13 Dec 2012

Widgets

Virtually Racing a Half Marathon

So I noticed the chatter on Twitter recently around the hashtag #VirtualHalfMary and curiosity got the better of me!

Now aside from the fact these wacky internet people have shortened marathon to mary (come on its mara, just because your iphone autocorrects doesn't mean its right), it did sound like a fun thing to be a part of!
it's not virtual running, it's a virtual event!
It's not virtual running, it's a virtual event!

Organised by @marathongrl71 and @runnermommy2008 for the 22nd Dec 2012 with the simplest rule. Run 21.1km (they keep saying 13.1 miles, wacky imperial system) sometime on the 22nd Dec and tweet your time to participate!


So what exactly is a Virtual Half Marathon? Yes you do still have to run the race. But the competitors could be elsewhere in the world starting at completely different times to you running a completely different course! At least this is the sort of race where Amy should be fine at the start line (Thoroughly Nourished Life: The Scariest Place to Stand).

Last I heard there were 35 international tweeps joining in the fun. There are even participation medals on offer from @marathongrl71 - tweet her for details!

If you run for fun, this is just a nice way to sync up a training day with like-minded people and as a result be part of a bigger social circle. I'm thinking it would be nice to live-tweet (#twunning) as I click over my km's too. Being in Aussieland and with timezone of +11 at the moment, I'll no doubt be one of the earliest finishers :-)

You don't have to PB every race and when there's nobody physically running in front of you (or behind), well, the pressure to do so is less!

So I say, head out for your #VirtualHalfMary and tweet the girls, use the hashtag and be part of the fun!
If you're going to run faster than me, I don't care :P it will still be fun!

So, who else is in for the fun? shall we go for #VirtualBeers or #VirtualDonuts afterwards? What about virtual relay-teams if you're not up for a half-mara yet?