The document provides a to-do list for organizing a road race, with the goal of ensuring the race is properly planned and managed. It recommends finding a cause for the race, picking a date that does not conflict with other local races, obtaining necessary permits and insurance, designing a safe and accessible course, contracting with a company to provide timing services, creating a registration application and process, and recruiting volunteers to help run the event. Managing all aspects of the race is important to support the charitable cause and avoid negatively impacting other races in the community.

1. So
You
Want
to
Put
On
A
Road
Race…
Putting
on
a
road
race
can
be
a
worthwhile
experience.
However
it
can
also
be
a
maddening
experience.
What
follows
is
a
“to
do”
list
of
what
is
needed
before
and
after
race
day.
This
can
be
done
by
one
person
or
by
a
committee.
One
does
not
need
to
go
in
order,
but
I
did
my
best
to
put
some
type
of
order
to
it.
DISCLAIMER
#
1:
This
is
not
a
comprehensive
list
–
needs,
rules,
laws,
even
culture
will
vary
from
town
to
town,
state
to
state.
Think
of
this
as
a
starting
point
as
opposed
to
a
checklist.
DISCLAIMER
#2:
by
putting
on
a
road
race
you
are
saying
to
your
community
that
a
race
is
the
great
avenue
for
your
cause!
You
can
hurt
other
races
&
other
potential
races
if
you
don’t
take
the
responsibilities
of
managing
a
race
seriously.
Race
organization
is
typically
a
two-­‐fold
process:
1.
Organizing
a
road
race
2.
Raising
money/awareness
for
a
cause.
Keep
in
mind
that
these
two
processes
are
not
necessarily
connected
to
each
other
–
YOU
have
decided
to
connect
the
work
of
organizing
a
road
race
with
the
work
of
raising
money/awareness
for
a
cause!
Failure
to
do
one
will
dramatically
impact
the
other
AND
will
impact
those
who
try
to
do
the
same,
in
your
community,
after
you!
1. Find
a
cause/purpose
–
Most
people
put
on
races
for
charity/awareness
of
a
particular
cause.
A
race
for
the
sake
of
racing
is
rare
–
but
if
done
right
can
be
wildly
popular
2. Pick
a
date
–
This
can
be
difficult.
Most
importantly
you
need
to
be
aware
of
other
races
in
your
town.
Simply
put,
you
don’t
want
to
start
something
that
negatively
impacts
other
people
who’ve
been
trying
for
years
to
do
the
very
thing
you
want
to
do.
Websites
like
www.coolrunning.com
&
www.nerunner.com
have
road
race
calendars
where
you
can
cross-­‐reference
your
date
with
that
of
other
potential
races
in
your
town.
3. Pull
permits
&
obtain
insurance
–
Each
town
typically
requires
some
sort
of
administrative
approval.
So
head
down
to
your
town
hall
and
inquire.
Typically
a
town
will
not
approve
without
a
course
map.
A
website
like
www.rrca.org
has
cheap
options
for
liability
insurance.
Any
local
insurance
agency
could
also
provide
you
with
the
info
you
need.
4. Create
a
course
–
The
length
of
the
race
will
really
dictate
your
course.
The
more
popular
races
are
5k
(3.1
miles)
however
a
race
does
not
need
to
be
a
5k
to
be
“official”.
Websites
like
http://www.usatf.org/routes/map/
or
www.earth.google.com
are
great
for
course
creation.
Keep
in
mind
that
crossing
roads
typically
requires
police
details,
which
can
be
expensive!
One
thing
to
keep
in
mind
when
picking
a
course
–
if
possible
try
to
have
a
covered
area
where
people
can
register
for
the
race,
recover
from
the
race,
or
escape
from
the
elements
before
or
after
the
race.
Local
Elks,
KoC’s,
VFW’s,
schools
and
pubs
are
some
of
the
more
popular
options.
5. Contact
a
timing
company
–
There
will
be
several
types
of
runners
that
attend
your
race
&
every
single
one
of
them
will
expect
an
official
time
when
they
finish.
Some
may
show
up
out
of
support
for
your
cause
others
may
show
up
because
they
want
to
race,
but
make
no
mistake
about
it
both
groups
expect
an
official
time.
Companies
like
Granit
State
Timing
or
Yankee
Timing
provide
timing
services.
Also
local
running
clubs
like
the
Merrimack
Valley
Striders
or
the
Greater
Lowell
Road
Runners
have
been
known
to
provide
these
services
when
requested.
Typically
these
companies
or
running
groups
will
give
you
some
type
of
advice
as
to
what
you
should
do
about
additional
race
information
(aka:
bib
numbers).
6. Create
an
application
&
Get
it
online
–
Don’t
remake
the
wheel
here.
Use
www.coolrunning.com
to
find
race
applications.
Use
those
to
create
yours.
Knowledge
and
use
of
Microsoft
Word
or
Adobe
is
a
must.
