2010 Olympics - Share Your Run with a Visitor Challenge

I used to have to travel a lot for work. Most of the time I'd end up alone in a big city in a big hotel.

First priority after checking in was to go for a run. So, I'd get geared-up, hop in the elevator, walk through a lobby of suits, go out the revolving door and then figure out if I'd run left or run right. If I was really lucky, the concierge would have a little map with a lame 15-minute jogging circuit on it.

These runs were always a bit random. Interesting... but not all that exciting because to keep the risk of getting lost to a minimum, I'd run out and back on the same street. Not a trip went by where I didn't wish I knew someone who would take me under their wing and share their favorite trails with me. Unfortunately, I rarely met the locals, so I almost always left town figuring I'd missed the good stuff.

As I walked to a meeting in downtown Vancouver on Friday, I was impressed by how the sidewalks were full of people in pale blue (officials?) and green (volunteer?) uniforms. When you consider athletes, friends and families of athletes, volunteers, people working on the infrastructure, media and folks here for the party and the spectacle of the competition, it occurred to me that somewhere around 150,000 visitors would soon be coming to see the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympics.

I then wondered how many of those visitors were runners.

How many of these visitors will end up thinking that running in Vancouver is an out-and-back on West Georgia Street? How many will return home without experiencing the magnificent trails of Stanley Park, Pacific Spirit Park or the wilds of the north shore mountains? How many of these visiting runners would have an even more positive view of the Olympic host city and Canucks in general if they were able to hook up with some of the locals for a run or two while in town?

I then wondered how a visiting runner could hook up with a local runner, especially the knowledgeable, outgoing kind of runner that one finds in Club Fat Ass.

To that end, I've put together a little challenge to you, the Vancouver or Whistler runner. Very simply, share a run with someone who is in town for the Olympics.

Sounds simple, but the devil is in the details. Gotta have some runs and gotta let the visitors know about them.

To kick this off, I put the offer on the Club Fat Ass website and called it Run with a Local. I also created a run as a Flash Event on one of my favorite trails. I hope this serves as a good example of what might be of interest to a visitor.

Here is some more background. Please let me know what you think with a comment below.

Thx!

Ean Jackson in North Vancouver

Run With a Local

What: A place where visitors to the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympics can meet local runners to train with.

How: KISS. (Keep It Simple, Stupid). I like the way David Crerar threw-out the Bagger Challenge last year. He basically said, "Here are some mountain peaks. I challenge you to bag as many as possible during a certain timeframe. Here's a place to share your plans about peak-bagging adventures, a place where others who are interested in joining you can learn of your plans and hook up, and a place to share your photos and stories afterwards. Have fun!"

When: Month of February 2010

Other:

"local" means within 100K of a 2010 Olympic or Paralympic venue
a "run" is at least 15 minutes long and can be on a local trail or road.
any "local" can host an event. (e.g. don't have to be a Club Fat Ass member)
runs, stories of runs, photos etc. should go on the Club Fat Ass website so experiences can be shared

Carrots:

I will try to scrounge some prizes and come up with some categories of awards for the locals who go to the trouble. Initial thoughts include:

Missionary Award. Person who takes the most visitors out for a run
Most Popular Guide Award. Person who gets the most documented accolades from visitors
Most Likely to Succeed at Marketing. Person who best documents their experience.
Most Off-the-Wall Run Award. Most eventful run
any other thoughts?

How will I measure success?

some visiting runners have a more rewarding stay because they meet some locals and had some awesome runs while in town
local runners have positive memories of the 2010 Olympics because they met some visitors and were able to share their favorite runs
everyone makes a new friend and has a good run
top run routes remain on the Club Fat Ass website, so others can use in the future

Please help me make this work by:

sharing your thoughts about this idea below. Easy to make enhancements at this point... and I appreciate the feedback
chip in a run or 2. That would be as simple as sharing your Saturday morning training run. Here are instructions on how to contribute a run.
tell your friends, so they might chip in a run or 2
tell any visiting runners you meet

Here are the specifics of the challenge. The first event I've proposed is a tour of Capilano Canyon on Friday, 12 February at noon, just before the 2010 Winter Olympic opening ceremonies.