How to format a race?
The different waiters race formats
There are several formats of waiters races depending on the following race parameters:
The route:
- Through the streets of a city from Point A to Point B or a route that starts from Point A and ends at Point A.
- Around a place or on a single street.
The rules of the race:
- Speed walking only or running
- Short sprint race with championship rally
- Against the clock race
- Spilling level checked at the end of the race
- Agility challenges along the route (obstacles)
Categories:
- men/women
- junior/senior/veteran
- best attire
It is possible to format a race using these different parameters for ideas in how to setup your race. It is also recommend to have a look at other waiters races on WaitersRace.com to get some ideas.
It is worthy to setup and organize a race using WaitersRace.com Official Labels:
- Traditional waiters race, “Classic Tray”
- Sport waiters race, “Sportive Tray”
- Fun waiters race, “Fun Tray”
Please feel free to use these Original Labels for your race: They are “Royalty-Free License Content“ under our Terms and condition (Mention “Source: WaitersRace.com, the International Waiters Races Community Website”) and inform us.
Never forget that the stars of the event are the waiters (competitors). Therefore, the organizer needs to think about what format will be best for his community and situation. This is an event to honor the profession but also bring enjoyment to the community.
Around the race
What happens around the waiters race is also a very important issue to sort out. A waiters race is the celebration of the employees and employers at cafes and restaurants in the area. People want to be a part of it. It will be more successful and enjoyable to send out an invitation to the area’s local business owners to participate in the event by setting up booths displaying their food products. Also, an area for children to play is great for families that come to the event. All these things will get the community involved and make the event a true success.
It is worthy to have music at the start and end points of a race with a commentator providing information over loudspeakers about the competitors, the challenges of the race, and the local products available by sponsors involved in the race. The presenter can also market local tourist sites in the city where your race is occurring. In short, there are many marketing options available.
How to choose the route?
Choosing the right route for the waiters race is a real challenge and a central issue to be planned. The success of the race can and may be heavily determined by this decision alone. The route will also affect the type of race. The city and the community must support the route to feel involved.
What are the different possible routes for a Waiters Race?
The traditional waiters race is an urban race. It should be attempted to organize it at a central location in the city where the highest amount of people could attend and enjoy the event. However, waiters races these days are also being organized in other areas of the city, such as a park, square, private garden, a port area, and even on cruise ships.
Basically, there are three main types of routes:
- Through the streets of the city from Point A to Point B
- Through the streets of a city going around a circle with Point A beginning and ending the race.
- An onsite race location where an audience can see the whole race without moving with the competitors.
Each of these race formats has its advantages and disadvantages that need to determine for the best fit for your particular race.
Furthermore, cities and tourist offices generally support waiters races because it provides them the opportunity to support a fun and positive event in their community that can provide information about new urban development areas in the city or generally other areas that have been slightly neglected from foot traffic. It has the potentiality to bring people to districts that usually don’t get many visitors. A waiters race can be a great opportunity to introduce tourists and locals to their city’s neighborhoods and local businesses.
Classic Waiters Race Route
The most traditional and popular route goes through the city from a point to another. It may require special authorization to close some streets to cars during the event but it offers the best exposure and makes the race a real entertainment event. Historically, most waiters races go through the city’s prestigious avenues, such as in the cities of Paris, New York or London.
This route gives the organizer the opportunity to set up two event villages: one at the start and end of the race. Some of races display live feed of the race on video, both in the village area and in the areas where the fans are watching.
The organizer can negotiate the route with shops, restaurants, and café owners. Many local businesses can setup up banners advertising their products for the community. More importantly, the start and end points of the race should be carefully chosen in order to maximize the amount of people that will be able to be gathered.
Circle Classic Waiters Race Route
Another option is to organize a circle route. It’s generally an easier route and race to organize because most of the race is centralized in one area. Popular areas to organize a circle route are famous parks, squares, and fountains. However, it is important that the area be able to accommodate the large amounts of people and competitors expected to show up.
Onsite sprint Waiters Race
This format is very popular around the world today. Again, the route plays an important role on what race to expect. Usually, the route is like a stadium track, straight or circular. Competitors walk or run along the track in groups of three or four. When running is allowed, the race can be very competitive and entertaining. One of the advantages of this format is that the audience usually has a comfortable viewing area where they can observe the race from start to finish. These kinds of races can be a coastal promenade, park, or a large popular street.
Against the clock. Onsite waiters race are particularly suitable to have competitive races based on the fastest time. Competitors run the race one after the other with the fastest competitors going the next stage. For the final, it’s recommended to organize a real race between all the final contestants.
How to schedule the event?
The date set to have the waiters race is incredibly important. Organizers have to plan this date accordingly in order to maximize the turnout of the event and not have other events occurring that day that would distract attention from the race. A scheduling mishap can greatly affect your race.
When in the year?
Winter waiters race. Waiters races in the winter are difficult due to the harsher and colder weather. Rain and snow can be unexpected natural occurrences to plan for. However, Christmas time to New Year’s is a perfect times to organize this event. People are out, shopping, and looking for things and events to entertain them.
Spring waiters race. Spring is a great time to organize a race. This is the first time the weather begins to warm up with cafes reopening their terraces. People start coming back to the cafes to enjoy sitting outside. This is a great time to organize a waiters race because this is a time when people are outside and ready to enjoy the weather.
Summer Waiters Race. Most waiters races in the world occur at this time. It is obviously the warmest time of the year and many vacations by people are planned during this time.
Bastille Day. Summer offers several occasions built specifically for waiters races. For example, the French Bastille Day (July 14th every year) which is a national French holiday, is a perfect day to organize a waiters race. Many waiters races are organized on this date in light of the celebration by the French Embassy or Alliance Francaise. Organizing your race on this day will no doubt give it a valuable French touch.
Local Summer Festival waiters race. Summer time brings festivals all around the world with thousands of people in attendance. These are great opportunities to organize a waiters race with the festival organizers. Many festivals today actually do have waiters races as part of their program.
What day in the week?
It is recommended to organize a race on a Saturday or Sunday, or whenever people will be off from work. However, religious holidays or non-working days are also great days to schedule a race (see above for Bastille Day for instance).
What time in the day?
Most waiters races take place during the early afternoon. However, it is not necessary. A waiters race held at night can be a great success if it is well planned, produced, and organized—especially during the warm and long summer nights.