Use
of
websites
like
www.runraceregister.com
or
www.lightboxreg.com
offer
“free”
online
registration
–
that
is
to
say
it’s
free
to
you
but
the
registrant
pays
a
nominal
feel
to
register
online.
Often
these
companies
offer
basic
website
creation,
that
serves
as
a
“home
base”
for
your
race.
Many
people
create
independent
race
websites
as
a
way
to
communicate
info
about
their
race.
This
can
be
expensive
and
is
VERY
time
consuming
–
but
if
you’re
up
to
the
challenge
or
you
have
a
great
support
network,
then
it
can
work
wonders.

2. 7. Contact
a
t-­‐shirt
vendor
–
Putting
on
a
road
race
requires
one
to
be
familiar
with
“road
race
culture”.
Part
of
the
culture
of
road
race
organization
is
to
give
registrants
a
race
t-­‐shirt.
Data
has
shown
that
people
are
75%
more
likely
to
register
for
a
road
race
if
the
race
offers
a
“technical
t-­‐shirt”
–
aka
“driFit
material”.
Some
race
directors
include
a
t-­‐shirt
with
registration
(example:
Tech
T
to
the
first
100
registrants).
You
can
contact
Athletics
East
Optimum
Sportswear,
All
Sports-­‐Hero’s
or
Marx
Running
and
fitness
for
t-­‐shirts.
You
should
be
able
to
get
a
cotton
t-­‐shirt
for
about
$8/shirt
&
a
“tech”
t-­‐shirt
(aka:
driFit)
for
about
$12/shirt
8. Contact
an
awards
vendor
–
As
mentioned
above
runners
expect
certain
things
to
be
provided
if
they
are
going
to
pay
to
run
in
a
race.
A
t-­‐shirt
is
one
of
those
things.
Another
is
some
type
of
post
race
award
ceremony
for
the
runners.
Typically
races
will
recognize
the
top
male
and
female
finishers
and
the
top
3
male
and
female
runners
in
each
“age
division”.
Divisions
can
be
anything
you’d
like
but
typically
start
at
0-­‐
20
&
run
in
10
year
increments
through
70+.
Be
creative
with
your
awards,
you
could
do
medals
or
trophies.
However
the
choices
are
only
bound
to
the
limits
of
your
imagination.
I’ve
seen
winter
hats,
pint
glasses,
bottle
openers,
wine
stoppers,
just
to
name
a
few.
9. Spread
the
word
–
This
list
represents
a
“best
practice”
of
race
directors
a. Contacting
local
papers
&
electronic
papers.
b. Posting
on
local
town
websites
(town,
school,
etc)
c. Contacting
local
running
clubs
and
request
to
link
to
their
website
d. Tag
cars
with
your
application
at
local
events
like
other
road
races
or
in-­‐town
youth
sporting
events
e. Creation
of
a
Facebook
event
f. Create
an
Instagram
account
and
post
pictures
g. Create
a
Twitter
account
10. Seek
out
corporate
donations
–
Overhead
cost
for
a
road
race
can
run
upwards
of
$3,000.
The
road
racing
circuit
is
flooded
right
now
and
there
are
hundreds
of
races
every
weekend
–
so
it’s
unlikely
that
your
race
will
obtain
200+
applicants
in
its
1st
year.
As
such
it’s
just
as
unlikely
that
your
applicants
will
cover
your
overhead
costs.
Local
companies
are
willing
to
offer
a
financial
donation
in
exchange
for
some
advertising
on
the
back
of
a
t-­‐shirt
or
your
race
website.
However
please
know
that
the
most
likely
donors
are
the
ones
who
have
a
personal
relationship
with
the
people
involved
or
the
cause
involved.
11.
Raffles/gifts
–
This
is
a
typical
norm
for
post
race.
The
only
caution
on
this
is
that
this
is
time
consuming.
Going
around
to
businesses
and
asking
for
a
donation
of
some
type
(gift
card,
coupon,
etc.)
is
no
easy
feat.
Don’t
be
discouraged
by
rejection.
Business
owners
are
constantly
bombarded
with
donation
requests.
Typically,
if
a
business
is
saying
no,
it’s
probably
because
they’ve
already
committed
to
their
budgeted
allotment
for
donations.
12.Get
a
group
of
people
to
help
with
“race
day
jobs”
a. Course
set
up
&
break
down
b. Traffic
volunteers
c. Water
Stop
volunteers
d. Pre-­‐registration
e. Race
day
registration
f. Timing
volunteers
(if
needed)
g. Post
race
activities:
• awards
• food
• raffle
13.
Thank
you
letter/email
–
Sending
out
a
thank
you
letter/email
can
really
help
you
with
“return
customers”,
be
that
donors
or
runners.
Sending
the
letter
to
the
local
paper
could
work
really
well
especially
if
you
want
to
spread
awareness
for
future
events.
Posting
race
pictures