For everyone from elites to recreational runners, canceled races are significant disruptions.
In a sports world virtually put on hold, going on a run outside feels like one of the few aspects of life that hasn’t been disrupted by. But for many runners, from the global elite to the recreational athlete, the daily outings build toward a goal, whether it’s an annual pinnacle or a lifelong pursuit: a marathon.
The pro athletes at the front of the pack may lose half of their annual incomes. The hordes of runners who line up behind the elites would feel exactly like Charlie Brown when Lucy yanks away the football — if he had spent four exhausting months powering toward that kick. And the directors of the races that were canceled or postponed face at best a logistical nightmare and at worst a financial catastrophe.
So why don’t runners just suck it up and do two of those in the fall? A few may try — heck, prolific distance runner Michael Wardian of Arlington, Va., said he hopes to do all five — but most human bodies don’t work that way. Racing 26.2 miles usually requires at least 16 weeks of hard training, and the all-out effort on race day leaves even top athletes needing months to recover.
From the beginning, most runners realized there were far bigger issues than a scrambled marathon schedule. As races began to drop, McMillan faced an avalanche of questions from his hundreds of suddenly directionless runners who were all trained up with nowhere to go. “The biggest challenge for them as well as all of us — right? — is what do I do now? I got really fit, and there’s literally no races. How do you finish off this training cycle?” he said.
Few races are able to give full refunds — runners agree to this in the waivers they sign — but many race directors have been creative in their attempts to keep runners’ goodwill.Some are allowing them to defer to next year’s race or are offering discounts for other events or merchandise. Many have set up “virtual” versions of their races in which competitors can run the distance wherever they are — on the honor system — and still receive their T-shirts and medals.
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