“I don’t consider myself world class at any of the activities I do. Everywhere I go, I realize there’s people that are ten times more hardcore than me, but I still have fun doing what I’m doing.” —Quinn Kunz
Quinn Kunz runs trails not to accomplish anything groundbreaking, but rather to break ground. Kunz spends a large majority of his time outdoors running, gravel biking (or bike packing), mountaineering, climbing, and enjoys a variety of sporting activities where he lives near the border of Idaho and Wyoming. He’s known best for his local grassroots trail running events he began organizing in 2025 as a twenty-four-year-old college student. Others know him from his clever social media account that showcases his adventurous lifestyle in the mountains and uses humorous storytelling to share trail etiquette and outdoor responsibility tips.
Kunz lives by his motto on social media: “Proving outdoor adventure doesn’t need to be complicated.” This phrase is rooted in the spirit of his adventures, including his first bike pack and attempted summit of Washington’s highest peak, Mount Rainier, where Kunz realized that the achievement of summiting is not as meaningful as the expedition itself, “I didn’t know at all what I was doing on that bike pack to Rainier. I didn’t have the logistics figured out, I slept in campground bathrooms, we didn’t even reach the summit of the mountain, and overall tons of stuff went wrong…but it was just fun to try something like that and just be out there. It felt like a true adventure.”
Ultramarathon man inspiration
Kunz, the youngest of six kids, discovered trail running through a tattered hand-me-down copy of Dean Karnazes’ book, Ultramarathon Man. “My older siblings had been reading the book, and I remember finding it in the house and being so fascinated by it. I had just started cross country around the fifth grade and I had never done anything like trail running before.”
He became hooked on the sport, idolizing its heroes and dreaming about its iconic races, “In one of my journals (I was no older than twelve), I wrote that I wanted to run the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run one day. I wasn’t even trail running at the time, but I was so excited by it all.”
In high school, his passion deepened, “I became fascinated with Jim Walmsley…I like to say before it was cool,” he jokes. “I would tell my friends about his story and the sport. I hadn’t even done any real trail running, besides a few short trails by my house. I was more interested in following trail running than competitive high school running.”
Outdoors first, athletics second
Although Kunz did not grow up trail running, his early exposure to mountain activities in Rigby, ID (near the Teton mountains), made him a lover of the outdoors from childhood. As he continued to learn more about trail running, he connected with iconic mountain athletes in the sport including Kilian Jornet and Anton Krupicka, “I related to these athletes because they were outdoors first, athletics second. They became good at their activities because they loved the outdoors.”
He describes his strengths as a mountain athlete, more than a runner, “I was never the best road or cross country runner, but I liked that with trail running I could go out on a hunting trip for two weeks and come back a stronger trail athlete than if I’d just stayed at home running roads. I found that my outdoor activities made me a better trail runner.”
His father, an avid fisherman, took Quinn on his trips where he would, “do anything but fishing.” The young Kunz began exploring trails and summiting mountains when he became bored on the boat, “I’ve never really been a huge fisherman. When my dad would fish, I’d usually spend the whole day hiking up hillsides. I wouldn’t have considered it training, but it gave me a good base as a kid to be outside and moving in mountains.”
Trail running isn’t groundbreaking
“It’s easy to get caught up in trends like high carb, threshold workouts, carbon plated shoes, etc., but I think it’s important to remember that the sport is really about hanging out, teaching people to be responsible on the trails, and making this sport accessible to all types of people.” — Quinn Kunz
While Kunz aims to improve his running times and accomplish grander adventures, this is not the reason he is drawn most to trail running, “You don’t need to be doing anything groundbreaking to experience the spirit of trail running. The spirit is in being a part of the community more than it is in doing impressive kinds of stuff on trails.”
Kunz seeks connection within the trail running community, and has come up with many creative ways to engage with and give back to his local running scene. From organizing an impromptu 50 kilometer, the Fall Creek Beast, with his brother Reilly and volunteers from his family and friends (and a suggested $15 donation), to directing a 4.1-mile looped Backyard Ultra with his friend Kooper in a local park with an incredibly reasonable $2.50 entry fee (the amount needed from each of the participants to cover the cost of the port-a-potty), Kunz has provided his community with ways to trail race at low cost and with a grassroots feel. Kunz said, “I really had zero race directing experience before putting on these events. It’s so cool to see how great they’ve been received by the community.”
And even more incredibly, Kunz has directed these events while still in college, and with no immediate support from another race organization to provide guidance. Kunz shares how these lowkey, low cost events were received within his community, “People were there to push themselves to some degree, but at the end of the day, it was a hangout with a great group of people that really showcased the best way to experience trail running. Nobody broke any records at these events, they weren’t about money or doing crazy physical activities, but it was about how do we foster that sense of community that trail running is? These events remind everyone what this sport is really about.”
