Speaker 1: Peloton has got something for whatever running mood you're in.
Speaker 1: Try instructor- led runs and walks that are built to
Speaker 1: fit into your routine with classes that help you stay
Speaker 1: consistent, build speed, and be in the moment. Track your
Speaker 1: metrics, see your progress, and train smarter. We've got it
Speaker 1: all to help you reach your goals and stay on
Speaker 1: track. Peloton, the official digital fitness partner of New York
Speaker 1: Road Runners.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Hi everybody, and welcome to a special episode of the
Rob Simmelkjaer: Set the Pace podcast presented by Peloton. If you're here
Rob Simmelkjaer: joining us live or maybe you're listening later, you know
Rob Simmelkjaer: that today New York Road Runners announced some pretty big
Rob Simmelkjaer: changes and updates to our membership program as well as
Rob Simmelkjaer: the 9+ 1 program. So joining me to talk about
Rob Simmelkjaer: all this, to break it down and explain what we
Rob Simmelkjaer: did and why we did it, New York Road Runners
Rob Simmelkjaer: vice president of strategy, planning, and analytics, Matthew Forys, joins
Rob Simmelkjaer: me. Welcome, Matthew.
Matthew Forys: Thank you so much for having me.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah.
Matthew Forys: My big debut on the pod.
Rob Simmelkjaer: That's right. It's been an interesting day at New York
Rob Simmelkjaer: Road Runners. We've been-
Matthew Forys: (inaudible) .
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah, we've been working very hard on these changes for
Rob Simmelkjaer: a long time, and so we're thrilled to have all of
Rob Simmelkjaer: you join us to explain what we did and why
Rob Simmelkjaer: we did it today. And we want to start before
Rob Simmelkjaer: we get into all the details with four things that
Rob Simmelkjaer: we want to make really clear because we know these are
Rob Simmelkjaer: common questions that we're seeing come across and we want
Rob Simmelkjaer: to just get these out of the way right at
Rob Simmelkjaer: the top. First of all, if you are doing 9+
Rob Simmelkjaer: 1 this year in 2026 to get into the 2027
Rob Simmelkjaer: TCS New York City Marathon, nothing that happened today affects
Rob Simmelkjaer: you at all. You still can finish your 9+ 1
Rob Simmelkjaer: if you haven't already and get guaranteed entry into the
Rob Simmelkjaer: 2027 TCS New York City Marathon. So that's clear, number
Rob Simmelkjaer: one. What we talked about, what we did today only affects
Rob Simmelkjaer: next year's 9+ 1 to get into the 2028 TCS
Rob Simmelkjaer: New York City Marathon. Number two, the changes that we announced
Rob Simmelkjaer: today do not affect the 4 Out of 6 program.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So if you are hoping to run the United Airlines
Rob Simmelkjaer: NYC half through the 4 Out of 6 program, this
Rob Simmelkjaer: is unaffected. This year, next year, we're not making any
Rob Simmelkjaer: changes to the 4 Out of 6 program. For most
Rob Simmelkjaer: people, number three, membership just got simpler and more equitable
Rob Simmelkjaer: for everyone. So Member Plus and Family Plus is going
Rob Simmelkjaer: away. We are terminating that level of membership. If you
Rob Simmelkjaer: are a regular member, your membership status does not change.
Rob Simmelkjaer: You will still be a regular member. If you are
Rob Simmelkjaer: a Member Plus member, you will be automatically downgraded from
Rob Simmelkjaer: Member Plus to member and you will be receiving a
Rob Simmelkjaer: refund of the difference. The difference between those two tiers
Rob Simmelkjaer: of membership is $ 60. You'll receive a prorated refund based
Rob Simmelkjaer: on how far along the membership year you are. And
Rob Simmelkjaer: so you'll be getting that automatically to the method of
Rob Simmelkjaer: payment that you used to pay for the membership. And
Rob Simmelkjaer: the fourth thing that I want to point out is
Rob Simmelkjaer: we're seeing a lot of people on social saying, " Oh,
Rob Simmelkjaer: this is going to make it so much harder now
Rob Simmelkjaer: to do the marathon." We think, Matthew, that for this
Rob Simmelkjaer: drawing, this 9+ 1 eligibility drawing that we announced today,
Rob Simmelkjaer: and we'll talk about more in a second, the chances
Rob Simmelkjaer: of getting in through this drawing will be pretty high.
