How to Create a Virtual Event

As we learned more about how virtual challenges create a unique combination of motivation and community for exercise and hobby groups, we decided to offer virtual event capabilities at eventrac.

What is a virtual race?

A virtual race is still a challenge you pay to enter, where you are expected to meet a target (e.g. run 12.1 miles, run for 6 hours straight or 100 miles total over a month) to win a medal or prize. So what are the main differences between a virtual race and an actual race….

1. People can participate in a virtual race from virtually anywhere, at any time! You can (usually) choose to complete the race whenever you like. Some virtual races are scheduled to start at specific times, but most can be run at the participant’s convenience. 
2. There’s no minimum number of participants — your community can be as big or as small as you want. Invite a colleague, a family member, or that high school teammate who now lives in Seattle! 
3. The race ‘runs’ itself. You need to send reminders, prompts and keep track of activity, but you don’t need to lay out cones, recruit volunteers and wear high vis clothing for your virtual event. 

So, lets cut to the chase. How can you set up a virtual event from your eventrac organiser account?

Step 1: Create an Event

You should be able to do this easily from your account. To find more information on event set up and how to create races, see our event set up guide page: https://www.eventrac.co.uk/content/platform-guides?tag=event-setup

Step 2:  Edit your event 

Go to your event, and select 'All Races'. Here, click on the race you want to make viftual and click 'Edit'.  

Step 3: Choose your Date Preferences

Like for many virtual events, you might want your race to span over a certain number of days or weeks. Scroll down to the 'Date/Time' section. By selecting the 'Race spans multiple days' box, you can edit the dates which appear on your event as active. Here you can select the start and end date of your event. 

Step 4: Choose your Results Preferences

Scroll down, and select the box that says 'allow participants to add their own results'

Below, you can select how many results you allow each participant to upload. This is useful if you are doing a multi section event, such as a triathlon, or a 5k ever day for 7 days for example. Then select the 'Activities' results template. 

Once you've added all the remaining details about your event, you can scroll to the bottom and click submit. And there you have it, your virtual event is ready to go!