Ideas for a relay across America
- Thread starter mokaman
- Start date
I think a 5 days comitment is
I think a 5 days comitment is a bit much. But I also think a lot of people could run more than 10k at a time, maybe 10 miles.
If we had a map of volonteers and the distance and area they volonteer for we could plan for longer stretches in rural areas and maybe a lot of people running 5k sections in more crowded areas.
--> need to design a google spreadsheet where runners can enter the distance/location/time they volonteer.
Edit: I drafted this survey, what do you think: http://tinyurl.com/BarefootRelaySurvey
Results here: http://tinyurl.com/BF-relay-results or http://tinyurl.com/BarefootRelaySurveyResult
If you help me improve the survey we could add it to the top of this thread or the front page when we're ready.
In terms of paying for the van and travel expenses to fly runners to areas where there are no local volonteers we could try to get a sponsor. But who would pay to promote barefoot running...hmmm. Maybe we could have a barefoot/minimalist relay instead or in addition to the pure barefoot relay. Or would it be ok to raise money for a charity and substract our van/travel/logistics costs form the amount raised and give the rest to a charity?
--> I have no experience with raising money but people with more experience in that area could find a workable model.
Another idea is to have the real relay and in parallel, have virtual teams signing up to run the same distance as a relay runner, but at their own location, in sign of support. For example we could have one runner from the Philadelphia area running for a couple of days in the middle of the country with the van. And at the same time, other runners from Philly could run barefoot around Clark Park, counting the total number of barefoot miles.
I'm assuming the relay should start in the Spring to be more barefoot friendly in Northern climates.
How can we extend the route to included all the great Canadian barefoot runner?
I think a 5 days comitment is a bit much. But I also think a lot of people could run more than 10k at a time, maybe 10 miles.
If we had a map of volonteers and the distance and area they volonteer for we could plan for longer stretches in rural areas and maybe a lot of people running 5k sections in more crowded areas.
--> need to design a google spreadsheet where runners can enter the distance/location/time they volonteer.
Edit: I drafted this survey, what do you think: http://tinyurl.com/BarefootRelaySurvey
Results here: http://tinyurl.com/BF-relay-results or http://tinyurl.com/BarefootRelaySurveyResult
If you help me improve the survey we could add it to the top of this thread or the front page when we're ready.
In terms of paying for the van and travel expenses to fly runners to areas where there are no local volonteers we could try to get a sponsor. But who would pay to promote barefoot running...hmmm. Maybe we could have a barefoot/minimalist relay instead or in addition to the pure barefoot relay. Or would it be ok to raise money for a charity and substract our van/travel/logistics costs form the amount raised and give the rest to a charity?
--> I have no experience with raising money but people with more experience in that area could find a workable model.
Another idea is to have the real relay and in parallel, have virtual teams signing up to run the same distance as a relay runner, but at their own location, in sign of support. For example we could have one runner from the Philadelphia area running for a couple of days in the middle of the country with the van. And at the same time, other runners from Philly could run barefoot around Clark Park, counting the total number of barefoot miles.
I'm assuming the relay should start in the Spring to be more barefoot friendly in Northern climates.
How can we extend the route to included all the great Canadian barefoot runner?
What about doing an X across
What about doing an X across the country so people don' t have to travel as much?
What about doing an X across the country so people don' t have to travel as much?
The survey is great!Let me
The survey is great!
Let me preface the following by saying that in general I have nothing against running for a charity and think it can be a really great thing.
That being said, I don't really think that's what this relay would be about. As I understand it, the run would be
To try to sell this thing as a charitable effort would, in my opinion, be dishonest.
On the other hand, I think the idea of getting sponsors is great! Of course it would make sense to try to pull minimalist shoe companies in the boat, but I think even the "big" companies like Nike and Adidas might consider sponsoring if they were to consider that, while we may not wear shoes, many (most?) of us certainly do wear "normal" running clothes.
If there were to be money left over at the end of the relay, that would be the time to consider donating it to charity.
Just my $.02.
The survey is great!
Let me preface the following by saying that in general I have nothing against running for a charity and think it can be a really great thing.
That being said, I don't really think that's what this relay would be about. As I understand it, the run would be
- To educate the running public on the health benefits of barefoot and minimalist running.
- To dispel the myths associated with barefoot running that negatively impact the sport.
To try to sell this thing as a charitable effort would, in my opinion, be dishonest.
On the other hand, I think the idea of getting sponsors is great! Of course it would make sense to try to pull minimalist shoe companies in the boat, but I think even the "big" companies like Nike and Adidas might consider sponsoring if they were to consider that, while we may not wear shoes, many (most?) of us certainly do wear "normal" running clothes.
If there were to be money left over at the end of the relay, that would be the time to consider donating it to charity.
Just my $.02.
