It may sound like a crazy addiction, but over the past few weekends I have spent my Sunday mornings virtually tracking athletes while they run races. Earlier this summer I was even able to track a couple of Ironmans: Maine and Traverse City (this was interesting as it was my first experience following an Ironman. Wow! What an intense race!) While I can’t be at all of the events my running team members are at, I can cheer them on. It is exciting to watch and be there in spirit. This is one way I am able to coach from the sidelines. I followed Chicago Marathon and then the following weekend, I tracked four marathons at once: Detroit Free Press, Niagara Falls International, Mount Desert Island Maine, and Metro Health Grand Rapids: This weekend Marine Corps. I have been able to be a part of watching many great successes from first time marathon finishes to PR’s to Boston Qualifiers! My phone is filled up with tracking apps: My favorite app is RaceJoy which I used to track Glass City in the spring and most recently Grand Rapids. I like the feature that the user can send cheers and music along the way! Yes, I am that crazy data geek, running coach, tracking, cheering and celebrating from a distance! Shout out to all of the awesome athletes I have tracked: You keep me inspired to coach and continue to chase my running goals! My next race, Tunnel Hill 100 is less than two short weeks away. The race can be tracked at myraceresults.com.
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