Comrades!
We’re getting dangerously close to race day.
Which means we've reached the point in race planning where all of the important work is mostly done and I can finally focus on something completely unnecessary:
Analyzing you people.
Turns out UltraSignup gives us demographic information.
I probably shouldn't have access to this.
But since I do, I figured we'd take a look at exactly what kind of people voluntarily signed up to fall flat on their face.
LADIES vs. GENTLEMEN
This one is surprisingly close compared to Badlands!
(badlands was pretty dude-heavy.... super bro-y)
52.9% Male
47.1% Female
I'm not sure what I expected, but apparently poor decision-making transcends gender.
HOW OLD ARE YOU PEOPLE?
Our biggest age group is the 40–49 crowd, with the 30–39 group right behind them.
Which means the overwhelming majority of you are old enough to know better…
…but apparently still young enough to ignore that knowledge.
We've also got runners spanning from under 20 all the way into their 70s.
I love this.
Nothing brings generations together quite like voluntarily rolling an ankle. Bring your life-alert!
WHAT DISTANCE DID YOU CHOOSE?
This is where things get interesting.
Roughly:
28% of you chose the 10K
9% chose the 18K
62% chose the 25K
So apparently when given three reasonable options, the majority of you looked at the longest one and said:
“Yeah. That seems appropriate.”
The 10K crew appears to have retained at least some sense of self-preservation.
The 18K crowd is apparently our mysterious middle child.
And the 25K runners?
You people clearly came here to get your money’s worth.
Or suffer.
Possibly both.
WHERE ARE YOU COMING FROM?
Unsurprisingly, Michigan is doing most of the heavy lifting.
Nearly 90% of DEADFALL runners are Michiganders.
But we've also somehow convinced people to travel here from:
Ohio
Iowa
California
California is particularly concerning.
Imagine having access to mountains, oceans, national parks and year-round sunshine…
…and choosing to fly to Michigan in October so Russ can send you through the "woods".
We appreciate you.
We question you.
But we appreciate you.
THE HOME-COURSE ADVANTAGE
Brighton has the strongest hometown representation, which means a decent group of you have absolutely no excuse when you get lost.
We've also got runners coming in from all over Michigan:
Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Howell, Southfield, Milford, Lansing, Detroit, Flint, Royal Oak, Saline, South Lyon, West Bloomfield, Livonia, Clio, Charlotte, and a pile of other towns scattered across the state.
So apparently word is getting around.
Whether that's a good thing remains to be seen.
WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED FROM ALL OF THIS?
Nothing really other than you're our kind of people.
We're getting close, kids.
The trails are waiting.
The leaves are changing.
The roots are slowly disappearing beneath them.
And somewhere in California, one person is beginning to question if the cost of their flight was worth it.
(no refundsies)
See you soon.
— Jay & the Blackwood Trail Racing Team
