Coincidentally, just after I posted about running in races with headphones and the debate surrounding that (thanks by the way to all the runners who voiced their opinion on that, either in the comments or on my Facebook page) I received an email from Martin Yelling about something that I do have on my iPod from time to time when I run – the Marathon Talk podcast. Martin and his co-host Tom Williams, the team behind this weekly show, have reached two hugely impressive milestones – 2 million downloads and 200 weekly broadcasts!

First of all, congratulations to Martin and Tom. I am not sure whether they ever thought that they would produce 200 weekly shows and still be going strong, but they have and I have enjoyed being along for the ride.

I downloaded the very first Marathon Talk hoping that it would be an ideal distraction for my Sunday long run, many of which I run on my own. That show was a breath of fresh air in my ears and I immediately hoped that there would be more. I clearly remember one of the early shows where Tom interviews Olympian Liz Yelling (Martin’s wife, of course) and I wondered how much banter had been going on in the background while Tom was preparing for that interview?

I remember the Bruce Fordyce interview episode, which put Comrades firmly on my To Do list. I remember the whole Ginger Bread Man thing going on for weeks and me struggling to not laugh out loud whilst running up the River Lee on my own on a Sunday morning. There were shows where Martin or Tom were away in foreign lands recording over Skype and on one particularly funny occasion Martin (I think it was Martin) had to keep his cool while builders drilled the walls in the background.

The Marathon Talk podcast is a good example of the way that people coalesce around something that relates to the things that they love: in this case runners around a podcast about running. And it says something about emerging technology and how that has a role to play in bringing people together. The Marathon Talk press release notes this phenomenon:

The success of the show, which is supported by adidas, is an example of the growing trend of on-demand digital tools, such as podcasts, supporting specialised communities online. Earlier this year Apple announced it had reached the milestone of one billion podcast subscriptions via its iTunes store. Marathon Talk is an iTunes rated 5 star podcast and regularly the top running podcast within the sports and recreation section of iTunes in the UK.

And Tom Williams goes on to explain how the audience are an integral part of the show, reducing the degree to which it is a broadcast of news and opinions and more an audience participation event:

Our listeners are as much part of the show as Martin and I, and provide an wonderful stream of quality content, as well as ideas for the future direction of the show.

I can vouch for that and on the couple of occasions that Martin has given me and this blog a shout out on the show, I have really felt a glow of pride knowing that through Marathon Talk, my ramblings have reached more runners.

So if you are new to Marathon Talk or a lapsed listener, then how about downloading episode 200 – this one has an interview with snooker super-star and Woodford Green runner Ronnie O’Sullivan (who, I am pleased to say, I beat at the Met League Cross Country a couple of weeks ago!) and if you are a regular listener, why not get in touch with Martin or Tom and let them know what you’d like to see for the next 200 shows: I’m sure they’d appreciate any ideas!