Kids don't race

Posted on 02/14/2008 at 03:10:51 PM by David Patt

Most high school and college age kids who run, run for their school teams and don't participate in road races when events conflict with their school racing schedules or when their coaches tell them not to.

In many races, there are no competitors in the 15-19 year old age group.

Running is usually an adult activity.  In most races, the largest age groups are 30-34 and 35-39.

Still, some events market successfully to runners.  The Allen Park Street Fair Run, in Allen Park MI, has created two new events specifically for high school runners.

Other races that attract kids usually negotiate with school track or cross country teams beforehand, so they know when they'll have younger participants.

Kids registering for road races is the exception, not the norm.  It's best not to build your marketing plan around young runners unless you've pre-arranged their participation.

1 Comment
Posted Feb 17, 2008 10:03 PM by Jay Wight
One of the reasons high school runners don't run road races is that the state high school associations forbid them from doing so during their high school seasons. You may see high school runners in summer races- from Memorial Day through mid-August when cross-country team practices start, and from mid-November through the end of the year. The rest of the year, high school runners are in either the cross-country or track seasons, and risk losing their eligibility if they compete elsewhere.

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