First virtual race for Courirenestrie
Courirenestrie will hold its first virtual race from May 23 to 31, replacing the Mother’s Day Half-marathon that was postponed to that date because of COVID-19. The idea behind the virtual race is to help runners keep their motivation and maintain their goals despite the cancellation of almost all events until the end of August.
“I know how hard it is to keep training motivated when all the races you were training for are cancelled,” commented Patrick Mahony, Director of Courirenestrie in a press release. “Regardless of their level, runners train with goals in mind. Without a goal, it’s harder to maintain motivation in training. With virtual races, I believe I can help them maintain their motivation and keep their goals,” the director said.
Not just for the runners
“It’s really a formula for the whole family,” said Mahony. “It’s for everyone and I hope I can get people moving with this initiative. Walking 1 km takes an average of 10 minutes. So, walking 5 km as a family would take about an hour. It’s always fun to have an ‘official’ time when you walk a distance. I hope that for some it will be the starting point of a new passion.”
For the more serious runners, it will be possible to participate in the Half Marathon Challenge and to cover all distances for a total of 57 km between May 23-31.
How does it work?
Step 1: participants can register at sportchrono.com at the distance of their choice. 1, 2, 3, 5, 10, 15 or 21 km. The registration fee is 5$ without a medal and 15$ if participants want to receive a medal that will be sent to them by mail. The cost of the Challenge is $20.
Step 2: Between May 23-31, participants will time themselves with a watch (GARMIN, POLAR or FITBIT) or with the POLAR BEAT phone application and run the distance of their choice on the course of their choice. They can also run the distance on the official Mother’s Day Half Marathon course, but don’t forget the social distancing!
Step 3: Participants upload their time to chall.app. Those who have paid for a medal will receive it in the mail within a week of the race.
Step 4: Once their race is completed, runners are invited to post photos of their race and their times on the Courirenestrie Facebook page.