What do you look for in your ideal race?

[saskatchewan]

Have been contemplating starting a low-key summer series of races, and was hoping to obtain peoples feedback on what they most look for in their favorite races.

All comments/feedback (even rude, hateful or petty) is greatly appreciated, so have at it.

Some items i'd like your thoughts on include:

what do you expect to pay for a race entry fee?
do you expect (or want) a race shirt?
road or xc?
loop course, multilap, or point to point?
cash vs merchandise prizes?
age group prizes?
draw prizes (yes/no)?
are you interested in relatively non traditional race distances (5 miles, 15k etc)?
post race event (yes/no)?
beer garden?

anything else you can think of?

[Mr.800]

i expect to pay 20 dollars or less
i expect/want a race t-shirt
mostly road but the xc ones are fun ever so often
a big loop course is ideal
i prefer cash prizes
age group prizes help to keep everyone to keep wanting to come
also draw prizes are always fun!
doesnt matter the distances as long as im running
after the race i sorta wanna get outa there so no post race event

and yup those are my thgoughts, hope i helped out

[davidson]

I guess it all depends on why you're putting on the race. Is it to make money (are you ok with losing money or would you prefer to break even)? Is it to have good races?

Ideally, $20 would probably be the max for a race, but if it were worth it I know many people would pay more (I've seen two coming up in the next two months that are $40 for 5k's).

Race shirts are always a good thing. If you're looking for higher participation, it's probably something you want to have. That will probably make the cost go way up though.

I'd like xc, but it'd probably be best to do road for numbers and/or getting people out who want to run fast.

A loop course that is spectator friendly. This isn't always possible, but you can always try.

Merchandise prizes could be good, but cash lets people decide. If you win something nice it can be good, but you could always get stuck with something. I've gotten both and the cash was more helpful (though I enjoyed the prizes). You might also want to think about gift certificates to a running store... this might help save on costs as they may donate things (you might also get donated merchandise).

Age group prizes would be nice, as it gives more people a chance to feel good about themselves thus want to run your race again (plus, prizes are a good draw). This might also depend on how much you want to/can spend.

The race distances should probably depend on who your target racers are. Though, I would not be surprised if the traditional distances (5,8,10,half and/or full) would ultimately be more popular for numbers and attracting high-end athletes. I used to live in Korea and did many a road race there. Most races had three distances (usually 5,10 and half, but once or twice there were 10, half and full). This gives for a good option, but then again, Seoul has almost as many people living near it as we do in our whole country. But if you do a series, I would suggest a variety of distances (maybe even 10 miles or a 12k or something that is occasionally raced).

A post race event or beer garden might be nice. A lot of people do running as a social thing and to have time to socialize afterwards might be a plus. However, it may not be feasible to pay for all of that.

Really, I'm not an expert so keep that in mind when you read what I wrote. Good luck to you!

[Cummings]

Fast course, good field, comped entry for elites, most likely a road race because it has more mass appeal. Saskatchewan could use a destination race for a few horses to get together and enjoy the prairies. Lots of fast Canadians come out of that province anyway so it would be great to see Saskatchewan develop some races or a race series that athletes would enjoy coming to. Torrance and HHH do a good job getting runners together for races in Edmonton, you might want to touch base with them about how they do it.

[pmac]

I won't say I speak for the majority here, but there's more than enough races with T-shirts and the works included in the entry fee, and I've got more technical shirts than I care to own at this point. I'd love to see more races where you are paying to race, not to receive a bunch of garbage you don't even want in the first place.

Don't underestimate the appeal of a cross country race- there are plenty of road races out there, but something a little more scenic is hard to come by and I'd be willing to bet a lot of weekend warriors would want to run on trials or grass. If it's a cross country course, make it looped for the sake of spectators (obviously the disadvantage of this is the high likelihood of the penguins being lapped). The distance doesn't matter in my opinion if you do cross country.

Cut the participation prizes (finishing medals, ribbons, etc.) which drive up entry fees for no reason and give out cash awards to age groups and overall winners if you want. I happen to like races that provide a large quantity of cheap food (bagels, fruit, etc.) after the race, because I can grab what I want and then leave.

[I-Ballz]

Send me an e-mail saskatchewan...Cummings check your PM's
[e-mail]

[tree]

what do you expect to pay for a race entry fee? $20 or less. I think it's ridiculous to have to pay more, especially with travel expenses.

do you expect (or want) a race shirt? It's nice to have one, because it helps fill my training wardrobe.

road or xc? Both. I would absolutely love to try an open xc race, but it's also nice to be a little closer to an accurate 5km time.

loop course, multilap, or point to point? Hard to choose. Multilaps are nice, because it's easier to gauge where you are in a race, but point to point makes things more interesting. Whatever makes for the nicest course is probably would I'd prefer (in terms of quality of the actual route).

cash vs merchandise prizes? Cash. It's probably a lot easier for race organizers to get merchandise prizes, but I'm sure a lot of people would appreciate cash.

age group prizes? Doesn't matter to me.

draw prizes (yes/no)? Doesn't matter to me.

are you interested in relatively non traditional race distances (5 miles, 15k etc)? 5 miles a.k.a 8km is a favourite of mine actually. I've never tried a 15km, but non-standard race distances make things more interesting imo.

post race event (yes/no)? Depends what it is. If it's worth going to, of course!

beer garden? Nothing better after a race. Really good idea.

Also, I love races with some good competititon relative to where I am at. There's nothing better than going to a local road race and finding out that you'll have to work your 4$$ off just to be competitive in the race.

Hope that helps!

[pq]

Depends...

In most cases, what I'd like is a fast course that's well organized, accurately measured, has accurate split markers, clear markings or marshals, good competition, and accurate timing. Everything else is gravy. This is why, at my advanced age, I tend to run a lot of track races.

That said, there's also a time and place for pure racing where the clock makes no difference, like XC, and it's just mano a mano. Here, the "worse" the racing conditions the better. Race still needs to be well organized, and the more competition the merrier.

If you're looking to establish a race series that pays for itself or maybe makes a small profit (either for you, your club, or some charity), then different things become important, because you need to appeal to the masses. It needs to be an "event" more than a race, and the importance of the things I mentioned (other than organization) likely take secondary importance behind things like t-shirts, post-race food, age group awards, entertainment, etc etc.

You can have it both ways however. Alan Brookes' Canada Running Series is a great example of events that both appeal to the masses and attract a solid core of faster racers. Look at those races as a guide, and you likely won't go far wrong.

Good luck!

[ronb]

Also consider having a few races on the track in the Summer. You might be surprised how many of the weekend warriors can be coaxed out to run a couple of races, and it will help their running as well. Break the races into sections, so that the slower folks have a run, and then cheer for the faster folks in their section. Very low org. required, and if you can get a local Charity involved, you can charge $5 or $10, with the money going to the Charity.
Wetcoast is doing a great job of reviving the Summer Track Series in Victoria.

[saskatchewan]

thanks for the great suggestions, keep them coming!!!

It quickly becomes apparent from reading the responses that there is a wide range of ideas as to what constitutes an ideal race.

Matt has provided great ideas in a previous threat based on his experiences in Edmonton.