Story · · 1 min read · Fredrik Kaada
From a guide's pack to a race vest
What changes when you go from carrying heavy loads for days to moving light and continuously through the mountains.
As a former hiking guide with DNT, I'm used to heavy packs and long, slow days. Racing asks for the opposite: a light vest, steady fuelling and movement that doesn't stop for camp.
What carries over
Reading weather, choosing a line across rough ground and looking after the people around me all came with me from guiding. Those habits are still the foundation.
What has to change
Eating little and often instead of big meals. Running the flats I would once have walked. Trusting a small kit because I've practised with it.
Doing it in the open
I'm sharing the whole shift as it happens, setbacks included. If you're making a similar change, you're welcome to follow along and join the community.
Kit and entry go together
Before you settle on a vest and kit for the season, check what your target race asks for: both its required kit and its entry rules, such as Running Stones and the UTMB Index.