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To most the world, Nicholas Thompson Known as an editor, AI enthusiast, or LinkedIn influencer. But the former WIRED editor-in-chief, who is now CEO of The Atlantic, is often better known among his colleagues The man running to the office.
On Tuesday, Thompson will be released Running Land: Father, Son and the Simplest of Sports. As the title suggests, it’s a book about his commitment to running, with Thompson running a ridiculously fast marathon and holding the American 50km record for the 45-49 age group. Ultimately, the book examines the complex relationship between the athlete, Thompson, and his father, who took him running for the first time when he was just 5 years old. Of course, tech nerds will also get their fix: Running land It includes plenty of science-backed training guidance and documents Thompson’s experience training with elite Nike coaches.
In this week’s episode of The big interviewI spoke to Thompson (who was also my first manager; he hired me as an intern at WIRED in 2008) about his book, the interplay between running and addiction, and what he thinks artificial intelligence can do for runners. and For the book.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Katie Drummond: Nick Thompson, welcome to The big interview.
Nicholas Thompson: Thank you, Katie. It’s a pleasure to be here with you at Condé Nast on WIRED. It’s been a long time. I loved going up those elevators. I’d love to see you as editor-in-chief. It’s an added advantage.
This is very nice. I’m glad you’re here. We’ll start this conversation the same way we all do, which is with a little warm-up, and some quick questions.
Fire away.
Celebrating your new book Running landI’ll make it all work themed. With apologies to our listeners…ready?
I mean, if your listeners don’t want to hear about running…
…Now would be a good time to go.
But let’s go.
Track running or trail running?
Trail running.
Running with music or silence?
silence.
Worst running injury I’ve ever had.
The Achilles tendon is super kabosch.
Most false myths about running. The person you wish people would stop talking to you about.
Simply run 20 miles before your marathon.
