“Virtual insanity”
2020 has been a tough year for runners – I don’t say that to discount that it has been a tough year for pretty much everyone.
But I’m here today to talk about runners and shine the spotlight on one particularly awesome group of runners here in my hometown of Fargo, ND.
Most races this year have been canceled or changed to a virtual format. While virtual running isn’t the same as race day, I saw a handful of people embrace it.
The Fargo Marathon Virtual Race
The Fargo Marathon, one of my favorite annual races, succumbed to the COVID-19 curse of 2020, having to cancel its in-person race and switch to a virtual format this year.
One of my last runs of the summer – hot and hard but great
While it had to be a bummer for those who planned to run, I was pleasantly surprised to see how many people ran their own Fargo Marathon this weekend. One of my friends really went for it, continued to train hard all summer, and achieved his goal of a sub 2-hour half marathon (shoutout to Jake Kohl from State Fargo).
In addition to all the runners, several others in the community were there to support the effort with homemade water stations and plenty of cheering and encouragement.
Why Running Matters
It’s just the kind of thing we need to see right now. People staying committed to their goals, continuing to work hard even when the typical reward isn’t dangling in front of them, making the best of a hard situation, and doing something positive for themselves and others around them.
Sure, virtual running isn’t the same – but we still get to run. I was grateful to run a couple short virtual races this year and still be healthy enough to run during pregnancy.
Congrats to everyone who ran their virtual Fargo Marathon! And with that, if you’ve continued to run, train, and run virtually this year, hats off to you as well. You’re all making me excited (and only a little jealous) to return to running in a few weeks once I have this baby out of me and I’m healed and strong enough to get back out there – even if there are no races, I still can’t wait to run, just run.
Because, let’s not forget: running is not canceled.
Have you run a virtual race this year? What kept you committed to that goal?
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