For the Love of Sports
Ochs shows off her granola bars as well as her skiing outfit
Fueling the soul with delicious meals.
As a mountain lover, Meghan Ochs measures the number of years she has lived in Reno by its winters: “This is my 13th,” she says while we sit down in her living room in early spring. Originally from Pennsylvania, she considered herself “a casual skier.” Her search for bigger mountains and the convenience of a nearby city attracted her to Northern Nevada. “Not a lot of places in the U.S. have that.”
But two things should not fool you about Ochs: her true purpose in the area, and the name of her organization, Skiing is Believing. She doesn’t love it here just because of the mountains, and her organization is not just about skiing.
For her, Reno-Tahoe has allowed her to follow her heart and start her own nonprofit organization.
“I moved all the way out here to the Sierra Nevada, and I got to stare at these gorgeous mountains, and yet I was meeting people my own age who had never gone for a hike or had never skied,” she says. “That really bothered me because I thought it just screamed of economic disparity.”
And that’s how her mission for the democratization of sports was set.
“I believe that no child should go without the opportunity to experience sports,” she says. “Sports teach you life lessons, lessons that you can carry with you, whether you keep playing or not.”
Fueling the Mission
Skiing is Believing, under whose umbrella falls Biking is Believing, introduces children and adults of all economic backgrounds to more than 50 different sports throughout the entire year. In 2018, Ochs was one of the recipients of a Twenty Under 40 award given by the Reno-Tahoe Young Professionals Network, in recognition of her vision and impact. For her, it has never been about recognition or winning. In fact, she believes extreme competitiveness can harm the joy of sports.
And according to a recent study from the American Academy of Pediatrics, she is not wrong. Seventy percent of youth athletes choose to discontinue participation in organized sports by 13 years of age. The main cause? Injury and burnout.
“There is a place for competitive sports and high-performing athletes — they are amazing — but most people won’t get to play for the NFL or compete in the Olympics, and there has to be a space for everyone to enjoy different sports and their health and recreational benefits.”
To bring her vision to life, Ochs runs a well-equipped operation. Her garage looks like a sports gear shop, and she rents a space in Downtown Reno to store equipment for all the different activities she and her team of more than 18 employees offer. As she prepares for the summer season, her focus remains on accessibility by providing scholarships for those who can’t afford the cost of the programs. The organization, which is run with the help of community volunteers, usually can accommodate these scholarships.
Keeping It Simple
While she acknowledges the opportunities she has had, she sees those advantages as motivation to give back.
“I realized that if this program disappeared, some kids would be fine,” she says. “But there are kids who wouldn’t have that opportunity, and that’s a big part of what drives me.”
Though she knows she can’t change the entire world, she’s focused on what she can do.
“I like to think that we can still have some control of having some impact on a situation,” she says, and in her world, that means making sports a space where every child feels welcome.
With a schedule that includes meetings at different locations for days in a row so the organization can offer a variety of sports, Ochs relies on simple, nutritious foods to fuel her days.
“One of my mottos in the kitchen is, ‘Keep it simple, stupid.’ We use it a lot in sports,” she says.
She’s a fan of easy, protein-packed meals, focusing on eggs, milk, yogurt, and granola. It’s no surprise, then, that her go-to recipe reflects that same philosophy — quick, nourishing, and perfect for an active lifestyle.
What are three things in your fridge right now?
“My fridge always has lots of eggs, milk, yogurt, and granola. That’s why I thought about this recipe.”
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
- ½ cup natural peanut butter
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla creme-flavored stevia extract
- 1⅓ cups dark-chocolate-flavored whey protein powder
- ⅓ cup unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 5½ cups old-fashioned rolled oats
Instructions
- Line a 9-inch brownie pan with parchment paper, length- and width-wise. In a stand mixer with the beater attachment, combine the applesauce, peanut butter, and stevia extract, mixing on low speed. Turn off the mixer and add the protein powder, cocoa powder, and salt, then mix again on low speed until fully combined. Add the oats and continue mixing until the mixture is evenly incorporated.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan, spreading it out evenly. Place a sheet of parchment paper on top and press the mixture down firmly until compact. Cover the pan and refrigerate overnight. The next day, slice and serve. To store, place the granola bars on a parchment-lined plate and keep them refrigerated for up to 1 week.
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