Rob Simmelkjaer: In fact, based on the historical numbers that we've seen
Rob Simmelkjaer: of how many people have been trying to do 9+
Rob Simmelkjaer: 1 and completed 9+ 1, we think it'll be 50%
Rob Simmelkjaer: or more of people will get selected in this 9+
Rob Simmelkjaer: 1 eligibility drawing. So don't feel like, " Oh my gosh,
Rob Simmelkjaer: it's another drawing. I'm never going to be able to
Rob Simmelkjaer: do 9+ 1." We're accepting more than 15,000 people in
Rob Simmelkjaer: this 9+ 1 eligibility drawing. That will be fewer than the
Rob Simmelkjaer: number of people who've done 9+ 1 the last couple
Rob Simmelkjaer: of years. But, Matthew, if you go back even to
Rob Simmelkjaer: 2019 before the pandemic, we only had 10,000, 11,000, 12, 000 people getting
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1. So this is just bringing it closer to
Rob Simmelkjaer: historical levels because we've seen this huge increase over the
Rob Simmelkjaer: last few years.
Matthew Forys: Yeah, it's been really incredible. The demand with the TCS New
Matthew Forys: York City Marathon and the 9+1 program specifically really have been fueling
Matthew Forys: a lot of the demand that you see for weekly
Matthew Forys: races. People are trying to get those nine races, volunteer
Matthew Forys: once, and it really has pushed our race capacities to
Matthew Forys: its limit. So it's gotten to the point where it's
Matthew Forys: a little bit unsustainable and that's what's kind of brought
Matthew Forys: us to today to have this conversation.
Rob Simmelkjaer: That's exactly right. So that's the beginning of the conversation
Rob Simmelkjaer: about why we're doing what we're doing. And the fact
Rob Simmelkjaer: of the matter is, Matthew said it, we've seen how
Rob Simmelkjaer: hard it has been to get into races. It used to
Rob Simmelkjaer: take days, weeks sometimes for races to sell out. And
Rob Simmelkjaer: over the last couple of years, Matthew, we've been saying
Rob Simmelkjaer: it's been about two days, but really it's been minutes
Rob Simmelkjaer: or hours at best that it's taken for races to
Rob Simmelkjaer: sell out because of the two- day period between Member
Rob Simmelkjaer: Plus and membership. So we saw that, we heard how
Rob Simmelkjaer: frustrating that was. We want as many people as possible
Rob Simmelkjaer: to be able to run our races, even if they're
Rob Simmelkjaer: not trying to do 9+1. And that was really what we've
Rob Simmelkjaer: been working on a fix for now for quite a
Rob Simmelkjaer: long time.
Matthew Forys: Yeah. I mean, if you go back to 2019, the average days to
Matthew Forys: sell out about 121 days, and we actually had four races
Matthew Forys: that never sold out that year. So take that to
Matthew Forys: now, hours, minutes, not days to sell out. So it's
Matthew Forys: really been a pretty stark change. And what we've also
Matthew Forys: seen in terms of trends is that because a lot
Matthew Forys: of folks are going for 9+ 1, Q1 and Q2 races, so
Matthew Forys: our January through June races, they sell out even quicker
Matthew Forys: because people are really trying to get their program set done.
Matthew Forys: So the trend, you probably have all have experienced it
Matthew Forys: during race launches. And for a little bit more context,
Matthew Forys: the 9+ 1 program specifically, we'd seen growth of about
Matthew Forys: 29% since 2019, which is huge year over year from
Matthew Forys: '24 to '25, we saw a 7% growth just in that year,
Matthew Forys: and we expect even more coming into end of 2026.
Matthew Forys: So the trends are continuing to go exponentially higher, and
Matthew Forys: that's why we're looking at some change.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah. And, Matthew, we've been talking about this for quite
Rob Simmelkjaer: some time. Matthew unfortunately has been the recipient of more
Rob Simmelkjaer: than a few late night Teams messages from me or
Rob Simmelkjaer: weekend messages. " What are we going to do about this?
Rob Simmelkjaer: How are we going to fix this?" So this has
Rob Simmelkjaer: been a topic we've talked about for quite a long
Rob Simmelkjaer: time. And over the last year, we have definitely been
Rob Simmelkjaer: testing a few things to try to figure out how
Rob Simmelkjaer: we could improve accessibility of races. Can you talk about
Rob Simmelkjaer: some of the things we tried this year and how
Rob Simmelkjaer: those worked out?
