BUZZ NEWS

Nike/The Human Race

Posted on July 30, 2008
Juan de Dios

Nike has just started a very ambitious worldwide project: “The Human Race 10 K”. The aim of this project is to unite a million runners, professional and amateur alike, in 25 cities across the world for a 10K race on August 31st. Why? To make history and to help those in need.

The goal of this race is get you to run, to feel like you’ve accomplished something, and to get you to contribute to a good cause. When you register for the Human Race you can choose one of 3 NGOs (The UN Refugee Agency, the Lance Armstrong Foundation, or the World Wildlife Foundation ). Then, you accumulate miles while training for the event (and at the 10K event). These miles will be converted into donations for the NGO you chose at registration.

Four US cities are participating in this event (Austin, Chicago, LA, and NYC). If you’d like to go for a run south of the border, seven Latin American cities will also be participating (Bogota, Buenos Aires, Caracas, Mexico City, Lima, Quito and Sao Paulo).

It’s not all sweat and mile-counting, though; business is business and this worldwide race is just about the best opportunity Nike could’ve dreamed up to inform people about the technological advances in its new line of footwear. The new Nike+ allow you to measure the distance you run, know how many calories you’ve burned, control your heart rate, and even listen to your favorite music while running, thanks to its collaboration with iPod. With the Nike+ widgets you’ll be in control of your workouts and you can share them with the rest of the world in addition to getting helpful information with the iGoogle widget. In short, these Nike+ are like a treasure chest...

It’s worth mentioning that the project’s website is well-designed and full of interesting information. I can image the logistical difficulties of trying to plan a single event, on the same day, in 5 continents.

There is no doubt that Nike+ is using Web 2.0 to the max. And if you’re not convinced yet, just check out this video: