Makenzie McRae, the California prep distance and cross country star who lives at sea level in Huntington Beach, simply cannot wait to hit the mountains and breathe the rare air at 7,000 feet when she starts attending NAU in the fall.
McRae, who signed with NAU over Colorado and Oregon, said at last weekend’s The Ten meet in Southern California that two factors played a role in her decision: (1) the mountains (presumably meaning the San Francisco Peaks and Mount Elden); and (2) the team atmosphere among the NAU women distance runners.
“This was definitely the school I wanted to be at the next four years,” she said. “I think I can improve a lot there. The team has such a great bond; they encourage each other. I got to stay in the dorms with some of the freshmen, so that was awesome. I got to go on a run with them and team dinners. Just everything. Those few days got me really excited to know that I’ll be able to be on that team the next four years and contribute.”
Why was she drawn to altitude?
“I think training at altitude will help me improve as a runner,” McRae said. “So basically it came down to NAU and Colorado. Like I said, what made up my mind was the team culture and the coaches. Coach (Mike) Smith and Coach (Becca) Pflugrad are amazing people.”
Given her family history, it’s not surprising that McRae sought trails and mountains. Her mother is Sally McRae, a professional ultrarunner for Nike. Sally McRae has won the 135-mile Badwater in Death Valley, the 240-Mile Moab Endurance Run and the Triple Crown of 200s in Lake Tahoe, and she’s currently training for the Western States 100 Miler.
The younger McRae, too, said she prefers longer distances. At The Ten, she finished fifth in the girls 1,500 meters, but she said she wasn’t too disappointed.
“I definitely can see myself doing the 5K in college and maybe 3K, or 10K, if I work up to that,” she said. “I like the longer events. In high school, I’m much better in the 3,200.”
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