Matthew Forys: Yeah, for sure. So you guys have probably all seen
Matthew Forys: some of the changes we've made. We started with our
Matthew Forys: first pilot, which was changing the Manhattan 10K to a
Matthew Forys: drawing. We saw great success, there are a lot of people
Matthew Forys: interested, and it became a more accessible race because it
Matthew Forys: wasn't raced to the keyboard to get in. We then
Matthew Forys: changed the advanced registration access for members, so they got
Matthew Forys: access to more races earlier in the advanced registration period,
Matthew Forys: and then we put registration caps on the advanced period
Matthew Forys: so that there actually would be entries still available during
Matthew Forys: general registration. So we tried all those things, still needed to
Matthew Forys: attempt some new pilots to solve this problem. So most
Matthew Forys: recently we did two buckets of entries for every race.
Matthew Forys: We had 9+ 1 eligible entries and a non 9+
Matthew Forys: 1 eligible entries. Both of those sold out in record
Matthew Forys: time, so it really shows that there's a lot of
Matthew Forys: people out there trying to do 9+ 1, but there's
Matthew Forys: a lot of folks that aren't. And I think those
Matthew Forys: are the two communities we're trying to work with, and
Matthew Forys: we want both to be able to run our races
Matthew Forys: and to be part of our running community.
Rob Simmelkjaer: The other thing I'll say about some of those things
Rob Simmelkjaer: we tried out, all of those things were further complicated
Rob Simmelkjaer: by the fact that we had the Member Plus level
Rob Simmelkjaer: of membership. So everything we did, there had to be
Rob Simmelkjaer: a two- day advanced window for Member Plus before it
Rob Simmelkjaer: got to members. It was just a very complicated and
Rob Simmelkjaer: not egalitarian ecosystem, which is why we've changed some of
Rob Simmelkjaer: the membership tiers and eliminated Member Plus as I mentioned.
Rob Simmelkjaer: We'll talk about that more in just a moment. But
Rob Simmelkjaer: let's start with the first headline here, which is this
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1 eligibility drawing that will take place on October
Rob Simmelkjaer: 1st for the very first time. And let's just talk
Rob Simmelkjaer: about how this is going to work. So, Matthew, who
Rob Simmelkjaer: is this drawing going to be for? How do people
Rob Simmelkjaer: get in, and what does it mean if you're selected?
Matthew Forys: Yeah. So this drawing, as 9+ 1 has always been,
Matthew Forys: it's a member program. You have to be an NYRR member to be
Matthew Forys: part of this drawing, and you have to be a
Matthew Forys: member as of September 16th, as of 11: 59 PM. You
Matthew Forys: have to remain a member through drawing day, which will
Matthew Forys: be on October 1st. The application window, which you will
Matthew Forys: need to apply, is September 17th through 29th. Similar to
Matthew Forys: how we run other drawings, you apply during the registration
Matthew Forys: period on October 1st, we'll run the drawing. As long
Matthew Forys: as you meet those eligibility criteria, you'll be part of
Matthew Forys: that drawing. As Rob mentioned, we're going to be accepting
Matthew Forys: about 15,000 people through that drawing. And once you're in
Matthew Forys: the program, once you're selected, you will become a 9+
Matthew Forys: 1 Passholder. And the Passholder process is really our way of
Matthew Forys: helping to clear a pathway for you to your 9+1. We
Matthew Forys: know that over the past few years, it's been hard
Matthew Forys: to get those nine races. It's a battle at the
Matthew Forys: keyboard. And what we're trying to do with our Passholders
Matthew Forys: is make sure that we create a pathway for them to
Matthew Forys: get those nine races. So there's been some information sent
Matthew Forys: out today about details about that program, and we're really
Matthew Forys: excited, and we think people are really going to feel
Matthew Forys: a little less stressed getting their nine races.
