RACE REPORTING
Trailchasers, tech and trailblazers
One man’ s quest to get SA running wild
Dean Horwitz is not your average trail run reporter. He is covering the sport while also looking to start a trail revolution. How, you may ask? With a podcast and calling a stranger once a day. Our Roving COW Richard Laskey chats to Dean to get the full story.
It’ s a Saturday morning and the sun is still making its lazy crawl over the horizon. Somewhere near a trailhead, while most people are snuggled up in bed, Dean Horwitz is already ankle-deep in a muddy river, holding a voice recorder in one hand, a pair of soggy trail shoes in the other, and trying not to drop either. This, friends, is the glamorous life of the introverted podcaster behind Trailchasers.
Let’ s rewind.
A little while ago, Dean— your average dude with a mic and a quiet disposition— decided he wanted to make trail running accessible, relatable, and a little less intimidating to the everyday person. He’ d discovered just how magical trail running could be: the scenery, the people, the“ am I lost or just hallucinating?” vibe of long runs. So, he figured, why not start a podcast?
Easy, right? Wrong.
22 ISSUE 178 | www. modernathlete. co. za