Running enthusiasts Cameron Twa and David MacMillan have Happy Feet, and they know it.
Now everyone else can tune into their new podcast and know it, too.
"I know it's a funny name for a podcast. I thought of 'Cold Feet' and then settled on 'Happy Feet.' It had to be something with 'feet,'" said MacMillan, with a laugh.
Their first episode went live Sunday on Anchor and Spotify.
It was an interview with Ajay Chauhan, a Yellowknife runner who has completed a 50 kilometre indoor run, a 12-hour race and who has even bigger goals for this summer.
Podcast is runners talking about running
“Runners love to chat about running and I think this is a good platform to get those stories out there,” said MacMillan.
“A lot of people are training for different things around town. It's surprising when you find out someone is training for the Boston Marathon or for an ultra race. And how they can run in this winter weather. That’s what always baffles me.”
People in warmer climes might be confused that a running podcast would go live on the same day when the temperature dropped to below -40.
Yellowknife attracts a hardy bunch of athletes, MacMillan explained.
“(Even) during this recent cold spell people are out running. I wanted to talk to them.
“One of the most surprising things I’ve heard is how many kilometres people still rack up in a week when it's - 40 C. The first two people I spoke to, both did at least 100 km in one week when the temperatures were - 30 C. Even - 20 C can be really discouraging for most people, so to see runners out there in this weather is incredible.”
Runs the gamut of running
The podcasters have five or six episodes planned for now. Each will go live on Sundays.
The topics will cover a range of aspects of the sport, including how to get off the couch and run that first five km, how more experienced runners are chasing personal best times in half or full marathons and how running fits into an active lifestyle.
“I might want to follow up and see how these runners' goals went,” MacMillan said.
The pair will assess their next moves after the first set of episodes are done.