Singletrack
Singletrack is a podcast covering the professional trail and ultrarunning scene.
Singletrack
Lauren Gregory | 2026 OCC Champion
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Lauren Gregory joins us in studio to recap her victory at OCC.
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Single tracks coverage of the 2026 UTMB World Series Finals is brought to you by Norda, Precision Fuel, and Hydration and RAID Research. The single best way you can support our coverage in these next two weeks is by supporting our partners. You can use our discount codes linked in the show notes of these episodes. You can mention us in post-purchase surveys and a lot more, all that good stuff. It helps a ton. A few notes here. Obviously, Norda recently released the 055 shoe model. This is a fantastic trail super shoe, especially I think in the multi-day category and in these hundred-mile mountain races. Go check it out. They've also got a new partnership being announced, I believe, on August 26th. So stay tuned on socials for that. Precision, Feel and Hydration, our official nutrition partner of this coverage. They're going to be set up all week in Chamonix as well. They have a ton of athletes racing, including Caleb Olsen, Rachel Entrikken, Rachel Drake, Tyler Green, to name just a few. And then finally, Raid. They have a showroom here in Chamonix from August 24th through the 29th at St. Glard Sports. That will include a range of 2027 prototypes that can be demoed to get your feedback on. They're also selling their LF5L vest, running belts, and current apparel line. So yeah, thank you to Raid, Norda, and Precision Fill and Hydration for making these entire two weeks possible. We are back with coverage of the 2026 UTMB World Series Finals, and we have the pleasure, the honor of being joined by the 2026 OCC women's champion Lauren Gregory.
SPEAKER_01Thanks for having me.
SPEAKER_00Take us back to the streets of Chamonix connecting with Naomi just after the road crossing there, the battle to the finish. I think everyone wants to know what was going through your head.
SPEAKER_01And I was entering that gate, I'm like, oh my gosh, we literally spoke this into existence. Like to be duking it out after 60 K's of running in the last K. But I don't know. I think knowing that there was a road stretch after that and kind of being able to hunt. And we we watched some reels or some of the live stream today, and like I think being able to visually see how your competitors are running and compare it to how you're feeling. And like obviously I wasn't feeling great, like I definitely only had one gear left. And and I think after when we were talking about post-broken arrow, like I knew I had a few gears still to fire. This yesterday was like, I have one shot, and like if I don't execute this right, and she responds, like, I don't know if I can double back on it, you know? And so it was kind of just tapping into that track brain where you're like, I have to make sure that I time this correctly. And I didn't exactly know where the finish was, so it's like a bit I think I checked my watch at some point to be like, Do I have a half mile to go, a quarter mile to go? It's like crazy to have to after running 60k to be like counting down a hundred meters, two hundred meters or so.
SPEAKER_00It's funny, Jules and I were talking post-race, and we both were curious, what do you attribute to having that last little bit of energy to fire in you and like track brain? Like that's your track instincts kicking in.
SPEAKER_01It does, it does kick into that like how am I going to like execute a pass or like execute a kick? And I don't know who said this maybe with 5k or like 3k to go. They were like, when you make the pass, like rip their legs off. And I was like, that's really motivating, and I hope I can do something like that if I get to that point. Cause at that point I was still in third. But everyone I passed like believed in me so much, even when I didn't. And like I think that helped a lot. Because it's hard in trail on a road race, you can see someone's however many seconds in front of you. But in the trail, you're in the woods for I mean, I was alone for most of the day, like besides men. And to have it come down to the end and they start coming back to you, it's it's crazy, but it's fun to kind of kick into like race instincts and be able to like, like I said earlier, like play your cards versus theirs. And I think when we hit the road, like I just knew to like conserve my energy and test it off of hers and and see what I had left.
SPEAKER_00At least in this context, is it possible to compare the last kilometer of a 60k to the last 400 of a 1500?
SPEAKER_01Absolutely. It doesn't look as smooth and like beautiful for sure. Like in your head, you're doing the same thing. Like I always laugh because it's like the most played out race strategy of all time in the 1500. It's like the bell rings and everybody goes with 400 to go. I'm like, this is such a predictable strategy. Everyone knows this is gonna happen. But it's kind of like what happened yesterday, where it's like something about crossing over that bridge and hitting the town, and that's like the bell ringing and something changes and your adrenaline spikes, and you can actually like will the last bit of yourself. And Naomi was obviously like giving it her absolute all, which is like so valiant, and I respect her so much for how hard she worked.
SPEAKER_00What did you guys say to each other at the finish?
