The Relay For Life Walk in InWorldz

Earlier this year in July, Second Life held it's Relay for Life Walk, the high point of it's RFL fundraising season. Shortly after the Relay in Second Life came to a close for the year, it began on the InWorldz grid. After a few months of various events, came it's own Relay for Life Walk on Saturday November 1.

The event lasted for about 12 hours, from 9AM to 9PM (SL and IW time), and took place across four sims, Tiny Steps For A Cure, Muse Island, InBiz, and Bllavio's Furniture. "Having Muse Island been a godsend to be able to host ... events without occuring sim cost." I was told. This was one more sim in area, than last year. There were a number of Relayers from Second Life there, such as Oldesoul Eldemar, Madonna Daehlie, Wildstar Beaumont, and Bain Finch.

Unlike the track around a carnival build last year, this Walk resembled it's Second Life counterpart more, though was a little different.  The track going around the various exhibits, or camps, was raised a bit off the ground, accessible through ramps or by flying/jumping on it.

Bain Finch took me to the places where two previous major RFL in IW took place, the Fashion For Life and Job Fair. Taking me to the Fashion For Life space station, Bain told me it had been built by Logan Willow and took over a month, "He's been a sponsor of Relay from day one. ... We were trying to get some of the larger InWorldz groups take part. We had the two biggest agencies come together for the show and the Tinies also had a fashion day to help showcase their unique fashion. ... We had 3 fashion days, One for the host agency InStylez, one for New York Modelling Agency and the Tiny got together with the Dinkies for a show."

The Job Fair was in a simpler build, in a skybox high above Muse Island, Bain saying, "This was a dual event with the fair and Art Auction." Of the Job Fair, "It's a way to help promote IWz groups, businesses, land owners,etc. and help bring new people into RFL and RFL to their efforts to reach new members."

"Between the art auction headed by Ferrator Montoya, the job fair by Jillian2000 Quintessa and the Fashion For Life by Raven Dulce they raise 1/4 of our fundraising. Sadly the Fashion For life was Raven's last show as real-life forced her to close InStylez down. Llike always real-life comes first, and that been a rule within RFL too."

Getting back down to the ground, Bain then took me to the Dr. Klatt Memorial. Dr Klatt was the man credited with starting the Relay for Life, "When we heard the news of his passing we decided to do something special. It was unveiled at the start of the Luminaria ceremony. ...  And thanks again to Ferrator Montoya and Cassie Eldemar and few others they made that from a rough concept Panza and I came up with. Te Memorial Gardens will also be renamed the Dr Klatt's Memorial Gardens."

"The other big story is Lady Cha," Bain went on, "At the end of last years Relay she found Relay and created this sim in something silly like two days. We came over and our jaws dropped. (Her) goal is to turn this sim into SL ACS Island for survivors and caregivers."

Bain did have some bad news, "but sadly, she been fighting her third turn by cancer's icy finger. We are all praying hard for her and she's on heck of a fighter. I don't think she knows how to give up. I hope some day soon, you can interview her. She's a lovely soul."

As it turned out, there was some debate about how long to make the Walk event, "I didn't know until IWz there 3 different plans, the normal 24 hours one, a 12 and an 18 hour one." They had decided on twelve hours due to the size of the track, "Sting had suggest only a 6 hour one, but we decided other wise from the get go."

Bain soon had to go, but I continued looking around for a bit. Looking at the leaves of one tree, I found that they were actually the images of human faces.

Night soon fell, my viewer remaining in region default mode, as I walked around the track.

 The largest build was a castle, standing about seventy meters off the ground, or about ninety above sea level.

After The Walk came to a close came some news. The total number of InWorldz dollars or "Izzies" came to a total of 2 million raised. This is more than twice the amount raised by this time last season.

While the event was smaller than Second Life's Relay Walk, it demonstrated the enthusiasm of it's participants, and showed despite that the Linden Lab Terms of Service controversy that boosted it's numbers in the past is over, InWorldz continues grow and demonstrate great builds, and events, can be done there as well.

