Off The Couch

Brian Metzler has been writing about running, in one form or another, for the better part of the last 25 years. His latest book, Trail Running Illustrated: The Art of Running Free (which he co-authored with Doug Mayer), captures the playful side of trail running through illustration while also offering helpful advice for runners of all levels. It’s a genre-bending book with an interesting backstory, so we talked to Brian about how it all came together; his writing (and running) career, and much more. TOPICS & TIMES:Brian’s background (1:05)Connecting writing & running (4:31) Avoiding burnout in Boulder (9:51)Trail shoe trends (15:50)Lessons from >2,000 shoe reviews (18:36)Kicksology: The Hype, Science, Culture, & Cool of Running Shoes (26:57)Trail Running Illustrated: The Art of Running Free (32:25)“A graphic novel for trail runners” (34:53)Brian’s book recommendations (39:07)RELATED LINKS:Trail Running Illustrated: The Art of Running FreeKicksology: The Hype, Science, Culture, &