Rob Simmelkjaer: That's right. So the Passholder program we'll talk about how it's
Rob Simmelkjaer: going to work in a bit, but it will really
Rob Simmelkjaer: be a glide path for people to be able to
Rob Simmelkjaer: get the nine races and the one volunteer opportunity that
Rob Simmelkjaer: they need to complete their 9+ 1 versus this super high-
Rob Simmelkjaer: stress situation that we've seen people go through. Now, I
Rob Simmelkjaer: want to talk about the price of that for a
Rob Simmelkjaer: second and the economic reality of this. So we announced
Rob Simmelkjaer: that if you are selected in the 9+ 1 eligibility
Rob Simmelkjaer: drawing, you will be automatically charged $ 99 to become a
Rob Simmelkjaer: Passholder in this 9+ 1 Passholder program. Your credit card
Rob Simmelkjaer: will have to be put on file just as it
Rob Simmelkjaer: is for our other drawings, and you'll be charged automatically.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Now, why are we charging $ 99 for this? Well, first
Rob Simmelkjaer: and foremost, as I mentioned earlier, because of this change,
Rob Simmelkjaer: it was necessary for us and the right thing to
Rob Simmelkjaer: do to eliminate the Member Plus tier of membership. So,
Rob Simmelkjaer: now, since most people who have been able to accomplish
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1 over the last couple of years have pretty
Rob Simmelkjaer: much had to be Member Plus in order to do
Rob Simmelkjaer: that, those people are going from $ 120 membership fee down
Rob Simmelkjaer: to $ 60, which is the base membership fee. So that's
Rob Simmelkjaer: a $ 60 refund that all those people are getting over
Rob Simmelkjaer: the course of a year. They will then be charged $
Rob Simmelkjaer: 99 for this pass program. So for those people, they're
Rob Simmelkjaer: paying an additional $ 39 per year if they're selected in
Rob Simmelkjaer: the drawing to do 9+ 1. They will still have
Rob Simmelkjaer: to pay the race fees, whatever races it is that
Rob Simmelkjaer: they're doing. They will still have to pay, of course,
Rob Simmelkjaer: the fee to run the TCS New York City Marathon
Rob Simmelkjaer: in 2028. But it is a net increase for most
Rob Simmelkjaer: people of $ 39 for the entire year to do this. And
Rob Simmelkjaer: as we talked about, the amount of convenience that one gets
Rob Simmelkjaer: from being able to do it this way versus having
Rob Simmelkjaer: to scramble every time races go on sale to get
Rob Simmelkjaer: in, we think is more than worth that price. And
Rob Simmelkjaer: realistically speaking, we want to make something clear. We have,
Rob Simmelkjaer: at this point, about 20, 000 Member Plus members at New
Rob Simmelkjaer: York Road Runners, and we are eliminating that class of
Rob Simmelkjaer: membership and going back to $ 60. So that is 20,000
Rob Simmelkjaer: times 60, which is $1. 2 million of lost revenue to
Rob Simmelkjaer: New York Road Runners. This $ 99 pass program is in
Rob Simmelkjaer: part helping us recover some of that lost revenue so
Rob Simmelkjaer: we can continue to provide the experiences that people are
Rob Simmelkjaer: used to receiving from New York Road Runners. So want
Rob Simmelkjaer: to make that really clear why this is being charged,
Rob Simmelkjaer: what the math is, and why we're doing it the
Rob Simmelkjaer: way we're doing it. So let's talk more about how
Rob Simmelkjaer: people who have this 9+ 1 pass are going to
Rob Simmelkjaer: be able to get into races to make it easy
Rob Simmelkjaer: for them to qualify for 9+ 1.
Matthew Forys: Sure, sure. So if you are selected on Drawing Day
Matthew Forys: on October 1st, you'll be receiving a survey in that
Matthew Forys: acceptance, which will ask you to confirm at minimum three
Matthew Forys: races for quarter one, so January through March races that
Matthew Forys: you'd be available for. We will then do a matching
Matthew Forys: process on our side to ensure that each runner that
Matthew Forys: submits that survey on time and correctly gets matched to
Matthew Forys: a race for that quarter. So they don't need to
Matthew Forys: rush to the keyboard. The day we launch, you're going
Matthew Forys: to have up to a week to just claim that
Matthew Forys: entry in the system so there's not a rush. For
Matthew Forys: the first quarter of races, we're doing one race. For
Matthew Forys: the second quarter, we're doing another race. Third quarter and
Matthew Forys: fourth quarter, we'll do two each. So we're creating a in-
Matthew Forys: person race pathway for every 9+ 1 Passholder for six
Matthew Forys: races. We also then have the three virtual races, which
Matthew Forys: we're encouraging people to sign up for. They don't have
Matthew Forys: to do three virtual. They can sign up for three in-
Matthew Forys: person races on their own and finish 9+ 1 with
Matthew Forys: all in- person races if they'd like. But the virtual
Matthew Forys: races, there's not a rush to the keyboard. We're communicating
Matthew Forys: out when those will be available for registration. And so
Matthew Forys: it's an easy way to get your other three in.