Kunz reflects on what he’s learned from his race directing, and his most impactful lessons being a novice in this field, “To some degree, I feel like it was a little irresponsible to put on these races. We didn’t know about permits, insurance or any of these more complicated things, and we are still figuring things out as we continue to put on more events in the coming year. It’s been a huge learning curve. We could have never done it without the community coming out of the woodworks to volunteer and help us figure things out to make these first events happen.”
Hidden gems aren’t for posting
“One of my ultimate goals with social media is in helping people treat the outdoors responsibly—to have good trail etiquette and to appreciate nature. The more people we have recreating in the mountains, the more people we have who potentially will want to protect the mountains, but we also need to understand how to be respectful amongst these communities and recreate responsibly in these fragile spaces.” —Kunz
Trail running continues to have an increased presence on social media, and with this comes pros and cons. While social media may assist in the growth of the sport and its exposure to more diverse audiences, it has caused issues such as overcrowding on trails or taken focus away from more simplistic and responsible ways to recreate in nature. Kunz, who has an active presence on social media and over 16,000 Instagram followers, reached a level of engagement on social media where he is consciously aware of how his platform and storytelling effect the trail running community and natural spaces where he’s recreating. Kunz is cautious not to reveal hidden gem trails, or post too much about Wilderness areas that would be harmed by rapid increases in trail users, “I want to teach people about trail running and having fun in the mountains, but I don’t want to be part of the problem. Social media has blown up certain natural areas that can’t handle large amounts of people. I’m careful not to reveal these kinds of places that can’t handle the traffic.”
But while Kunz is cautious about his posting, he also recognizes the value in social media for the community. Through his engagement with his audience, Kunz has come to better understand the sport, its followers and his own connection to trails and nature, “My storytelling helps me understand the community better. Trail runners are craving something real, authentic and raw, which is how I try to keep the focus of my personal posts and content for the races. It’s been an incredible way to network and I have the ultimate goal of just trying to make as many friends as possible.”
Kunz envisions a future where trail running could support him full-time post college. He shares how social media and brand deals may play a role in this life-goal, “Social media is one avenue for trail running fulltime, and I’d love it if I could be supported by brand deals. I’’m looking for longer term sponsors and brands that represent my same values, not just any partnership will work when it comes to social media connections.”
Kunz reflects his experience with brands, what they are looking for from potential partners, and how it’s taught him to better use his platform, “Brands are realizing that people don’t follow pro trail runners because they’re fast, as much as because they want to follow their story. You don’t necessarily even have to be fast if you can tell a good story. This has democratized brand sponsorships and taught me the importance of learning to become a better storyteller.”
Recent partners and future races
Kunz’s most recent event, held on July 11, 2026, was an example of the growing brand support for his events. In true grassroots fashion, Kunz organized a completely free Backyard Ultra in Twin Falls, ID. He describes how he was able to host the event without an entry fee, “Smartwool sponsored the backyard ultra, which allowed us to host it completely for free. Everyone got Smartwool gear which was so sick and the winner got a giant Smartwool brand mannequin foot to display his socks on. The winners went forty-five miles through the heat of the day during an extreme heat warning (95+ degrees).”
Kunz described how it felt putting on this event and what the Smartwool partnership meant to him, “It’s just a cool feeling to have twenty-five friends that are willing to get up at 5AM and run an ultra through an extreme heat warning; I feel pretty blessed. Having an active friend group like that is a pretty cool thing. Huge thanks for Smartwool. It’s nice to find brands that love the grassroots trail running community as much as I do.”
Curious to learn more about Kunz? Follow his adventures and stay tuned for more information about his local trail races on his Instagram here.
Be sure to check out the second edition of the Fall Creek Beast, which will be held on October 31, 2026, in Swan Valley, ID.
Rapid-fire questions with Quinn Kunz
[TAYTE POLLMANN] What is your favorite podcast?
[QUINN KUNZ] I listen to How I Built This with Guy Raz every week about entrepreneurship — or if you want a running related one I listen to a lot of Freetrail!
[TAYTE] What food item do you look for at a race aid station?
[QUINN] I always look for Ruffles. That stuff is crack for me during a race!
[TAYTE] What shoes do you prefer to train in?
[QUINN] I love Oboz for long efforts and mountain stuff
[TAYTE] What shoes do you prefer for racing?
[QUINN] Mount to Coast have been my go-to race shoes!
[TAYTE] Do you have any prerace rituals?
[QUINN] Before races I always love to go back and watch old ultrarunning videos, like the classic Grand Teton with Anton Krupicka and Kilian Jornet
