Julia Dinesen is Super Stoked on Swimrun!

Julia Dinesen found swimrun the way a lot of people do — she saw someone running off a cliff in their running shoes and into the water on Instagram, and immediately thought, what needs to happen in my life to get me there? A year later she was on the start line at Ötillö Whistler, solo, in a sleeveless wetsuit, losing her water bottle in glacier water at 6am, and absolutely loving it.
Julia is a multi-discipline endurance athlete from British Columbia — ultra swimmer, triathlete, marathoner, and as of recording this, 859 days into a running streak that started because she wanted a Garmin badge. She did Ötillö Whistler last year as her first swimrun and is heading to Orcas Island at the end of this month. She is exactly the kind of athlete this sport is built for.
We talk about how she found swimrun, what it was like to race World Series solo on her first ever attempt, what she learned from 25 kilometers on a flat tire at a triathlon in the Okanagan, how the running streak actually works, what it is like to be a swimrunner in Western Canada where nobody knows what swimrun is, the gear she cobbled together for Whistler and what she is changing for Orcas, and why she thinks you should just sign up already.
We also share some tips for getting the most out of your swimrun practice sessions, and the ÖTILLÖ season officially kicks off this weekend at Rügen in Germany.
This episode is brought to you by FORM Goggles. Their new Smart Swim 2 LT is their entry-level goggle — $149 gets you the heads-up display and access to their full training platform. Check out formswim.com and send us a DM if you have questions. We have been using FORM for years and it is the real deal.
00:00 Intro — Orcas Island month kicks off
02:00 FORM Goggles and the new Smart Swim 2 LT
05:00 ÖTILLÖ Rügen kicks off the European season
06:00 Training update — swimrun practice tips
08:00 Swimrun practice tip 1 — have a plan
09:00 Swimrun practice tip 2 — decide what you are testing
10:00 Swimrun practice tip 3 — do transition drills
12:00 Welcome Julia Dinesen
13:00 Julia's endurance background — running streak, ultra swimming, triathlon
15:00 How she found swimrun via Instagram
16:00 Signing up for Ötillö Whistler — an hour and a half from home
17:00 The 859-day running streak — how it actually works
20:00 Being a swimrunner in Western Canada
22:00 Race report — Ötillö Whistler solo, World Series distance
24:00 First transitions, lost water bottle, 6am in glacier water
26:00 Getting present — no phone, no music, no earbuds
28:00 Why swimrun is different from triathlon
29:00 Resilience — 25K on a flat tire and what that taught her
32:00 The mental side of finishing hard things
34:00 Team vs solo swimrun
35:00 Kit upgrades for Orcas — carabiners, soft flask, wetsuit
38:00 The beauty of figuring it out as you go
42:00 Open water swimming background and ultra swims
47:00 The elevator pitch for swimrun-curious athletes
50:00 Gear advice for first-timers — use what you have
52:00 See you at Orcas