Author: Pina Marek

Dreamer.

When We Love Our Gear to Death: The Last Goodbye to an (Extra)Ordinary Hat

It can be hard to say goodbye to your gear, especially when it’s a piece that’s been with you through thick and thin and joined you on every adventure over the span of 15 years. Just like with people, sometimes the life of an item comes to an end; it can’t be healed, it can’t be repaired. And it’s time to say goodbye.

In nearly every one of Beau Miles’ videos, his hat can be seen accompanying him. When his hat—his most loyal piece of gear—died, he did one thing: “With a heavy heart and a head full of memories, I’m taking my beloved hat for one last run.”

The hat’s last journey, a 40-kilometer run from Mt Baw Baw to Walhalla, is a celebration of its service to Beau. And—a little warning—it’s heartwarming and heartbreaking simultaneously.

by Pina Marek

Bad Rivers & Kayaks: How Beau Miles Explores and Changes the World

What makes a river bad? People? Well, Beau Miles is one human who explores bad rivers and—especially in the case of Cooks Rivers—attempts to make them less bad. It might not be something a single person can achieve but if someone can get even remotely close to it by himself, it’s Beau.

In this documentary, Beau kayaks the Cooks River in Sydney, Australia’s sickest urban river. “Finding it not only challenging, but shocking in terms of its ill health, I’ve since shifted from wanting to see the wildest and most pristine places on earth, to the most degraded and sick. This is a journey of ill-health, sadness, and hope; putting a test to the local saying, ‘if you fall in, you’ll dissolve.'”

by Pina Marek

Who is a Runner: Erin McGrady | A Short Film by Brooks x Camp4 Collective

Who is a Runner is a series by Brooks in collaboration with Camp4 Collective. Erin McGrady’s story is the last episode in this series that follows runners from around the U.S. and tells their stories. The question “who is a runner?” can be answered simply: everyone. How come? Because running, indeed, is for everyone.

What about Erin’s story?

“It takes the first 5-6 miles for the ‘bird’s nest’ in Erin McGrady’s head to unravel,” writes Camp4 Collective. “And then, putting one foot in front of the other, the photographer and writer works to create and celebrate safe spaces for others in the queer community. Together, with her wife Caroline Whatley, in spite all they are up against as queer women in the South, they turn their attention toward the joy they get from traveling and creating community.”

Erin’s story, told in less than 9 minutes, is one of courage, defiance, and victory. Who is a runner? Erin.

by Pina Marek