Destination Races – Why and How to Choose the Right One for You

With so many races within easy reach of our home base here in the Northwest, there’s little reason why we “need” to travel to a race. But there’s just something that pulls at us to dream of adventure and put up with trains, planes, and automobiles to get somewhere. Maybe it’s an itch to get our feet on the ground and experience the running culture in another part of the world, or an excuse to hit the road and get out of dodge for a bit. A destination race should pull toward your adventure side and less to your competitive side, and should be considered for aspects other than pure competition.

When I look for a destination race, there are a few criteria I use to determine if it’s something that needs to be on my bucket list.  I wanted to put together a short list of race options that span the world and have attributes I like to see in a true destination race.  This, of course, is all purely subjective, and what one person likes may not be what someone else will look for in their dream race. With so many races around the world this is by no means a definitive bucket list, but it should give you an idea of what characteristics to consider when booking your next adventure.

Race festival atmosphere and post party

This may be the most important aspect of choosing a race as a destination. The weekend should be filled with activities, multiple races, and sprinkled with a good after party or two. This is going to let you get the true flavor of the local running community, meet new people, and let you have a little fun surrounding what could be a very grueling experience depending on how challenging the race is. There is a definite difference in the fun factor between races with an after party, and those without. Always pick a race with festivities.

The Course

There isn’t much point in traveling to the other side of the country, let alone the other side of the world for a boring road 5K, right? Yeah, I’ve done it before for competition but I’d much rather travel for a race that’s going to challenge me, and where I’m going to really get the flavor of the local race scene. You can rarely do that with any old 5K.  I’m also not suggesting you stay away from a road course either. Choosing a destination race course should be dictated by your fitness, but also by the local character of the race. Many races will have multiple distances within the weekend, but there may be one particular distance or course that is the marquee event. That’s the one that will allow you to really get the full experience of the culture surrounding the race.

Tradition and history

Tradition and history are a big draw in choosing a destination race for me. I love the little stories that surround a race and let you dive deeper into it’s history.  Traditions along the race course, such as placing a rose on Arthur’s Seat at Comrades, provide meaning above and beyond just traversing the course from start to finish.

Adventure

Some races exist purely to provide you a safe(ish) and accessible amount of adventure for someone not comfortable on their own in the wild. An “adventure” type race should be selected based on an appropriate level of challenge for the individual. Do your research on this topic or you could end up on the side of a mountain looking at a 20 foot technical climb with no protection. A bad place to be if you’re afraid of heights.

Travel destination

This one can be important when getting your spouse on board. Is it somewhere that you’d want to go on vacation? Is family nearby that you can use as an excuse to justify the travel time and cost? Make sure that you put the race at the beginning of the vacation, otherwise you’ll just make you and your travel companion miserable worrying about the race when you’re trying to lounge on the beach the day before.  There’s also the flip side of using a planned vacation to hit a race that you would never consider traveling to otherwise.  Anytime I travel on vacation I check the local race calendar, just in case. You never know when there might be a local 10K you could jump into.

Competition

I put this one last because while I tend to de-emphasize it for a destination race, it can still be important to some, including me. In order for me to travel to a race, it still has to be able to challenge me either through the course or competition, and sometimes both.  Consider it, but don’t let this be your sole reason for traveling.  You can usually find a fast course with good competition closer to home.

Here are a few races that embody the spirit of running with a fun festival atmosphere, a great course that’s challenging and/or beautiful, and have long-standing traditions of providing athletes with a top notch experience. Some of these are even on my bucket list.

Orcas Island 50K/25K – If you don’t want to go far, but want to get away to a race that provides unique Northwest hospitality and a weekend of meeting new friends, this is your race. Run on different weekends to accommodate more participants, both courses are equally spectacular. And to be honest, Rainshadow Running has about two dozen races equally as beautiful, while providing a great laid back atmosphere around the Northwest.

Comrades Marathon – The oldest and largest ultramarathon in the world is in South Africa, and has a tradition of providing all that is required of a destination race. History, traditions, enthusiastic spectators, and a great finish festival unmatched by even the largest big city marathons in the world. This race is a must-do. 

Sierre Zinal – If you’re an ultrarunner you already know about the UTMB (Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc), but if that’s a little bit too extreme and you still want to experience a race in the Alps, this is an amazing race that’s only 29K on trail, but has plenty of vertical gain. It finishes in the small ski town of Zinal, up in an alpine valley flanked by high peaks and glaciers for an authentic Alps experience. 

Javalina Jundred – There are a lot of great 100-mile races out there. Leadville, Western States, Hardrock, etc., but if it’s the party you’re after then look no further than Javelina. Held on Halloween weekend in the desert of Arizona, the race has one of the lowest finishing rates of any 100-miler, not because of the difficult course (it’s actually rather easy), but because of the draw of the party every time you pass the finish on each of the race’s six laps.

Boilermaker 15K – There is a strong tradition of road racing in the Northeast, making long standing races a must-do on the road racing calendar.  Boilermaker is one with great traditions and a great atmosphere. With over 17,000 participants in multiple distances in the small town of Utica, NY, locals take pride in this historic race and come out in full support on race weekend.  

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