Whatever you guys decide to
Whatever you guys decide to do and when, just let me know, and we'll publicize it and all that.
Whatever you guys decide to do and when, just let me know, and we'll publicize it and all that.
There is a relay race local
There is a relay race local here that has the vans to shuttle the runners for the different teams...I think that could be feasible. I would like to see more than one runner actually running together as much as possible also.
I started looking at a route for a run across Georgia from Savanna towards Atlanta to Alabama...about 300 miles. Up to 50+ miles a day...5 - 6 days...10 runners. Five miles each but some would double up for more or what ever they felt like each day....maybe more than two at a time thru Atlanta. Try to string the stopping points near some state parks or other camping places...hit some natural trail area's if possible.
The minimalist shoe runners would be ok but I would want one barefooter on the course always.
The across America route would have to follow the season or be broke into a morning /evening part in the hotter area's.
There is a relay race local here that has the vans to shuttle the runners for the different teams...I think that could be feasible. I would like to see more than one runner actually running together as much as possible also.
I started looking at a route for a run across Georgia from Savanna towards Atlanta to Alabama...about 300 miles. Up to 50+ miles a day...5 - 6 days...10 runners. Five miles each but some would double up for more or what ever they felt like each day....maybe more than two at a time thru Atlanta. Try to string the stopping points near some state parks or other camping places...hit some natural trail area's if possible.
The minimalist shoe runners would be ok but I would want one barefooter on the course always.
The across America route would have to follow the season or be broke into a morning /evening part in the hotter area's.
I agree with Moka that it
I agree with Moka that it would be better to have more than one runner at a time. With a solo runner, most people might not really notice unless the pace van was riding close by with big signs, etc.
I haven't done the math on California yet or route. However, sloutre has the right idea getting the survey together. We need to decide if the route is a mostly direct one straight across the country or if it will weave to include many more states. One example that we could examine for informational purposes is Dean Karnazes. He has been doing a Run across America from Los Angeles to New York. I think his run is 75 total days. He's in NJ or something now on day 71 or 72. His route can be found on the web. I don't know if there are hops from town to town in his sponsor bus along the way or if he has actually run the entire route. The reason why I bring this up is because we would need to examine the route carefully since I imagine we would not be traveling on interstates. If we want to have a full connected route with the passing of an actual or symbolic baton, that will require more miles than if we "hop" between areas.
Just my thoughts for now. More later...
I agree with Moka that it would be better to have more than one runner at a time. With a solo runner, most people might not really notice unless the pace van was riding close by with big signs, etc.
I haven't done the math on California yet or route. However, sloutre has the right idea getting the survey together. We need to decide if the route is a mostly direct one straight across the country or if it will weave to include many more states. One example that we could examine for informational purposes is Dean Karnazes. He has been doing a Run across America from Los Angeles to New York. I think his run is 75 total days. He's in NJ or something now on day 71 or 72. His route can be found on the web. I don't know if there are hops from town to town in his sponsor bus along the way or if he has actually run the entire route. The reason why I bring this up is because we would need to examine the route carefully since I imagine we would not be traveling on interstates. If we want to have a full connected route with the passing of an actual or symbolic baton, that will require more miles than if we "hop" between areas.
Just my thoughts for now. More later...
Hi All,for what it's worth,
Hi All,
for what it's worth, we had a total of 330 Runners worldwide for IBRD, with about 200+ in the US, a portion of whom were just trying it for the first time.
I think it would be important to start gathering a list of who is interested in running, where they all live and what distances they can do.
As I calculated, the very minimum will be 60 runners, and that was pretty ambitiously calculated. But, Chelsea's idea, that each should run what he/she is capable of, is the right way to go (IMO). That way many more people will be able and encouraged to take part.
For the season, Fall or Spring.
Cheers
Paleo
Hi All,
for what it's worth, we had a total of 330 Runners worldwide for IBRD, with about 200+ in the US, a portion of whom were just trying it for the first time.
I think it would be important to start gathering a list of who is interested in running, where they all live and what distances they can do.
As I calculated, the very minimum will be 60 runners, and that was pretty ambitiously calculated. But, Chelsea's idea, that each should run what he/she is capable of, is the right way to go (IMO). That way many more people will be able and encouraged to take part.
For the season, Fall or Spring.
Cheers
Paleo
Paleo,Did some rough math
Paleo,
Did some rough math with your IBRD numbers -
Supposing the course is a 3000 mile course (Los Angeles to New York):
- 60 runners would need to run 50 miles each.
- 200 runners would need to run 15 miles each.
If we were running relay teams, both numbers are possibly feasible (the 200 runner mileage being more friendly to most runners. Meaning one runner could likely do 15 miles either in one shot or in smaller chunks with breaks in between as mentioned in an earlier post. The 50 mile each would be doable for a handful of runners if again they had some breaks in between. The ultra runners in BRS could potentially do 50 mile blocks, but I'm thinking it would be better served if they did smaller chunks over a short period of time. They would be more likely to post more miles over a few days than one or two 50 milers in a short span.
