The Technical Descent and the Rise of Gravel Racing

This is our UTMB pre-race interview with Heather Jackson.

After an impressive 5th place at CCC in 2024, Heather is eager to take on the full loop around Mont Blanc at UTMB. Heather is one of the best trail running and gravel cycling athletes in the world, but has had a dissatisfying running season with a DNF at Western States in June. She will surely bring her talent, hard work and drive to UTMB next week.

This interview is part of Freetrail's coverage of the 2025 Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB). Our shows and athlete interviews are hosted by Dylan Bowman who sits down to talk with some of the favorites who are racing this year.

In this interview, Dylan talks to 

Make sure to tune into all of Freetrail's coverage leading into the 2025 UTMB. All shows hosted by Dylan Bowman, with special guests listed below:

• Friday August 22nd: Top 10 Storylines of the 2025 UTMB with Tim Tollefson
• Saturday August 23rd: OCC Preview Show with Dani Moreno
• Sunday August 24th: CCC Preview Show with Hayden Hawks
• Monday August 25th: UTMB Preview Show with Sally McRae
• Tuesday August 26th: Final Predictions Show with Corrine Malcolm & Keith Byrne
• Wednesday August 27th: TDS Recap Show with Ryan Sandes & Martina Valmassoi 
• Thursday August 28th: OCC Recap Show with Corrine Malcolm and Ryan Montgomery
• Friday August 29th: We’ll provide photo and video coverage of the race for the Freetrail social channels. Make sure to follow along here and @runfreetrail on Instagram.
• Saturday August 30th: UTMB Instant Reactions + CCC Results Show with Jim Walmsley & Sally McRae
• Sunday August 31st: UTMB Week recap with Corrine Malcolm

Make sure to play Freetrail's own fantasy trail running at https://fantasy.freetrail.com/events and pick 10-deep for OCC, CCC & UTMB for a chance to win sweet prizes including Freetrail swag and special items from our partners HOKA, SunGod and more!

Our 2025 UTMB coverage is brought to you by HOKA, the best people and products in the trail running business. The show is also made possible with support from Red Bull & SunGod. We're grateful for their support! 

HOKA

Make sure to check out the HOKA Mafate 5, the shoe Hayden was wearing during his interview and the CCC Preview show recordings today!

The Mafate 5 is a shoe with plush cushioning for tough terrain. A pinnacle product for technical trail, the Mafate 5 goes the extra mile with more cushioning and protection than ever before. Built tough for mileage chasers, this tenacious trail runner helps maintain control during long haul efforts with our Rocker Integrity Technology™ and protects from trail debris with an optional ankle gaiter. Finished with a soft, springy foam just underfoot and impact-absorbing foam near the sole, the Mafate 5 is grounded in aggressive Vibram® Megagrip traction lugs. No doubt, this is the shoe our team will be wearing on the trails all week in Chamonix!

SunGod

A longtime friend of Freetrail, we’re grateful for SunGod’s support of Freetrail’s UTMB coverage this year! SunGod makes performance eyewear worn by the world’s top trail running athletes.

Use code FREETRAIL10 off SunGod products at https://sungod.avln.me/c/xfOAIzPFAeSd

Freetrail Pro members receive a deeper discount on SunGod, available after you sign up at https://freetrail.com/pro

Red Bull

Thanks to one of Dylan’s longest sponsors for supporting our coverage of UTMB. To get your daily dose of epic adventure content, follow @redbulladventure. Make sure to also check out the latest season of Red Bull’s How to Be Superhuman podcast for immersive stories of incredible achievements in trail running and beyond.

Freetrail Links: 

Website | https://freetrail.com/

Freetrail Pro | https://freetrail.com/pro/

Patreon |   / dylanbowman  

Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/runfreetrai...

YouTube |    / @freetrail  

Freetrail Experts | https://freetrail.com/experts/

Dylan Links: 

Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/dylanbo/?hl=en

Twitter | https://twitter.com/dylanbo?lang=en

LinkedIn |   / dylan-bowman-06174380