Rob Simmelkjaer: That's right. So to be clear, we're creating a very
Rob Simmelkjaer: easy way for you to get six in- person races.
Rob Simmelkjaer: The three virtual races are available to everyone, and that
Rob Simmelkjaer: gets you to your nine races. As Matthew said, you
Rob Simmelkjaer: don't have to do the virtual races. If you want
Rob Simmelkjaer: to do nine in- person races, that's great. You're only
Rob Simmelkjaer: going to get six through this program that we've mentioned,
Rob Simmelkjaer: but if you get three on your own through the
Rob Simmelkjaer: usual signup process, then fantastic, you've got your nine races
Rob Simmelkjaer: that way. So that is a way to do it.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And then as far as the volunteer assignment goes, that's
Rob Simmelkjaer: going to go through the normal means that we've had
Rob Simmelkjaer: over the years. But we know, Matthew, that it's going
Rob Simmelkjaer: to be much easier to get that volunteer assignment than
Rob Simmelkjaer: it's been over the last few years.
Matthew Forys: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, by trimming back the 9+ 1,
Matthew Forys: people trying to achieve it automatically, we have plenty of
Matthew Forys: volunteer spots. Now, depending on time of year on which you want
Matthew Forys: to volunteer, there may be some times where there is still
Matthew Forys: a lot of demand, but it's a full year where you can
Matthew Forys: get that plus one opportunity and there will be plenty
Matthew Forys: across the whole year, so there's not a rush to
Matthew Forys: get it done right away. There will be an opportunity
Matthew Forys: for you to volunteer for your plus one credit during
Matthew Forys: the year.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. And again, as I said at the top of
Rob Simmelkjaer: this podcast, if you're in the middle of 9+ 1
Rob Simmelkjaer: this year to do the marathon next year, this does
Rob Simmelkjaer: not affect you at all. All right. Now, we mentioned
Rob Simmelkjaer: earlier that we are changing membership. As I mentioned a
Rob Simmelkjaer: couple of times, we're eliminating Member Plus and Family Plus.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Matthew, can you talk about why, given this change that
Rob Simmelkjaer: we're making and introducing this 9+ 1 eligibility drawing, we
Rob Simmelkjaer: really had to eliminate the Member Plus and Family Plus
Rob Simmelkjaer: tiers of membership?
Matthew Forys: Yeah. I mean, from what we've seen, majority of the folks
Matthew Forys: that are part of the Member Plus and Family Plus
Matthew Forys: programs were doing it to complete 9+ 1. They were
Matthew Forys: paying the extra to get the advanced registration to complete
Matthew Forys: their 9+ 1 program. So by creating this drawing, it's
Matthew Forys: devaluating that benefit. And we realized that and we're like, " This
Matthew Forys: is the right thing to do, is to even out
Matthew Forys: the playing field and create access for all members." What
Matthew Forys: this also does is all members now have advanced registration.
Matthew Forys: So the first day we launched, two days before general
Matthew Forys: public has access, every member level will be able to
Matthew Forys: register for races. So it really creates a more accessible,
Matthew Forys: equitable space for entry, and I think it just was
Matthew Forys: the common sense kind of solution once we decided the
Matthew Forys: drawing was the right way to go.
