Wednesday, October 29, 2014

When did races get so expensive?

When I registered for Bloomsday, it was $30.  Now Bloomsday is a 12K (7.5 miles approximately), but it's a big one with over 50,000 people running it.  That requires a lot of administration and capital, doesn't it?  So let's use Bloomsday as our baseline of what it costs to run a race - 7.5 miles into $30 is $4 a mile.

I went to sign up for the Long Beach half-marathon:  $100.  Say what?  At 13.1 miles, that shouldn't have been more than $53.

I was looking into the Ragnar race.  They wanted over $120 a person, with teams of 12 people.  Uh, no.  Look, I have no problem paying to support the costs of administration for a race, but when you get to paying a Franklin just to run?  Sorry.

What's it cost to race where you are?  Am I off my gourd here?

5 comments:

Erin Palette said...

People... pay MONEY... to EXERCISE?

The mind, she boggles.

P2 said...

Here in Fairbanks, a 5k....yeah, a measly piddling little 3 miles, is 25 American dollars, minimum. But hey, ya get a cool t-shirt you can only wear 3 months a year... The Fur Rondy 5k in Anchorage is 150 a team this year. And it's in February. In Alaska. And it's always packed.....go figure. (Btw, that's a 7 hr drive or a $350 airfare plus hotels to go run it for me....I'll pass, thanx)

http://www.furrondy.net/events/frostbite-footrace

Ragin' Dave said...

Erin - it's not just to exercise, it's to compete. Against other people, against yourself, against the clock... There's a little bit of prestige in it as well. You can say that you run a lot and people will nod and go "Oh, that's nice." You say you've run the Boston Marathon, and people look at you in a new light.

I've never run the Boston Marathon. I'm just using it as an example.

P2 - I'd do the Fur Rondy in a heartbeat. The coldest I've ever run in was -25 or so. I think I could handle Anchorage. Now I just need to get stationed up in Alaska.

Anonymous said...

The world-famous Hood to Coast relay in NW Oregon now sports a fee of $1584. 12-runner team, and if your team is from within 100 miles of Portland, you MUST provide 3 unpaid volunteers to provide an unknown amount of labor for the race. This year, there were 1,050 teams, but almost three times that number applied for entry. The winnowing process is decided by what? The race organizers brag on their huge donations to charity, so I'm guessing that unless you are a big sports apparel company, your $1,584 entry check has to be accompanied by a charitable donation to gain your registration.

It seems that you might have discovered a new racket.

Rivrdog

Anonymous said...

I'm in digger mode. The Seattle to Portland bike ride is $135/rider, $110 if you join the Cascade Bicycle Club. However, you can work off your fee by volunteering. The 200-miler is quite the challenge. My oldest daughter rode it about 5 years ago in under 12 hours, was totally bonked at the end. Her-fiance came in just over 12, bonked worse. I was the sagger.

Rivrdog