Getting outdoors and churning out a few miles has remained a consistent, viable athletic outlet throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nevertheless, the absence this year of the annual Bolder Boulder sapped a little bit of the lifeblood out of the fervent local running community. Race officials are doing their best to keep the audience engaged with a series of virtual races, the latest of which is slated for Labor Day.
On Monday, the Bolder Boulder will host the BOLDiTUDE virtual 10-kilometer race to engage passionate runners and weekend warriors alike who have been unable to fill up the typical race circuit this summer.
Labor Day is the date of the annual FORTitude 10K in Fort Collins hosted by the Bolder Boulder. Additionally, Labor Day was the original rescheduled date for the 2020 edition of the Bolder Boulder when it was first postponed on March 16.
Due to concerns of the spread of the coronavirus, the 42nd annual Bolder Boulder was officially postponed to 2021 on June 1.
“More people, especially during the summer, have been migrating to outside activity — hiking, biking, running, swimming. Those trailheads that are maybe usually well-attended are overwhelmed now,” Bolder Boulder race director Cliff Bosley said. “It’s the outlet. Running is one of those things that people are doing. Being able to key on a day like Labor Day, or a weekend like Labor Day weekend, that keeps our fan base engaged and gives the awesome people who run the Bolder Boulder and the FORTitude a chance to connect.”
Bosley said the virtual Bolder Boulder that was held on Memorial Day instead drew about 14,000 participants. Monday’s BOLDiTUDE race will features a mobile app that allows runners to hear verbal cues (such as the starting signal) while also allowing participants the ability to trace where exactly they would be if they were running the actual FORTitude course in Fort Collins.
Given the uncertainty of what large athletic gatherings might look like in the future — the Bolder Boulder typically draws upwards of 50,000 participants, with thousands of spectators lining the course — Bosley said organizers have tried to fine-tune some of virtual-race components. Bosley also said that whenever in-person races begin again, the virtual component is likely to be a permanent fixture with all Bolder Boulder races.
“We’ll likely continue with virtual elements, which will actually cater to those folks who can’t run in person,” Bosley said. “We’re still working to figure out different ways where we can connect with our participants. And, at the same time, working on the physical operation with new technology for when we run the race in person. We’ve been looking at how we can better serve the runner within our operation.”
Next up on the Bolder Boulder race calendar is the Colder Boulder, the annual post-Thanksgiving weekend race slated this year for Dec. 5. Bosley said the Bolder Boulder remains about a month away from making an official decision on the state of that race, but it too is likely to turn into a virtual-only event.
“There’s a strong likelihood that we can’t run (Colder Boulder) in person,” Bosley said. “We’re still going to focus on a great, virtual Colder Boulder race. If the landscape changes, if there’s an opportunity for us to run a smaller version of it in person, we will. That will have to be something we’ll have to work with the city and the county health department, but it’s not a decision we have to make right now.”
Registration for the Labor Day BOLDiTUDE is available at bolderboulder.com.
