Hold that spot
Think very carefully before you change the date, distance, or location of your event. Runners will not necessarily follow you.
The Park Forest Scenic 10-miler, in Park Forest IL, one of the best races in the Chicago area, decided to scale back its event, but keep it on the same date. The 10-miler was replaced by a 5-miler, the 5k was dropped, and elite athlete recruitment ended (Kenyan runners had been perennial winners).
Finishers totaled 451, compared with 1,481 in the 10-miler and 362 in the 5k last year. The "spot" for a distance race on that day was quickly claimed by the Oak Brook Half-Marathon, in Oak Brook IL, that tallied 1,201 finishers, and the previous day by the Half-Madness 13.1, in Batavia IL, that tallied 789 finishers.
Other local races attracted a total of over 1,000 additional runners that weekend.
The Park Forest crew made a strategic, well-thought out decision. That's what is needed for a change like this.