As I held out and hoped that the race would be able to take place this year amongst everything that has been going on I was eventually told last week that the permit was cancelled. It was disappointing in many ways as groups were allowed to get together in the outdoors to a maximum of 50 people. I had plan in place to allow groups to start in waves and keep any group to a maximum of 50. However there were also other things to consider, things like, travel bans, finding accommodation, keeping social distance at the aid stations, etc that could have still stopped the race from happening. I know one of the things that I have always loved about running ultra’s is being able to push myself physically and mentally. To see what is possible at that moment. It is also one of the reasons I started the Iron Legs Mountain Races, to provide a way for others to challenge themselves physically and mentally, and being at the finish line to watch the faces of each runner as the emotion of finishing something they put everything out there for is a highlight of my year. This year I will not be able to watch everyone cross the finish line, to give that congratulatory hug and enjoy a bowl of food as I hear how the race went for many of you.
What I am able to do is provide you with a physical and mental challenge regardless of where you live. This years race will be a virtual race that will be open from Aug 15-21, 2020. The reason is to have the race open for a week is to allow you to schedule the run based on your schedule. All you have to do is run the distance within the time frame and then upload your gpx file to ultrasignup. Once this is done everyone will be ranked based on their finish time, however I understand that that based on where you run the difficulty can be varied. So the prizing and awards will a little different and fun, things like most elevation gained on the run, fastest time, best selfie on the run, now these are ideas of prizing and will be finalized based on numbers. What will you get for the entry fee? Well there will be the usual swag, like a shirt, sticker(s), a surprise item, and your name in for a prize. After all this is done my hope is that you all get challenged in some way and even though I will not be there to see the look on your face, it will still be good to hear how the day went.
I hope some of you will join me on this journey and allow me to follow along through Instagram.