Ride Route 66 Virtually

If you’ve ever wanted to traverse iconic American road Route 66, 2280 miles from Chicago, Illinois to Los Angeles, California, now you can. Virtually.

The Conqueror event series now has a virtual fitness challenge that you can do at your own pace, solo or as a group, to use your own rides, runs, walks, swimming, etc. to track your progress along the way. It also ties in to Google Streetview, so you can see yourself and others on the map and directly on Google Streetview. It also syncs with Fitbit, Strava, Map My Run/Ride, Runkeeper and more.

You can view your stats and the leaderboard with filters to see the information you want, the way you want it. You can compare your progress against other runners, cyclists, walkers or whatever other type of exercise you do. Even rowing!

The app will let you choose how many people are competing together, what the completion timeframe is for you to finish, and how many miles you’ll need to average per week. It looks like a fun way to stay motivated and keep after your goals.

The app is available for iOS and Android. You can choose your own timeframe, to take 3, 6, 9 or 12 months to complete it. You will get virtual postcards when you reach checkpoints along the way, with interesting facts about that location. There are prizes and giveaways given throughout the event, if you pay for bronze, silver or gold levels.

Pricing starts from just $9/€7 and you can start any time. The challenge officially starts January 1, 2017. For more information, visit https://www.theconqueror.events/route66/.

There’s also another challenge to traverse the entire length of the U.K. if you’d like something based outside the U.S. The Land’s End to John O’Groats Challenge has been active internationally since October 2016 with thousands of users. One runner, Mick Smith said, “It is addictive and definitely pushing me to get the miles clocked up. I wouldn’t normally sign up for virtual events but this is a very different platform.”