Hey! I developed a product just for trail runners.
Professional athletics is fickle, and when the lows keep coming, the highs sometimes don’t seem worth it. This time last year, I was stuck in a rut. I felt the need for a significant change in my life and an upheaval of my career.
I turned to Method Seven. A brand that sought me out as an athlete but seemed interested in working with me beyond just a sponsorship capacity.
I told them my creative and somewhat outlandish ideas on how brand relationships should work in sports. They called me a genius. I was flattered and felt appreciated by a brand for the first time beyond my marketability.
I grew more confident in myself and my decision to grow my career outside of being a professional runner and was hired as a brand manager, spearheading the development of Method Seven Ultra Trail. I was as unprepared as I was inspired.
James, the CEO, and KK, who recruited me, were unlike anyone I’d met. Creative, quirky, and undeniably brilliant.
And the sunglasses. I had never worn a pair of sunglasses that didn’t give me a headache. Usually, the lens distortion messes with my head, leaving my eyes working too hard. But I couldn’t detect any distortion, so I had no headache. At the 2021 CCC, I wore the Trail26 lenses and put them back on in the shades sections. I was amazed! And so I believed.
It turns out the changes that needed to happen were within me. I changed my job and location and even completely stopped training. Those were all cool changes! But the changes I made toward personal growth- saying “no,” being present, and addressing recent trauma - were the ones that made the difference.
As I developed the first-generation Ultra-Trail eyewear, I realized how much I missed training. The weight of performance pressure had grounded me like a ball and chain lifted with time and space. I was finally free from a situation I’d been trying to escape for years.
Fast forward to September 2022. After a year of healing myself and working on our first generation of eyewear, I was ready to put in an actual training block for the first time since 2019, AND we finally had a product to sell.
It seems fitting that both would happen simultaneously since I have done quite a bit of self-exploration as Brand Manager of Method Seven Ultra Trail. While I put down miles toward an October 100 miler, KK and I devised our product launch.
And today, as I fly down to Mexico to race literally the first race I’ve trained for since 2019, The Huntress and The Closer, our limited edition eyewear with the first ever trail running specific lenses, launches. Wow.
I developed this product. I had the idea behind the frames, collected feedback for both the frames and the lenses, and directed this project from start to finish. I could not be more proud.
I have never developed a product. Before this year, I didn’t even wear sunglasses. This has been a process. And a scary one at that! KK and I don’t even know how to market these things! Or if they will sell. But the feedback from those who have tested them - our Beta Team, Dean Karnazes, Camilla Mayfield, Scott and Jenny Jurek, Avery Collins, and myself- feel that all anyone has to do is try them out to be sold, just as I was.
Check out the Huntress and the Closer on our website, and give us feedback on who you think should try them! I believe in this product, and I believe in my team. I hope you will give them a shot.
Peace and love, my friends!
Cat