Cameron Hanes: Elite bowhunter, endurance athlete and author known for the 'Keep Hammering' ethos, extreme marathon and ultra running, and advocacy for public land conservation.
What this episode covers
Joe Rogan and Cameron Hanes open with wild stories about lightning strikes, alligator attacks, and hunting before settling into Cam's central concern: a 'sneaky' roadless-rule amendment and Senator Mike Lee's push to sell off millions of acres of federal public land, which Cam urges listeners to fight by calling their senators. They spend a long stretch on government distrust, money in politics (Citizens United, AIPAC), nonprofit-hospital profiteering, weather modification, and the politicization of the UFC White House card. The back half is dominated by Cam defending himself against a vegan rival runner who labeled him a doper after Cam won his age group at the Eugene Marathon, having once taken BPC-157 to heal a broken foot. They argue the peptide is non-performance-enhancing and that recreational runners shouldn't be held to Olympic anti-doping standards. Throughout, they extol bear meat as superior, misunderstood food and the value of wild game.
Recommended on this episode
Dissolving Illusions
Suzanne Humphries
“there's this woman who wrote a great book on it... Suzanne Humphre is it called uh dissolving illusions and it's all about that”— Joe Rogan
Mountain Ops Freeze-Dried Meals
Mountain Ops
“I had some Mountain Ops uh freeze-dried in there like chicken Alfredo, that's just good calories”— Cameron Hanes
LMNT Electrolytes
LMNT
“it changed for me when I started using element. when I started pro throwing element in my water when I was out there. Giant difference.”— Cameron Hanes
Also referenced (named, not recommended)
Mighty Chilean Chili
Casey Brooks
“But mighty Chilean chili. Yeah. Okay. So it's a type of chili. You put that on like when you're cooking steaks.”— Cameron Hanes
Montana Knife Company Packout Skinner
Montana Knife Company
“Well, let me see that knife real quick. My Yeah, this is the old packout skinner from Montana knife.”— Cameron Hanes
Traeger Grill
Traeger
“bear meat when you put a whole back ham on the Trager. So she she let it soak marinate for four days”— Cameron Hanes
Meat Church
Meat Church
“And then they had the meat church guy up there this last week.”— Cameron Hanes
Toyota Land Cruiser
Toyota
“put one of those big ass grills on your car like I have on my Land Cruiser and let's hope we get a few of them”— Joe Rogan
Kill Cliff CBD
Kill Cliff
“I had Jordan Burroughs in here and he wouldn't even uh try a Kill Cliff CBD drink. He's like, I don't think I can take this.”— Joe Rogan
Ketone-IQ
Ketone-IQ
“I had Cheeto in on my show and I said, Hey, you want to try a ketone... Could I take this ketone IQ?”— Cameron Hanes
BPC-157
BPC-157 (peptide)
“someone started complaining because you had taken BPC 157... they injected BPC57 into your foot to help help your foot heal”— Cameron Hanes
Big reveals from this episode
- Cameron reveals he got a gold front tooth after a dentist removed a cap chasing a cavity that didn't exist; Joe says it inspired him to get one too.
- Joe lists his political frustrations (Epstein files, JFK, Charlie Kirk) and admits this stuff easily sends him into a rage despite trying to stay positive.
- Both admit they voted for Trump but are now disillusioned, especially over bombing Iran and the broken 'America first' promises.
- Joe argues the polio epidemic was tied to DDT poisoning and recommends Suzanne Humphries' book 'Dissolving Illusions.'
- Cam reveals he declined a Veterans Day White House invite because he disagrees with the Iran war and refused to be used for political imagery.
- The episode's core scandal: Cam admits taking BPC-157 to heal a two-year-old broken foot, which a rival runner used to publicly brand him a doper.
- Cam ran a 2:39:11 marathon at age 58, one of the fastest ever for his age, sparking the cheating accusations.
- Cam says he no longer takes TRT/testosterone because he runs better with low testosterone and low body weight (down to 148 lbs).
Worth remembering
- Florida leads the US in both lightning fatalities and strikes per square mile.
- Settlers historically ate bear and killed deer mainly for hides because bear was considered the superior meat.
- Roughly 85-90% of wildfires start within a half-mile of a road, undercutting the 'roads to fight fires' argument for opening roadless areas.
- An estimated 95-99% of polio infections are asymptomatic, per the discussion.
- Over four years, north of 10 million people are estimated to have crossed the border.
- Border-wall contracts totaling over $19.4 billion in six months went mostly to two firms with GOP ties, prompting a lawsuit over no-bid awards.
- Nonprofit hospitals in America had total revenues of $1.3 trillion in 2023 and ~$45 billion in profit, while ~86% provided little or no charity.
- For decades Cam ran a marathon's worth of miles daily on as little as two hours of sleep while working a 10-hour job, never calling in sick in 26 years.
- Nick Diaz tested at 175 for THC (Nevada's positive threshold is 50) after beating Takanori Gomi, a fight Joe attended.
- Elite marathoners running Olympic trials are almost all under ~140 lbs; the current marathon world-record holder is around 115 lbs.