Making the Most Out of a a Virtual Race
"Disclaimer: I received a free race entry to Carmel Marathon Virtual 10k to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!"
Virtual racing is tough.
You have to imagine yourself in a scenario surrounded by a cheering crowd, other supportive runners and people to push you competitively. You also have to provide your own bathroom stop, water, Gatorade, Gu packet and post race banana. Now that our reality is social distancing, locked public bathrooms, and empty parks, how can we make the best of it?
With virtual racing you have the freedom to choose the day and time of your race. How many times have you left the fate of your race to the weather and time of day? I know I've woken up race morning to everything from a windy rainy mess, snow flurries and to blazing heat and humidity. In a virtual race YOU get to choose the day, so if the weather is crappy...run tomorrow! A second thing to consider is the time of day. Most races happen early in the morning and if you take into consideration your morning routine and travel times you could be waking up before the sun rise just to get everything in. In a virtual race you get to race on YOUR time.
An unfortunate part of virtual racing is losing the friendly competitive spirit of those around you but that doesn't mean you still can't have race goals. Some people have no problem hitting a PR on their own. After all, a lot of people train by themselves or they may have family cheering alongside them on a bike or in the driveway which can be plenty o motivation for some people. If you are at the point where that's not really an option then maybe focus on a different type of goal - like can you negative split a race? Or do you get out too slow and want to focus on getting out a little faster in that first mile? Maybe your goal is to not walk in your race. Or even completing a certain distance without the assistance of a crowd. Whatever you need to work on - this is your time to shine!
Another unfortunate loss is the access to water. Personally I find this one of the most annoying things built into training for long races such as the marathon. Carrying nutrition such as gel packets or food isn't really a problem but the water is what really gets me. I used to set out water bottles around town hidden in a bush or tall grass and that seemed to work well. I always had plenty of water and only had someone take a water bottle once from its hiding spot however it got to be a pain driving around town to different spots to hide them as the long run already takes up a large part of the day. When I got sick of doing that I broke down and bought a hydration pack. I was actually surprised by how much it didn't bother me. As long as it's adjusted correctly there's no bouncing, sloshing or chafing. As a bonus the pockets in the front made for nice spots to stash a phone or any nutrition needs. I still haven't broken down and bought a handheld but many people swear by them. I also have seen people just do loops making sure to pass by their house and set-up a water table in their driveway. Carrying your own water can weigh you down a bit but it's better than nothing. This is your time to get creative!
My next virtual race will be the Carmel Marathon virtual 10k. I'm very excited to race the 10k distance as they don't pop up as much as 5k's or even 5 milers. My last virtual event was the Milwaukee Marathon half marathon and my goal for that race was to negative split and have a strong finish. Now, when I coach athletes I preach I beg and I plead them to NOT GO OUT TOO FAST. For some reason I just can't listen to my own advice. It's ridiculous. I told myself to go out no faster than 7:45 for mile one and ease into it, especially because I was on the trails. My first mile clicked off, I looked down and it said 7:22...oops. It was all okay and I kept cruising at 7:30 until I hit the middle section of hills, started to fall off pace, threw myself a mini tantrum and then made myself finish up. So I did the complete opposite of what I planned. So...once again...I am stating that my goal for this virtual 10k is to NOT GO OUT TOO FAST and to finish strong.
So if you're missing out on racing then head on over here to find a discount code and get yourself signed up for a virtual race. You still get a medal and a t-shirt! Better yet, if you want to join me virtually for the Carmel Marathon event, head over to this website, get registered and use code, "BIBRAVE5" to get $5 off your registration.
Virtual racing is tough.
You have to imagine yourself in a scenario surrounded by a cheering crowd, other supportive runners and people to push you competitively. You also have to provide your own bathroom stop, water, Gatorade, Gu packet and post race banana. Now that our reality is social distancing, locked public bathrooms, and empty parks, how can we make the best of it?
With virtual racing you have the freedom to choose the day and time of your race. How many times have you left the fate of your race to the weather and time of day? I know I've woken up race morning to everything from a windy rainy mess, snow flurries and to blazing heat and humidity. In a virtual race YOU get to choose the day, so if the weather is crappy...run tomorrow! A second thing to consider is the time of day. Most races happen early in the morning and if you take into consideration your morning routine and travel times you could be waking up before the sun rise just to get everything in. In a virtual race you get to race on YOUR time.
An unfortunate part of virtual racing is losing the friendly competitive spirit of those around you but that doesn't mean you still can't have race goals. Some people have no problem hitting a PR on their own. After all, a lot of people train by themselves or they may have family cheering alongside them on a bike or in the driveway which can be plenty o motivation for some people. If you are at the point where that's not really an option then maybe focus on a different type of goal - like can you negative split a race? Or do you get out too slow and want to focus on getting out a little faster in that first mile? Maybe your goal is to not walk in your race. Or even completing a certain distance without the assistance of a crowd. Whatever you need to work on - this is your time to shine!
Another unfortunate loss is the access to water. Personally I find this one of the most annoying things built into training for long races such as the marathon. Carrying nutrition such as gel packets or food isn't really a problem but the water is what really gets me. I used to set out water bottles around town hidden in a bush or tall grass and that seemed to work well. I always had plenty of water and only had someone take a water bottle once from its hiding spot however it got to be a pain driving around town to different spots to hide them as the long run already takes up a large part of the day. When I got sick of doing that I broke down and bought a hydration pack. I was actually surprised by how much it didn't bother me. As long as it's adjusted correctly there's no bouncing, sloshing or chafing. As a bonus the pockets in the front made for nice spots to stash a phone or any nutrition needs. I still haven't broken down and bought a handheld but many people swear by them. I also have seen people just do loops making sure to pass by their house and set-up a water table in their driveway. Carrying your own water can weigh you down a bit but it's better than nothing. This is your time to get creative!
My next virtual race will be the Carmel Marathon virtual 10k. I'm very excited to race the 10k distance as they don't pop up as much as 5k's or even 5 milers. My last virtual event was the Milwaukee Marathon half marathon and my goal for that race was to negative split and have a strong finish. Now, when I coach athletes I preach I beg and I plead them to NOT GO OUT TOO FAST. For some reason I just can't listen to my own advice. It's ridiculous. I told myself to go out no faster than 7:45 for mile one and ease into it, especially because I was on the trails. My first mile clicked off, I looked down and it said 7:22...oops. It was all okay and I kept cruising at 7:30 until I hit the middle section of hills, started to fall off pace, threw myself a mini tantrum and then made myself finish up. So I did the complete opposite of what I planned. So...once again...I am stating that my goal for this virtual 10k is to NOT GO OUT TOO FAST and to finish strong.
So if you're missing out on racing then head on over here to find a discount code and get yourself signed up for a virtual race. You still get a medal and a t-shirt! Better yet, if you want to join me virtually for the Carmel Marathon event, head over to this website, get registered and use code, "BIBRAVE5" to get $5 off your registration.
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