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Chaski Coach Megan is a former collegiate runner for the Gophers at University of Minnesota – Twin Cities. She pursues a career in worksite wellness after graduating with her Master’s in Public Health from Utah State University. She is originally from Massachusetts, but has lived (and run!) in numerous places. One of Megan’s greatest passions is helping others reach their full potential and connecting them with others. She is a certified personal trainer who specializes in strength training for runners and is a Registered Yoga Teacher.

Chaski Pride Member Sarah Howard Alvarez is a Marathoner, Ultra Runner, and a Pilates Instructor. Other than her love for running and Pilates, she is a full-time Mom to a sweet and loving daughter, Lana. Sarah ran some, walked some and lost a lot of fitness until she started hopping on the trails for a little bit of nature therapy after all of the fear, anxiety, and stress the pandemic was causing. She believes nature and a little sweat are the best form of therapy.

On April 29, 2021, Chaski CEO/Founder, Tyler Andrews, set a new record for the Fastest Known Time on the Pichincha Traverse in Quito, Ecuador (accompanied by friend and professional trail runner Joaquin Lopez). This was his 4th FKT of 2021 as part of his #Los10FKT project to set 10 records in the Andes and raise money for the Chaski Foundation. The Pichinchas were the first real mountains that he explored as a teen 13 years ago. They are where he discovered his love for tails (including his first big FKT); they are where he went to clear his head when his life fell apart and nearly lost himself shortly after that; their outline is the inspiration for Chaski's logo and name; and they're even tattooed on his skin.

Coach Carolyn is Chaski's Nutrition Consultant and Strength & Conditioning Coach. Stocker completed her Master's degree in Strength and Conditioning from Springfield College. With a personal athletic background in track & field and cross country, Coach Carolyn knows firsthand how important proper fueling and strength training is in reducing injury and increasing performance. 3.

“After climbing Cotopaxi, I stand humbled in the face of nature. I have in no way conquered this mountain. If anything, this mountain has simply reinforced its massive dominance over me.” - a young Ty, September 28, 2008 “At the end of the day, the mountain says yes or no.” Ty, 2021.

Zandy Mangold is one of the Chaski Elite Coaches. He is New York City based photojournalist. During his photo assignment documenting the 250km Atacama Crossing race in Chile, Zandy was exposed to the world of ultra-running. He was inspired to start racing and coaching runners and has since helped runners to their first Boston Marathon, 100 mile finishes, 5k PR's, and more.

Jenna Gigliotti currently works as a physician assistant in a family medicine office where she addresses the root cause of illness and incorporates lifestyle management for both acute and chronic conditions. She has completed a Board Certification in Lifestyle Medicine through the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and a Certificate in Plant-Based Nutrition. She continues to increase her knowledge and expertise in mindfulness, sleep hygiene, and physical activity.

In this three-part series, I challenge you to join me in recalibrating your own true belonging. We ALL belong here. My hope for you, me and all of us together is that we can find freedom and love within ourselves so great that we radiate belonging. It is only truly possible for us to help others feel like they belong and to create communities that hold belonging at their core center if we ourselves know that WE belong. -Coach Sam

In the second installment of our series highlighting our Chaski-coached athletes, we put the spotlight on 31 year-old Ally Meller from South Lake Tahoe, CA. Ally is a freelance writer for Outdoor Gear Lab, focusing on reviewing women’s road running shoes and apparel, and a yoga and fitness teacher. Ally especially enjoys working with pre- and post-natal clients. She and her husband just recently renovated a motor home and are taking their show on the road. They’ll spend six weeks in Tahoe before continuing to explore Washington, Colorado and wherever the open road takes them. Ally is one of our most inspiring Chaski athletes. She was diagnosed with Stage 3 cervical cancer in September 2019 – just two weeks after her wedding! Ally just got the good news that she beat her cancer and decided to invest in a running coach to reward herself for persevering through her illness and treatments. When she’s not running, doing yoga or piloting her mobile home, Ally loves surfing, paddleboarding, reading books and hanging out with her two dogs. She is working with Coach Dani Moreno.

While it’s not something I’m exactly proud of, if there’s one thing I’ve become well-versed in this past year and a half, it’s been dealing with an injury. And not because I’m the master of recovering and returning to the sport in record time, but because I failed hardcore at it. I screwed up injury recovery in pretty much every way possible, and I paid for that. I’ve spent a lot of time this past year writing about the mental side of injury, yet haven’t touched much on the nitty-gritty of rehab and rebuilding, for two main reasons.

Dear Chaskis, Who's been the most influential coach in your life? And why? Joelle V. Following our blog post from last week, we put together a couple more stories from the Chaski coaches reflecting on the impact their own coaches had and continue to have in their lives, both inside and outside of running! Josh - I would have to go with Nicole Mehlman, my college coach. A mentor and a coach, she has always been there to help her athletes both on and off the track, always providing an ear to listen, and helping in any way she can. She is always willing to give those with the drive and passion to succeed a chance. While I have never been a mega talented runner, she saw potential in me that not many others did, and she gave me the tools and the belief to push the boundaries of my self imposed limits. Since my recent time on the team she has continued that support, remaining my coach while I take on new challenges, both in running and coaching.

Dear Chaskis, Who's been the most influential coach in your life? And why? Joelle V. At Chaski, we talk often about what makes a good coach. During a recent brainstorming session, the coaches Chaski Team reflected on their own coaches who had the greatest impact on them and their running careers. A common theme - coaches who cared about us as humans, not just athletes!

We’re excited to announce the Chaski Book Club!

This post is part 2 of our recurring Chaski Race Reports series, which we'll be publishing every week. With racing put on hold all across the world, we'll be spotlighting past races from our Chaski coaches. Week 3 is Dani Moreno's recap of the time leading up to to the 2019 World Trail Championship. Dani's original post was featured on the Rabbit blog here. While regular race reports focus on the race itself, I decided to shed some light on what happens beforehand. I think it's easy to feel alone in your thoughts and doubts, and this blog post aims to demonstrate that a lot of people are quite often thinking about the same things. Welcome to what my coach dubs as "The Witching Hour," with this one taking place the days leading up to the 2019 World Trail Championship.

I dubbed 2020 my personal year of the trails by the end of 2019. I'd had quite an exciting rollercoaster of training and racing all over the world. After Boston, Tokyo, Berlin, and CIM, I was ready to do something other than the road marathon for a bit. Since first finding the sport of running in middle school, the trails have always been my favorite. The longer, the better. It wasn’t until this year that I decided to focus wholly on trail ultras.

Two months ago, Chaski Coach and Pro Runner Tyler Andrews became the first person in history to cover the 104km (65 mile) Everest Base Camp Trail in a single day. His time of 23 hours, 42 minutes stands as the current World Record (aka "Fastest Known Time" or FKT) and likely will for years to come. Check out Ty's full written recap of this incredible journey and watch the beautiful video to relive this incredible feat.

We spoke with Alicja Konieczek about her experience with Overtraining Syndrome.Even the pros struggle. They get tired and drained. Sometimes burnt out. But how does one get tired of doing what they love? Today we would like to explore something not talked about enough, Overtraining (OT) Syndrome and its prevalence in sports. Below we will talk about what OT syndrome is.

Tyler recaps his attempt to run under the overall 50km world record in the first ever Chaski Challenge. As the organizer and a competitor in the event, Ty had a lot on his plate, but was able to pull off an incredibly successful day. Note: Photos are by Ian MacLellan from Ty's 2015 Half Marathon Treadmill World Record attempt since we didn't have the luxury of a pro photographer for this one. Last photo is courtesy of Vermont City Marathon.