Monday Musing #1

Surprise! It’s me, Cat Bradley. Maybe you’ve never heard of me. If you haven’t, you can count yourself amongst the sane. If you have, you are probably a trail athlete like me.

Perhaps you know me from my 2017 win at the Western States 100. Or my Rim-To-Rim Fastest Known Time. Maybe you heard me on a podcast or read a blog of mine or follow me on Instagram. Perhaps you have seen me flail onstage at one of my stand-up comedy open-mic attempts, but I certainly hope that’s not where you know me. At least not yet.

Know me or not, you can now associate me with Method Seven Ultra Trail as the new brand manager. Honestly, we are still trying to figure out what that means. We are getting there, but not there quite yet. But I am here, and I am in it.

In May, I met James Cox, Method Seven CEO and the driving force behind what is now M7 Ultra Trail, on my van trip up the coast of California. We were meeting to explore a somewhat traditional pro-athlete brand relationship, and I was looking for sponsorship. They showed me their warehouse, why their eyewear is different, and then we grabbed dinner in hopes of getting to know each other a little better.

They didn’t know it yet, but I was already very interested in working with them. I HATE wearing sunglasses. Look at every race photo of me up until 2021, and there will not be a single photo of me actually wearing the sunglasses. I didn’t know why, but I couldn’t wear them. However, when Method Seven sent me the Lennox and Aviatrix earlier that month, I all of a sudden could. No bullshit. Zero, zilch, none. Something was different.

Then, throughout our dinner, I realized that this brand and the people behind it were up to something much bigger than creating eyewear. The conversation was unfiltered, passionate, and progressive. We talked very little about the product or what a brand relationship would look like. Instead, we talked about changing the world, my wildest professional dreams (hint: they aren’t directly running related), and about how my ass chafed so bad in my first 100-miler, I had to buy a bidet, so the TP didn’t make contact with the scabs. Woof.

We ended up traveling to Europe together for a three-day hut trip in Iceland, followed by CCC - a 100k race through the French, Swiss and Italian Alps boasting 25,000 feet of elevation gain- where they crewed my race, put me up in an Airbnb, made sure I was fat and happy and facilitated a week of entertainment and creative growth.

At the end of the trip, I pitched myself to James as more than just an athlete, but as part of the team responsible for the creation and growth of Method Seven Ultra Trail. They bought it.

If you’re on this email list, you likely signed up for the M7 Trail Series. Thank you! This fun, virtual event is an integral part of the development of the Ultra Trail. The truth is, we don’t have a product yet. Our sponsored athlete, Avery Collins, wore ROKA Sunglasses that CEO James bought him at his top fifteen performance at this year’s CCC because James recognizes that we don’t have the best Ultra Trail eyewear on the market yet. Our athletes will only be wearing the best, even if it isn’t us yet. By registering for the M7 Trail Series, you are directly helping us develop the best eyewear that will ever go to market in ultra-trail running. I think that is really, really cool.

So these are my Monday Musings. Look for them every week throughout the M7 Trail Series and beyond. Sometimes they will be about how and why(?!?!?) I got waxed the day after a 100k; other times, it will be about a particular flower I grew attached to during an evening walk, and yes, sometimes it will be cool new info or insights on my new role with Method Seven.

If you are interested in receiving these weekly Monday Musings containing little insights on my life, thoughts, projects, and maybe the occasional joke or two, you must sign up for the M7 Trail series and agree to share your data with us. We pinky swear to only use it for good! And perhaps I will get to share any surprising finds with the readers of my musings.

Other places you can find me and my voice is in the M7 Trail Series specific email that goes out on Thursdays, on the Ultra Signup M7 Trail Series Forums, our soon-to-be-published M7 Ultra Trail Instagram page, and frequenting local run clubs in the Bay Area and beyond (more info to come)!

I love this community, and my role with Method Seven is bigger than creating and selling a product, and it’s to get to know more intimately, engage and make positive change within the community where I grew up. Thank you, fellow trail runners, for being a part of this revolution.