Racing for Recovery with Todd CrandallRacing for Recovery with Todd Crandall
Addict II Athlete Podcast
Coach Blu Robinson talks with Racing for Recovery founder Todd Crandall about trauma, family loss, Ironman racing and how movement-based recovery reshaped his life. The conversation highlights using pain as fuel for purpose, involving families in healing and keeping meaningful goals ahead as a lifeline in sobriety.
57:34•28 Sept 2026
Racing for Recovery: Ironman, Trauma and Finding Purpose with Todd Crandall
Episode Overview
- Unresolved emotional trauma can fuel addiction, but that same pain can be turned into a powerful asset for personal growth and service.
- Movement and endurance sport, such as Ironman and Ultraman events, can provide structure, discipline and even a life-saving sense of purpose in sobriety.
- Openly sharing recovery stories helps break stigma; keeping success secret can prevent others from accessing hope and practical examples.
- Including family members in support groups allows everyone to hear how addiction and trauma affect both sides, creating space for shared understanding and healing.
- Staying future-focused with meaningful goals, whether races, projects or creative work, offers a “carrot” that keeps people engaged in life and committed to recovery.
“I’d be embarrassed if I didn’t stand up here and share that story.”
How do people find strength in their journey to sobriety? This conversation between Coach Blu Robinson and Todd Crandall gives a raw, honest look at what movement-based recovery can look like over the long haul. Todd, founder of Racing for Recovery, traces his story all the way back to childhood trauma: a mother, uncle and aunt all lost to addiction and suicide.
He talks calmly but directly about how unresolved pain fuels addiction, saying, “Whatever you’re going through, I empathise with you, but it can be utilised as an asset to your self-betterment.” From there, you’ll hear how eight years into sobriety he picked up hockey again, then went from not knowing how to swim to signing up for his first Ironman. Ironman races became far more than medals or bragging rights.
Todd explains how endurance sport gave him discipline, identity and, at times, a literal reason to stay alive: having a race on the calendar meant he didn’t want to “miss out” by giving in to suicidal thoughts. He and Blu swap stories about using races as “life-saving opportunities” and compare finish lines to those pivotal milestones in recovery where you realise you’re no longer the person you once were.
The episode also digs into the birth of Racing for Recovery: a single newspaper article, a flood of phone calls, and a decision to step out of anonymity despite stigma. Todd shares how his support groups intentionally include family members, forcing both sides to hear what addiction really does to everyone involved. He talks about becoming an 11-time author, especially of children’s books that help kids name their pain before it turns into addiction.
If you’re curious how trauma, fitness, family healing and long-term sobriety can weave together, this conversation offers plenty to sit with. What “race” might give you a reason to keep moving forward?
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