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How can RDs make races more female friendly?
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I'm in the early stages of planning a dirt road race, and I would really like some input on how to make the race more female friendly.

The course is in a great location, and we received lots of positive feedback after our test event last year. There are a couple similar races in our geographical area with stellar participation numbers, and we think we have even more of a gem of a course.

I've analyzed the participant demographic of some of the previous years for a comparable race, and the overall numbers are climbing year-over-year. If we could approach those numbers in the coming years, it would be great. The only problem is that the participation is so highly skewed towards males. 40% of the 25mi, 11% of the 35mi, and 8% of the 65mi racers are female. I understand that as an RD, more participants, regardless of gender, is good news. But is there a way to make such a race more appealing to women? The race I have been searching started offering equal prize money to male and female categories, but has since skewed their prize distribution about two-fold to the men's field, as the middle-aged male category has exploded. Is that the only way to run a successful cycling event?

In a hypothetical bike race, would any of these points affect your likelihood of attending:
Do you want a separate course or starting time, or do you want to mix in with the men?
Do you want age categories, or some other category?
Do you want prize money between men and women to be equal, even if male participation is dramatically higher?
Do you want the same challenging/fierce atmosphere as men?
Do you feel like races are marketed primarily towards men and not enough towards women?
Do you want different race swag?
Do you want women's only bathroom facilities?

I really just want to know if you have experienced something in your multisport career that has deterred you from participating in an event, you otherwise would.

Thanks!
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Re: How can RDs make races more female friendly? [carlwithac] [ In reply to ]
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Do you want prize money between men and women to be equal, even if male participation is dramatically higher?

Yes, this would be a good start.

No coasting in running and no crying in baseball
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Re: How can RDs make races more female friendly? [carlwithac] [ In reply to ]
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my 2 cents:

Do you want a separate course or starting time, or do you want to mix in with the men? AP: Same course, could be less laps or time (like CX races) and separate start time - if it's a lap course, no one likes getting steamrollered by the uberfast...
Do you want age categories, or some other category? gender, then maybe age (masters/seniors/juniors would work too)
Do you want prize money between men and women to be equal, even if male participation is dramatically higher? YES
Do you want the same challenging/fierce atmosphere as men? YES
Do you feel like races are marketed primarily towards men and not enough towards women? hmmm... I typically avoid "women's only" races so I'm probably not a good person to answer this one - races that are hard appeal to me.
Do you want different race swag? T-Shirts: I can't stand unisex fitting shirts - so if you'll have shirts, offer a women's cut
Do you want women's only bathroom facilities? Don't care about this.

AP

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"How bad could it be?" - SimpleS
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Re: How can RDs make races more female friendly? [carlwithac] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks for asking. I think this is something that often gets overlooked, but is essential to help the sport grow. I have a very male-dominated career, so I can handle more than most women, but even I get tired of the boys' club that is cycling sometimes.

In a hypothetical bike race, would any of these points affect your likelihood of attending:

Do you want a separate course or starting time, or do you want to mix in with the men? Mix it in with the men. Or at least don't have us start last. Nothing says second class like having to wait while the "real" racers go first. Plus, my training partners are all men, and I want to race with the people I train with.

Do you want age categories, or some other category? Whatever the men are doing, unless the field is really small (<10 or 15 women). Then just overall.

Do you want prize money between men and women to be equal, even if male participation is dramatically higher? That would be nice.

Do you want the same challenging/fierce atmosphere as men? Absolutely. Race time is when I can stop being an emotionally reserved scientist. It is when I can let loose. I race for a challenge. I would be pissed if I paid an entry fee only to get some sort of fluffy bunny version of the race.

Do you feel like races are marketed primarily towards men and not enough towards women? Never really paid attention.

Do you want different race swag? Women specific shirts would be nice. Also, if there is an optional jersey, it should be female specific cut and full-zip, just like the men's.

Do you want women's only bathroom facilities? No, but they are kind of nice because we don't have a line, but the men do, at least until the men stage a takeover.
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Re: How can RDs make races more female friendly? [carlwithac] [ In reply to ]
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It certainly wouldn't sway me one way or another into participating in a race or not, but it would be nice if race shirts/jerseys were offered in an XS. Most races I have done only go down to a small and thus I have never worn any of them.
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Re: How can RDs make races more female friendly? [carlwithac] [ In reply to ]
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Do you want a separate course or starting time, or do you want to mix in with the men?
- With the men, for sure. That said, I've avoided entering cycling races when the RD wasn't clear on how women are scored. I like to have all it all clearly communicated. I won't sign up for a race that states something like "if we have enough women we'll run it one way and if we don't have enough, we'll run it a different way"

Do you want age categories, or some other category?
- Under 40 and Over 40 might be a good place to start. For a race that is part of a series, I prefer ability-based categories, if the numbers allow.

Do you want prize money between men and women to be equal, even if male participation is dramatically higher?
- Yes. Think of it as longer-term investment in paying the lower-placing women for being fodder for the faster women. I avoid races where the previous year's results only have a handful of women. It's boring. If the men pay 1-10, the women should pay 1-10 - my theory is that will increase participation in future years.

Do you want the same challenging/fierce atmosphere as men?
-Yes, which is why I often avoid races with only a few women.

Do you feel like races are marketed primarily towards men and not enough towards women?
-Results oriented races seem to be marketed towards men and participatory focused events seem to be marketed towards women.

