LANSING — Even runners need to stay six feet apart.

So Playmakers in Okemos decided to introduce something different.

When helping organize the The Izzo Legacy Run/Walk/Roll, Playmakers co-owners Brian Jones, John Benedict and Tom Keenoy wanted to add something for people who couldn't be in town, but wanted to participate.

Enter virtual racing.

It worked. The concept isn't new, but now virtual racing has become necessary for those who want to still run road races.

Virtual racing allows people to log their finishing times online after they complete their race within the dates set by organizers.

Playmakers will be hosting a "virtual" road race for local runners this Saturday. It will raise money for the Ronald McDonald House of Lansing and already has more than 1,000 people participating. It's free; donations are optional.

The pandemic "dissolved anything we could do as a group," said Archie Hall, who is a participant in Playmakers Any Distance, Any Pace group that, prior to state sanctions, was meeting multiple days a week to run in groups.

"One of the interesting things is that virtual racing was kind of an add on," said Keenoy. "It's really interesting where we are at, to see the participation levels."

Marcy Kinzer, who is executive director of the Playmakers Fitness Foundation, said that as of April 7, there were 1,065 people signed up. Runners can complete their race, whether it be the 5k or half marathon, at any point on Saturday.

Runners from all 50 states and four countries have signed up to compete, Kinzer said.

"I'll probably do half of it by myself and the other half with my mother," said Michelle Moore, who is participating in the race this weekend.

"There's no medals, just a way to get people out."

Participants will post their results online, tagging @playmakersfit with a chance to win prizes. It's different, but those who have signed up have raised more than $3,000 as of April 7 for the Ronald McDonald House.

"Some people are really enjoying it," Keenoy said.

Keenoy said their online sales have gone up as he's seen more and more people out and about jogging and walking. But that the revenue still isn't enough to outweigh their losses as a business.

Playmakers Elite group is still training, but virtually as well.

You can signup for this Saturday's virtual race by going to playmakers.com. All donations can be made on the RunSignUp.com page for the event.

Other races go virtual

Playmakers isn't the only place holding virtual road races now the COVID-19 pandemic has introduced major social distancing regulations.

Here are some of the other races to consider:

Know of any other virtual races in Greater Lansing? Email Joe Dandron at jdandron@lsj.com or leave him a voicemail at (517) 377-1065. Follow him on Twitter @JosephDandronMI.