Help out a new race director

Triathlon Forum
41

Ha! Well I knew someone would disagree! I don’t particularly like KU or country music but I do think he’s a pretty cool guy.

It’s a good idea to have the shirts for sale, but it also makes it even more incumbent on the race organiser to make it a desirable shirt.

42

Another comment about shirts. Offer an option for $X.XX off of the race if you don’t want a shirt, or pick a local charity and let the racers opt to not receive a shirt and $X.XX is donated to that charity in their name.

43

That’s interesting. We always offer extra shirts to participants (basically at cost), but not many people take us up on that. To make sure I understand what you’re saying…there would be two options to register-- $50 with a shirt or $40 without a shirt. Is that what you’re suggesting?

44

Thanks for your thoughts. We’ve talked about course support/ SAG, but what do you guys think is a good number of support stations/vehicles out on the course? It’s a ~13 mile, single loop course with basically no overlap.

45

We have a decent PA system and the pool also has a built-in system, so I think that should work. We’re also lucky in that the pool is ours to use, which comes with some giant umbrellas for people to hang out under after the race.

46

Thanks for your thoughts. We’ve talked about course support/ SAG, but what do you guys think is a good number of support stations/vehicles out on the course? It’s a ~13 mile, single loop course with basically no overlap.

for a 13 mile course I’d think you only need one vehicle doing laps that had your bike mechanic in it.

I know you posted earlier but the food truck idea is really great. I’m sure it will beat stale pretzels and cold pizza

47

That’s interesting. We always offer extra shirts to participants (basically at cost), but not many people take us up on that. To make sure I understand what you’re saying…there would be two options to register-- $50 with a shirt or $40 without a shirt. Is that what you’re suggesting?
Yes, that’s exactly what I’m suggesting. There are a lot of us out there who just don’t want another shirt. I mean I do, but my wife is getting tired of the number of shirts I have, so happy wife, happy life, I don’t want another shirt. It’s nice to have a little discount and not get a shirt. That being said, I have no problem paying the same price as everyone else, not getting the shirt, and having that $10 go to a local charity. So three options:

  1. $50 registration
  2. $40 registration but no event shirt
  3. $50 registration, no shirt, $10 of your registration goes to the charity picked by the race.

Honestly, if I’m deciding between two races and see that one is giving back to a local charity, they’re going to get my money every time. I had one that the donation went to the disabled athletes organization to help buy new rafts and buggies that they ride in during races. It was a great feeling to know my money was going to help others participate in this sport we all love.

48

1)Submit your race results to USAT quickly. I know the deadline is 15 business days after the event, but some RD’s are notorious for sending results in months late. That drives me crazy. Submit your results the Monday after the event if you really want to stand out from other race directing companies.

  1. Make sure you have a guy in a gorilla suit chasing around 6’7" guy in a banana suit. Make sure they help old ladies cross the street safely. Also, most importantly, make sure the gorilla doesn’t pace anyone on the run.

If you do these things, I’ll do your race.

49

In the nice touch column - one race series that I have done give all their marshals a printed list of the competitors names and number so that they marshals can offer support by name.

50

The gorilla/banana combo are sure to make an appearance…though if I’m not mistaken, there’s a Mr. Gregarious who is already registered.

As for the results, the plan is to submit those first thing on Monday…because I agree, it’s pretty obnoxious to post results online but not submit them to USAT for weeks.

51
  • Not sticking to the schedule is a bummer, but I wouldn’t worry about 5 to 10 minutes late.
  • Other than that, really not anything I “hate” about our local sprint tris here in SW Ohio (Dayton area)

Nice touches:

  • Carpeting is definitely nice on the tootsies, and greatly appreciated

  • Mesh swag bag that comes in handy later on as a swim gear bag

  • Pleasantly surprised by the nice food offered by one of the sponsors post-race (sandwich company…loads of tasty sammiches for the taking)

  • Shirt…7

  • Finisher medal for a sprint… -10. Probably getting chucked in a drawer at best and never seen again. Would way rather have a better shirt.

  • Awards…would probably care if I was fast enough to get some (although I thought I might get a little somethin’ somethin’ for being 2nd in my AG last year…)

Good luck! Hope it all goes well.

52

Thanks spot-- the mesh swim bag is an interesting idea. We’ve thought about giving out one of those cinch sacks, but it seems like everyone has a ton of them now and they’re not really special anymore. Maybe a swim-specific bag (or at least one that holds up to getting wet) would be worth exploring.

53

From a perspective of someone, who rookied his way into triathlon and racing in general relativley recently, allow me to give the opinion, that I still remember, when all these awards were still a novelty:

Please don’t give a crappy medal. The price difference between a crappy medal and a nice looking one isn’t great, but for someone, who just started collecting them it’s really a huge deal. Obviously it doesn’t have to be all the way Rock’n’Roll, but something thoughtful and tasteful is really appreciated. Sure there are bunch of people who don’t care about the medals, including myself. But plenty do. If this is a local race, I’m pretty sure there will be a lot of these.

Finisher shirts - a nice technical shirt with a huge FINISHER on it is also very welcomed by the beginners. This is usually turning into a training shirt, which is practical AND and an object of pride.

Awards - this January I took a part in a small-ish event (I won’t tell the name, but it’s not unfamous) in South Florida. Placed in AG. As an award I’ve got a photoprinted generic page " AG winner " in a cheap plexiglass frame. The event was really nice, the finisher medal was nice, the “award” I threw in the garbage bin at the parking lot when I was leaving.

