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Catching up with Josiah Middaugh
Josiah Middaugh moved from Michigan to Vail, Colorado, and in two short years went from a self-described “average college runner” to the U.S. National Snowshoe Champion. After defending his snowshoe title last March, he completed a solid first season as a pro triathlete, including an impressive sixth-place finish at the 2024 Xterra World Championship in October. Toss in his third-place finish among amateurs in the 2024 Xterra finals (just a week after finishing his first Ironman triathlon) and his runner-up showing at last year’s highly competitive Mount Taylor Quadrathlon in New Mexico, and this 25-year-old has to be considered one of the top young multi-sport athletes in the U.S. On top of working a full-time job as a personal trainer at the Vail Cascade Resort and training like a fiend, his plate will be especially full this year as he and his wife, Ingrid (also a snowshoe racer), are expecting their first child in March.
ASM: What are your goals for 2024?
JM: “First, I’ll definitely do as much snowshoe racing as I can before the baby comes along, then we’ll see if I can get some top podium finishes in the Xterra circuit. Triathlon has always been my yearly focus when I think about training, and snowshoeing is has just been a good vessel to get me there.”
ASM: Any interest in ultra-endurance events, such as a 100-mile ride or run or maybe an off-road Ironman-distance tri in your future?
JM: “I am trying to stay away from those distances for now, but who knows? I also said I would never do an Ironman.”
ASM: What about adventure racing? Any interest in doing a 24-hour race or Eco-Challenge?
JM: “I consider myself pretty young for that stuff, and I think that adventure racing is something which you need a lot of experience to excel at. I still think I have lots of years left to gain that experience. So it’s definitely something I would enjoy doing down the road, but not in the next few years.”
ASM: Vail is chock full of adventure and endurance athletes — Mike Kloser, Anita Ortiz, Billy Mattison — Matt Carpenter lived there in his early years. What’s in the water up there?
JM: “I don’t know if it’s the area that has made the great athletes, or the athletes have been attracted to this area for training and lifestyle. But either way, there definitely are some really strong individual athletes. I think the adventurous, outdoor type is certainly attracted to this area. But ultimately it’s probably that good athletes already living in this area, with this kind of training grounds and the right kind of motivation, become great athletes.”
ASM: What are the pros and cons of living in a town above 8,000 feet?
JM: “The disadvantages are that you can’t get the quality speedwork you can at sea level, mainly because of the altitude, but also because of the hilly terrain. You are not able to run as fast of a mile or crank as much wattage on your bike. The advantage is the ability to develop a big aerobic capacity. I’d say it’s a positive overall, depending on the event you’re training for. For adventure racing, definitely. In triathlon it’s questionable — for Xterra it helps me a lot, because the terrain I can train on here is similar to the races. But the shorter the race, the less of an advantage it is.”
ASM: Any crazy stories about a race you’ve done?
JM: “My first summer in Vail I heard about the Vail Ultra 100 mountain bike race. I decided to jump in a week out when I was given a free entry from my work. I didn’t even own a mountain bike at the time, so I bought one at a pawn shop for $300 and entered the race. That was my intro to mountain bike racing. I finished (100 miles), but it was kind of a nightmare.”
ASM: What do you in your down time? Please tell us you have at least one vice.
JM: “Well, I don’t know if it’s by choice, but I end up watching a lot of reality TV, because my wife is a junkie. I pretend that I can’t stand it. I, of course don’t have a favorite, but my wife’s is Survivor. She actually auditioned for it last year but didn’t make it. And ice cream is my big thing. I’ll eat it every night. My wife and I have to get separate containers, or I’ll eat all of hers.” — Scott Boulbol
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