I wish they would require a certain IQ to post on letsrun, no morons. We could live without posters like you, yeah!!
monko wrote:
I've just paid $40 ($35 US) for a 5K road race here in Australia, I better be getting some free shit afterwards.
The good thing about this race is that you have to have run sub 17 mins, no slow pokes!! yeah !!!
anEconomist wrote: I wish they would require a certain IQ to post on letsrun, no morons.
And some worry that mere registration would thin the ranks...
ha ha, that made me laugh.
please dont squeeze the garmin wrote:
anEconomist wrote: I wish they would require a certain IQ to post on letsrun, no morons.And some worry that mere registration would thin the ranks...
lizard king wrote:
i just found a winter race series in St. Louis that only charges $7 per race, or 45 for the 5 race series and a long sleeve technical t shirt. The series is actually 10 races, each time they have one longer race and one shorter such as a 12k and a 4k or so. I was pretty pumped when I found out about it and cant wait to do them this winter.
QFE
correct! the frostbite series are awesome. you cant argue with that price. but the courses lack a little creativity, especially if you're in the long series. they are immensely popular in the st. louis area too, lots of competition for all skill levels. i'm bummed that i wont be able to attend this year.
anEconomist wrote:
and yes Flagpole we know if you invest in a well-diversified portfolio or etf it will be worth over $300 in 30 years
You're right. $326.03 to be more accurate.
Doug E. wrote:
I'm not talking about championship races, or mega ones, but just your ordinary weekend race? I am floored by what people in Columbus, OH are charging for races. $30.00 for a 5K!?! I know that there are some that are less, but it seems that most are somewhere in that ballpark.
Doug,
Welcome to Columbus. The thing about the race fees is that it wouldn't be so bad if the organization were actually good for these races. I ran a race a couple years ago (World Famous Pig Run 5K) here in town that was $30, and there was a sharp hairpin turn about 50 yards after the gun, it narrowed right then onto a tiny path, and then at the finish they had no results! When I wrote an e-mail later to the race organizer, he said the race was just a fun thing and should be considered that. He offered no apology or even understanding that what he provided was sub par. They should have said that on the entry form.
Races in Columbus are horrible.
People here pay that money because they have it and most don't seem to care. People in Columbus spend money like crazy. Have you noticed how many restaurants there are in this town? They almost never go under either. Unbelievable.
I recommend driving to Athens in the spring for the marathon or half marathon. Well organized, decently priced, nice race.
$25 Max. And there better not be any advertising on the back of the shirt.
Flagpole Willy wrote:
Welcome to Columbus. The thing about the race fees is that it wouldn't be so bad if the organization were actually good for these races. I ran a race a couple years ago (World Famous Pig Run 5K) here in town that was $30, and there was a sharp hairpin turn about 50 yards after the gun, it narrowed right then onto a tiny path, and then at the finish they had no results! When I wrote an e-mail later to the race organizer, he said the race was just a fun thing and should be considered that. He offered no apology or even understanding that what he provided was sub par. They should have said that on the entry form.
Races in Columbus are horrible.
People here pay that money because they have it and most don't seem to care. People in Columbus spend money like crazy. Have you noticed how many restaurants there are in this town? They almost never go under either. Unbelievable.
I recommend driving to Athens in the spring for the marathon or half marathon. Well organized, decently priced, nice race.
You could insert "Dallas" for "Columbus" in the above post and it would be completely accurate.
Come to think of it, you could probably insert the name of just about any major metropolotan area and it would be accurate.
$20 is my limit. It\'s only 3.1 miles and I don\'t need another t-shirt or .79 bottle of Gatorade after. I\'ll pay $20 for my share of the insurance, police, etc., but anything over that and it\'s just gouging.
A recent RD tried to charge $30 for a 5k and had to cancel it for lack of interest. Wow, what a surprise.
monko wrote:
I've just paid $40 ($35 US) for a 5K road race here in Australia, I better be getting some free shit afterwards.
