From running on a State Championship high school team, to overcoming injury with the help of her Stanford teammates, to now building new relationships with Oiselle... Haute Volée 1500m runner Rebecca Mehra reminds us of the power of support. 

Team, teammates, teamwork… all words that have become incredibly important in my daily vocabulary over the years. Teammates are those wonderful people in your life who have a shared mindset and goals, are there for you at your best and your worst, and in turn become your friends for life. 

I spent this past winter vacation at my parent’s house in Los Angeles, hanging out with many of my high school cross country teammates. To this day, many of them are still some of my best friends. In fact, throughout the years since high school, these friends have been in varying states of fitness, but still roll out to run with me, take my splits at workouts, and cheer me on when I need it most. We battled through workouts in the blistering heat during our afternoon summer practices, and through the frustrating losses of multiple years of 2^ndplace finishes at the state meet. But no matter the conditions I was ready to leave it all out on the cross country course every time, because I watched my teammates around me doing just that. We were on a mission together to succeed - a synergistic enthusiasm to run and win together. Finally, my senior year both the boys and girls teams won the state meet in cross country. Though some may say it was a coincidence, I would beg to differ… it was our team-oriented nature that made all the difference.

Fast forward to college, and my running career didn’t come as easy- I had many more lessons to learn about being on a team. Though my high school teammates taught me how to work towards a goal, dealing with the ups and downs of injury was not yet in my wheelhouse. When I got my first stress fracture winter of my freshmen year, I was beside myself. Getting back into shape was so tough! I am forever grateful though that I had a teammate who was willing to drive me out to running trails every weekend, and stick with me through my slower paces as I inched back towards racing shape. This teammate of mine had experienced a few stress fractures, so understood that it’s easier to get through hard times with company. From that point she and I became training partners the remainder of that year. Thereafter both she and I had our best track seasons, stronger than ever after conquering our injuries, together. As true teammates. 

When I began to approach professional running, I was concerned I wouldn’t find as much fulfillment with it as I no longer was going to be operating on a “team” in the traditional sense. I no longer would be living with my teammates, reporting to practice at the track daily, and sitting on a bus to go to meets. But as a Oiselle Haute Volée athlete I am actually surrounded and uplifted by thousands of other women with whom I share a mindset and goals. This summer I was halfway across the world competing against another Haute Volée, Sasha Gollish, and we later bonded over our shared Oiselle identity and became great friends.

This group of inspiring, competitive, and compassionate Oiselle women are trailblazers in the running community, and I couldn’t ask for a better group to now call my teammates.  

Speaking of teammates it's the last few days of our Oiselle Volée opening! To join us click here!