Wildstar Beaumont took a number of pictures, which he posted on his Flickr:

RFL IW Track, RFL 2014 The Relay .

Bixyl Shuftan

Relay for Life Holds Final Event of Season in InWorldz

By Bixyl Shuftan

On Saturday November 9, The Relay for Life held it's Relay Weekend event for it's Inworldz fundraising season. Besides Second LIfe, the Relay for LIfe has been holding events on this smaller virtual reality grid as well. And this was the final and largest event for the year there. This was the second Relay for Life in InWorldz season.

The event took place on three sims, with the track on two: RFL Jazz Paws and RFL In Biz. At 9AM, Red Ryder spoke over on the radio at a gathering on the third sim, which numbered a little less than two dozen. While much smaller than the Second Life Relay, the enthusiasm was still there. Following Red's words of encouragement, the crowd went to the track, grabbed a pedometer, and began making laps. Unlike the Second Life Relay, there was no "Walk and Talk" wearable, so people stopped to chat on a number of occasions. One Relayer commented she was doing the walks around the virtual track on her real life treadmill as well, InWorldz hooked up to it via an app known as InShape.

Besides the human avatars, there were a number of Tiny avatars at the event. They were a higher percentage of participants than at the Second Life Relay. Between this and the sim sponsored by Jazz Paws, the Tinies had something of a big presence on the InWorldz Relay.

"Oh I absolutely love the RFL events," Ladyheart Muirin told me "I always used to do them in SL and I think it's wonderful that people work so hard together for such an amazing cause. It's just wonderful that it's now in IWZ and everyone is having lots of fun too (smile)." Ladyheart explained she hadn't been to Second Life on anything more than occasional brief visits "in a very long time." "We don't play in the old world much," Tadhg Muirin informed of his friend and himself, "our lives are here."

 I ran into Bain Finch there, who earlier this year worked with Second Life's Relay. He explained there were some technical challenges in getting things up and running here, "the bigest tech problem was getting the team tracking database up and running and rewritting the kiosk and vendor script to work with it. … but we had lots on people step up to the plate to help out develop the tech. And yes, a lot of work to do during the off season to fix all the short coming everyone help hash out …You know, I've always had a great appreciation for the work Dwen (Dooley) done for RFL of SL. Now, even more so. … and I am so overwhelmed by the offers of support we received from everyone in InWorldz." Bain credited Wolf Hartnell with making the RFL in InWorldz pedometer.

I asked Bain if he felt the InWorldz Relay was getting more attention due to the Terms of Service controversy in Second Life. Bain's response was, "I'm not sure on that Bixyl. I do know there been a steady increase of people coming to IWz, whether that due to to the SL TOS or just the normal progression of growth, I couldn't say. He explained another reason more people could be coming here as the Grid was becoming more stable, "As more parts of the IWz tech comes online like the physic engine, now mesh and other advance stuff, the content creators are having a field day with their wares."

Bain had the goal of involving established InWorldz residents from the start, "from the start of my involvement, I knew we had to make this IWz Relay for and by Iwz'rs. And because of the attitudes on the residents here had to adapt how RFL conducts itself. … A good number of the folks here left SL for various reason and they settle here because this grid is different. They left due to the various political issues of the LL and here and founders are so much more hands on." Being smaller than the Second Life Relay, there was one other difference, "One of the things we do, is almost all our planning meetings are open to everyone to attend and contribute. As we grow we will not be able to keep on doing that, but while we are small we will."

As the event went on, the Relayers not only went around the track and chatted with one another, but also had some fun on the various "camps" inside it, such as the bumper car ride. There were also music events in which a DJ would play at a place, and s number of Relayers would dance. The event, and InWorldz Relay season, would end at 9PM IW (and SL) time.

Bain Finch later told the Newser $796,000 InWorldz dollars, or "Izzies," had been raised, or about $800 US, for the InWorldz Relay season. A small amount compared to that raised in Second Life. But still a welcome contribution in the struggle against cancer.

Bixyl Shuftan