The trickier part is transporting the teams over large distances. It would be cool if Vibram, Merrell or other minimalist shoe company could sponsor a "tour bus" to be the moving billboard of advertising the run as well as moving teams of runners across the country in a more comfortable manner. (However, we would have to determine if we are trying to do the cross-country run straight BF or minimalist.) The bus would allow a larger handful of runners to travel with the runner for handoffs while giving a good place for "post-run" and "on-deck" runners a place to rest
Even with the "tour bus" idea, there would be the issue of getting runners back to their starting points unless everyone involved was willing to manage their own return transportation.
I don't know if Jason is in the loop on this thread, but perhaps he could see if Merrell is willing to step up on this type of idea?
Paleo,
Did some rough math with your IBRD numbers -
Supposing the course is a 3000 mile course (Los Angeles to New York):
- 60 runners would need to run 50 miles each.
- 200 runners would need to run 15 miles each.
If we were running relay teams, both numbers are possibly feasible (the 200 runner mileage being more friendly to most runners. Meaning one runner could likely do 15 miles either in one shot or in smaller chunks with breaks in between as mentioned in an earlier post. The 50 mile each would be doable for a handful of runners if again they had some breaks in between. The ultra runners in BRS could potentially do 50 mile blocks, but I'm thinking it would be better served if they did smaller chunks over a short period of time. They would be more likely to post more miles over a few days than one or two 50 milers in a short span.
The trickier part is transporting the teams over large distances. It would be cool if Vibram, Merrell or other minimalist shoe company could sponsor a "tour bus" to be the moving billboard of advertising the run as well as moving teams of runners across the country in a more comfortable manner. (However, we would have to determine if we are trying to do the cross-country run straight BF or minimalist.) The bus would allow a larger handful of runners to travel with the runner for handoffs while giving a good place for "post-run" and "on-deck" runners a place to rest
Even with the "tour bus" idea, there would be the issue of getting runners back to their starting points unless everyone involved was willing to manage their own return transportation.
I don't know if Jason is in the loop on this thread, but perhaps he could see if Merrell is willing to step up on this type of idea?
The idea that each runner
The idea that each runner should run what he/she is capable of was from sloutre, but I also 100% agree, if that's saying anything. Thanks for thinkin' of me, though, Paleo!
Along another line...and I absolutely HATE to ask this question 'cause I don't want to jinx it, but...what about glasssss and hypodermic needles and stuff??????
Ok, what I mean by that is, if we're looking at a relay with 60 or 200 or even more runners, somebody's bound to get hurt/sick/have something urgent come up at the last minute. So what happens if one runner can't finish his/her leg? It probably would't be too difficult to have someone jump in unplanned to cover up to 10k, but it'd be a completely different story if someone were planning on running a 50+mile stretch and suddenly just couldn't.
One possilbe solution would be that one or two runners would be assigned to a specific week of the race and would travel in the van/bus and act as fill-ins, should they be needed. They'd pretty much have to be ready to run whenever, but if everything went as planned (knock on wood), they also might not have to run at all. (Though they could certainly run with the assgned runner if they wanted to.) Of course this would require a pretty large time commitment from a few dedicated individuals...
The idea that each runner should run what he/she is capable of was from sloutre, but I also 100% agree, if that's saying anything. Thanks for thinkin' of me, though, Paleo!
Along another line...and I absolutely HATE to ask this question 'cause I don't want to jinx it, but...what about glasssss and hypodermic needles and stuff??????
Ok, what I mean by that is, if we're looking at a relay with 60 or 200 or even more runners, somebody's bound to get hurt/sick/have something urgent come up at the last minute. So what happens if one runner can't finish his/her leg? It probably would't be too difficult to have someone jump in unplanned to cover up to 10k, but it'd be a completely different story if someone were planning on running a 50+mile stretch and suddenly just couldn't.
One possilbe solution would be that one or two runners would be assigned to a specific week of the race and would travel in the van/bus and act as fill-ins, should they be needed. They'd pretty much have to be ready to run whenever, but if everything went as planned (knock on wood), they also might not have to run at all. (Though they could certainly run with the assgned runner if they wanted to.) Of course this would require a pretty large time commitment from a few dedicated individuals...
Hey All, Bruno is late to the
Hey All, Bruno is late to the party as always!
I see this thread has died, did I miss something?
I'd love to be involved and could take up long distance, but not too much time.
Hope we can revive this and make something happen.
Hey All, Bruno is late to the party as always!
I see this thread has died, did I miss something?
I'd love to be involved and could take up long distance, but not too much time.
Hope we can revive this and make something happen.
