I am the race director for a medium sized (~600 runners) half-marathon. Our registrations were lower this year after an approximately 5 year increase in registrations. I know that part of this might have been due to weather at last year’s race that resulted in many no-shows {yeah, who in their right mind puts on a half-marathon in December in Pennsylvania…}
I was wondering what other people were seeing, both for multi-sport and running races? I have heard from a couple of sources locally that numbers are down, but is this a national/worldwide phenomenon? Obviously WTC is still doing well for its big-name races…
Do you think that this has anything to do with the increase/decrease in popularity of CrossFit/Spartan races (and similar events)? It seems like the buzz around CrossFit has died down a little, and I am wondering if people have moved onto other activities? I would assume that there was some crossover from the activity races into regular running races too.
IIRC people were saying that spots weren’t being snapped us so quickly for IMFL after the swim being cancelled this year. The weather at your race last year could well be the driving factor. Other than that there is a multitude of factors, which could be at work here. Don’t think it is anything to do with a larger trend. Maybe there’s a new race at a more convenient time somewhere relatively nearby? Furthermore the actual percentage decline would be interesting to know and one should consider that the variation between two years might not be enough to deduce a statistical trend.
I am pretty sure that the weather at last year’s race was a significant factor; the number of inquiries about race-day registration was up sharply, with a lot of those mentioning the previous year. Philly Marathon and Half were recent, but there is always the same delta between those races and ours. Since 2010, we have had 650-730 runners (2011 was the biggest year), but this year we only had 533. Like I mentioned, one of the local race timing companies and a fellow local race director mentioned that registrations were down generally for their races. It is definitely a local trend; I was curious if it was a national trend.
Our experience is that yes, numbers are down. We reached a saturation rate (could be temporary) a few years ago. Additionally, race registration dynamics have changed particularly for local/regional type races. People are keeping their options open and are registering later based on weather, options, other activities.
No, I’m suggesting this may be part of a year-over-year trend that I’ve also noticed.
We’s all getting older, and an inordinately large slice of the demographic pie is just now waking up with more aches and pains than ever…
I’d be curious (but not enough to look it up myself) if those AGs in the 40s and 50s form a disproportionate share of the overall decreases.
Ooh! Good thought. Interesting results - the biggest drop off was actually in the younger age groups (U20 and 20-24), if you exclude the sole 75+ year-old woman regular who didn’t show this year. The biggest single % drop was Women 20-24 with a 43% drop, U20 Women were second with a 30% drop. We are a college town so students are a reasonably large percentage of runners.
Ooh! Good thought. Interesting results - the biggest drop off was actually in the younger age groups (U20 and 20-24), if you exclude the sole 75+ year-old woman regular who didn’t show this year. The biggest single % drop was Women 20-24 with a 43% drop, U20 Women were second with a 30% drop. We are a college town so students are a reasonably large percentage of runners.
LOL, is there a colour run near you? IMO that trend will fade
I am an RD for a similar sized race that runs a 10 Mile & a 5K. We saw about a 8%-10% increase in numbers year to year from 2008 - 2012, but generally started stagnating at the end of that line. We had a weather cancellation in '12. It was a bad cancel, with really bad weather forcing multiple delays then police cancelled it, 5 minutes later - sunny and perfect running weather (with over 300 people running the course anyway against police orders - that was fun). We saved the next year with a deeply discounted (more than 50%) fee for anybody who was registered for the cancelled race and only saw a small % drop the year after cancellation, then hit record number this year but still generally stagnated since 2009.
The trend I am seeing is simply more competition and more big name “branded” events that racers gravitate to. The other trend is to gravitate to standard distances (13.1, marathon, 5K) and gimmick races (color, bands, costumes, underwear, etc.) and stagnation or declines in numbers in the non-standard distances - 10K in particular is becoming almost non-existent. A very popular local trail race has had a 50% drop in numbers recently - they had some legitimate operational problems, but Rock & Roll coming to town on the same weekend they held for a decade killed them. The number of people who will pay $100 or more for a half marathon in our area for a very average race, boring course and unspectacular amenities (bananas and bagels) but not run a race that costs less than half that with a better course, amenities, safety standards because it does not have a brand name, 13.1 listed as the distance if frustrating.
In the end a combination of big name competition within a relatively short time frame before / after your race and overall clutter of too many events is the likely reason for stagnated / dropping numbers.
What has worked for us to survive and gradually grow - 1.) very low entry fee compared to other similar races (we are usually less than half the fee of other races). Unless you need to make a huge profit or write a large charity check, keep the fee low. 2.) Emphasize the unique characters of your course if it has anything special (we have hills & scenic terrain not found anywhere near us). 3.) Exceptional customer service - I answer any racer questions within the same day, I personally greet and thank every runner at our post race party and have a few beers with them, etc. 4.) Do something unique on the amenities - we are known for a great beer and pizza fest post race (literally some sign up just for that because it is less cost than going out for beer and pizza) 5.) Market it as a runner’s race - leave the color, bands, etc. to the big names. A loyal following among the runners will keep your numbers stable and gradually grow - becoming dependent on the fad of the day will lead to instability. 6.) Keep it simple and low cost - we hand make our own awards, and we avoid the costly extras. 7.) make sure it is fun - I joke with the runners before, during and at post race, etc. In the end even the lost serious runners for the most part are doing this for fun.
Good luck - 600 is a good number - I remember the days when 50 was considers a large race.
It sounds like our races are pretty similar. Registration is $30 which includes a long-sleeved technical shirt, 3 water stops, and disposable chip timing. Even at this price we can still make a significant contribution to our beneficiary. Unfortunately, due to the location of the start/finish, there would be no way that we could serve beer. The course is scenic and reasonably tough, and there really are not many other races around this time/area. I am happy with 650-750; I am not sure I want it to grow much more than that. I was just a little surprised about the drop-off, but when I heard similar things from other race directors I was wondering if this was something bigger.
One other point was that we switched from Active.com to IMAthlete. While we have been very satisfied with IMAthlete, I am wondering if Active.com gave us some visibility that we otherwise would not have had?
There seems to be a small trend setting in. Only time will tell if it’s long term or just a short blip. Retailers at the recent Running Event are saying the exact same thing. These are running specialists. They were on a multi-year run of year over year growth. This includes in it the exceptional expansion in the retail space of more specialists and more chain running stores. In other words they were growing in the face of more competition (Much like races). This year they stalled. Some are down and some are seeing their slowest growth in history. One retailer has grown 14 years straight and this was his worst growth year of the 14.
Higher healthcare costs, higher healthcare insurance, higher deductibles, Obamacare…fear of injury and associated costs coming home to roost. These things have many ‘average’ people re-thinking their commitment to training and participation in racing events.
Really… that’s where you want to go with this? Please tell me this is a troll post…
You’re looking for possible reasons why registrations are down…unfortunately these things play a role, especially as demographics age, etc.
You forgot about Ebola, ISIL, and the typhoon in the Philippines.
Higher healthcare costs, higher healthcare insurance, higher deductibles, Obamacare…fear of injury and associated costs coming home to roost. These things have many ‘average’ people re-thinking their commitment to training and participation in racing events.
I’ve noticed a big increase in the number of Crossfit-type competitions being put on - More opportunities for active people to get a competitive release.
