Is the great Lilac Bloomsday Run yet another great "tradition, like dating and baseball, killed by millennials?"

That was always a small race plus a big party. Maybe it will be killed, but is that a bad thing? How many people do they really need?

I did it in 2004. No timing chips yet, just a separate start for people with a qualifying time (I think around 37 min for 10k). I was in the general start, and it was so crowded, you did a jog/walk for the first 2.5-3 miles. Nice race though, and now that they have chips and wave start times, I'd do it again.

I did it around that time too but must have qualified based upon a seeding time. I really enjoyed the event and did a good amount of beer drinking after the run. Good memories.

Hotels are now gouging badly for the race weekend. If the hotels got behind the race, more people would run it, IMO. Bloomsday also relies on Canadians and they aren't crossing the border because of the increased hassle.

Boulder Boulder hasn't dropped off as bad.

It's still a good event. You should run it again.

I ran it this year for the first time in 20 years. Tough course! I submitted a time from another race and got into the first starting group, was 4 rows from the line and only had to weave for the first half-mile or so.

Super well organized, fun course. I’ll be back next year.

Did rojo write this?

These "classic" intermediate distance road races (Bay to Breakers, Peachtree, Cherry Blossom etc) topped out in attendance in the 1990s, way before millennials became adult consumers, as boomers knees started to give out from all that running...

Vince Grippi describes himself as a "freelance sports blogger" - actually retired from Spokesman in 2011, so he's definitely boomering his boomerism from the vantage point of his defined benefit pension.

Given that one inflection point of our running renaissance dates from Ryan Hall / Ritz / Webb circa 2001, one could argue that millennials are as responsible for our current thriving run culture as any cohort.

The fact is more recreational runners today have opted for half-marathon and marathon distances, such as the Rock n Roll series which did not exist back in the 1990s.

sconehead wrote:

These "classic" intermediate distance road races (Bay to Breakers, Peachtree, Cherry Blossom etc) topped out in attendance in the 1990s, way before millennials became adult consumers, as boomers knees started to give out from all that running...

Vince Grippi describes himself as a "freelance sports blogger" - actually retired from Spokesman in 2011, so he's definitely boomering his boomerism from the vantage point of his defined benefit pension.

Given that one inflection point of our running renaissance dates from Ryan Hall / Ritz / Webb circa 2001, one could argue that millennials are as responsible for our current thriving run culture as any cohort.

The fact is more recreational runners today have opted for half-marathon and marathon distances, such as the Rock n Roll series which did not exist back in the 1990s.

The Broad Street Run (est. 1980) and the Army Ten Miler (est. 1985) still sell out every year but are a little younger than the ones you mention. I like the ten mile distance much better than 13.1.

sconehead wrote:

These "classic" intermediate distance road races (Bay to Breakers, Peachtree, Cherry Blossom etc) topped out in attendance in the 1990s, way before millennials became adult consumers, as boomers knees started to give out from all that running...

Vince Grippi describes himself as a "freelance sports blogger" - actually retired from Spokesman in 2011, so he's definitely boomering his boomerism from the vantage point of his defined benefit pension.

Given that one inflection point of our running renaissance dates from Ryan Hall / Ritz / Webb circa 2001, one could argue that millennials are as responsible for our current thriving run culture as any cohort.

The fact is more recreational runners today have opted for half-marathon and marathon distances, such as the Rock n Roll series which did not exist back in the 1990s.

Infection point.

I like that.

I've been running for 47 years- I just don't like the crowded start. When I was young and could be on the front line at races I didn't care who was behind me.

Now, I feel that I should not be too close to the front and I hate the weaving and walking.

Just an old man nostalgic for the hard core days.

Too many races. Watered down. Nothing else.

Millenials are not to blame for everything.

I've been running 10 years and have never heard of this race until this post popped up. So I'd say there is a marketing issue at the very least. I've heard of Bay to breakers, Boulder Boulder, Bix 7, Peachtree, Cherry Blossom, and even the Silicon Valley Turkey Trot. What are they doing that this other race isn't?

Ackley wrote:

The Broad Street Run (est. 1980) and the Army Ten Miler (est. 1985) still sell out every year but are a little younger than the ones you mention. I like the ten mile distance much better than 13.1.

Yeah, BSR came to mind for me, too. I didn't run it in the 80s or 90s, but since I started in 2007, it's gotten huge and sells out via lottery every year.

Did Bloomsday in ‘86, about 42,000 entrants. A great experience to be in the majority for a change, whereas otherwise our culture doesn’t value health & running much.

Both races are in higher population areas too. Spokane isn't easy to get to whereas Philly and DC.

Props to the organizers for keeping the entry fees low ($22).

I've done this race several times and I love it! I was in the second seed race and my girlfriend was several waves behind me. Both had a great time and fun time drinking in the beer garden afterwards.

Oh Please wrote:

I've been running 10 years and have never heard of this race until this post popped up. So I'd say there is a marketing issue at the very least. I've heard of Bay to breakers, Boulder Boulder, Bix 7, Peachtree, Cherry Blossom, and even the Silicon Valley Turkey Trot. What are they doing that this other race isn't?

Add in Falmouth, Beach 2 Beacon, Crescent City Classic, Carlsbad, Boilermaker. These mixed in with the races above have a distinct brand as being non-marathons that get huge fields and huge elite fields. It would be cool to see some sort of series between them if there was a good way to make that work.

As for Bloomsday, the article wasn't great but basically said numbers go up and down. This race isn't going anywhere. It's going to remain a big race. With that said, they definitely need to update their website & provide more content through their social media platforms. Their website looks outdated and their social media channels don't post nearly as much as they should and are not altogether engaging. Bloomsday also has to be more of a regional race than most of the others mentioned (like Bix). It's in the same group as all of them in terms of prestige but Spokane is pretty tough to get at. Many would rather book a trip to SF, DC, or Nola.