Hi lovely HMers. Things have changed a lot in the last week. If you're still preparing for your organised HM event, I guess it has probably now been cancelled.
I should have run Bath Half last Sunday 😕. They didn’t cancel the race, but I didn’t feel I wanted to join 16000 people for the run. A personal choice that went about 50/50 with 6800 of the 12000+ registered runners showing up on the day.
Saturday afternoon a Facebook group was started for ‘The Virtual Bath Half’. I decided to join in. Suddenly I was in a community again (1100 members in the space of 24 hours). The idea was to run your own HM somewhere you felt safe, to wear your race bib and then to submit photos and times. It was nice to belong again.
So I thought I’d write a bit about my ‘Virtual HM’ in today’s post; what worked for me, what didn’t, what you might think about first if you decide you want to run your own Virtual HM. I must stress this is written in light of official advice as at time of writing; things may change, but just now, so long as you aren’t supposed to be self-isolating, solo exercise appears to be being encouraged. Of course, a solo virtual event may not be for you at all, but I’d say it can be fun and provide a focus for your training and it even has some benefits!
★ Why did you enter the event?
There are so many reasons that I love races – the crowd support, start line anticipation, finish arch, official results and of course bling! Race magic definitely helps me achieve a PB.
As I discovered, it’s really hard to recreate most of these elements! I felt really flat when I set out from home, but the minute I started to run my face broke into an involuntary, spontaneous smile. I have seen videos of people whose families and friends created a finish line complete with tape and cheers (they obviously plan routes and distances better than I do). My hubby did offer to come and cheer me on but I declined.
As many of you know this was a comeback race for me; a line in the sand to show that ten months on from injury I had come back better before. That meant my overriding reason for this race was a PB. Not so easy on a solo run, but maybe not impossible.
★ Is bling important?
Trick question – of course it is! I discovered a virtual medal which I paid for before setting off. You can take a look here (it’s open until 31st May): ‘I ran it anyway 13.1 miles’ virtualracinguk.co.uk/produ...
★ Is there an online community doing the same thing?
One of the great things about an event is the sense of community it brings. Look on Facebook or Strava and see if anyone has set a group up. There were four of us here on HU supposed to be meeting up in Bath – we chatted a lot in the preceding week and it was really helpful. If you decide to do one, add your virtual event to our monthly events post and we will all be cheering you on.
★ Benefits
Lots of them! No loo queue panic, no parking or travel issues to worry about, no nights away required, or bookings for lunch because everywhere will be full, no worrying what you look like for the photographer 😂... Altogether less ‘unknowns’.
★ Plan your route
Do not turn up at the race venue on the published day of the race! Roads will no longer be closed, the venue does not want hoards of people showing up. You need to be creative. Possibly run the same route but on another day (bearing in mind that road closures will no longer be in place) or plan something entirely different: you can try to simulate your race terrain (for me that was flat, all road) or do your own thing.
Try it out in advance, in sections perhaps. I only had 24 hours notice to sort it out so skipped this step – to my cost! I encountered a stile, a very muddy path and a ‘no access’ road which meant I had to double back across some muddy grass so as not to add too much distance (I ducked under the first barrier but drew the line at the next which looked absolutely impassable and had a sign saying ‘nature conservation area, no access’). Clearly the local monthly races have special permission to use this path!
Avoid things that will break your flow such as the stile or bike ‘gates’ which make it possible for only one person to pass at a time (despite my bib, clearly the gentleman on the bike had priority). I had planned a route that avoided crossing all but a couple of quiet lanes, traffic lights would be a pain!
Particularly pertinent just now, try to choose wide paths/roads/open areas and quiet places so you can maintain some ‘social distance’.
★ Fuelling
There will be no aid stations! I had been going to rely on water in cups at the race so had to quickly improvise. I bought a bigger bottle and ran with two bottles in my flipbelt for the first time (I run slower in training, so had managed with one small bottle until this point). You know what they say about not trying something new on race day 🙄🤷♀️... Well I managed, but there was a lot of hitching and rearranging going on in the first few kilometres (thankfully it was quiet). If you’re running laps, or past the same spot more than once, you could make your own ‘aid station’ perhaps, but otherwise you need to make sure you’re carrying all you need, just as you would in a training run.
★ Achievement
I was really lucky to get my PB, even to achieve my best target time. If I’m totally honest, it doesn’t feel as ‘real’ as it would have if it was chip timed over an officially measured distance; I’m incredibly glad I did it, but there is a tiny ‘dent’ in my trophy.
★ What next?
A new page in my plan (I already have another page after that which takes me to 13th October 🤪): Ride the Night London. This page goes to 23rd May, but I'm expecting this event to be cancelled (or maybe postponed) this week. I've already decided to follow my plan though. I'll do a virtual ride on event day if I can (though probably not through the night and not through London for obvious safety reasons) – I have fundraised for this one and feel I owe it to my sponsors to do something. I see no reason not to continue training. Training isn’t all about the event, it’s all about me. I’m still here, wanting to be fit, enjoying my running and riding – and intend to keep going as long as I feel it’s safe for me, and the Government hasn’t put anything in place to prevent me. In between cycling I was hoping to do some Parkrun tourism, but I’m not so sure about that now - maybe next year, third time lucky!
It’s personal. It’s difficult and disappointing. But you’ll find a way through it. A focus helps. Give it some thought, and please do share any ideas you have. Our desire to run, this community and the lovely support on the HU forums make us luckier than many at this challenging time.
Good luck. Stay safe. And above all, follow current official advice.
Take care.
Lots of love,
roseabi and linda9389 (Noodles played no part in today’s post, but may be back next week) xxx
March 17th, 2020
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Previous posts:
Welcome: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Training plans: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Let's get to know each other!: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Getting the most out of your training: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Food & drink on the run: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
How to make the most of your race photos: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Have a very happy holiday period!: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Happy New Year!!!: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Aiming to be race-day ready !!!: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Speed intervals & hill training!: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Long run - length and timing: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Pacing: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
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What’s it like to run a Half Marathon?: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Faffage lists: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Taper tips: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Reflecting!: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
Chins up, and let's talk BLING!!!: healthunlocked.com/marathon...
