Memorial Day won’t be the same as usual, but that doesn’t mean it has to be totally different.
A Memorial Day tradition for four decades, the BOLDER Boulder will not take place on May 25 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. For now, the race has been rescheduled for Labor Day, Sept. 7.
Cliff Bosley and the BOLDER Boulder organizational team couldn’t let the day pass without some presence, however.
The BOLDER Boulder has developed a VirtuALL Memorial Day 10K for May 25 – giving participants a chance to run, jog or walk remotely and record their times.
“It allows people to still run a 10K and keep their Memorial Day tradition alive and still be connected to the BOLDER Boulder and still be connected to the sport and still have a connection to Memorial Day,” said Bosley, the BOLDER Boulder race director. “While it’s not the same, what is the same right now anyway?”
Registration for the VirtuALL 10K is free, but there is an option to purchase a T-shirt or hat for the event, with $5 of the purchase going toward the Colorado COVID relief fund.
Those who register will get a bib number to download if they want to pin it to their shirt. Then, they run at their location and record their time on the Strava app.
“This can be a good place holder while we get back to whatever that sense of normalcy looks like,” Bosley said. “What we’re finding is people are pretty excited.
“Send (the 10K time) back to us so we can celebrate with you – not how fast you’ve run, and maybe that’s part of it, but that you have run. I guess you could say we’re running separately, but together.”
One of the great traditions of the BOLDER Boulder has been the Memorial Day celebration inside Folsom Field after the race. While that won’t happen this year, race organizers felt it was important to still honor the day.
Channel 7’s Mike Nelson has traditionally emceed the Memorial Day tribute at the race. This year, Nelson will emcee a pre-recorded, 30-minute tribute, which will air on Channel 7 at 11:30 a.m.
“It won’t be live in the stadium, but there will be prerecorded elements and another way for people, once they’re done running, they can go back into their house … and also connect with us through Channel 7 to continue the tradition of paying tribute and honoring those who have given their life and service to the country,” Bosley said.
Honoring veterans and active military has long been a vital part of the day in the eyes of BOLDER Boulder founder Steve Bosley and it is typically one of the largest Memorial Day celebrations in the country.
“That for sure is a priority of the BOLDER Boulder and my father and the team here,” Cliff Bosley said. “We still get to do that.”
Certainly, it won’t be the same for those who have come to love the BOLDER Boulder and those who have made it an annual tradition. Bosley and his team hope the virtual event is a good alternative.
“Just because it doesn’t look like last Memorial Day doesn’t mean we can’t provide an opportunity for people to run and then also remember the significance of the day,” Bosley said.