Virtual 48... Twice as good as Endure 24!

What a crazy weekend!! To cover everything would probably turn this report into a university dissertation so I'll do my best to capture the essence of a brilliant event in as few words as possible! It was brilliant.... ok I'll give you a bit more!

Firstly, a massive thanks must go to Aron from GG Leeds for coming up with the idea and setting the wheels in motion. Who would have thought that a 48hr virtual relay event could be so much fun? An even bigger thank you and well done goes to both the York team captains (Tim & Debs) for their time and effort in organising the rest of us Yorkies into two very evenly matched teams.

The event started bang on midday with George leading the way for the IncreDEBles. His run set the tone for the rest of the 48hrs, running quicker than planned and with a super-fast handover to Paul Kelly. The speedy handovers were a theme throughout the event, making a mockery of the 2 mins allocated time in the schedule. (We'll discount 2 minor exceptions...) Each runner was so keen to get going as soon as possible that they were pacing nervously up and down the street waiting well before time. Never before had a WhatsApp message, simply saying 'go' been so keenly anticipated! (So much so that soon any sentence even containing the letters 'g' and 'o' had potential for setting off the next runner prematurely).

With the banter flowing on social media (there really were some excellent slippers on show!) and selfies galore of happy excited runners who'd completed their latest lap the camaraderie within the team was excellent. Captain Debs oversaw the constant updating of the super-efficient spreadsheet and managed her team with aplomb, never needing to give anyone the 'hair dryer' treatment over the entire 48 hrs! (How close some people came we'll never know...)

Day and night seemed to merge together. The 'night shift' enjoyed the cooler of the conditions but forfeited sleep. The 'early morning shift' spent all night checking the updated schedule but were rewarded with gorgeous early morning sunrises. The 'day shift' got the hot running conditions and more people to dodge, but, in theory at least(!), could sleep at night.

By the time Monday morning came around there were a few weary bodies pushing themselves on the final laps of the race. There were even more weary runners who'd already completed their laps trying to work out where a suitable vantage point may be to cheer on the last few runners. A quick glance at the leaderboard showed both York teams out in front, although with London seemingly making up random numbers throughout (which were rarely divisible by 10!) there was no time to take the foot off the pedal! With Debs starting the last lap for the IncreDEBles at 11:16, it was clear the team would finish on an amazing 560km completed. Her run turned into a celebratory lap with team members popping up (socially distanced of course!) at various points on the route to cheer her home. The only remaining question was whether the other York team would also match 560km. When the news broke that Nick had completed his leg at 11:59:45 allowing David to get away before the cut-off time, it ensured both York teams would finish equal top of the leaderboard. There wasn't one disappointed runner in our team!! It was a fitting finish to a great weekend of running.

Every single runner gave 100% on every lap they completed, so much so that it's impossible to single out individual runners for praise. Each person contributed to the collective team effort. A 1hr 10min pb proving just as valuable as a 41 min lap. The biggest prize available in this event wasn't completing the most laps (though that's always nice!), it was that feeling of joining together with the rest of GG York again, being part of something bigger than individual performances and achieving something together. Oh... and Ellie... your cookies were amazing, thank you!!

Fancy reading more to check out our other York Team's Run Report here!