Rob Simmelkjaer: That's right. So, again, I want to make sure people
Rob Simmelkjaer: understand that because that's a big change and it's a big
Rob Simmelkjaer: headline. For the races that will launch for the January
Rob Simmelkjaer: to March 2027 set of races, that launch will be
Rob Simmelkjaer: on October 14th, 2026 after the drawing has taken place,
Rob Simmelkjaer: after people know whether they were selected in that drawing
Rob Simmelkjaer: or not. All members will have two days of advanced
Rob Simmelkjaer: registration for that set of races, and there will be no longer
Rob Simmelkjaer: a tiering of members. All members will get that two
Rob Simmelkjaer: days exclusive advanced registration before those races go on sale
Rob Simmelkjaer: to the general public. Advanced registration, as has been the
Rob Simmelkjaer: case, doesn't apply to certain races like New York Runners
Rob Simmelkjaer: Team Championships, Team Champs, the Start Line Series, any of
Rob Simmelkjaer: the races that are part of the drawing, to be
Rob Simmelkjaer: clear, those races still are subject to drawing like the
Rob Simmelkjaer: United Airlines, NYC Half, the RBC Brooklyn Half, and of
Rob Simmelkjaer: course the TCS New York City Marathon. By the way,
Rob Simmelkjaer: those drawing races will still give you 9+ 1 credit.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So if you already are planning to run one of
Rob Simmelkjaer: those races, you know you're going to run the Half,
Rob Simmelkjaer: maybe you already completed 4 Out of 6, that is
Rob Simmelkjaer: a race you'll get 9+ 1 credit for if you
Rob Simmelkjaer: are selected in the 9+ 1 eligibility drawing. And again,
Rob Simmelkjaer: a lot of this, Matthew, is philosophically, we have been
Rob Simmelkjaer: concerned at the value of the base membership at New
Rob Simmelkjaer: York Road Runners. And we've seen people asking the question, " What
Rob Simmelkjaer: is the benefit of having this membership if I can't
Rob Simmelkjaer: get into any races?" So that is a key part
Rob Simmelkjaer: of this is bringing the value back to the base
Rob Simmelkjaer: level of membership at New York Road Runners.
Matthew Forys: Absolutely. Yeah. And trimming back the 9+ 1 program slightly
Matthew Forys: does help that. There's going to be less people going
Matthew Forys: for nine races, which means there's going to be space
Matthew Forys: for everyone. And I think it'll be interesting to see
Matthew Forys: how the trends go throughout the year. We're really trying
Matthew Forys: to emphasize that you don't need to hoard races in
Matthew Forys: Q1 to make sure you hit your nine. We have
Matthew Forys: a plan, we're working with you to create this pathway
Matthew Forys: so that it's a little bit more stretched out and
Matthew Forys: people will be able to run throughout the year. And
Matthew Forys: what I will add to your last comment there, so
Matthew Forys: when we launch races on October 14th, any Passholder will
Matthew Forys: know which race they've been matched with through the program.
Matthew Forys: So say you're a Passholder, you get matched with Al
Matthew Forys: Gordon, you'll know before launch day that you're matched with
Matthew Forys: Al Gordon. So when you go to register for another
Matthew Forys: race or two, you're going to say, " No, I know
Matthew Forys: in my system I'm going to be able to register
Matthew Forys: for this. Let me pick Fred Lebow. I'll run Fred
Matthew Forys: Lebow as well." And you can just register for that
Matthew Forys: at that time.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yes. And we're hoping that having the knowledge that you've
Rob Simmelkjaer: got at least one race in the bank and that
Rob Simmelkjaer: you're going to get six over the course of the
Rob Simmelkjaer: year will take away a little bit of the panic
Rob Simmelkjaer: that people have been having when races launch so that it
Rob Simmelkjaer: will become a much calmer experience signing up for races.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Matthew, you mentioned that we know demand will be somewhat
Rob Simmelkjaer: curtailed for races because we're limiting the size of the
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1 field. There's a question we're getting a lot is, "
Rob Simmelkjaer: Okay, how big has the 9+ 1 field been? How
Rob Simmelkjaer: many people have been trying to do 9+ 1 and
Rob Simmelkjaer: how much is this going to change this?" So if
Rob Simmelkjaer: we assume that we're going to select about 15,000 people
Rob Simmelkjaer: in this 9+ 1 eligibility drawing, that's going to be a
Rob Simmelkjaer: 15% to 20% decrease from the number of people who
Rob Simmelkjaer: have been successfully achieving 9+ 1 in the last year
Rob Simmelkjaer: or two, and we believe but don't know exactly how
Rob Simmelkjaer: many, but we believe between about 22,000 to maybe 25, 000
Rob Simmelkjaer: people have been trying to do 9+ 1 at least
Rob Simmelkjaer: from the beginning. So in the first set of races,
Rob Simmelkjaer: we think that's about the number of people who are
Rob Simmelkjaer: at least trying at the outset to do 9+ 1.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So this is going to be a really significant reduction in
Rob Simmelkjaer: the number of people who are trying to accomplish 9+
Rob Simmelkjaer: 1, plus the fact that they're already going to have,
Rob Simmelkjaer: as we've mentioned, this glide path to getting six races.
