Most of world, Nicholas Thompson known as an editor, artificial intelligence enthusiast, or something of an influencer on LinkedIn. But the former editor-in-chief of WIRED, now CEO of The Atlantic, is often better known to colleagues as guy running to the office.
Thompson will release on Tuesday. Running area: father, son and the simplest sport. As the title suggests, this is a book about his dedication to running: Thompson runs an incredibly fast marathon and holds the American 50K record in the 45-49 age group. Ultimately, however, the book examines the complex relationship between athlete Thompson and his father, who first took him jogging when he was just 5 years old. Technology-obsessed people will, of course, get theirs too: Running area includes many science-based training guides and documents Thompson's training experiences with elite Nike trainers.
In this week's episode Great interviewI spoke with Thompson (who was also my first boss; he hired me as an intern at WIRED in 2008) about his book, the relationship between running and addiction, and what he thinks AI can do for runners. And for writers.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
KATIE DRUMMOND: Nick Thompson, welcome. Great interview.
NICHOLAS THOMPSON: Thank you, Katie. It's a pleasure to be here with you at Condé Nast at WIRED. A lot of time has passed. I loved going up on those elevators. I love having you as editor-in-chief. That's a plus.
It's so nice. I'm very glad you're here. We're going to start this conversation the same way we do all the others, which is with a little warm-up and a few quick questions.
Fire.
In honor of your new book, Running areaI'll make them completely running. With apologies to our listeners…ready?
I mean, if your listeners don't want to hear about running…
…now is the time to go.
But let's go.
Trail running or track running?
Running along the trail.
Running to music or silence?
Silence.
The worst running injury you've ever suffered.
The Achilles tendon fails in the ultra.
The most false myth about running. The one you wish people would stop talking to you about.
Before the marathon, you only need to run 20 miles.
