RUN WHERE YOU ARE
Santa Fe International Half Marathon and Relay to be held virtually
In this day and age, it is quite a bit easier to compile a list of events that are still occurring than trying to keep track of those that have wilted under the COVID-19 glare.
Count the Santa Fe International Half Marathon and Relay among the survivors. Sort of.
Like so many other events, organizers have pivoted from original plans and instead are going with a virtual run, beginning Sept. 20, said Abraham Kosgei, who picked up the leadership of the new event when the Santa Fe Thunder Half Marathon ceased to be last year. Kosgei also helped get the Thunder run off the ground in 2011.
“We decided to rethink and change this event to a virtual run,” said Kosgei, a former Kenyan Olympian. “That means that nobody will travel to New Mexico to run. They can run wherever they are Sept. 20. They can run a half-marathon, 5K, or a mile. Any time, anywhere.”
Participants actually will have until Oct. 31 to run the course of their choosing and record their time on the web site (runsignup.com, search for Santa Fe International) to be eligible for numerous prizes. And participants this year will get a discount for running in next year’s event, Kosgei said.
“They can set a day and time, and the course, whatever they want to run,” Kosgei said. “And send the result to the website to be eligible for the drawing Oct. 31. We are not selecting the winners based on the time. It will be a virtually live event on Facebook.”
The event helps support the Wings of America running program that had to cancel its entire summer agenda.
The relationship between Kosgei and Wings of America dates back about 10 years, said Wings executive Dustin Martin.
“We were just talking about the existence of the Indigenous running culture and how in the future we would love to see Native North American and Kenyan running culture collide in a collaborative way,” he said.
Should the event realize any proceeds, it will go to Santa Fe-based Wings of America, which has used sports, particularly running, to encourage Native American youngsters to look ahead while still embracing their history.
The organization will be reaching out to past participants of its running programs to enter the virtual race and to help promote it, and Wings of America, Martin said. The goal is to encourage 1,000 past Wings of America youth to participate in the event for free.
“We’re going to have a mileage club during that and Wings of America will have video tutorials to encourage them to run,” Martin said. “If they log their mileage consistently, they can earn T-shirts and stickers.”
Being a part of the revamped event is big for the organization, he said.
“When Abraham came to us about the half-marathon relay, we were excited about that,” Martin said. “We were excited about the opportunity to create a place for Pueblo and other Native American people to participate at the run. Plans changed, but we’re still very honored that Abraham kept us in mind and had us as a partner.”
In some ways, the virtual race could have a bigger impact in this time of social distancing, Martin said.
“What we’re most excited about the race and community interaction it creates is the impact on Native youth, who in many ways feel more isolated than they ever have,” he said. “This can still offer some excitement and some hope, as well as positive reinforcement on how to stay healthy.”