Arvada, CO – The Human Potential Running Series (HPRS), owned and operated by Colorado’s Human Potential LLC, announces the release of its new iPhone app. The groundbreaking app, titled “HPRS,” is a first for trail and ultrarunning as HPRS becomes the first trail and ultra series in the Western Hemisphere with its own dedicated app.
Kenneth Robinson and Benjamin Creem as part of their senior project at The Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston, MA under the advisement of Dr. Mehmet Ergezer designed the app. Wentworth senior Kenneth Robinson explained the project by stating, “While HPRS has a website, it was our goal to create a beautiful, functional, intuitive and unique mobile application that people would actually find useful and want to download. We feel this app will bring people closer to HPRS, allowing them to view information about the company and its races from anywhere with ease. We are especially excited to hear how runners enjoy using the live tracking feature to see where they are on the racecourse. As students about to graduate from college, it was gratifying to able to use the skills gained through our degree to develop a software system for a real world business and community.”
The app features information about all of Human Potential’s races, as well as registration links and volunteering links. The features in the app allow runner’s to get closer to HPRS, navigate their offerings with greater ease, and to take on the challenges of each race with the overall user experience in mind. Each race page also features a course map that allows runners to live track themselves on each course regardless of if they have cellular service or not, something that could only previously be done with apps like Gaia or Trail Run Project.
John Lacroix, Owner and Race Director of The Human Potential Running Series adds, “It really is exciting for us to be the first trail and ultra series in North America with it’s own dedicated app. Having a mechanism for runners to live track themselves out on a course affords all of us an opportunity to take on the challenges of a race without worrying about the fear of getting lost. In a sport where community is such a huge focus, I’m also incredibly excited about the opportunity for our runners to be more in tune with the goings on of the HPRS community through their use of the app. Ken and Ben did a magnificent job with the app and I couldn’t be happier we teamed up on the project.”
In 2017, The Human Potential Running Series became the first trail and ultra series to implement policies relating to the fair and equal treatment of gender non-conforming athletes. In 2018, HPRS became the first trail and ultra series in the world to be sponsored by a cannabis brand, then becoming the first trail and ultra series to be presented by a cannabis brand in 2019. With the release of its new app, HPRS continues to push the envelope in continuing to progress the sport of trail and ultra forward.
The app is free on the iTunes app store and only available for iOS devices. There is a potential for app bugs in the first weeks of the app’s public use. There are no immediate plans for an android version of the same app. The Human Potential Running Series is Colorado’s Largest series of ultramarathons and has recently expanded nationally with a new race in Arkansas. The series was created in March 2014 with two events in their first year, and now hosts 10 events throughout the calendar year. For more information visit them on the web at www.HumanPotentialRunning.com