The logistics of designing race routes

There are many factors to consider when creating routes. Of course having a safe, well thought-out route with great scenery is always a priority, but getting permission to close roads isn’t as simple as picking your favorite roads and then applying for the permit.

There are a number of factors to consider, like bus routes and community traffic. Unfortunately, the world doesn’t stop just because we want to run a race. Being a good neighbour and considerate of the inconvenience we create for community members trying to go about their daily lives is extremely important. 

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I’m asked every year why Maritime Race Weekend doesn’t send each race out at a different time. I wish I could, but we can’t. The first 2.5K of our five routes land lock thousands in our community. Residents who live on the side streets have no alternate way to leave their homes when thousands of runners are on the road. To minimize the interruption for community members, our permit only closes down the road for 25 minutes. That’s just enough time to get the crowds to pass by the side streets. If we put spaces between the race start-times, the road would be required to close much longer and that’s just not fair.

In order to have the beautiful coastline routes, we had to compromise and agree to send everyone out at one time. The fact that we cannot have different start times is a primary factor why the event has been capped to 2,500 participants each day. It’s a big enough that you feel the awesome vibe of being in a large crowd, but not too many people that it obstructs people from having a good time or setting a personal best.