Rest Day Live is back tonight to with Dani Moreno in the co-host chair, making her Rest Day debut. Together we'll tackle a menu of sub-ultra distance stories, including an interview with ascendant American star, Taylor Stack who just finished 3rd place at Zegama in a huge breakout performance.

Run of show:

• ​Taylor Stack Interview
• Ledro Sky Trentino Recap
• Elhousine's Sub-Ultra Dominance
• GTWS Standings - Individual, Teams, Segments
• Remembering John Cappis
• Strava File of the Week
• Bonus Miles: Listener mailbag (Join Freetrail Pro to access)

We'll be LIVE on YouTube starting at 5pm PT tonight.
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norda's Michael Jordan Moment: The Rachel Entrekin Effect

In 1984, Nike famously blew their entire sports marketing budget to sign Michael Jordan, a rookie drafted 3rd overall by the Chicago Bulls. It became, unequivocally, the most consequential partnership in the history of sports. Jordan emerged as the most famous and successful athlete in the world, and Nike became the dominant force in the global sporting brand landscape - a position they've still yet to relinquish.

The success they enjoyed together ultimately revolutionized the athlete endorsement model but it was far from obvious at the time. In 1984, Nike was fighting for legitimacy against the incumbents. Built as a running brand, Nike lagged far behind basketball market leaders, Converse and Adidas. Having recently gone public, Nike's growth had stalled and the business was struggling.

Needless to say, the partnership with MJ changed everything. An ascendant brand, matched with an ascendant athlete, at an important moment in time - Jordan became the engine that transformed Nike from a mid-market performance brand into a cultural force and a gigantic business.

Having thought about it for a week, I've come to the following thesis: norda is to modern trail running what Nike was to 1980s basketball. Having enjoyed impressive success since launching their debut shoe in 2021, norda has earned a reputation for quality and has carved out a solid position in the trail running market. Their growth progression has been noteworthy with echoes of previous disruptive companies who became formidable, global brands.

Still, like Nike in the pre-MJ era, norda lags behind incumbents like HOKA and Salomon in trail running market share. While they've built a respectable foundation and passionate customer base, relative to their competition, they're still a small business fighting for legitimacy.

Could it be that the recently announced extension of Rachel Entrekin's contract might be trail running's equivalent of the 3rd pick in the 1984 NBA draft?

Let me explain:

• Timing matters: After her transcendent Cocodona victory, one can assume that norda had to significantly increase their compensation package to retain and extend Rachel's contract - much like Nike emptying the piggybank to secure MJ. Similar to norda's trajectory, Rachel's career still feels ascendant and far from a peak. As such, with a long-term commitment in place, their stories can now be written together - in unison and on ascent - as they both strive to leave a mark on the sport. Exactly what Nike and MJ did together in basketball.
• Product Validation: While norda has clearly been successful in the market, their shoes have not occupied the top step of many high-profile podiums. Rachel's Cocodona victory, wearing the forthcoming 055, provides massively valuable product validation through a performance lens. This is exactly what MJ did for Nike in Basketball. As he became the greatest player on earth, the product was clearly validated, and the Air Jordan franchise exploded. While HOKA and Salomon are in no danger of becoming a modern day Converse, the impact of transcendent athletes cannot be overstated. Like MJ, Rachel is such a star that she could meaningfully launch norda into a new phase of growth and relevance singlehandedly. The Cocodona broadcast, and Rachel's subsequent media tour, probably exposed the brand and its products to millions of new potential customers in an organic way - something norda could've never achieved on their own.
• Performance drives culture: Rachel's performance at Cocodona made her legitimately famous, transcending our niche community with coverage across ESPN, BBC, and many other mainstream outlets. When MJ was at his peak, he wasn't just an athlete, he was an American hero - perhaps the biggest cultural force in the world. During this time, Nike also became famous for their Just Do It ethos, adopting MJ's winning attitude at a brand level in a way that crystallized their value proposition in the minds of athletes. Nike was synonymous with winning. If you wanted to win, you wanted the Swoosh. Rachel's attitude of Why Not Me? could be norda's equivalent - inspiring her fans to believe in the impossible without artificial, self-imposed constraints. Magic will manifest if that ethos is also associated with norda through osmosis and proximity to Rachel.

To be clear, trail running isn't basketball and Rachel isn't MJ. norda isn't on the cusp of becoming a 50 billion-dollar global conglomerate. But every so often there are examples where a challenger brand and a transcendent athlete align at exactly the right time, reshaping the culture of sport in the process. In basketball, it was Nike and MJ. In tennis, Federer and On. In golf, it was Tiger and Nike.

Maybe, in this era of trail running, it will be Rachel and norda.

Love,

DBo

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Trail Ticker

+ Ledro Sky Trentino took place over the weekend in Italy. The second stop on the Golden Trail World Series following last weekend's Zegama-Aizkorri, Ledro was another barn burner bringing out the global stars of sub-ultra. Elhousine Elazzaoui and Caroline Kimutai emerged victorious over the 13 mile course with 5700' of climbing and descending. We'll cover it on the show in detail on the show tonight. In the meantime, find some highlights on the GTWS instagram page.

+ Hans Troyer posted a video on YouTube of he and several fan favorites doing a long run in the Grand Canyon as they all build towards Western States. Adam Peterman, Hayden Hawks, Jeshurun Small, and Dan Jones were also in attendance. A very fun perspective of some of the sport's best all working together!

+ Rachel Drake set a new standard on a famous Utah test piece. The West Grandeur climb accumulates 3300' of vertical in only 2.2 miles with an average grade of 31%. Check out the YouTube video documenting the effort!

+ Speaking of Utah, we're playing Fantasy for the Twisted Fork 68k & 30k taking place on Saturday in Park City. Caleb Olson, Cade Michael, & Ryan Montgomery headline the men's 68k race while Lindsay Allison, Laura Hansen & Becca Bramley are the top-ranked women. Go pick 5-deep in both (68k // 30k).

+ John Cappis is an absolute legend of trail running history. A seminal figure in the founding of both Western States and Hardrock, John passed away a few weeks ago, inspiring many to contemplate his legacy and contributions to the sport. iRunFar published an article by Andy Jones-Wilkins that is well worth reading. RIP John.

+ Trail Waves sent a great newsletter going one layer deeper on the recent SATISFY x adidas collab that animated many in the running community. Rather than adding to the noise, the piece analyzes where each brand sits in the ecosystem and why "the middle is where the action is." Worth a read.

Wednesday Rest Day ICYMI, check out the show we did last Wednesday. In the first half, we caught up with David Sinclair after his huge course record victory at Transvulcania. In the second half, we talked to Zac Marion about the work he does leading live-stream coverage for Mountain Outpost including a review of the viral Cocodona broadcast. Watch Here

Register for TrailCon Registration is still open for TrailCon, a three-day festival taking place June 22-24th in Palisade Tahoe. Secure your FREE spot to see superstar speakers including Rich Roll, Katie Schide, Travis Tygart, Sally McRae, Rachel Entrekin, and more! Register Here

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• Use code FREETRAIL25 for 25% off your first order of NEVERSECOND nutrition.
• Check out the Capilene Cool Sun Hoodie from Patagonia
• Use code Freetrail at healwithheat.com for an exclusive deal on the sauna I love and use every day while I train for Hardrock.
• Go to ketone.com/Freetrail30 for 30% off your first subscription order.
• For deeper, exclusive, member-only discounts, (20% off SunGod, 10% off Freetrail merch and more), join Freetrail Pro.

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