Hey Bruno,Thanks for trying
Hey Bruno,
Thanks for trying to revive this thread. It's been on my mind since I worked at the Western States 100 race and saw the movie Running the Sahara.
I did a quick Google Maps route from The Presidio in San Francisco to Manhattan State Beach in New York - avoiding highways and tolls (according to the options setting). It is roughly 3200 miles. I think the route that mapped could be tweaked some, since it does not hit some of the more major cities across the country like Salt Lake or Denver.
http://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=2361+Lombard+St,+San+Francisco,+CA+94123+(Presidio+of+San+Francisco)&daddr=Brooklyn,+NY+11235+(Manhattan+Beach+Park)&hl=en&ll=39.300299,-98.217773&spn=23.138088,51.635742&sll=40.380028,-98.217773&sspn=22.78662,51.635742&geocode=Fdm_QAId6y2z-CFSAdd_DWInHg%3BFTcnawIdvbmX-yE3P0XiqX051A&mra=ltm&dirflg=ht&t=h&z=5
Thoughts?
Hey Bruno,
Thanks for trying to revive this thread. It's been on my mind since I worked at the Western States 100 race and saw the movie Running the Sahara.
I did a quick Google Maps route from The Presidio in San Francisco to Manhattan State Beach in New York - avoiding highways and tolls (according to the options setting). It is roughly 3200 miles. I think the route that mapped could be tweaked some, since it does not hit some of the more major cities across the country like Salt Lake or Denver.
http://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=2361+Lombard+St,+San+Francisco,+CA+94123+(Presidio+of+San+Francisco)&daddr=Brooklyn,+NY+11235+(Manhattan+Beach+Park)&hl=en&ll=39.300299,-98.217773&spn=23.138088,51.635742&sll=40.380028,-98.217773&sspn=22.78662,51.635742&geocode=Fdm_QAId6y2z-CFSAdd_DWInHg%3BFTcnawIdvbmX-yE3P0XiqX051A&mra=ltm&dirflg=ht&t=h&z=5
Thoughts?
This sounds amazing. I'm not
This sounds amazing. I'm not into racing or competition, but this sounds like a great experience. It would be hard to be away from my family, too, but keep me posted, anyway.
This sounds amazing. I'm not into racing or competition, but this sounds like a great experience. It would be hard to be away from my family, too, but keep me posted, anyway.
Count me in for any leg on
Count me in for any leg on the east coast! I think the baton should be something awesome like a big flaming barefoot or something similiarly badass. Flaming might be a bad idea (and too similar to Olympics)
Count me in for any leg on the east coast! I think the baton should be something awesome like a big flaming barefoot or something similiarly badass. Flaming might be a bad idea (and too similar to Olympics)
Badass! Ha! How about we do
Badass! Ha! How about we do like a baton pass off, but the baton could be an old smelly shoe! Ha!
Mokie, are you keeping track of all the folks who are stepping up and where they are located to see if we can pull this off? I hope someone is. Maybe we should create a map and put push pins on it. Google Maps can do this. We just have to embed it into the opening post, then everyone can add their location. Is this a good idea we should do?
Badass! Ha! How about we do like a baton pass off, but the baton could be an old smelly shoe! Ha!
Mokie, are you keeping track of all the folks who are stepping up and where they are located to see if we can pull this off? I hope someone is. Maybe we should create a map and put push pins on it. Google Maps can do this. We just have to embed it into the opening post, then everyone can add their location. Is this a good idea we should do?
Yes, check the Opening Post
Yes, check the Opening Post for the map. Those who are interested can start adding yourselves to the map. I added myself to the map using Sharpsburg, GA - Barefoot TJ. Everyone, please use this same convention.
Yes, check the Opening Post for the map. Those who are interested can start adding yourselves to the map. I added myself to the map using Sharpsburg, GA - Barefoot TJ. Everyone, please use this same convention.
As long as the chosen date
As long as the chosen date doesn't interfer with my trips to Kentucky for on campus classes I would be game to participate for a portion of Atlanta. Then again if the timing worked out perfectly I could do a portion of the Lexington area of Kentucky... On second thought, Atlanta would be easier to work with for me.
As long as the chosen date doesn't interfer with my trips to Kentucky for on campus classes I would be game to participate for a portion of Atlanta. Then again if the timing worked out perfectly I could do a portion of the Lexington area of Kentucky... On second thought, Atlanta would be easier to work with for me.
You're in Atlanta,
You're in Atlanta, Alejandro? We're getting a run together this Sunday, the 21st behind the Emory Campus in Atlanta. I see you haven't joined the Georgia Chapter (Chapter tab up top) yet. Please do. Can you join us Sunday?
You're in Atlanta, Alejandro? We're getting a run together this Sunday, the 21st behind the Emory Campus in Atlanta. I see you haven't joined the Georgia Chapter (Chapter tab up top) yet. Please do. Can you join us Sunday?
