‘ello runner! 👋 Race season is on, and so are the registrations for many races next year. That’s why you’ll find 3 different ballots/lotteries to sign up for in today’s edition (with more coming next week!)

Before we dive in, a quick poll:

_{Voting is anonymous. Vote to see why other runners run!}

Voted? Then let’s get started ⤵️

About a year ago, I met Jess in Berlin. I already knew her from the Running Channel, and I’m happy to say she’s as nice and friendly as you’d think from listening to their podcast/watching their videos.

In 2021, her brother Eddie, who she loved deeply and meant a lot to her, died in an accident. In 2025, he would’ve turned 42. He wasn’t the first loved one she lost: Jess also lost both her parents at a young age.

Running has always helped Jess in many ways, including in dealing with grief. So, she decided to take on a challenge to complete 42 marathons in a year, showing the world that it’s possible to carry grief while still finding reasons to enjoy life.

Running 42 marathons in a year isn’t easy for anyone. Doing it alongside a busy job and life is even more incredible.

There’s so much I could write about this video, but words won’t really do it justice. It’s just a beautiful short doc about what running can truly mean, how it can help us to challenge ourselves, to heal and deal with emotions, and so much more.

Just watch it 🍿 _{(maybe grab a few tissues though)}

Brady’s the kind of runner I wish I could feature every week.

Honest, humble, kind, and inspiring. He’s got the knowledge and the experience, and recently made the Australian Backyard Ultra team.

His feed is full of great running and nutrition tips. His account has blown up over the last year, and I can totally see why. Right now he’s sharing lots of tips around running a backyard ultra, though most of these are also super applicable to the everyday runner. Plenty to learn from this man!

If you want to run the Copenhagen Half Marathon in 2027 (Sunday, September 19), now is the time to enter the lottery.

Signing up for the lottery doesn’t guarantee an entry. However, it’s free, so even if you’re still a little on the fence, you'd better sign up now. The lottery is open until September 30. Results will be shared from October 05 onwards.

The Copenhagen Half Marathon is one of the biggest and most popular half marathons in the world. There are 45,000 spots total, and it’s one of the SuperHalfs, too.

Interested? Then register for the ballot here:

With race season coming up, you may be looking at getting some running poles.

Last year this time, I was frantically searching for a set of poles for my very first 50k ultra marathon. I wasn’t sure what I wanted or what was good, so I ended up borrowing a friend's (shout-out to Lieke).

However, I knew that down the line I wanted my own. And here I am today, 10 months later, with 3 sets 😂

2 sets of poles I have are from the same brand: Zenone. Usually, when I say that name, people frown. “Who did you say?”

Yes. Zenone. In China, they have already built up quite a name. The reason? Quality. They specialise in one thing only: POLES, which they manufacture in their own factory.

In Europe and the US, they’re less known. But I want to change that, because Zenone’s poles are great and they’re more affordable than most big brands, too.

The Master 2.0 is their flagship model. The best way to describe them? Feather-light. You barely feel these poles when you carry them. They’re lighter than both LEKI and Black Diamond’s carbon poles. For reference: ZENONE’s poles weigh 86-99 grams per pole, while LEKI comes in at 230- 240 g per pole and Black Diamond 140-155 g per pole. That’s a big difference.

For many everyday runners, this doesn’t matter too much, but if you’re out there for a long time… it does!

So, looking for poles? Check out Zenone. Their more “beginner-friendly” aluminum poles are also great. I wrote about those back in edition #59!

This Monday, registration opens for the HOKA Hackney 10k. This looks like an incredibly fun 10k in London, and it’s bound to sell out.

The race takes place on Friday 14 May 2027, at 7 PM. If you’re keen, I recommend you sign up to “receive updates” via the button below. The early access spots are super limited, and they’ll be gone before you know it.

Also, if you are a fast runner and have a Boston Qualifying time, TODAY until 5 PM ET is your final chance to sign up: https://www.baa.org. DON’T WAIT!

Hope you enjoyed today’s newsletter! To finish it off, I’d like to share a tool I made this week. It’s called the Run Roulette, and it features all watchlist videos from the past 70+ editions.

Perfect for when you're resting your legs after a long run, during your taper, or when you need some inspiration to lace up!

The site is: https://runletters.com/roulette/

Enjoy and have a good weekend ☀️

Caroline

P.S. Huge shout-out to the 17 incredible people who have already joined the RunLetters Run Club. It directly supports RunLetters’ existence, and I really, really appreciate it. You guys ROCK 🤘 It’s just €1 a month, but it helps me lots.