The Aid Station
A regular stop for runners who think about why. The Aid Station is Zoë Rom’s monthly column for UltraSignup — essays on trail running mindset, ultramarathon culture, doing hard things on purpose, and the philosophy of going long. New issues land in your inbox on the second Friday of every month with curated training & nutrition tips and cover everything from race-season planning to the strange quiet that follows a finish line. Brought to you by UltraSignup, the world’s leading trail running registration platform.
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Closing the Gap Between Ability and Ambition
Ambition is the gap between who you are and who you're training to become. My training and racing this year has been … whelming. After an exciting, if not exactly earth-shattering, 13th-place finish at the Chianti 123K (a Golden Ticket Race) last year, I knew I wanted to go back and try to see how…
Brian Metzler
September 11, 2026
Nine Lives: My Life in 9 Transcendent Pairs of Shoes
A brief memoir on how running shoes have helped sew together the fabric of my life.
Zoë Rom
August 13, 2026
Go Touch Some Grass
Less scrolling, more strolling. Here’s what I learned from quitting social media and, yes, touching some grass.
Zoë Rom
July 9, 2026
Yep, You Are a Runner. Even When You’re Not Running.
Never question whether or not you are a runner. If you run, you are a runner. Even when you're not actually running.
Zoë Rom
June 11, 2026
The Importance of Celebrating Microwins
It’s good to set big, ambitious goals. Just make sure you celebrate the little wins along the way.
Zoë Rom
May 5, 2026
Embracing the Uncool as Trail Running Evolves
Trail running is suddenly cool, but you don't have to be. You just need to keep showing up however you are.
Zoë Rom
April 10, 2026
Retracing Steps: Why You Should Repeat Races, Workouts, and Anything That Makes You Happy
Here's why repeating a race is less like running it again and more like actually running it for the first time.
Zoë Rom
March 13, 2026
In Praise of Doing it The Hard Way
In a world where we constantly strive to make things easier, automated, and painless, Zoë Rom ponders her love of ultrarunning, a sport of maximum inconvenience.
Zoë Rom
February 13, 2026
The Case for Not Starting Over
It's tempting to look at your calendar early in 2026 and, in the gaping expanse of the future, only see the things you have yet to do. But here's what I've been thinking about: What if January isn't a reset? What if it's just... a continuation?
Zoë Rom
January 9, 2026
An Immaterial Gift Guide For Runners
Holiday gift guides are inescapable, insufferable, and mostly useless. So instead of hawking stuff you don't need, here are eight immaterial gifts every runner should put on their wish list this season.
Zoë Rom
December 12, 2025