Hello, and welcome back to the Shadows Run Podcast!

Today's episode is part 1 of a conversation with Kelly Halpin. Kelly is a professional mountain ultra runner and adventure athlete. She spent her earlier years climbing, hiking, and snowboarding in the Tetons and surrounding wilderness. For the past decade Kelly has merged her passions for running, climbing and exploring remote and wild places by setting fastest known times around the world and establishing long technical routes in her home mountain ranges. She enjoys the challenge of pushing herself mentally through difficult endurance feats, typically solo and unsupported. Kelly works hard through adventure and art to inspire people to get outside and connect with the natural world.

In this first half of our conversation, we talk about Kelly's early mountain running career, specifically focusing on stories and accomplishments in the Teton Range. Kelly was the first woman to do both the classic Grand Teton "Picnic" pioneered by David Gonzales (episode 39!), as well as the first woman to complete the Moranic back in 2015. I ask Kelly what it was like psychologically tackling these crazy endurance feats, without many examples to look to as inspiration, and without any female examples prior. She tells the insane story of her Moranic, involving storms and a rescue and severe dehydration. We go on to talk about other Picnic variations she went on to pioneer in the Tetons, and about what motivates Kelly to keep going when things feel impossibly hard.

This is a fun one, y'all. Enjoy!

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Kelly's Website: https://www.kellyhalpin.com/athlete/

Teewinot Picnic - REI "A Walk In The Park" film: https://www.rei.com/blog/climb/rei-presents-a-walk-in-the-park

The story of Kelly's Moranic: https://avalon7.com/avalon7-adventure-the-moranic-triathalon-picnic/?srsltid=AfmBOoqAZZ-xLrXk2bi-mIWV8ZjVeVkbESwWvFx1XCrJL9P10Y520p9M

YouTube - The Triple Teton Triathlon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAqH5wXrCSw

Various free downloaded maps of the Tetons: https://npmaps.com/grand-teton/

Major peaks of the Tetons named and labeled: https://peakvisor.com/range/teton-range.html

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