In Episode 21 of Pod on the Run, we sit down with someone who helps more than one-thousand girls each year discover confidence through movement. Claire Johnson, Executive Director of Girls on the Run North State, is one of those rare leaders who doesn’t just run a program — she builds a community. Her story begins in a family of twelve, where she learned early how to listen, negotiate, and find her voice. Those skills now shape the way she leads coaches, volunteers, and teams across more than sixty sites from Yuba City to Yreka, creating spaces where girls feel seen, supported, and capable of more than they imagined.

Claire shares how Girls on the Run grew from Molly Barker’s original vision in 1996 — a curriculum designed to help girls reclaim their identity and emotional strength through movement — into a national force that has reached more than 2.5 million participants. We explore how GOTR blends running with life‑skills education, using kinesthetic learning to help girls navigate friendships, emotions, and the challenges of growing up in a world full of comparison and pressure. From the “friendship builder, tester, or breaker” conversations to the 10‑week arc that culminates in a Community Impact Project and a 5K, Claire brings to life what belonging looks like on a GOTR team.

We also dig into the scale and heart of the North State program: 1,000+ girls each year, more than 200 volunteer coaches, and a network of teams that stretch across rural, suburban, and small‑town communities. Claire talks about what it takes to support such a wide geographic footprint, the unique spirit of North State girls, and the moments that remind her why this work matters — especially in 2026, when confidence, identity, and emotional safety are more important than ever.

From the nervous energy at the starting line to the moment a girl realizes she can run farther than she thought, Claire paints a vivid picture of the transformation that happens when young people learn to trust their bodies, their voices, and their choices. We close with stories of leadership, community, and the joy of watching girls step into their own power — plus a fast‑paced lightning round with Petar to bring it home.

This episode is about confidence in motion, the adults who make that possible, and the girls who carry those lessons into every part of their lives.

For this special crossover episode, we laced up and headed out onto the North Rim Trail in Upper Bidwell Park, where we spent the morning hiking, talking, and filming with Nick Woodard of Tails, Ales & Trails. What started as a simple idea — two local podcasts meeting on a trail — turned into a reminder of how deeply movement, storytelling, and community intertwine.

Nick showed up with full production wizardry: selfie stick in hand, drone buzzing overhead, and the kind of smooth, on‑the‑move filming that makes a trail conversation feel like a cinematic experience. The miles flew by as we walked and talked, swapping stories about running culture, craft beer culture, and the people who make Chico’s outdoor community feel like home.

Tails, Ales & Trails is a podcast network dedicated to inspiring stories rooted in outdoor adventure, animals, and craft alcohol. Their episodes feature everyone from brewery owners to mountain bikers to extreme sport athletes, all centered on personal passion, community, and the great outdoors. Their vibe is equal parts curiosity, craftsmanship, and connection — and it shows in their polished production and the way they highlight the humans behind the hobbies.

Pod on the Run is our love letter to Chico’s running culture — the people pounding the trails and roads, the stories behind the miles, the community groups like Fleet Feet Chico and Bidwell Run Club, and the big existential questions like “Why do we even run?” We explore the heartbeat of this community through humor, honesty, and the kind of conversations that happen best while moving. That’s part of why this crossover made so much sense. Both podcasts orbit the same gravitational pull: people who show up, stories that matter, and communities built through shared rituals, whether that’s a run, a hike, or a post‑adventure pint. Running culture and brewery culture share the same DNA — connection, belonging, and the joy of gathering around something you love — and out on the North Rim Trail, that overlap became impossible to miss.

In this episode, we dig into the origin stories behind both podcasts, how outdoor spaces shape community, and the parallels between running culture and craft beer culture. We talk about the art of storytelling on the move, Nick’s slick filming setup (yes, including the drone), and why this crossover felt like two worlds naturally colliding. Two podcasts, one trail, and a shared love for movement, community, and the stories that bring people together.

Episode 19 of Pod on the Run traces the life of a man who rebuilt himself through discipline, imagination, service, and thousands of counter‑clockwise laps on a prison track. Joaquin Jordan grew up in Los Angeles during the height of the War on Drugs, raised by a single mother. He was a strong student and athlete, but the pull of addiction, identity, and survival dragged him into the justice system at fifteen. By adulthood, he was facing twenty‑five‑to‑life.

Inside those walls, Joaquin didn’t just survive - he went to work on himself. He studied relentlessly. He journaled daily. He led groups, facilitated conversations, and became a source of stability for people who had never known it. And in the middle of all that, he found a lifeline in an unexpected place: Runner’s World magazine. Each issue became a window into a world he had never touched. He tore out the annual mileage log and filled it with his runs. He cut out photos of runners moving through forests, parks, and cityscapes, taping them to his cell wall. Those images became his vision board - a map of the life he wanted but had never lived.

Every day, on a cambered asphalt track where you could only run counter‑clockwise, he imagined himself running in those places. He pictured the trees, the air, the freedom. Running became structure, identity, and hope. He ran twenty‑five marathons in twenty‑five weeks. He earned four AA degrees. He built programs that changed lives inside the facility. He became a counselor, a mentor, and a leader long before he ever stepped outside the gate.

His transformation was so undeniable that the governor granted him clemency for good behavior. Joaquin walked out of prison on a Friday and started college at Chico State the following Monday. Today, he’s an executive coach, counselor, consultant, statewide leader, and a law‑school student, using his lived experience to serve people navigating the same systems he once fought to survive. He also earned a bachelor's degree.

And those Runner’s World photos? He’s running in those places now. One of them was Lower Park in Chico — a route he once only knew from a magazine page taped above his bed. Today, he runs it regularly. He literally ran into his dream.

This episode walks through every chapter of that arc: growing up in LA during the War on Drugs, the descent into addiction and incarceration, the emotional hinge moment when he chose to change, the reality of prison life and the discipline it demanded, the birth of a runner on a prison track, the power of imagination and vision boards, the shock of re‑entry, the rise of a counselor and coach, the pursuit of law school, and the full‑circle moment of running the routes he once only dreamed of. It’s a story about movement as medicine, imagination as survival, and the power of choosing identity over circumstance. Joaquin Jordan didn’t just rebuild his life — he ran toward it, one lap at a time.