SPEAKER_01Well, it's funny because we're really good friends, actually. Like we we've done Golden Trail together, we roomed at Sears and all last year together, and like we're pretty similar vibes, like really chill, but then really like to go all out in these things and then like go back to being good friends. And so I think even when I saw her take off like two hours in, I'm like, okay, no, Naomi's gonna have a day, like this is awesome. Like, I hope she wins. This is so sick. And then to like be closing on her, and I think we both just like wanted the best for each other, and and even watching the finishing photos and stuff, like she's just cheering for me from behind. And obviously, she had the race of her life as well. So it's like cool to see somebody else bring the best out of you too.
SPEAKER_00I didn't realize you guys were so close on the golden trail circuit. And again, because our audience is so North American, maybe maybe share any like attributes about Naomi that you appreciate what makes her a great trail runner and a great racer.
SPEAKER_01I think what's interesting is um like I think on the golden trail scene she kind of snuck up on people too, because last year she won Pitts Alpine and she was um I think top 10 at Sears and all. And um yeah, last year. And then she was third, I think, at Worlds in the short course, and like she's just kind of really broken onto the scene in a huge way, but also in a very underdog kind of way, like really unassuming, really humble, a med student, like in Scotland, you know? And I think what was interesting about racing yesterday is my strengths are also her strengths. Like, we're both really good descenders, and so I couldn't really rely on my usual, like, oh, I'll just catch on the descent, or like I know she she is also fast, so like I can't just like bank on the flats for her to come back to me. And she hikes like a beast. So I think it's it's interesting because sometimes you get into these and you're like, okay, they've got me on this, but I have them on this. And her and I are like pretty neck and neck, and we enjoy a lot of the same thing. So if the course is good for her, it's also probably good for me, which makes it difficult to race against her.
SPEAKER_00Well, I think it's also interesting because you know, we talked in in the pre-race interview. One of your one of the opportunities for you at OCC was the chance to race a new cohort of athletes. And I find it so funny that at the end of this thing it came down to the Golden Trail couple.
SPEAKER_01I know we could have been anywhere. And Sarah too, because she races a lot of Golden Trail, and like we do get out as well. So yeah, I think it is interesting. And I think it's cool because it goes to show the quality of Golden Trail as well. Like all these people are piece most of these people are people I've raced before. And so it's like nice that there's so many different options to race really high-quality people, but under this stage is completely different.
SPEAKER_00For this next question, it's it's not when you knew you were gonna win, because it might that might never have been the case, but what can you recall the point in the race where you felt like winning was a possibility?
SPEAKER_01Um, maybe at Cold De Balm. Like, I think as people started coming back, because Naomi and I started off pretty conservatively together, and we were like, are we just both having bad days or are they gonna come back? And then I think I know we both kind of had the same realization where we both looked up, we're like, oh, that's the front of the race. Like they did start coming back eventually, probably an hour and a half in, maybe. And so then I was like, oh, okay, maybe we're actually feeling pretty good, and it's not, it's not gonna be a tough day. And then um I don't know, I was kind of holding down third pretty strong, and I was still feeling good, and I could check in, and everyone just kept telling me I was like 90 seconds off Sarah or like two minutes off Naomi, and the gap wasn't changing for better or for worse. But I think like if I knew I could just keep moving and like maybe if I have anything left in that last 10k move on them. I don't think I ever like let go of the idea of winning, which obviously helped because you don't give up on yourself until it's over. But um, I think in the back of my mind, I was like, they might come back, they might come back, and they did.
SPEAKER_00You know, in the in your finish line interview with Flowtrack, you said many interesting things, but one thing I want to touch on here is for the most part, you didn't really know a single gap all day. And I'd I'd love to hear you reflect like philosophically on what it's like to compete in these races without necessarily needing that awareness of the field around you.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I mean it's really interesting to not be able to see like anyone. And I think maybe just having the brain that is never gonna like phone it in, you know, like I'm never gonna be happy if I like settle. And so I think also knowing that the front of the race wasn't that far, like I would just be disappointed if I had given up on second or first at Call de Mom or like three hours in because there's a lot more time to keep racing. And I mean, out here you have crowds everywhere and people you know everywhere, and everyone's like believing in you and hyping you up and like helping you through. And um, I think them believing in me, believing that I could do it, because they'd say, Oh, you can win this, you can do this, and I'm like, Are you sure? Like, are we sure? Because look at me, I'm like, I can't see them. Um, but people believing in me like did carry me through, and I think that gave me a lot of like motivation to just keep trying for me and for them.
