Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Max Jolliffe joins the podcast for his third appearance, two weeks out from his return to Cocodona 250. After dropping at mile 238 in 2025 with cellulitis, Max is back for redemption, and this time he's doing it as a full-time professional athlete after leaving Hurley in November following nearly 15 years at the company.
We get into his training block, gear and nutrition strategies, and an upcoming week of course recon out of Mike Versteeg's place in Prescott. Max also walks through his experience at the BPN Backyard Ultra in the Texas hill country and makes the case for why the backyard format deserves more attention from the sport's top names.
Other topics:
* How 15 years in graphic design and apparel at Hurley shapes the value he brings to brand partners beyond race results
* Why race merch across the sport is a missed opportunity and what needs to change
* His new travel show concept, Weekend Training Camp, and the Salt Lake City pilot he's editing now
* When he stopped idolizing effortless talent and started respecting visible work, and how that shift rewired what he looks for in athletes
* Why he doesn't actually love racing and what draws him to multi-day events and backyard ultras instead
* Time goal for Cocodona, day-one pacing philosophy, and why he's staying off the front early
* Prize money at 200s and why the math might need to change
Chapters
00:00 Preparing for Cocodona: Training Insights
06:07 Experiencing the BPN Backyard Ultra
25:08 The Adventure Over Competition
34:34 Transitioning to Full-Time Athlete
49:41 Exploring Content Creation in Trail Running, The Weekend Training Camp Project
01:00:00 More Training Insights for Cocodona
01:03:53 Cocodona Race Strategy and Goals
Partners:
* Norda - check out the 005: the lightest, fastest, most stable trail racing shoe ever made (nordarun.com/)
* Precision Fuel and Hydration - use code SINGLETRACK at checkout for 15% off your next order (precisionhydration.com/planner/?utm_source=partner&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=singletrack.)
* Raide - Making equipment for efficient human-powered movement in the mountains (raideresearch.com/)
* Janji - premium trail running apparel (janji.com/)
* Kodiak Cakes - my favorite oatmeal and pacakes (kodiakcakes.com/?utm_source=SingleTrack&utm_medium=Awareness)
Follow Singletrack on Instagram:
instagram.com/runsingletrack
Subscribe to Singletrack on Apple:
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/singletrack/id1572382413
Subscribe to Singletrack on Spotify:
open.spotify.com/show/7jAsWCRNSCU8nh81vrAaC2?si=3ac02e4e32b946c4
Max Jolliffe joins the podcast for his third appearance, two weeks out from his return to Cocodona 250. After dropping at mile 238 in 2025 with cellulitis, Max is back for redemption, and this time he's doing it as a full-time professional athlete after leaving Hurley in November following nearly 15 years at the company.
We get into his training block, gear and nutrition strategies, and an upcoming week of course recon out of Mike Versteeg's place in Prescott. Max also walks through his experience at the BPN Backyard Ultra in the Texas hill country and makes the case for why the backyard format deserves more attention from the sport's top names.
Other topics:
* How 15 years in graphic design and apparel at Hurley shapes the value he brings to brand partners beyond race results
* Why race merch across the sport is a missed opportunity and what needs to change
* His new travel show concept, Weekend Training Camp, and the Salt Lake City pilot he's editing now
* When he stopped idolizing effortless talent and started respecting visible work, and how that shift rewired what he looks for in athletes
* Why he doesn't actually love racing and what draws him to multi-day events and backyard ultras instead
* Time goal for Cocodona, day-one pacing philosophy, and why he's staying off the front early
* Prize money at 200s and why the math might need to change
Chapters
00:00 Preparing for Cocodona: Training Insights
06:07 Experiencing the BPN Backyard Ultra
25:08 The Adventure Over Competition
34:34 Transitioning to Full-Time Athlete
49:41 Exploring Content Creation in Trail Running, The Weekend Training Camp Project
01:00:00 More Training Insights for Cocodona
01:03:53 Cocodona Race Strategy and Goals
Partners:
* Norda - check out the 005: the lightest, fastest, most stable trail racing shoe ever made (nordarun.com/)
* Precision Fuel and Hydration - use code SINGLETRACK at checkout for 15% off your next order (precisionhydration.com/planner/?utm_source=partner&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=singletrack.)
* Raide - Making equipment for efficient human-powered movement in the mountains (raideresearch.com/)
* Janji - premium trail running apparel (janji.com/)
* Kodiak Cakes - my favorite oatmeal and pacakes (kodiakcakes.com/?utm_source=SingleTrack&utm_medium=Awareness)
Follow Singletrack on Instagram:
instagram.com/runsingletrack
Subscribe to Singletrack on Apple:
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/singletrack/id1572382413
Subscribe to Singletrack on Spotify:
open.spotify.com/show/7jAsWCRNSCU8nh81vrAaC2?si=3ac02e4e32b946c4