The good thing about this race is that you have to have run sub 17 mins, no slow pokes!! yeah !!!
...and it you don't, what do they do, shoot you? This could draw huge numbers on pay per view.
and IF you don't
"you have to have run sub 17 mins"
The extra "have" makes all the difference.
El Hombre wrote:
and IF you don't
"you have to have run sub 17 mins"
The extra "have" makes all the difference.
I still like the concept.
Reminds me of an old joke...
A young man, having lead a sheltered Christian upbringing, was training for the priesthood. One day, he approached the wise Mother Superior of his old parochial school while home from the seminary.
"Sister, I heard some people talking on the streets in the big city where I'm doing my training. The opportunities to bring Christ into their lives are exciting!"
"That's wonderful. God bless you for doing His good work!" the old nun responded.
"There's one thing, though, that makes it difficult. Sometimes, I feel like I'm not talking their language. For instance, one young girl, about 16, asked me if I wanted a b******. Can you tell me, Sister, what is a b******?"
The old nun podered the question for only a moment and responded, "Oh, about $30.00"
I have a journal from 1987 where I recorded the cost of all the races I ran that year (28 in all). They ranged in price from $3 for a road mile race, to $12 for a 10 miler.
The 5k's were $7, $9 and $10, and all provided a shirt.
It would seem that races cost 2 to 3 times as much as twenty years ago. I don't know how much inflation has pushed things up in that time period, but I don't think 2 times. I would guess that insurance and regulatory cost are way more now than back then, and that's where a lot of the extra expense goes to.
Historian wrote:
I have a journal from 1987 where I recorded the cost of all the races I ran that year (28 in all). They ranged in price from $3 for a road mile race, to $12 for a 10 miler.
The 5k's were $7, $9 and $10, and all provided a shirt.
It would seem that races cost 2 to 3 times as much as twenty years ago. I don't know how much inflation has pushed things up in that time period, but I don't think 2 times. I would guess that insurance and regulatory cost are way more now than back then, and that's where a lot of the extra expense goes to.
No doubt that insurance and regulation are a part of it. In our litigious society, where seemingly anyone who skins their knee starts looking for someone to sue, liability costs have risen significantly.
However, the biggest reason race fees have risen: supply and demand. If people weren't willing to pay $30 to enter a 5K, then the $30 5K would go away. The fact that they still exist means that someone, actually lots of someones, are willingly paying for them.
Yeeeaaaahhhhh!!! Bro, cheer up.
Doug, I live in Columbus, Ohio and yes it f*cking blows to have to pay $30+ for a road race (I think I payed $35 for a race during the summer). But, they justify it by giving you a "technical race-day t-shirt." And, what makes it worse is that these races don't even give away prize money or have drawings for prizes after the race.
I'd recommend going to races put on by the Columbus Running Company. They give away prize money, a good ol' fashioned cotton t-shirt, and charge <$15 for pre-registration, and $15-$18 for race-day registration.
Columbusrunning.com
you dumbass, that's why distance running in America sucks. Nobody is going to train hard for a charity run that doesn't give out prize money. No kids are going to have dreams of one day winning that prize money. What if every race gave out $100 to the winner, $50 to runner-up, and $25 to third? Can you imagine how much more competitive distance running would be in this country?!
go getta wrote:
Id rather pay $30 to a local 5k that spends its proceeds to a good local cause than a bunch of money to elite runners hardly anyone else cares about.
If you are a small race with little sponsorship the runners end up having to pay more for the race to work.
Factor in costs for:
T-shirts
Awards
Marketing
Entry processing
Traffic control (local Sheriff, local public works dept, etc.)
Insurance
Port-o-lets
Announcers
Race timing
Race management
Course measurement
Course Marshals
Aid along course,
Food and drink for after the race
the list goes on.
Have some respect for the race directors. It is not as easy as you may think.