More volunteers - more happiness

Good luck with the event

54

Thanks for the input. We still haven’t decided for sure what we’re doing for finisher medals, but we have a preliminary design that’s in the shape of a chainring with the race logo in the middle…if we do go with a finisher medal, it will definitely be more than a generic round medal with a sticker on it.

Your idea regarding the finisher shirts-- is that in addition to the race shirt? Or are you saying we would just put “Finisher” on the back of the regular race shirts?

55

Thanks for the input. We still haven’t decided for sure what we’re doing for finisher medals, but we have a preliminary design that’s in the shape of a chainring with the race logo in the middle…if we do go with a finisher medal, it will definitely be more than a generic round medal with a sticker on it.

Your idea regarding the finisher shirts-- is that in addition to the race shirt? Or are you saying we would just put “Finisher” on the back of the regular race shirts?

Can’t give the finisher shirt before crossing the finish line. Got to earn it, man! Finisher shirt isn’t a huge deal, but it seems that they are so common everywhere, that lot of people expect them together with their finisher medal. Not sure about the value of the race shirt itself. I personally use tech shirts from races for training (just because they are there and I don’t need to buy tech shirts), but wearing a shirt that advertises some tri race (even if I did it) in everyday’s situation is a bit too much for me to be honest. ← my personal opinion. Might differ from others.

56

What do you hate about the local sprint tris that you’ve done?

  • Not sticking to a schedule and running on time? Yes, especially if they don’t communicate the delay to us.
    ** - Not enough aid stations? **Depends of the distance. In a 20/40km ride you don’t really need an aid station. I, at least, carry one bottle, that is all I need
    ** - Cheap medals/awards? **Make the medal unique, such as carved by a local artist. Change them each year.
    ** - What else? **T-shirts with in-yer-face logo like a huge M-dot.

What are some things that have stood out to you (race organizer went above and beyond)?

  • “That was a nice touch” sorts of things
  • Carpet from the water to transition? Nice touch if needed, maybe a something to wash feet if the run is on a sand.
    ** - Door prizes? **Is it is something like “fits most”. Socks are good but goggles are very personal and don’t fit everybody.
    ** - Free entries next year for this year’s winners? **I rarely win so doesn’t matter :slight_smile:
    ** - What were you pleasantly surprised by? **A race bib with my name on it

** **Can’t answer on a scale with numbers, but with words…
On a scale of 1-10, how important is the quality of the shirt to you? Important if it is something that could be worn at lots of places. Again, I don’t like big, huge logos.
**On a scale of 1-10, how important is the quality of the finisher medal to you? **Important, and make it unique
**On a scale of 1-10, how important is the quality of the awards to you? **Depends what it is. A certificate with a frame from the dollar store? No thanks. Make it a quality and the winners will come back without a free entry.

At Prospera Granfondo there was a free can of Red Racer beer and a glass pint in the goodie bag. Also a free pint at the finish tent. That was awesome at the end of a long hot day. They also had a pair of quality socks, a small flashing bike light and a small sweat towel.
Also, PLEASE, no loud, ear splitting music followed by super exited voice of an announcer at 6am. For the world of me, I can’t figure out why they think that loud music, fast talk as if the announcer is on speed is needed. Could you give us a cup of java, please… :slight_smile:
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57

I know you’ve already gotten a bunch of helpful replies, but I thought I’d add my experience (also for the female perspective…).

What do you hate about the local sprint tris that you’ve done?

  • Not sticking to a schedule and running on time? This bothers me if it’s running more than 10 minutes late.
  • Not enough aid stations? There should be at least one aid station at the halfway/turnaround point on a 5K. Otherwise I don’t really care - unless it’s hot. Then more aid stations with water are critical.
  • Cheap medals/awards? Don’t care at all.
  • What else?
    – Timing chip issues (ie cheap Velcro - this sucks). I also did one tri without electronic chip timing. I won’t ever do that again.
    – Volunteers who have idea what’s going on - this cost me two minutes at my last sprint tri because the volunteer at the finish didn’t know where the officials were (I’d lost my chip in the swim).
    – A lousy course with inadequate information on the website - I hate showing up and having no idea what I’m in for.
    – No safety/course orientation prior to the swim. This is just dangerous.
    – Roads that are in poor condition and/or open to busy traffic.
    – A long and painful stretch between the swim and T1 (ie gravel).
    – My BIGGEST pet peeve is not enough porta-potties. This is inexcusable and affects women more than men (for the last tri I did, my husband just peed in the bushes. I had to wait in line for 20 minutes and almost missed the start).

What are some things that have stood out to you (race organizer went above and beyond)?

  • “That was a nice touch” sorts of things? Benches in transition. Easy parking.
  • Carpet from the water to transition? This is a must-have.
  • Door prizes? Never really participated in this.
  • Free entries next year for this year’s winners? Sure, that sounds nice.
  • What were you pleasantly surprised by? I liked events that had a lot of community and volunteer support - it made me feel less like a spoiled triathlete and more like a competitor in a new place. I appreciated when the official called my name out at the finish. I also liked races that had plenty of female competitors, especially for an Olympic distance. I think it can be hard to recruit women to newer races sometimes (I did an inaugural tri last year and there were only 12 women in my race). Having women’s shirt sizes is a nice touch - shows you thought about it (plus men’s t-shirts don’t fit me).

On a scale of 1-10, how important is the quality of the shirt to you? 3
On a scale of 1-10, how important is the quality of the finisher medal to you? 1
On a scale of 1-10, how important is the quality of the awards to you? 1