Ultrarunner Taylor Spike

Ultrarunner Taylor Spike

How do people find strength in their journey to sobriety? This conversation between ultrarunner Taylor Spike and host Coach Blu Robinson gives a raw, down‑to‑earth example of exactly that. Taylor shares how his story started in a familiar way: trying to be the cool kid, drinking heavily, then sliding into prescription painkillers after back surgeries.

He explains, "I didn't have a pill problem, I had a pain problem," and talks about how following doctors’ orders slowly unravelled his life until he was locked out of his doctor’s office and told over the phone, "You're going to get sick.

You're not going to die, but you're going to be okay." What follows is a brutally honest look at home detox, family fallout, and the moment his son gave him a look that said he was "just being a drunk loser". That was a turning point that still shapes his choices today, especially with his youngest son who has never seen him drink.

Listeners hear how Taylor swapped booze and pills for ultradistance running, using massive challenges like the Moab 240 and a sub‑60‑hour 200‑miler as his "bigger high". He talks about carrying his late son’s ashes on long races, pausing at certain spots on the course to throw them to the wind and say a quiet prayer. Those moments, he says, stay burned into his memory in a way drinking never did.

The chat also digs into the trail‑running community, where strangers casually say things like "eight years sober in July" as they pass on the trail, and why Taylor chooses to be open about his recovery instead of staying anonymous. If you're curious how endurance sport, grief, family, and addiction recovery can all collide, this episode offers a grounded, relatable story that might have you asking: what "bigger high" could you choose instead?