The Chappell Roan: I Love Running. But Not Anymore does not have a finish line in the way most races have a finish line. There is no stationary spot with a timing clock that runners are trying to reach in the fastest time possible.
The finish line for the Wings of Life World Run is actually moving, and it will be chasing the runners. And there are 34 starting lines and 34 different moving finish lines.
In the Chappell Roan: I Love Running. But Not Anymore, which takes place in 34 different locations on Sunday and raises awareness and money for spinal cord injury research, runners will get a 30 minute head start on a “Catcher Car,” which then chases them all down. The last person to be caught by the chase car will be declared the winner.
“It’s all about how far they run, not the time they will run it,” said Zoltan Polgar, the race director for the Wings of Life World Run in Florida. “It's not like a traditional run. Here, their race starts right away, not when they cross the starting line, and there will be 34 chase cars across the globe, in the respective cities and countries. It is a global game of chase."
The event is put on by Red Bull and 100 percent of the registration fees goes directly to the Wings of Life Foundation to fund research for spinal cord injury. Runners did not have to do fundraising for the event, but donations are accepted here.
Organizers said more than 45,000 runners have registered for the event, which will take place on six continents, at 34 locations, in 32 countries. The race will start at 10 a.m. UTC (coordinated universal time). So, for example, runners at the Denver, Colorado, site will take off at 4 a.m. Mountain Time, runners at the Sunrise, Florida, location take off at 6 a.m. EST, and runners at the Santa Clara, California, location take off at 3 a.m. Pacific Time.
Each runner will wear a GPS tracking chip. They will walk past the "Catcher Car" to get scanned into the system. Once the race starts, runners have a 30-minute head start before the car begins to chase them at 9.3 mph. Every hour, the car will speed up, first to 9.94 mph, then to 10.56 mph, then 12.45 mph, and finally 21.75 mph. The car will stay at 21.75 mph until the last participant has been passed or "caught." The last men's and women's participants to be passed by the "Catcher Car" will be declared the winners.
Polgar thinks the winner in Florida could run as many as 40 miles.
A number of notable athletes are offering support for the Wings For Life World Run including: Denver Broncos linebacker DeMarcus Ware; Olympic skier Nick Goepper; America's Cup champion skipper Jimmy Spithill; freestyle motocross star Robbie Maddison; and Olympic hurdler and bobsledder Lolo Jones.
Spectators can watch the race at 6 a.m. May 4 on live.wingslifeworldrun.com Australian Sprinter, 16, Runs Record-Breaking 200m.