Sorry for the crass blog title, but this virus is totally cockblocking everyone in the world at this moment and I'm calling it like I see it! First of all, I will say this is a very serious situation and I know lives are at stake, and I'm not going to minimize that at all. Our top priority NEEDS to be protecting our most vulnerable populations. Totally understand that. But for the purposes of this blog, I will be focusing on how this is specifically affecting the fitness/racing communities. While it might seem like this is a silly thing to be concerned with at a time like this, it is the point of my blog, and racing has been turned completely upside down for at least the next several weeks. I will also be focusing on the United States because that is where I live, and that's what I've heard the most information about.
Most races in America have been cancelled or postponed. The Abominable Snow Race was cancelled with less than 24 hours notice after the host venue decided to shut down. Spartan has cancelled or postponed all events in the next 30 days. Communities have put into place bans on gatherings of over 100-250 people, which has caused mass cancellations of OCRs and road races during a prime busy race season. Race companies are hemorrhaging money and needing to offer free deferrals and refunds to keep the customers happy.
Brief aside: I saw people on the Facebook page for the Abominable Snow Race asking the race to reimburse them for their lost hotel fees and even their LOST WAGES from taking a vacation day for the event. Bitch, please. That is so ridiculous, I can't even. You cannot demand that a small race company who has just lost a TON of revenue should pay you back for your vacation day. It is beyond out of line to even ask for that. Some crazy lady asked for an "immediate refund" so that she could "take [her] kids to do something fun" that weekend, and claimed she should be paid back for the "custom team shirts" that she chose to have made. Nobody NEEDS to make custom shirts. That was your choice, Karen.
Anyway, how do we as a community prepare for race cancellations? I have a few ideas that I think are ALWAYS prudent.
1) Always make cancellable reservations. I know it's tempting to save a few bucks with the Advance Purchase hotel rate, but DON'T. Always always always make sure you can cancel your reservation, pandemic or not. Airline reservations are more difficult usually, but right now all the airlines are giving refunds. If you're getting a plane ticket for an event, you should consider trip insurance or paying an extra fee to make your ticket at least changeable.
2) Consider, if traveling for an event, making a proper vacation out of it so that a race cancellation will not literally ruin your weekend. If you can plan family vacations around a race (example: visiting Disney World when a race is happening in central Florida), it will be less devastating if the race can't happen.
3) Have a backup plan. This could be a different race that you could parlay your training to if your first choice is cancelled. It could also be a different idea for a vacation if you have a last-minute cancellation and can't change your travel plans or your time off work. You took a day off and now the race is cancelled? What else can you do to not waste the day?
Specifically with the coronavirus, experts are strongly recommending social isolation, or avoiding groups of people, particularly while indoors. As a result, many local gyms are being shut down for 2-3 weeks while we try to contain the effect of the virus on our healthcare systems. This can be overwhelming for many folks who aren't fitness experts and may have no idea how to train without a gym. Some recommendations:
1) Your backyard. This is a great place to prepare for OCRs because they take place on dirt rather than roads. Do burpees on the grass. Carry around a 5-gallon bucket full of heavy stuff (hammers, rocks, sand, dumbbells, soup cans, etc). Make a spear and throw it at squirrels (kidding, please do NOT do this, use a piece of wood or a proper target instead). Climb over the railing of your deck over and over. Box jump up your front stairs. Make your neighbors question your sanity.
2) Inside your house. There are workouts of all kinds available on YouTube and Amazon Prime. If you have dumbbells or resistance bands and a mat, you can get a great workout inside your house. If you have a treadmill or a stationary bike, awesome. Do burpees on your carpet. Just do burpees in general. Use this month to get awesome at burpees and you won't regret it.
3) Outdoors. Get to those secluded trails where the coronavirus can't find you. Explore the muddy goodness of a spring thaw on soft trails. Run or walk the paved trails. Go to a playground or park and play on the equipment (don't touch your face, and wash your hands afterward). Try to keep a bit of distance from others who might be out, and you'll be fine.
4) The gym. If it is open and you must go, exercise caution. Go to more secluded parts of the gym. If the guy on the elliptical next to you starts hacking (ugh, this happens too often), move to a different one at least two meters away. If the machine has a fan on it, turn it on so that you keep his nasty cough particles from lingering near your face cavities. Avoid crowded classes in small confined studios. Do not touch your face. Wash your hands religiously before and after your workout. Wipe down machines/mats both before and after you use them.
Remember, if you are young and healthy, this virus probably won't affect you. It's easy to be complacent and say you don't need to do any of this. But remember that us healthy folks can easily be carriers and infect many other people without knowing it. Some of those people might go on to infect others who are vulnerable. It is socially responsible for us to all isolate ourselves as much as possible in these coming weeks, even if you have extreme confidence in your own immune system. No workout or race is worth potentially killing someone. Have patience with race directors, who are losing money hand over fist. Have backup plans for your racing and training. And most of all, WASH YOUR HANDS. Constantly.
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