Das Dreizehn.Eins (13.1) - Half Marathon and 5K

This is a lot of words, but I can’t figure out how to shorten it, so here it goes…

This is Jennifer Crosby. I have been a race director for over a decade working with Athlete Guild and for the past year I have had the privilege to work as an employee of AG. This is a bit unprecedented for an employee to come onto a company platform and tell you who is talking to you, but the message I am about to share is unprecedented, so I wanted you to know who was talking.

We have been working for a year to get ready for Das Dreizehn.Eins.  Due to the weather threats we are seeing this morning, and after speaking profusely with local authorities, and weighing the risks and concerns, we’ve had to make the difficult decision to cancel our in-person Das Dreizehn.Eins Half and 5K and make it fully virtual. The safety of our community is more important than anything - the officers who will be needed to serve the general public, the volunteers who were planning to stand and wait for you to run by, and you the runners who would be running across potentially frozen and icy bridges after driving in through potentially dangerous conditions. We are so frustrated. We know you are frustrated. We have seen the posts of some of y’all working so hard to get to the starting line – personal healing, physical training, and the sacrifice and effort you have and are putting into yourself to get ready. You haven’t seen the backstage part we’ve been working on, carefully curating an improved race experience for you because we just keep working to get better. 

At the end of the day, we are a production company and I can’t just sit still when I had so much energy ready to pour into all of y’all.  With Scott’s permission, I am putting on a production to celebrate the best I can with the forecast I’ve been dealt by Mother Nature!  Will it be enough to satiate all of us with what we really want to be doing? For me, no, but it is better than wallowing in my complete sadness!  

Here’s our plan, please read the whole thing!

• Now - All registered participants will be changed to Virtual in the system by Sunday morning and the finisher time module will be turned on so we can collect finisher times.
   
• Today, 1/23, and Tomorrow, 1/24, 11 AM – 6 PM - Packet Pickup at Two Rivers Running Store in New Braunfels.  Your entire packet is ready for pickup – the gold-toned shirt that was to celebrate how golden you are, the gorgeous finisher medal, and, if you registered in time, a super comfy and super cool half marathon finisher jacket. Your bib’s even in there with safety pins, and a couple of items from our sponsors. Yes, you can pick up for others! All packets not picked up by 6 PM on Sunday will be shipped on Monday, 1/26, to the address on your account (including the finisher medal and, if applicable, the finisher jacket), no charge.
   
• Sunday, 1/25, 9 AM – 11 AM – Hear me out:  I am staging a YouTube Live Online Celebration!  I have never done this before but I’m going to try, and I’d love it if you joined me! We’re going to highlight our sponsors because they were planning to stand out in the cold to wait for all y’all to run around and come back to meet them. Did you know every water station and the finish line was to be full of volunteers representing non-profits in our area? We’re going to highlight them too. And, the gift certificates we were going to give away during the race? We’re going to do some fun interactive drawings during the session. I’m going to show you how to put in your finisher times, too, because we have age group awards that will be sad to sit in a box and not hang with pride from your finisher medals.  It’s bring your own drink and bring your own snacks because I couldn’t figure out how to get you all your favorite snacks and drinks in time! I really have no idea what I’m doing but I have to do something and I hope you will come along and join me. Here’s the link to the live stream – https://youtube.com/live/AzQdYtHSwZg?feature=share
   
• Between Sunday morning when we turn on the option to input your finisher times and Sunday, February 8, at noon, go for a run or walk on your own and log those miles you worked so hard for. Yes, I fully recognize it is not the same. But I also recognize that we can call it a virtual and all walk away or we can call it a virtual and actually virtually run or walk our race.
   
• Sunday, February 8, 1 PM - We are going to meet up at Two Rivers Running for an In-person Awards Ceremony based on the times you submitted through the website. We’ll have some prizes and, because I’m Jennifer, snacks!  Are the results based on the honor system? 100 %.
   

Is it dumb we are having to do all of this? Yes. Are we doing it anyway because Jennifer can’t sit around and do nothing because she was so grateful to each of you that you were coming to our race? Also, yes! 
 

AND!  We still have shirts and medals who are looking sad that they might have to live in a box. Grab and friend and encourage them to sign up and join you – athleteguild.com/das!