SPEAKER_00I was telling you this offline that it was almost like the tracker in the live stream told two different stories. I think if you were exclusively watching the live stream yesterday, it really looked like this two-way race between Sarah and Naomi, and then you like quote unquote come out of nowhere to overtake Sarah and then battle with Naomi at the finish. If you think about that section between Arjun Tier to the finish, was there any, like, did you have any eyes on these runners ahead of you? Like, was there any more feedback for you personally that like this was gonna be really, really close at the finish?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, because that people were starting to tell me how close people were, but I couldn't see anyone. And so pretty much until I saw Sara's hat, like I was just running. And so Ross, like one of our ACG teammates, at some point, maybe with 6K or 7K to go before the last climb, was like, you're moving faster than they are, which in that moment I'm like, there's no way, like, I think I'm not moving very well, but world is not moving well, which I think is something I need to accept about ultras, that like you think you're running terrible, but you might just be running like a little less terrible than everybody else. And so I think that gave me like a lot of hope. Like, okay, even if it feels like I'm slogging right now, like if I can just keep this pace. And you know, if you're like in a workout and you have two reps left and it's like, I don't need to do anything more, I just need to like hold this pace. And that's kind of what I was trying to keep myself going and keep myself doing.
SPEAKER_00There were a bunch of us watching together and a lot of people were remarking, again, and maybe it's true for you too, but like watching the live stream, especially in the way you seem to tee up that final kick on Naomi, you you project this confidence as a runner. Is that actually how it is for you? Like, even when you're maybe doubting your pace or stuff like that, do you feel like you race with a certain level of confidence?
SPEAKER_01I don't think I've ever raced with confidence from behind like that. Like, I think that's something new that I've never done before where you kind of like hold it really deeply inside that like maybe this could still happen, but also kind of accepting like I just I need to hold third at the very least. Like I'm not gonna do anything dumb to blow up myself. Like I just need to keep my reserves going and like keep moving forward. But confidence from third place is crazy. I don't think I truly believed it until I could start seeing and like getting eyes on. But then the minute I saw Naomi, I'm like, it's over. Like I I can do this because I I just felt I wouldn't say fresh, but like I could tell I wasn't running on fumes like they were. So I was trying to like use that to my advantage.
SPEAKER_00Have you ever had like come from behind victories before in your career?
SPEAKER_01No, not not in a yeah, maybe maybe I I raced a half where I came from third and like closed down the last three miles, and it was really fun. And I was kind of trying to use that same because Ben had told me before that half, like, it's your first half, let's just go out conservative so you can enjoy this. And like, we don't want to put a sour taste in your mouth for this distance. I'm like, great, and I had a great experience. And so I was kind of remembering that out there. I was like, this is my first OCC. I don't want to spend four hours deep in the well because I went out too fast. Like, I want to make sure that I like get to enjoy this and maybe I can fine-tune some pacing later. But I think taking that experience and like copy pasting it to a much longer race helped a lot.
SPEAKER_00Explain to this audience what Ben True meant when he said, be the fastest turtle out there.
SPEAKER_01Well, I this originated last year when I was just I moved from sea level to altitude, like back to Colorado, and I was just running every workout like I was at sea level. And so I'd make it one rep, and like the rest of my reps were just blowing up horrendously, like heart rate through the roof, like 20 seconds per mile slower than the rep before, like terrible. He's like, we need to rethink this. Like, you're not, you're not the the hare, you're the tortoise. And so I think or he he texted and said, You're a hairy tortoise, like be the hairy tortoise. And so that was kind of the the mantra for 50 cases this year of like you don't need to be the fastest, but you just need to be the fastest of the turtles. And like, that's just what I kept telling myself, especially I think that's what kept me going when I was alone. Like, I can keep moving as best as I can, and like just try to do this as best as I can and just be the fastest person over this distance, and that's all you need to do.
SPEAKER_00A few more executional questions in our pre-race. You said at Speed Goat, one of the lessons was I need to feel through the end of the race. Was that achieved here?
SPEAKER_01It was a hundred percent achieved. I think this is the first time I've ever actually like executed a plan perfectly, and it was out of like survival. Like I knew my life depended on it. So it was just like hammering gels when in doubt, because you start to like lose when you took your last gel, or I when in doubt, I would just throw down another gel. I'm like, screw it. It can't hurt right now.
SPEAKER_00Heat management, it was hot out there. I think it got up to the like 88 degrees, 31 Celsius. Was that a factor? That makes me feel better.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Was that a factor?
