Episode 26/27: Cam Smith Drops Some Hard Earned Wisdom
Lessons on Reframing, Burnout, Motivational Flexibility, and Having a Plan for Your Pain Cave
Episode 26: Quenching Curiosity
About This Episode
Today’s guest is Cam Smith (@camfromcb). Cam is a multi-sport monster, especially in ski mountaineering and trail running. A quick list of his accomplishments. He’s an 11 time US Skimo national champion, and 5 time north American ski mo champion. Cam holds the course record for the three largest skimo races in the US, the Power of Four, the Grand Traverse, and the Gothic Mountain Tour. He’s the first American man to finish top-10 in a skimo world cup race, with his 3rd place finish in Andorra earlier in 2022. He’s won a long list of trail running races as well, and has qualified for the Mountain and Trail Running World Championships in Thailand this year. In the first part of a double episode, he shared his key mental skill (reframing), his own personal antidote to burnout, and we got to spend a lot of time exploring the balance between performance paradoxes like:
The Rigidity of Planning — The Adaptability of Acceptance
Outcome — Process
This episode was packed with a ton of detail when it comes to the nuts and bolts of mental performance, and it was a special treat to catch up with Cam!
Episode 27: Be A Hybrid
About This Episode
In part 2 of my interview, Cam Smith (@camfromcb). If you missed his first episode, it’s definitely worth checking out, and as a quick refresher, Cam is a world-class ski mountaineer and trail runner. He’s an 11 time US Skimo national champion, and 5 time north American ski mo champion. Cam holds the course record for the three largest skimo races in the US, the Power of Four, the Grand Traverse, and the Gothic Mountain Tour. He’s the first American man to finish top-10 in a skimo world cup race, with his 3rd place finish in Andorra earlier in 2022. He’s won a long list of trail running races as well, and has qualified for the Mountain and Trail Running World Championships in Thailand this year.
Today, he talks about the benefits of being a two sport athlete, exploring the dark moments in endurance sport (and how to plan for them), and why blending motivations can make you a better competitor.
To round it out, he shares a wicked reflection tool that has helped him squeeze a lot of extra growth out of each race. What really stands out throughout is that Cam is a dual threat and has found a way to be both a (great human being + elite performer).
