Virtual Races.

Yes… sounds weird… and I’ve been avoiding them for a while, but recently moving 1200 miles away from what was my home and basically having to start from scratch, I feel like now is a great time to start a blog try virtual races.

I picked the Virtual Races Series “National Park Service Birthday” run as my first go.  August 25^th I’ll hit the road for a 10k to celebrate the National Park Service turning 99 years old.  Even though you can complete your VR anywhere, I have decided to support NPS and will be running in Maryland’s own Catocin Mountain Park.

But before that, I want your take on virtual races (VR)…

What is a VR?

It is race you register for, train for and run… then report your results virtually.  Most involve social media, hashtags, and virtual community involvement.  There is a window of time in which you have to report your results; this particular race is a 24-hour window, others may be up to 7-days.

Swag?

Each race is different, but the NPS Birthday Run will mail me a tshirt and a medal after I report my race time on the 25^th.  There are also awards…again, every VR is different.  This one has awards for social media involvement including best/prettiest picture (assuming you go to a National Park to participate, not required but encouraged).  They also have random prizes, and others will award fastest times, age awards, etc.

Verdict?

I don’t know, I’m still conflicted but I am leaning toward awesome!  The social media involvement is fun, but I doubt it will rival a “real” race… But you’re really only racing yourself.  I’ll follow up with a race recap after my run and report on my overall experience at the end of the month…

I want to hear from you!  Have you tried a VR? If so, what were your thoughts?  If not, are you willing to?  Give me your input and opinions!