Why you should join Wings for Life

Love running? Here’s why you should join Wings for Life.

Runners are always looking for a way to make their run more interesting and we have found the ultimate race to get you motivated and moving.

The Wings For Life World Run is a global event, taking place in 34 locations across the globe on 8 May 2016. Participants will run simultaneously regardless of the time of day or the weather (we would recommend packing a poncho for all UK runners).

The aim is to run away from something, but if you get caught, you’re out. That something being the ‘catcher cars’, which will get you running like you’ve never run before. At 12pm everyone sets off from the start point, then 30 minutes later the cars set off to hunt you down. If you ever need motivation to move your butt, this should do it! But it’s not quite as scary as it sounds; the cars won’t mow you down and wipe you out. All you have to do is make sure you are running in front of them, however once they pass you, your race is over. Simple.

How does it work?

The cars start at 12.30pm and gradually increase their speed. Finally at 5.30pm if you are still beating the race against the machine, the cars will increase their pace to 21.75mph. See how long you can run at that speed!

The last woman and the last man to be caught, wherever they are in the world, are declared the winners of the race. Famous faces have also been known to drive some of the cars, so you could actually be being chased by a Formula 1 driver!

Who came up with this brilliant idea?

It all started with an idea: ‘what if you could get the whole world running?’ Two years later that idea became a reality, with the catcher cars thrown in just to make it that little bit more interesting.

Tracking technology is attached to the cars to make it fair for each and every runner and to make sure runners do eventually end their run. Plus, the cars are allowed to increase their speed at certain times to ensure there is eventually a winner.

One hundred per cent of the entry fee for the event goes to Spinal Cord Research and in the two years since the event began, 136,677 people have taken part, raising more than €7 million.

If you have friends around the world, why not get them to join in? It’s the perfect opportunity to do something with far-away friends despite being in different countries.

For more information and to register go to wingsforlifeworldrun.com