Putting on a 5k

It is a lot harder than most people realize. I've been involved with a few myself and although it is not rocket science, there are one million ways to screw it up.

Here is a pretty good checklist to start you off.

Let me emphasize, make sure the distance is accurate. Get it certified and follow the certification when setting up on race day. Do everything you promise in your brochure. If you can't do it, don't promise it. The tricky part is that after planning for months; boom the gun goes off and everthing has to already be in place. Get somebody that has experience to trouble shoot and help. Volunteers are the key; get lots!

http://www.usatfne.org/road/checklist.html

It depends on your course. Is it on the roads? You have to contact the local government/police.

Get it certified- then go to an RRCA Club to get insurance. You may have to join the club, but that's no big deal.

Get sponsors to pay to be on the back of the t-shirt.

Get a few runners together and brainstorm what they like or do not like about races they've been in.

Offer a good product and people will come.

so what do I need to do to attract lots of people plus attract fast runners

socalcoach wrote:

so what do I need to do to attract lots of people plus attract fast runners

Lots of promotion. That means lots of time. Also, I need to point out that as fun-raisers road races really aren't all that great.

more info at the link above..

Usually that's because many race directors have to pay their own insurance.

You do have to fine sponsors to pay for the t-shirts and awards and you can make money off of them, too.

You'll need a fast course and just make sure you leave no stone unturned when you accomodate the runners.

Get entry blanks out to everyone and pick a date that doesn't overlap with another local race.

last july a local rotarian in our town of 2000 got excited about putting on a 5K, both to raise some money for the organization and to get the community involved. he enlisted the school's track coach and a couple of us who had run, raced, and volunteered extensively at races. the rotarian brought the enthusiasm and volunteer base; the coach brought the equipment and knowledge of a course that he had used previously, and we runners brought details of what was impt from the participant's point of view. what made the event an overwhelming success, drawing 350 people, was the death to cancer of a beloved high school teacher who was also a runner. his wife permitted the race to be run in the teacher's honor, and the rotarians donated the bulk of the proceeds to a scholarship fund in his name. this unfortunate circumstance rallied the entire community around the event, and the small prize purse ($50 overall (M&F), $25 masters (M&F), if i recall) drew a few of the fastest folks in the region. it'll be interesting to see how the race plays out this year, with the immediacy and sting of the teacher's death a year in the past. my point is that if you can place your team fundraiser in the context of something that your community truly cares about, you might draw a bigger crowd and thus raise more money, even if you have to split it with another cause. as much as the letsrun demographic might not like to admit it, it's the 30-min-plus 5k'ers and the walkers behind them that raise the income of a race, if they can be brought into the fold by something that means a lot to them.

mcordi wrote:

Get a few runners together and brainstorm what they like or do not like about races they've been in.

Offer a good product and people will come.

i dont disagree, but have another perspective.

if the GOAL is to raise money, the people i would be most concerned about are NOT (what you and i would call) "runners."

you need to get out 6 mile a week mom "runners" and their kids. if you are trying to raise money you need to put on a "run/walk."

take a look at race results in your area for recent road races and you may discover your target group are not runners, but walkers. think "jingle bell runs" and "race for the cure" type events. these events raise money and are profitable because people want to help and most people either have or know someone with those problems. your "cause" is much less well known and "impacts" far fewer people. that may cause problems getting the moms out since they may not feel as good about helping you as they do when they are curing cancer.

i think a decent tshirt is important as far as getting people to come back next year, as are post race goodies.

i tend to avoid races that are also "walks" and fund raisers even thought they are often the biggest, simply because they are not "races" and often have in accurate/uncertified courses. all I want out of a race is beer at the end and an accurate safe course. sadly, i am not your average participant.

all i am saying is, think about who your target market is and who you should target to make the most money.