Audio-guided racing from RunGo to be the next wave of immersive, standout virtual races

 

RunGo has announced its end-to-end virtual race solution: audio and GPS-guided tours of a race course, Virtual Mode and Street View to participate from anywhere in any way, results leaderboard, and integration with timers and registration platforms

In 2020, we're learning that virtual races can be a powerful tool to motivate, engage, and grow your running community.

But, not even four months in, and virtual race fatigue is setting in.

BYOC no more

Most virtual races have their participants submit any run they do, or “Bring Your Own Course.” Those runs simply don’t come close to matching a race experience.

But what if their runs could be filled with some of the magic from a real world race?

It’s no longer sufficient to neglect the participants’ run experience.

A great race course is a journey

Race courses are carefully crafted by race organizers to tell stories about the city, its neighbourhoods, its athletes, and its partners.

These are the stories runners tell their friends and family over and over again.

What if powering up Heartbreak Hill, hearing the deafening noise of 1st Avenue coming off the Queensboro Bridge, seeing the final stretch in front of Buckingham Palace, or your race’s equivalent could be part of a virtual experience?

How real meets virtual

The running app RunGo, on iPhone, Android, and Apple Watch, which features a unique, customized, turn-by-turn navigation system, now offers the end-to-end virtual race solution we’ve been waiting for.

RunGo’s verified routes immerse runners in the race, with turn-by-turn voice navigation, custom messages about landmarks you’re passing, motivational messages, sponsor activations, and recorded audio messages.

Runners feel it! They’re more engaged in their own race, more motivated through messages, and more connected to race directors and event partners.

At the end of the run, right in the app, participants can submit that GPS-tracked run directly to the race’s leaderboard, for fair, validated results.

Or, results can be easily exported and merged with 3rd party timers and registration platforms. Results can also be manually submitted through an embeddable web form.

Already a global running app

RunGo is the most popular running app featuring customized, turn-by-turn voice navigation and GPS tracking. On RunGo, you’ll find nearly 500,000 routes across 171 countries.

The RunGo app is consistently acknowledged as one of the top running apps and has been listed by Apple as App of the Day multiple times across 95 countries.

RunGo has been featured by Apple to "Run New Routes Wherever You Are,” “Walk to Get Fit,” “Run Your First 5K,” and "Unleash the Power of Apple Watch."

 

Stay on course confidently with audio-guided races

 

We’ve learned that the most enjoyable way to navigate a new route is with voice navigation, and this is RunGo’s unique capability.

No more running with a map, no more trying to memorize a route, no more stopping every minute to check your phone, and no more mediocre run routes.

 

Or, Virtual Mode! Now race from anywhere in any way

Some races either may not allow their runners to race the real course, or their participants may live anywhere across the world and will want to be a part of it too.

For that, RunGo launched Virtual Mode, so runners can run any race route from anywhere in any way: outdoors in their neighborhood or indoors on a treadmill or on the spot.

From a treadmill, you can enable RunGo’s Live Street View, to watch the course progress at your pace as you hear matching voice messages. Runners will feel like they’re on the real race course.

RunGo’s virtual race solution complements and integrates any other piece of the experience

It can be optional, but participants looking for something more engaging will take it on. Read more about the 3 ways to run a virtual race.

Virtual races built for accessibility

Using RunGo, virtual races can be the most accessible form of racing. On a treadmill, the experience is more compelling and more accessible since you hear stats, paces, and distance along with messages about the course. Outdoors, runners can follow safe, known routes, and you don’t have to worry about getting lost

Standout virtual race examples

BMO Vancouver Marathon shows off its world-renowned course and community engagement with messages placing you on the course, motivational quotes from winners, and shout-outs to their sponsors:

Here's another recorded tip from one of our elites, former champ Rob Watson. "Hey, Rob Watson here. Just wanted to say you’re doing great. You’ve got this! Find a comfortable pace and stick with it."

Thank you to our promotional partner, John Stanton and The Running Room, who have a flagship store just ahead on Denman Street. Running Room on your right

For those looking to complete the marathon across multiple runs, participants may select a start point for each leg.

Audio snippet from Across the Bay 12K and 415K

Audio snippet from Across the Bay 12K and 415K

Run Local’s Across the Bay 12K and 415K is offering 7 routes, as variations on their usual two distance options, which highlight different parts of the course, allowing flexibility for their runners, but that all still show off their race’s standout experiences. Several even start or end at one of their leading sponsors.

The Comrades Marathon virtual race was able to tell unforgettable stories about the legendary history of its race, and its runners on treadmill could watch as they progressed into Durban on Street View, on a course not possible to run outside of race day.

Why Racing’s participants weren’t able to run on the actual course, so runners used their Reflection Run courses in virtual mode to run from anywhere in the world.

The optimal virtual race

“The wishlist for race participants and race organizers from a virtual race includes a motivating run, fair results, and an engaging community,” said Craig Slagel, CEO of RunGo.

“Even though virtual races have exploded in popularity over the last few months, we believe that they’re not just a fad, and they’ll be crucial moving forward. They allow races to connect with runners from anywhere in the world, and, now, they allow unique races, dedicated race partners, and proud cities to show off their commitment to fitness and community. At RunGo, we can do this and scale up with some unique and groundbreaking app technologies.”

Interested to learn more?

If you’re a runner looking for a motivating race, check out any of the verified race courses in the RunGo app, and go for it! If you can, you can follow the voice navigation to run the real course, or, if you’d like to run a bucket list course, virtually from across the world, try one of these routes:

For race directors looking to learn more and talk to the RunGo team, please visit rungoapp.com/virtual-races

blog, Inside RunGo, RunGo BlogNoah Bloom