Filming While Racing, The Jeff Pelletier Method

It is the Month of Jeff, so its time to talk to another Jeff, Jeff Pelletier.

Jeff had a huge 2025. He paced and crewed at Cocodona, then took on Badwater 135 and followed it up with the inaugural Mammoth 200. We go deep on Badwater, why he was drawn to a race the core of the community has kind of fallen out of love with, and why he thinks it might be the hardest race in the world to crew. No aid stations, constant leapfrogging, the rulebook, the blinky lights, the penalties, and the reality of managing sleep, food, gas, and ice in Death Valley.

Then we shift to Mammoth 200. What the course was like in year one, why it is going to be a major 200 because of how runnable and crewable it is, and how finishing timing completely changed the race experience once the weather rolled in. Jeff also talks about altitude issues, his first time puking in a race, and how it felt to miss his Badwater goals but still finish and learn something important.

We also get into the filmmaker side, outsourcing rough cuts, what it is like trying to race and produce at the same time, the weirdest things he has done for a shot, and why telling the story can sometimes be the thing that keeps you moving forward. We wrap with what is next for Jeff, including Croatia, Spartathlon, Cape Town, and the always painful lottery season.

This episode of the Free Outside Podcast is brought to you by Janji, Garage Grown Gear, and CS Instant Coffee.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Overview of Badwater 135
07:11 The Challenge of Crewing at Badwater
09:57 Logistics and Rules of the Race
13:00 The Unique Terrain and Conditions
16:14 Heat Management Strategies
19:06 Hydration and Sodium Management
22:04 Final Thoughts and Reflections on the Experience
26:45 Testing Limits: Fluid and Electrolyte Management
28:49 Data Collection in Extreme Conditions
31:06 Balancing Filmmaking and Performance
33:41 Lessons from Badwater: Setting Realistic Goals
35:52 Transitioning to Mammoth: New Challenges Ahead
37:06 Experiencing Coca-Dona: A Unique Race
38:26 Mammoth's Inaugural Year: A Mixed Bag
43:45 Resetting Goals: From Badwater to Mammoth
48:01 The Unique Culture of Ultra Running
50:04 The Rise of 200-Mile Races
53:03 Storytelling in Ultra Running
53:39 The Editing Process of Race Films
56:50 Behind the Scenes of Filming Races
01:03:00 Gear Recommendations and Future Plans

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