Mountain Running
Trail runner Megan Mackenzie is living the Euro summer dream in a van
Sometimes only a complete change of scenery gives you the freedom to see the world with a fresh perspective. This is Meg's:
Quitting her regular job, renting out her flat and moving to Europe to live in a van and chase the international Golden Trail Series was just that for top South Africa trail runner, Megan Mackenzie. Here she shares and delights with her van life inspired lessons!
Salomon athlete and top South African trail runner, Megan Mackenzie, recently gave up the life she was accustomed to, packed her belongings into a single 20kg bag, moved to Europe and is currently living out of a van, chasing the Golden Trail Series. A five-part trail series with events in Spain, France, Switzerland, Scotland and America and the grand finale in none other than South Africa, The Golden Trail Series is an initiative created by Salomon International that has attracted the world’s best medium distance runners.
#Vanlyfe
© Andrew King
The Golden Trail Series was originally created for two reasons, the first to create a single, focussed racing platform that appeals to the world’s greatest shorter distance trail runners. They’ve ticked that box by selecting bucket-list races and offering generous prize money, a total of €100 000 (R1 570 852.24) to be exact. The second reason was to create a racing series that was equally as exciting and enticing for spectators. By pouring resources and time into a television-style production, Salomon have successfully managed to bring the first two events to spectators live through streaming content on their social media platforms, a first for any trail events worldwide. By doing this, they’ve made the series something anyone can dial into, from anywhere in the world, and feel like they are part of the action.
The rules are pretty simple. Runners have to run three of the five events to qualify for the grand finale, and in doing so, earn points for each of the races they finish. The three highest scoring results go towards an overall points total, AKA a leaderboard. The top ten men and ladies will be flown, together with a partner, to South Africa to compete for the crowns.
Megan Mackenzie
© Andre Gie
The Otter Trail Run, dubbed the Grail of Trail, is a bucket list event on all trail runner’s calendars, both local and international, and is a perfect fit for the grand finale. Mackenzie, incidentally last year’s winner, will look to line up this year with a slightly more stacked field.
Back to living in a van though, and racing on an international stage. Mackenzie took a break from the Golden Trail Series this last weekend to race in one of her dream races, the Dolomyths Skyrace, held every year for the last 20 odd years in the Italian Dolomites. The race has an insane profile; it’s 10km of ascent with 1950m elevation gain and then 12km of steep descent back to the start. It’s fast, it’s fierce and involves scree skiing, gees and skill. It is often referred to as the birth of skyrunning.
Mackenzie’s thoughts were that if she entered and ran, it would put her in better stead for the next Golden Trail Series in August, Sierre Zinal. “The next race also starts with a good 1000m of climbing and it’s at lower altitude so this is definitely excellent physical and mental preparation for it.” And run she did – finishing 6th overall against a pretty stacked field!
With the Dolomyths Skyrace behind her, Mackenzie finally found some time to sit still, and chatted to Red Bull about some of the fundamental lessons she’s learnt through her experiences of living in a van:
- My husband is really tall. My husband is way taller than I thought. Living in a tiny van emphasises this. Even though he's so tall he squeezes over to make sure I'm comfy...
- Less really is more. We need less than we think we need, always. And everything is temporary, every mood, feeling, cramped night or beautiful mountain morning and all these experiences need to be treated with equal respect and love!
- Routine is boring. Routine is easy and comfortable, it’s great for training, sleeping and getting things done but it’s boring and everyone can learn something from shaking things up from time to time. The lack of routine has taught me to really chill out and go with the flow, planning is impossible, so I've stopped trying. It’s great. Its allowed me to live more 'in the moment' as opposed to constantly making lists and checking off my 'to-do' list.
- Don’t obsess over eating. Eating healthily is important, I don't doubt that for a second, but it’s certainly not important enough to obsess over. Van life has taught me not to obsess over it. Simple, easy to assemble meals are enough and I've learnt to appreciate simple foods for what they are, no frills no fuss. I've also learnt to notice when I'm getting hangry and to stop being angry and just be hungry :) I can separate the two now!
- I’m tougher than I thought. I'm more relaxed and resilient than I thought.
- I’m done with to-do lists. I've realised I was living in a very constrained way. Everything had its place, everything fitted into my tightly packed day and it left little space for chilling out, for watching the world go by and for enjoying little moments. I want to incorporate this into my life when I get home. I want to stop filling my diary with 'to-do' lists, events, times and occasions and simply go from moment to moment - curious to see what’s around the next corner.
- Love is all you need. This is ultra-cheesy but its ultra-true; I've learnt to prioritize love and kindness! Traveling and living simply has made me see that our relationships, communities and love for each other is all we have.
- We have too much stuff. I've learnt that I and almost everyone I know has too much stuff. We could all cut down an incredible amount and still be perfectly comfortable, healthy and happy.
To watch Mackenzie’s live at the next Golden Series Trail event, Sierre Zinal, tune into Salomon International’s Facebook page or Youtube Channel. To look at the overall leaderboard, head to the Golden Series website.