Do you want different race swag?
- I getting crap that I inevitably throw away. I don't generally like any swag.

Do you want women's only bathroom facilities?
- Meh. It depends. Having somewhere to change before and after is a bonus.
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Re: How can RDs make races more female friendly? [carlwithac] [ In reply to ]
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Do you want a separate course or starting time, or do you want to mix in with the men?
-depends on the type of event. I'd generally prefer to start at the same time, if the course supports it.
Do you want age categories, or some other category?
-prefer skill categories, but harder to do at some races.
Do you want prize money between men and women to be equal, even if male participation is dramatically higher?
-yes. I think it encourages female competition to build over time, and shows that your event really is equally awesome for both genders
Do you want the same challenging/fierce atmosphere as men?
-yes!
Do you feel like races are marketed primarily towards men and not enough towards women?
-depends on the race, but I also avoid women-only races, so I might not be the right person to ask
Do you want different race swag?
-if there's clothing, just offer a female-specific style
Do you want women's only bathroom facilities?
-doesn't matter to me. everyone is pretty gross in port-a-potties anyway.

Also, reaching out to local women's clubs/teams might be a good way to build some participation. Some events can be intimidating, but if you put in some effort to make it more approachable, it could help. I'm in a women's tri club, and I think that an RD showing up to a meeting and talking about their race would definitely get more registrants!
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Re: How can RDs make races more female friendly? [carlwithac] [ In reply to ]
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Do you want a separate course or starting time, or do you want to mix in with the men?
Mix with the men. I like trying to draft them, or riding with my training buddies.

Do you want age categories, or some other category?
Age

Do you want prize money between men and women to be equal, even if male participation is dramatically higher?
that would be nice. Another's point about it showing dedication to women is a good one. The most attended CX race in my area has offered equal pay out for years. It's always the race that has the MOST women at it

Do you want the same challenging/fierce atmosphere as men?
absolutely. I can go 'ride' any time.

Do you feel like races are marketed primarily towards men and not enough towards women?
perhaps. But I'm not sure how to change this other than the 'women's only' type thing.. but I might be a bit different than a lot of women

Do you want different race swag?
women's cut. I'm pretty small and unisex doesn't look very good.

Do you want women's only bathroom facilities?
nah. Doesn't matter
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Re: How can RDs make races more female friendly? [determination] [ In reply to ]
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Wow, thanks for all the great feedback ladies! You all gave great suggestions that I think every race should implementing as a standard.
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Re: How can RDs make races more female friendly? [carlwithac] [ In reply to ]
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Polling my wife (she does not do ST) who is national level cycling time-trailer, and elite amateur/AG triathlete:

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Do you want a separate course or starting time, or do you want to mix in with the men?
Same time as the men, separated by Category and Age, per USAC.

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Do you want age categories, or some other category?
USAC already has categorization and age banding for cycling events.

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Do you want prize money between men and women to be equal, even if male participation is dramatically higher?
No: this could be an unfair burden on race directors, and could bankrupt a race. If a minimum number of entries for women's events are met, then payout can be equal as the men.

She asked if USAC has rules about this, to which I indicated that I was not sure, but have seen most race reg info indicating min field numbers for payout, etc.

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Do you want the same challenging/fierce atmosphere as men?
She did not understand the question.

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Do you feel like races are marketed primarily towards men and not enough towards women?
No.

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Do you want different race swag?
Women's cut for women, thanks.

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Do you want women's only bathroom facilities?
Only if it speeds the port-o-potty lines up.

no sponsors | no races | nothing to see here
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Re: How can RDs make races more female friendly? [carlwithac] [ In reply to ]
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I say separate start time. That makes it more "fair". I used to race bike races, road and crits, we always got lumped in with the masters men. I put fair in quotes because fair in bike racing takes tactics into account. I couldn't necessarily hang on to the masters men, but w/ the faster women hanging onto the masters men I was in the mix. When it came to prims I was able to compete. I stopped racing because it wasn't a true women's race. Like I said, this is for bike racing. The separate field in triathlons hurt me. I can swim with faster guys and so I can get more of a lead out of the water, but if it's just ladies, I usually end up pulling a group around. I'm fine with that in triathlon

I recommend finding a couple faster ladies to put the word out about a trial run of the course or a 1-2 ladies clinic for free. In my experience that gets more women involved.

Just don't give away free pink lights to women competitors like WTC is doing.
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Re: How can RDs make races more female friendly? [carlwithac] [ In reply to ]
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Speaking as a bike racer.

In a hypothetical bike race, would any of these points affect your likelihood of attending:
Do you want a separate course or starting time, or do you want to mix in with the men? No separate course, but # of laps depending on category. If you're doing a looped course, you can give the women their own start.

Do you want age categories, or some other category? Male/Female - open, Masters, GrandMasters

Do you want prize money between men and women to be equal, even if male participation is dramatically higher? I'm mixed on this. Would have to look at numbers.

Do you want the same challenging/fierce atmosphere as men? Of course.

Do you feel like races are marketed primarily towards men and not enough towards women? Here in Tennessee - YES. Too often we only get a "women's" race which means all Cats. I came from NorCal and this year they have a women's MASTERS SERIES!

Do you want different race swag? No

Do you want women's only bathroom facilities? No (unless they are indoor).

Where is this race?

clm
Nashville, TN
https://twitter.com/ironclm | http://ironclm.typepad.com
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