Kristen K from Run Away With Me asks: "I've always wondered how new races come up with the route - especially here in Anchorage, where every race ends on a giant hill."
Kristin, I can't speak to Anchorage, but I definitely have put together some courses with some crazy hills! Often times, the course is partially (if not fully) dictated by what the local authorities will allow, and if that means running on a hill, that's what we do. But course creation is also more than just finding the X number of miles that the police or rangers will let us use. We look very closely at the actual experience of running the course, as well as timing logistics like start/finish areas that are safe and accessible. Difficulty is usually a byproduct of these other items, though if it's meant to be a challenging race (like the Hill Yeah half marathon my company puts on every year) we will probably go looking for something a little more spicy!
What does "the experience of running the course" mean? It's all about flow and accommodation. Where can we fit the expected number of participants without having people run into each other? What makes sense with traffic patterns and local establishments? For example, if we're running on a major road, we're far more likely to be allowed to shut down a lane on one side of the road for a mile or two, allowing traffic to continue both ways, than if we tried to cross over the entire road, which would require stopping ALL traffic. We try to avoid courses that would cross over themselves to avoid runner collisions. If it's a race with 100 people, we're more likely to use a bike path or park trail than a race with 1000 people that simply won't fit in that space. Aid station locations are a concern too - they have to be well-placed for runners to receive fuel when appropriate, but should also be accessible for dropping supplies and for volunteers to find. We want the runners to have the best possible experience, which doesn't always mean "most scenic" or "most convenient" - it means safety, sensibility, and smoothness.
Having a proper starting and finishing area (or areas, if they're separate) is also a major concern. Since this is where people will congregate before and after the race, and all of our expensive timing equipment and staff will be located, it's important that the start/finish is placed in a location that is safe and ample for the race's needs. You can't have a big post-race party in an alleyway, and you wouldn't want to pay police to shut down an entire main street for a very small race just to keep the start/finish on the road. It has to make sense for what you're doing, how many people you're having, and for the neighborhood. We take into consideration both amount of parking and easy of getting into/out of the parking area, as well.
Once we find a course that works, we stick to it like glue! In fact, many race timing and management companies will probably have go-to locations with straightforward courses to keep things simple and to avoid stepping on too many law enforcement toes. Here in Cleveland, for example, we have only a couple of approved downtown courses, so we may reuse the same course for several events. I've had a few complaints about the route getting "stale", and I get what the runners are saying, but hope they can understand that running in a major city is very limited. If we want to offer four downtown races a year, we're much more likely to have them all approved with the same minimal-interference course than we are to get four separate courses approved. I had a similar experience in Chicago as a runner, finding many of the downtown races often went on the same portions of road and relied heavily on the Lakefront Trail. It's just the way things may have to be done in some areas.
Do you have a favorite course you've run? What course features do you think of when you consider favorites? What's important to you to have on a course? And, as always, what other questions do you have for race directors??
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