Aravaipa Strong Virtual Race 50K – Day 1

I’ve never participated in a virtual race.  This may be an unpopular opinion, but I didn’t quite a see a point to them.  My logic was telling me, why would I pay for a race that had me complete a certain mileage where I could choose the route and start and finish within whatever time frame the organizers set?  That basically sounds like every single run I do on my own that I organize!  Of course, I don’t get a cool shirt, or medal, or awesome sticker after each run either.  Sounds like I might be doing my running wrong. 

A few weeks ago, when I heard about the Aravaipa Strong Virtual Race, I didn’t think twice about whether or not I was going to sign up.  My running has been a bit stagnant lately, and like so many others I find myself struggling with motivation to get out the door, but I found this virtual race to be a slight kick in the butt that I need to get moving. In an effort to help support the WHO COVID-19 Relief Fund, it’s also a way to bring the running community together and right now, more than ever we need each other for encouragement and support whether it’s through running or not.

Now the question begged, what distance do I even sign up for?

Right off the bat, I knew the 50 miler and 100 mile distances were out of the question considering my current level of fitness, and I wasn’t feeling the 5K or 10K either (although it probably would’ve been wiser of me to choose one of them).  This left me with the half marathon, marathon, and 50K distance in my decision-making bucket. 

My heart was telling me to choose the 50K distance, but my mind wasn’t so sure.

I have 10 days to complete it! That’s 3.1 miles a day! I can do that! 

Okay, when was the last time I ran a streak of 3.1 miles a day?

When was the last time I completed 31 miles within 10 days?

Did I even run 31 miles last month?

Oh what the heck. I decided to go for it!

Friday, April 17th was the official kick-off to the virtual race but I decided to start the following day.

This was my Day 1:

I was nervous setting out.  For some reason I felt the mental pressure to run a certain pace or complete a certain distance and then I remembered, I have 10 9 days to complete 31.1 miles!  The only pressure I have is what I place on myself and I decided I was going to run slow (that’s a given), and walk a ton (definitely), and enjoy every step I can, and be grateful for the time I can spend outside.  But I also wanted to hurry up so I can get back home and stay home. 

One thing that was noticeable was the amount of people running and walking!  The weather was quite lovely. We did our best to avoid each other and give each other distance.  Some folks were wearing their masks, and then, there were those who weren’t.  

I understand the necessity and importance of wearing face masks, and they’re not going away anytime soon, but they are uncomfortable while running.  Not sure about anyone else, but for me, it’s difficult to breathe with any type of face covering so when there isn’t anyone around me, I take it off, and then when I see or hear someone approaching, I quickly put it back on.  

But guess what? I got a couple of waves from other runners!  In my last post, I mentioned how it’s been my experience runners shy away from any greeting like a wave, or even making eye contact.  To my knowledge, the coronavirus isn’t transmittable by eye contact, but some people aren’t taking any chances. 

I saw this one guy running towards me and as I looked over to him, I noticed his shirt.  When he looked over to me.  I yelled out, “Did you run Angeles Crest?!” 

He stopped running (sorry about that) and said, “Yeah I did!” 

“I volunteer every year!”  

Actually, I didn’t volunteer in 2019 because the race landed on my mom’s birthday and as much as I tried to convince her of all the fun it would be, she didn’t express any desire whatsoever to spend her special day hanging out at an aid station all day, but I was set to volunteer at this year’s race. As expected, the Angeles Crest 100 has been canceled. 

He asked me my name and what aid station.  I said Millard and much to my surprise, he said, “They have the popsicles!” 

I said, “Yes!!! I bring the Otter Pops!” 

“Oh those were awesome!” 

Thank you Dan! You seriously made my day and my first run of the Aravaipa Strong Virtual Race 50K so memorable!  He was actually the very first runner I’ve talked to in MONTHS!  Dan, I’ll be cheering you on at next year’s AC100, and I will make sure I have those Otter Pops ready for you!

The first run was an unplanned 7 miles and I believe the last time I ran that distance, I was on the trails.  Oh how I miss those trails, but I’m grateful to be able to run outside for a bit. 

So now 24.1 miles left to go, and I think I got a blister. 

Stay safe.  Stay strong. Stay home (as much as possible). Thank you for reading!