SPEAKER_01It was really quite warm. Like I definitely felt it more so than at speed go. Um, I don't know if it's just humid or something, but I mean, I started off with ice in my vest and like on my neck, and then at some point I was like, there was water running down a rock, and I just like kind of laid on the rock. I mean, it's nice in these longer races because those things actually do matter. And I remember like after I'd seen someone with like 5K to go or 6K, I like grabbed my hat with the creek and was like, I just need to keep myself cool to keep myself going. Like the minute I stop paying attention to this is when this could get blown up, you know. And it was with 4K to go, you know, like at the very end.
SPEAKER_00I know you've already talked about how a lot of this race you had the black-eyed peas in your earbuds. Yes. Uh maybe share some of their deep cuts from their albums that the audience should appreciate more.
SPEAKER_01Oh my gosh. This is the thing, is I uh they're like They've got some deep cuts. They do, they do. People just need to not go to like I got I Got a Feeling is actually pretty good, but that's like I think their most popular song. Mimi Halfway is also really popular. Great. I mean, the whole the end album is awesome, but if you go to like monkey business, it's maybe my favorite album. I don't know. This is like my mom listened to a lot of black-eyed peas when we were growing up, so that was just like randomly what was on all of our CDs and stuff in the car. So some sentimental value. Sentimental value. And like, you know, when you just listen to something as a kid and the lyrics are just forever in your brain for better or for worse, because they'll go like one tribe is kind of like world peace, and then they'll like go to something completely raunchy and like probably not acceptable in this generation, you know? Like, like this decade doesn't really accept some of the the lyrics that they say. Um, but anyways, I don't know. I think it just keeps me going and like brings me back to good times, and I know all the word lyrics, so I can just kind of get into it. And Fergie's awesome, so I want to make sure I get this right.
SPEAKER_00So I wrote I wrote this down in our pre-race interview last week. You said you would put a win at OCC in the quote eventually, but not sure which year category or bucket. So I guess was this year a surprise? Was winning it right now a surprise?
SPEAKER_01I don't think so because I think in order to like think it's possible, you have to think it's possible. Like in order in order to do it, you have to think it's possible. So I did think it was possible, but I wasn't gonna like overload myself with that overwhelming pressure because I know that at some point like that pressure exists, and now that I've done it, the pressure exists. And so I was trying to really enjoy like this experience, this UTMB like chamony experience without overloading myself when I don't need to. And so maybe that's a good strategy for later. But yeah, I think maybe not a surprise, but I just didn't know when and I wasn't gonna put that on myself for this year.
SPEAKER_00This is more a comment, less a question, but maybe you have thoughts on it. I after yesterday, I mean, I mean that has to be one of the most electric, memorable performances in the history of the sport. But I just find it wild that you're responsible for that, and yet if you go back a couple of years and you think about your entry into the sport, you were like fighting tooth and nail to convince brands that you could be this like hybrid track trail athlete, and trail was like an afterthought.
SPEAKER_01Right.
SPEAKER_00Um, is that interesting to reflect back on? Like from there to here, and now you're I mean, you're a queen here.
SPEAKER_01I appreciate that. I mean, this is always where I wanted to be at the end of it, you know. So it's cool to like arrive here and know that what I thought was possible was possible. I also think that it's a testament to like if you think you can do it, go for it. Like you don't have to convince anyone that it's possible. You just have to maybe convince one or two brands or like get someone to sign on. I think it's running is running. And so if you're a good runner, like believe in yourself and it can translate. I also think trail is its own skill as well. So like cultivating that like my PRs maybe compared to Naomi and Sara's, like on the roads or on the track are different, but this is a whole different world. So yeah, I get it being a bit of a risk, but I think it's cool that the dream and the vision actually did play out.
SPEAKER_00Is this the end of your season?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. I don't really have plans after this. I might uh we're gonna talk to Ben about this, but we have some friends running like CIM and stuff, so a part of my brain wants to go do that, but I don't know about that yet. Might have to think on that for a little bit.
SPEAKER_00Well, Lauren, we we cannot thank you enough for the time sitting down here today reflecting on the wind, and I just wish you the best of this weekend, the chance to choke in, soak in chamony. This is tough to say. It's like the shammo can be shaminy. And um, yeah, we just we're we're huge fans of you, and uh just thanks for making again, thanks for making this sport so electric. We really appreciate it.
SPEAKER_01Thank you for having me. I appreciate that.
