Outrunning cars, chasing the undead: quirky races from around the world

On May 4, at 3.30 pm, runners in 33 countries will simultaneously take off from the start line. But this is no ordinary race, as the participants will be chased by the finish line rather than make their way to it.

On May 4, at 3.30 pm, runners in 33 countries will simultaneously take off from the start line.



But this is no ordinary race, as the participants will be chased by the finish line rather than make their way to it. After a 30-minute head start, racers of the Wings For Life World Run will have to outrun the catcher car and their race gets over when the car overtakes them.

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Ex-Formula One driver David Coulthard, chess player Tania Sachdev and cricketer Gautam Gambhir are expected to run. In India, the race will take place in Sonipat. But outrunning cars isn’t the only weird concept for races. We look at other quirky races from around the world.



Read:Five reasons: why you must run some more

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The most popular chapter takes place in New York with two variants — five and 15 km. There are surprise obstacles along the way, and most participants go to great lengths to get their zombie look right. Runners have to dodge zombies who try to steal one of three health flags. If you make it through the apocalypse, there’s a party with beer and a barbeque.

Antarctic Ice Marathon
This race will take you back to the ice age. Even the nearest airport — if one runway makes an airport — is a glacier (Union Glacier), eight km from the race venue.

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Along with the regular and half marathons, there is also a 100 km race that participants can complete at a slower pace. This is also recognised by the Guinness World Records as the southernmost marathon on Earth.

Volcano Marathon
It is held at the Lascar Volcano, which is also the most active volcano in the Central Andes of northern Chile.

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The race starts at an altitude of 14,682 feet and the ­temperatures can go well beyond 30 degrees celsius. This is also the region where NASA tests its equipment in, so be ­prepared for an ­out-of-the-world experience.

On November 11, 2014.