About Ryan Goodman | Beef Runner

Hey, welcome and thank you for being here. I’m Ryan Goodman, an agriculture advocate and cattle rancher who loves ultra-distance trail running. Beef is the primary protein you’ll find in my kitchen and any chance I have to get away from the pasture, you’ll find me traveling to explore new trails in our national parks and public lands.

Red Dirt music fills my music playlists. Strong, black coffee fuels my day. And my bookshelves overflow with everything from Lonesome Dove to the science of Running. Connect with me on social media as @BeefRunner.

Beef with Ryan Goodman

I grew up on a family cattle ranch in Arkansas with my parents and 2 brothers, later adding 2 step-sisters. I’ve been fortunate to work in many sectors of the beef cattle industry including cow-calf, stocker, feeder, policy associations, and ranching in several regions of the country.

I attended the University of Arkansas where I studied equine science, then transferred to Oklahoma State University to focus on beef cattle. Later, at the University of Tennessee, I contributed to researching interactions between cattle nutrition and reproduction.

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I’ve had the opportunity to work for two of the largest cattle feedlot companies in the country, which was a great experience in large-scale cattle business. I’ve also worked on small and diverse cattle ranches across the country – one of my favorites being in the Big Horn Mountains of Wyoming.

You’ll currently find me in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Southwest Virginia, raising cattle with my partner, Aaron.

Running with Ryan Goodman

I was no high school athlete, but the running bug definitely hit in my 20s on the single track trails of Helena, Montana. After running my first Ragnar Relay with friends in Napa Valley, California, I ran my first half Marathon near Yellowstone National Park, ran my first marathon the next summer, and was hungry for more.

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No lie. When I finished my first 50-miler the following summer, my thoughts at the finish line included: “100k is only 12 more miles…”

I’ve been fortunate enough to fill my wall with race medals, including two Marine Corps Marathons, the Chicago Marathon, several Ragnar Relays and multiple trail half marathons, marathons, 50ks, 50-milers and two 100ks (so far). After being delayed by a year due to COVID, I recently completed my first 100-mile race at the Badger Trail 100 in Wisconsin in 21:31:30, finishing in 8th place overall.

Advocacy with Ryan Goodman

While in college, I began blogging to share my experiences in agriculture, including ranching and feedyard life. I quickly began to realize social media could be used as an advocacy tool to share these stories with people who want to know more about where our food comes from.

In 2011, I had the opportunity to begin writing for CNN’s food page sharing the experiences of farmers and ranchers with a global audience. This was definitely was a lightbulb moment with a realization of just how important advocacy is to help others understand how our food is grown and to address the many concerns about agricultural practices.

For the past several years, I’ve been involved advocacy efforts across the industry. As a keynote speaker and workshop facilitator, I’ve trained thousands in the agriculture community on advocacy and communication tools.

I’ve been lucky to earn the recognition of Communicator of the Year by Alliance to Feed the Future, as well as Advocate of the Year, Ag Blog of the Year, and Top 10 Leaders Under 40 by several industry organizations.

In 2017, I had the opportunity to begin directing the Masters of Beef Advocacy program at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. This allowed me the opportunity to conduct over 70 meetings and presentations each year, traveling from coast to coast to work with farmers, ranchers, ag professionals, chefs, and dietitians helping them with advocacy, communication, and media interviewing skills. During my tenure, the program doubled to include over 20,000 participants in advocacy efforts.

Work With Me

Today, Ryan Goodman is working with members of the agriculture community as a freelance consultant. Please reach out if you have any need for a virtual keynote speaker, training workshop facilitator, panel moderator, or one-on-one consulting for advocacy, communication, social media, issues and crisis management, or media relations.

Site Policies

**Conversation and comments are always welcome on this site, however, I maintain the right to moderate for abusive, inappropriate content, or threats. Comments should be respectful and on topic. Web advertisement is a great resource, I maintain that the comments section and my blog is not the appropriate place.

**All thoughts, material, and photos on this blog are mine (unless otherwise noted). Guest posts are thoughts of the contributor and may be moderated for appropriate language and/or content. Use of these materials for promotion of agriculture is welcome, but please give credit where credit is due. Any messages or emails are encouraged.

**Messages on this site are mine and do not necessarily reflect the ideas of my employers, universities, or organizations with whom I am involved.

**Some (but not all) links to products or services via Amazon are affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission if you click the link and make a purchase (at no additional cost to you). The links are provided as a convenience if you would like to know more about items mentioned. These small commissions make it possible to maintain this blog and advocacy efforts. If you have any questions, please use the Contact page to connect with Ryan Goodman.