The Project

Two words: Bomb. Cyclone.

In the final few days leading up to filming, the words “bomb cyclone” were everywhere: from the news, to social media, in my texts, emails, and phone calls. We were scheduled to film a 2-day production in the eye of a massive storm along the steep rocky coastline of Brookings, OR. In normal circumstances, this would scare any client away, or at least force them to postpone their plans. But instead, the Brooks team was ecstatic. What better way to show off the Fall 2025 trail running shoes and apparel than to capture them in the very elements they were designed to withstand!

The shoot was still on, but not without difficulty. At 4:00am on the morning of Day One, I received a call from our caterer saying that a tree had fallen on his kitchen and he was unable to bring us the breakfast we had planned. Already, this weather storm was asking us to pivot. We shifted our call time back by an hour in order to arrange a back-up breakfast plan for cast & crew. Thankfully, the caterer was able to bring us lunch and the following days’ meals.

But after a quick hot breakfast, the rest of the day would prove to be physically challenging. Crew members quickly grew cold as rain pelted the ground, high winds blew, and massive waves smashed against the cliffs along which our talent ran, causing them to be extremely slippery. Even when we could film under tree cover in the forested parts of our location, the constant rain made the ground a giant pool of mud, which meant our crew had to walk much slower in order not to fall or damage gear. Thank goodness for hand/foot warmers, pop-up tents, mobile space heaters, tarps, and our superhuman talent. The runners are all professional trail athletes who specifically train for running in the elements. They made it all look easy!

After the shoot wrapped, it took several days for my fur-lined hiking boots to fully dry, but I wouldn’t have traded it for anything. Working with the Brooks brand was a dream come true.