Engaging Participants: Fun Activities to Add to Your Race Event

Including fun activities as part of the race day experience is an effective way of engaging participants in your event. Part of planning a race event is about creating an atmosphere that participants will remember and cherish. While the main focus is on the race itself, incorporating fun activities surrounding the race can enhance the overall event and leave a lasting impression on your participants & supporters.

In this blog post, we’ll explore some exciting and engaging activities that you can add to your race event to make it truly unforgettable. We will also explain some opportunities to increase your event revenue & get local businesses/charities involved to further grow your event.

Pre-Race Warm-Up Games:

Kick-start the event with energy and enthusiasm by organizing pre-race warm-up games. These activities can include group stretches, interactive dance sessions, or even light-hearted relay races. This will energize participants and reduce the risk of racing injuries. It will also foster a sense of camaraderie and build excitement before the main race. Add starting wave information to your race bibs to help organise this part of your event.

Make it Memorable:

Everyone loves capturing memories, so why not set up interactive photo stations along the race route or in the event area? Hand out props and other race themed items to get people in the mood! Not only does this create a buzz before, during and after the race but it will promote your event organically as people share their snaps on social media.

You can tie this in with custom printed race bibs with nicknames that people will treasure and show off as evidence of their achievement for months to come. Race bibs can also include QR codes which runners can use to search for photos of themselves if you have photographers along the course.

Unique Awards Ceremony and Prizes:

Every race has awards for the top performers and there’s nothing wrong with this. But why not add some more unique and inclusive awards to get buy in from a wider group of participants. Things like “Best Costume” for the best, least comfortable or heaviest costumes. “Top Tourist” for the participant that has travelled the furthest to be at the event.

Post-Race Celebrations:

There’s not much that can heal aching legs better than a burger & a beer after the race. It gives participants time to talk to friends about their stories from the earlier battle. Throw in some music and you’ve got yourself a mini-festival that will attract a bigger group of supporters & further lock in those great memories. This a fantastic way to support local businesses and take your event to the next level.

Top Tip: Look at including food vouchers in the entry fee to boost event revenue and get the food stalls engaged. Tear-off vouchers and coupons can be added to race-bibs or wristbands to make this process slick.

Something For the Kids:

Of course, we can’t leave the little ones out. The best events cater for all the family, think inflatable play areas, face-paint/craft stations & kid-friendly food and drink stalls. This will keep the youngens engaged giving your participants plenty of time to bask in their post-race glory.

To summarise, anything that you can add to improve your participant’s race day experience, and the overall event atmosphere will result is higher engagement. This could lead to strengthening your fan base, that return to take part next year or sign up for another one of your events. At the very least it will memorable enough for them to speak positively about the day to their friends and families. This could be either in person or through social media, which could lead to increased sign ups in your following events.

We know a lot of these points mentioned can seem daunting to sort out, especially on top of organising the race itself, but going above and beyond can pay dividends. It’s these extras that will keep people coming back year after year to your event.

A great way to keep your event participants organised, even with added activities, is by using Sportstiks Athlete ID, it provides an easy and smooth pre race experience.

Related Articles

Related