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A local running team will represent San Antonio in a national race this weekend.
Extra Credit is the first and only team from San Antonio chosen for The Speed Project, an unsanctioned, secret pilgrimage founded by radical German running guru Nils Arend.
The annual, 350–400-mile relay race is scheduled for this Friday to Sunday from Los Angeles, California to Las Vegas, Nevada. The team hopes to spotlight San Antonio, opening the door for future teams to participate. There’s no set route, no aid stations, no sponsors, no marshals, and no rules. Santiago Ortega is the team’s captain.
“Extra credit. We started it three years ago. It was really just a way for us to get out there and get some miles for mental health,” said Ortega.
The team trained for the adventure with 20-to-30-mile jogs through the Davis Mountains of West Texas. For the race, there are five runners in a sprinter van and five more runners waiting to swap out, with individual segments stretching for about 50 miles in five-to-10-mile increments.
Extra Credit has grown from being comprised mostly of runners in the service industry to a more diverse group of participants from the community. There are no prizes or awards for the fastest running time. Instead, Ortega said, it’s about cultivating solidarity and forging connections.
“I think that comes in the form of the bonds that you build and knowing that you did it. That’s the draw for The Speed Project,” said Ortega. “It’s not anything that’s celebratory in the way that you have people cheering you on. It’s you and the people that you get there with.”
Ortega co-founded Extra Credit with his wife Madison, who is also a runner. She’ll lead the six-person crew assisting the 10-member running team.
About 1,000 people from 35 countries participate in The Speed Project, and Ortega’s excited about the chance to represent San Antonio with his team and start moving.
“Everything kind of leads back to our whole ethos which is ‘movement is meditation.’ And you can find that peace of mind through movement. For us, it’s running,” said Ortega.
You can keep up with Extra Credit’s progress with The Speed Project this weekend from live updates on their Instagram page at extracredit.mm.