by Larry Eder
Big Sur Marathon, which has been called one of the most beautiful race courses in the world, now has a mobile app and also a Digital gift bag. More and more races around the world are looking at what type of carbon footprint that they leave.
New Mobile App and Digital Gift Bag
Debut for Big Sur Marathon Participants
New app enhances runner experience; iGiftBag offers special deals to runners
Carmel, CA — Runners hailing from 35 countries to participate in the Big Sur
International Marathon can now be connected in advance of their journey
to the California coastline. A new mobile app is debuting this week,
and the runners’ virtual goodie bag will be digitally delivered the week
of the April 29 race.
Big Sur
Marathon’s new mobile app features news and events, course maps,
frequently asked questions, local restaurants and attractions and runner
tracking features. Designed for iPhones and Android smartphones, Big Sur
Marathon information will now be at the fingertips of the 11,000
registered runners in six distance events, as well as their families and
friends throughout the world.
The basic app is free to users with premium features such as runner
tracking, push notifications of progress, syncing with runners’ Facebook
and Twitter accounts, and results being offered for a small fee. Users
can enter the words ‘Big Sur Marathon’ or ‘Big Sur
Events’ to locate and download the app which includes additional
information for the organization’s other two signature events, the Big Sur Half Marathon on Monterey Bay and its annual Mud Run.
In addition to the app availability, the Big Sur
Marathon will soon be delivering its iGiftBag to runners. The virtual
gift bag is full of special offers and coupons for merchandise and
services that are available locally during race weekend, as well as
discounts for products that are available online from any location. The
iGiftBag displays an interactive spinning carousel of offers from such
companies as Ghirardelli Chocolate, Dole Foods, Ventana Wines and the Big Sur
Marathon Expo store. In addition to the 10 premium offers, an
additional 12 coupons are available from participating merchants.
The Big Sur
Marathon helped pioneer the concept of virtual goodie bags in an effort
to reduce paper waste generated by the thousands of coupons that were
formerly provided to runners. Several races throughout the country are
now offering digital race bags in their efforts to become greener.
“We’re really excited to be able to offer these tools to our runners,”
said Julie Armstrong, Marketing Communications Director of the Big Sur
International Marathon. “The app will help runners navigate their way
around our local area, provide answers to often-asked questions, and for
the first time ever, be able to track runners from key areas along our
remote course.”
The new digital offerings were created in conjunction with two offsite
companies. The mobile app was developed by XLRun,
a division of Innovative Timing Systems. XLRun has developed apps for
more than 30 races, most recently the Houston Marathon and Olympic
Marathon Trials in Houston, and the 36,000-person Cooper River Bridge
run in Charleston, South Carolina. The virtual goodie bag is a product
of iGiftBag which produces digital gift offerings for races, local events, and national conventions.
In addition to these offerings, the Big Sur
Marathon has also just overhauled its website to provide a new look and
user experience. The robust website, designed in conjunction with
Active.com, offers a wealth and depth of information and images from Big Sur‘s four key events: the Big Sur International Marathon (April), the Big Sur Half Marathon on Monterey Bay (November), Big Sur‘s Mud Run (March) and the JUST RUN youth fitness program (year-round for schools and youth organizations). The website URL is www.bsim.org.
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