The Run" column. He is also a member of the College of Staten Island Sports Hall Of Fame for cross country and currently teaches a college course in Sports Business Management at the college. A passionate (some would say fanatical) follower of the sport of running, his subjects have included Sebastian Coe, Jim Spivey, Joe Newton, Tom Fleming, Bill Rodgers, Marty Liquori, Rod, Dixon, Jim Ryan, Bob Beamon, Dave Wottle and Abel Kiviat. In 2023 Benjamin was honored with the Annual James Dunaway Award by the Track and Field Writers Association for journalism excellence.

This week on the podcast Beards and Dun sit down with Keith Brantly, who could easily be considered one of the most successful long distance runners in US running history. Keith is a 5 time Olympic Trials qualifier, has represented the US in 12 international competitions, is an 8 time US champion, and an incredibly nice guy.

This week on the podcast Beards and Dun sit down to talk with Jake Barraclough. Jake is a British runner who like Beards, wants to see how good he can get in marathon running. The similarities between he and Beards are scary. Their training, outlook on life, and joyful spirits enable them to break the mold and find their true potential.

Beards and Dun return to the podcast this week with guest Don Kardong. Don has had an exciting running career from marathon winner, Olympian, author, Road Runners Club of America President, and race director. Don's passion, knowledge, and sense of humor make for a whole slew of great stories.

This week on the podcast Beards and Dun get together after a brief hiatus to swap stories about training and staying active during the harsh Midwestern winters. Beards gives us an update on his health, and they also touch on some current events; what does baking soda have to do with running?

Beards and Dun sit down together to give everyone a quick update on what's been going on with Beards and to thank everyone for their thoughts, prayers, and donations to the GoFundMe that was set up for Beards. Stay tuned as Beards and Dun will be back soon with more full length episodes. If you would like to make a donation please search Dick Beardsley at gofundme.com.

This week on the podcast Beards and Dun sit down to talk with John Conley, Race Director of the Austin Marathon for 19 years. John has seen it all and learned (sometimes the hard way) what it takes to pull off the massive undertaking of coordinating all the moving pieces that go into the planning and execution of a marathon.

Some people set a goal to run a marathon. Gary Paxton set a goal to run a marathon after he turned 50. Not only did he run one marathon (or longer) after age 50, but he ended up running 100 of them! Some people say they don't have time to train. Gary is an inspiration; he underwent major back surgery and had a heart attack while accomplishing his goal. His book: 100 Marathons After 50 has valuable life and running lessons for everyone.

Beards and Dun get a chance to sit down with the the one and only Toni Reavis on this weeks episode of the podcast. Toni is a pioneer in the world of running broadcasting. From starting the Runner's Digest radio show in 1977 to hosting ESPN's Road Race of the Month through the 80's and 90's, Toni truly is the "voice of running" in the US. Toni has met and interviewed pretty much everyone who is anyone in the world of running, and is one of the most knowledgeable individuals in the world of all things running.

This week on the podcast Beards and Dun have the privilege to sit down with the real life Walter Mitty, Bart Yasso. Bart personifies to a tee, the adventurist personality type. Working for Runners World starting in 1987, Bart developed the ground breaking Runner's World Race Sponsorship Program, which ultimately involved 7000 races and four MILLION runners per YEAR. From a Bun Run with a nudist colony, developing the the Yasso 800, and a "mile high" mix up, the stories Bart can tell could be an entire podcast series on their own.

This week on the podcast Beards and Dun got the pleasure of visiting with running legend Benji Durden. With modest high school and college credentials, Benji went on to become an Olympian and a Road Runners Club of America's Hall of Fame member. His running career includes being ranked in the top ten American marathoners for SIX consecutive years and being ranked 7th in the world in 1982.

This week on the podcast Beards and Dun get to know a new friend, Mike Beeman. Mike has run the Boston Marathon an impressive FOURTY SEVEN times consecutively! Starting out as a basketball player and later achieving a personal best time of 2:35:42 in the marathon, as well as twice running the length of New Hampshire (248 miles) for the Make A Wish Foundation, Mike has some amazing stories to share.

Beards and Dun get together this week alongside Beards' college coach John Fulkrod. Coach Fulkrod was the men’s and women’s cross country coach, men’s and women’s track coach, and tenured chemistry professor for 38 years between the University of Minnesota-Waseca and Duluth. They discuss Coach's career as well as reminisce with stories from his time as Beards' coach.

Despite some technical issues Beards And Dun manage to get a conversation going with former SDSU Coach Jay Dirksen. Jay coached for SDSU from 1969 to 1977 before coaching in Illinois, Missouri, and 28 seasons for the Nebraska Cornhuskers, retiring in 2011. Jay has won numerous marathons including the inaugural Paavo Nurmi Marathon, The Drake Relay, and the Twin Cities Marathon just to name a few.

Beards and Dun finally get a chance to get together to record a new episode. Beards gives an update on what's going on with his knee, Dun tells about his run in with a dog, his experience with Hurricane Helene, and they discuss highlights from the Twin Cities Marathon.

Beards and Dun are back together this week for a bit of an update episode. Beards gives an update on what's been going on with his knee [content warning, squeamish listeners beware], and Dun talks about his return to the running game as a volunteer coach for Mars Hill University along with some anecdotes about his and Beards' training and coaching at SDSU.

Dun flies solo again this week as Beards continues to deal with medical issues, however Dun's college room-mate Randy Fischer is just the guy to fill Beards' shoes. Randy was a state champion track runner in high school, an All-American in college, running varsity all for years at SDSU and was on two national cross-country runner-up teams. Randy ran for the Nike shoe company and went on to run 54 marathons with two sub 2:20 and 30 sub 2:30 times. He has won 7 marathons and still holds the course record at the Brookings Marathon having ran it 5 times in total. Randy is a "shoe in" if South Dakota ever creates a Hall Of Fame for distance runners and coaches.

This week on the podcast Dun is joined by guest host Brad Cordts to discuss the Olympics while Beards takes a short break to address some health concerns. Brad Cordts is an SDSU alumni running track with Rod Dehaven, has 30 marathons under his belt including 19 consecutive Boston Marathons, and has a love and knowledge for the sport of running. Get to know Brad this week as he and Dun discuss his running career as well as discussing highlights from some of the running events from the 2024 Paris Olympics.