Choppin' it up with Chops

In the latest episode of Pod on the Run, Ross and Petar sit down with one of Chico’s most quietly iconic figures: Bill Parnell, the runner you’ve probably seen floating up North Rim with Fred or Leia trotting beside him. Bill is one of those rare Chico characters whose reputation reaches you long before the conversation does — the effortless stride, the calm presence, the stories that sound too wild to be true until he casually confirms them. From closing the Big Alta 100K with 8‑minute miles to completing twelve 100Ks, ten 50Ks, Western States, and Dacia UTMB® Mont Blanc 2023 – CCC, his running résumé is stacked, but it’s only one part of a much deeper, more introspective story.Bill’s love for running didn’t begin with racing — it began on the Pacific Crest Trail. A full thru‑hike lit the spark, and in this episode, he shares the trail magic, his trail name, the characters he met, and the long, quiet days that shaped the way he thinks about movement and himself. That early adventure set the tone for a life built around curiosity and reflection, a life that eventually took him to Antarctica, where he worked for a season and ended up running a marathon at the South Pole. He also completed a 10‑day silent meditation retreat where he didn’t speak a single word — an experience that fits perfectly with the introspective way he moves through the world.Running runs deep in his family, too. Bill talks about his dad — an incredible athlete who holds an American record for his age group — and how growing up around that kind of quiet excellence shaped his own approach to the sport. From his PV High cross‑country days to the Upper Park loops that forged him, from the Deerpen rocker era to becoming a legitimate bocce ball threat and poet, from Fred’s steady companionship to Leia’s lovable chaos, Bill’s story is full of texture, humor, and heart.Throughout the conversation, Bill opens up about what running gives him, what ultras have taught him, how he thinks about suffering and joy, and why he keeps returning to the long stuff. Petar closes things out with a lightning round, and the episode ends with a look toward what’s next — the adventures, races, and unknowns Bill is quietly leaning toward.It’s a conversation that’s grounded, surprising, and full of the kind of wisdom that only comes from a life lived everywhere from the PCT to the South Pole to the North Rim. This one moves like water.