It's Not that Serious: Trails with Rei Echizenya

Rei Echizenya (he/him) is a leader in the Bay Area trail running community, leading Renegade's Saturday trail runs with Andrew Huang. On any given Monday, you can find him chasing adventure with anyone who wants to join him. Climbing mountains, soaking in rivers, running 20 miles to a hidden waterfall along the coast—any of these can be on the agenda. We thought Rei, along with Sean and Sam—regulars on our trail runs & track nights as well as Rei's Monday adventures—would be the perfect people to test the Cloudultra Pro and Cloudultra 3, On's new additions to its trail running family.

On this day, we visit one of the trails that Rei has been running for over 10 years. Even though we've driven less than an hour from Oakland, it feels like we've made the trip to the mountains. It's a hot day and Rei brought us here because he wants to share a cool dip with friends. 

Rei’s approach to trail is rooted in joy. He chases adventure first, and the performance naturally follows. Of his training, Rei says, "If it does not seem fun or exhilarating, I won't do it. My patience is pretty low so I need to maintain a level of excitement when I go out." On Mondays, he plans whole-day excursions to take advantage of a day off and quiet trails. He’ll send a late-night text to the crew, and whoever’s in goes out the next day for scrambles, caves, off-route climbs, and definitely a great stash of snacks.

Raised around ultras—his parents both ran them—Rei’s roots in trail running run deep. He’s adopted his parents' grounded approach to the sport. Rei credits his dad, a 17-time 100-miler finisher with zero DNFs, as a major inspiration. “He didn’t care about gear or fashion,” Rei recalls. “Jeans, cotton shirt, cargo shorts, or no shirt at all. I’ve seen it all with him. He reminds me that what’s in your heart and mind is what finishes races.”

In a culture that often turns running into another grind or a highly performative activity, Rei brings us back to the essence: curiosity, freedom, and shared experience. His leadership in our community reminds us that running in the trails can bring deep meaning to our lives without us having to be so serious about it—and that’s exactly why we love him.

REI'S PLAYLIST

POST RUN HIGH

• Ordinary Man, Ozzy Osbourne
• Void in Blue, Glare
• Sleep Walk, Deftones
• Roseblood, Mazzy Star
• Use Me, Future
• Karma Police, Radiohead
• The Recipe, Kendrick Lamar
• Need you now, Lady A
• Cover my Slowly, Deerhunter
• Thoroughfare, Ethel Cain

REI'S FAVORITE TRAILS

• Diabolical, Mount Diablo
• Little Yosemite, Sunol
• Devils Hole, Las Trampas
• Rock City, Mount Diablo
• Oat Hill Mine Trail, Mount Saint Helena

A FEW FAVORITE SNACKS

• Mango con chile
• Onigiri
• Pickles 
• Pollito Asado

LEAVE AT HOME (REI'S YUCKS)

• Gels
• Unflavored chips
• Any kind of bar (yuck)