Results from TSP DIY 2020

The Speed Project is a 550K relay from the Santa Monica Pier in Los Angeles to Las Vegas. It was first run in 2014, when six runners decided to see how quickly they could cover the distance. Since 2014, it’s grown a huge following and has become an important event on many club’s annual calendars. This year was no different, with hundreds of teams and solo runners from 40 different countries, signing up to run at home.

As COVID-19 progressed it became clear that an in-person event wouldn’t be possible and TSP DIY (the speed project do it yourself) was born. 

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The rules

This year, teams of six were challenged to run as far as possible in 31 hours and 15 minutes (the winning time from 2019), starting at 4am PDT on Saturday. The hashtag on Instagram has gained nearly 3,000 associated posts with runners across the world getting it done over the weekend. The race has also raised $61,242.81 for charity, which will go towards organizations harnessing the power of running to address inequalities in health and fight systemic injustice across the world. 

The top 10 results freestyle

One Canadian team cracked the top 15, with Pace and Mind Men coming in 14th. They completed 459K in just over 31 hours. 

Adidas Running Hamburg – Germany (537K)
AR Republique – France (523K)
AR Bir Hakeim – France (491K)
The Power Miler Track Club – USA (491K)
Nuremburg Track Club – Germany (475K)
AR Sentir – France (474K)
KRAFT Runners – Germany (469K)
Monk Store Runners – Denmark (468K)
Pez Tortilla – Spain (467K)

Top 10 results women

In this category, two Canadian teams cracked the top 10: Stridewise and Howard’s Angels. 

Coffee Club – USA (433K)
Take the Bridge – USA (423K)
Trail Blazers – New Zealand (370K)
Just Running – UK (368K)
F It, Sure – USA (366K)
Rebel Girl TC – USA (362K)
Stridewise Running – Canada (358K)
Running from Rona – USA (351K)
Howard’s Angles – Canada (327K)
Citius RC – USA (320K)

In solo runner results, Canadian Michael Perczyszyn finished sixth, covering an astonishing 171K. 

The Toronto experience

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Mohamad Bsat is a Toronto-based runner who competed over the weekend with his team, Air Up There RC. The all-BIPOC team covered 276K in the 31 hours and Basat says the experience was amazing: “This weekend felt like the race day experience that we’d been pining for over the past few months. The MGT closure left the roads to the racers, so we were able to put down our fastest possible runs. The feeling was super special, as we were racing against the clock but there was also a feeling of camaraderie among the other Toronto teams: Pace and Mind and Stridewise.”

He says every team attacked the 31 hours differently, but it felt good to be all participating in the same event. Bsat will be doing a full write-up of his experience for Canadian Running, so stay tuned for that story coming later this week. 

For full results from the event, see here. 

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