A 50k run for charity

Hyde Park – Bushy ParkSunday 6 October 2013

Event background• Launched in April for 2012, in partnership with Scope

• Race day – Sunday 7 October 2012 – alongside Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon

• A unique city based Ultra marathon (50km) targeting charity runners looking for their next big challenge

• Incorporating our experience when creating and building the Half Marathon, the focus is on charity fundraising, sustainability and exceptional event management

• 50km route through the iconic heart of London and through five of the Royal Parks. City – River – Park!

• Providing charity runners with their biggest ever challenge

• Premium standards providing comprehensive runner care and support – giving access to expert advice, a fully marshalled route, multiple fully-stocked check points and a VIP finish area for all

• Online runner-tracker enables runners and spectators to monitor progress

“In awe of how fantastic the route was, covering the most beautiful city/ river/ park views anywhere in the world - and to top it all, a couple of deer battling it out, horns locked in battle, in Bushy Park...”

James, 2012 runner

Race day in pictures7 October 2012

Welcoming runners to Hyde ParkRunners drop bags, pick up nutrition products and calm each others’ nerves

The start…

• 250 runners in 2012• Average fundraising per runner £770

(target set was £750 or £500 for ‘buddies’)• Entries opened in April 2012

The route – City…Using the closed roads down through Westminster to Embankment, runners left the Half Marathon route and headed along South Bank towards Battersea…

Iconic city landmarks included Admiralty Arch, Buckingham Palace, Parliament Square, Big Ben & the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Bridge, the London Eye and MI6…

The route – River…The route continued out of the city along the River Thames towpath – providing a mixture of road, trail and even a few stairs…

Before taking a short route via Richmond Park (avoiding the worst hills!), through Putney and past Hampton Court Palace to enter Bushy Park

The route – Park!

Runner support on route

Regular checkpoints kept runners on track and provided them with:- Water- Toilets- Fairtrade bananas - SIS products- First aid- and the all-important Percy Pigs!

Runner supportClear signage, helpful marshals and lots and lots of cheering!

The finishFinish funnel and gantry, live music, MC announcing every runner, families waiting, medals awarded by

Mimi Anderson, ‘sweep’ runners ensuring the last runners are supported right to the finish line

AftercareVIP marquee for all, including hot showers, toilets & changing areas, physiotherapy treatment, BBQ (free to runners), picnic area and bar, comfy seating, goody bags and baggage collection.

Time to recover – and then to join in the finish line cheering!

2013 – Development• “Public” places went on sale on 8 October 2012 – early bird places sold

out in under 2 weeks.

• Scope have recruited a team of almost 200 runners for 2013, their fundraising target remains £750

• Opportunity for other charities to get involved for 2013 – ahead of our main marketing drive targeting ‘Marathon fever’ in April

• Runners have been asking if they can run in support of different charities – we are keen to embrace this opportunity

• Field will be limited to 800 runners to ensure the high standards of care and experience are maintained for all

• Full programme of marketing and PR activities will all be focused on the recruitment of runners for all those charities who get involved – commencing in April 2013

• Online presence will include new charity pages on the website www.royalparksultra.com

• Race day branding will give all charities opportunities – at start, finish and at cheering locations across the route

“Thanks to all the marshals, volunteers and all of the organisational staff and sponsors. Extremely well organised, marshals were great motivators. This is how runs should be. Oh, and the ultra was fantastic - massage, hot shower and great food. Can't ask for more!”

Arren, 2012 runner

Charity packagesAll charities (including Scope) will be given equal profile and status in the race - the only limit will be on printed materials where space available prohibits this

Charity Packages include:

• A race place

• Fundraising support – we are working with our sponsors and Virgin Money Giving to ensure that all runners are encouraged and motivated to fundraise. For example, we are talking to our Technical Apparel Sponsor about opportunities to provide fundraising incentives, prizes for top fundraisers. We will also be working closely with Virgin Money Giving to provide bespoke support to the runners and their charities.

• Dedicated social media support – 2012 saw a great community of runners develop over the months leading up to the event. Leading industry experts provided advice and we shared experiences and encouragement for those taking their first steps into Ultra running. We will continue with this in 2013 with the community growing as the event becomes more popular

• Runner support and care - the Ultra is by its nature a more intimate event – and we will continue to support all those that take place as if they are our VIPs, meaning that charities will not need to budget for providing the ‘extras’ on top of the race place: entertainment space, goody bags, finish line hot food, showers and physio/massage are all included in the place fee

Charity packages (cont’d)• Marketing and PR support – including a welcome pack including race logos, images from last year for use in

marketing materials, a fact sheet and boilerplate copy. We will also share our marketing and PR plans to enable

you to maximise your own efforts – we have an extensive strategy to promote the Ultra race, including advertising

in Runners’ World and the London Underground, and will include the charity logos of the 4 biggest charity teams

(at time of print deadline) on materials produced where possible (and more charities where space permits)

• Profile on the website – rotating charity logos on all web pages, logos on the dedicated charity page, plus the

option to have a bespoke charity page for you to encourage runners to sign up for your cause

• A dedicated and supported cheer station on the route on race day, where we will ensure you have all the

provisions the runners may need – all you need to do is supply the smiley people and any of your own charity

products. We will also ensure your charity is labelled on the Tracker App so that supporters can find you on race

day.

• Charity branding at the finish line – charity banners along the finish funnel, an individual feather flag at the finish

and bunting with your logo within the finish marquee are all included for charities that take 40 or more places

(plus any charity can supply their own)

• Opportunity to mingle and chat to all runners at both the start marquee in Hyde Park and the finish marquee in

Bushy Park

The nitty gritty• Charity race places will cost £320 each

• Charity race places will be sold in bundles of 5 places per transaction – you can buy one bundle, several bundles or just buy more bundles as and when you need them (subject to availability as the total number of places is limited).

• We believe this will enable charities to have the chance to get involved in the growth of this exciting event for a low financial risk.

• Runners will need to be on the race database and ‘ready to run’ (completed registration) by Friday 30 August 2013

• This is a new market for most, to our knowledge we arethe first ultra marathon focusing on the charity market, so why not join us trailblazers!

“Yes, great event guys and a massive thank you to all the marshals and their amazing cheers of encouragement along the whole route.”

Rachel, 2012 runner

Royal Parks Foundation Ultra – Charity Registration

If you are interested in taking places, please complete this form and return asap:

Charity Name Contact Name

Charity Address & Registration No

Telephone / Email

Logo attached?(jpg if possible)

Yes / No Hyperlink (directing runners to your site from the Ultra site)

Number of CharityPlace Bundles (each bundle consistsof 5 race places )

Have you agreed tothe charity terms & conditions? (separate document)

Return the form via email, with your logo attached, to: Sally Barney, Events Manager, Royal Parks Foundation (sbarney@royalparksfoundation.org)