Matthew Forys: Yeah. It should be a change that people feel and
Matthew Forys: see during the process, so that was the goal. We
Matthew Forys: want to make this registration process smoother for all of
Matthew Forys: our runners whether you're on the 9+ 1 path or
Matthew Forys: just want to run some 5Ks and 10Ks with us.
Rob Simmelkjaer: That's right. So those are the headlines. We're doing this
Rob Simmelkjaer: to ease the demand into races to make it easier
Rob Simmelkjaer: for both people who are doing 9+ 1 and people
Rob Simmelkjaer: who are not doing 9+ 1 to get into races.
Rob Simmelkjaer: We wanted to align the size of the 9+ 1
Rob Simmelkjaer: program to how many races we have, how many spaces
Rob Simmelkjaer: we have available both in all the races all year,
Rob Simmelkjaer: and by the way, also in the marathon. Because as
Rob Simmelkjaer: the 9+ 1 field has gotten bigger and bigger, that
Rob Simmelkjaer: has taken away slots in the marathon from other things
Rob Simmelkjaer: that we want to do and other groups that we
Rob Simmelkjaer: want to have in the marathon. The biggest loss when
Rob Simmelkjaer: it comes to the marathon field has been the drawing,
Rob Simmelkjaer: which has become much, much smaller. And you saw that
Rob Simmelkjaer: fewer than 1% of people who signed up for the drawing
Rob Simmelkjaer: for this year's marathon were able to get in. So
Rob Simmelkjaer: we want the drawing to be bigger, we want time
Rob Simmelkjaer: qualifiers to be bigger. We've had to really cut back
Rob Simmelkjaer: on how many people we could let in because of
Rob Simmelkjaer: time qualification, both Road Runners and non- Road Runners races.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So that's going to help that group as well. We
Rob Simmelkjaer: of course want to have a significant charity field, an
Rob Simmelkjaer: international field. So these things will all benefit from having
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1 back under control.
Matthew Forys: Yeah, no, perfect point. It's the combination of both the
Matthew Forys: registration experience for weekly races that we want to be
Matthew Forys: better. We also want to create other opportunities for people
Matthew Forys: to run the marathon that is not just this, and this
Matthew Forys: will definitely help that.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. So we got lots and lots of questions.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Thank you all for your questions. Literally hundreds of questions
Rob Simmelkjaer: were submitted today. We've tried to boil them down to
Rob Simmelkjaer: the most common question, at least in terms of the
Rob Simmelkjaer: general gist of those questions. So first question, Nicoletta asked, "
Rob Simmelkjaer: What happens if you're not selected in the drawing? Can
Rob Simmelkjaer: you still go about taking part in 9+ 1 to
Rob Simmelkjaer: get guaranteed entry, or is that available only to runners
Rob Simmelkjaer: who get selected in the drawing and are 9+ 1
Rob Simmelkjaer: Passholders?" That is correct, you cannot do 9+ 1 if you are
Rob Simmelkjaer: not selected in this drawing. Only people selected in the
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1 eligibility drawing on October 1st will be able to
Rob Simmelkjaer: do 9+ 1 in 2027 for the 2028 TCS New York
Rob Simmelkjaer: City Marathon. You can still run races, you can still
Rob Simmelkjaer: run nine races, you could still run nine races and
Rob Simmelkjaer: volunteer at one race if you're not selected in the drawing.
Rob Simmelkjaer: That's fantastic. You can do all of that, but you
Rob Simmelkjaer: will not be able to get into the 2028 marathon
Rob Simmelkjaer: if you are not selected in the 9+ 1 eligibility drawing. So
Rob Simmelkjaer: that is the answer to that question. We had a
Rob Simmelkjaer: question from someone named Sid who asked, " For clarity, if
Rob Simmelkjaer: you obtain or receive a pass in the new 9+
Rob Simmelkjaer: 1 pass program, you still need to complete nine races
Rob Simmelkjaer: and be volunteer at one?" That's correct, you still need
Rob Simmelkjaer: to run the races and volunteer at one. So this is
Rob Simmelkjaer: not a drawing to get into the marathon. This is a
Rob Simmelkjaer: drawing to have the opportunity to do 9+ 1.
Matthew Forys: Yeah, exactly. So you still have all the same requirements
Matthew Forys: of the current program. You need to run nine races
Matthew Forys: in the calendar year that are eligible. Same group of
Matthew Forys: races are still eligible, so it's like cross country isn't
Matthew Forys: included, the track races we have are not included, but
Matthew Forys: typical races are still included in that. You still need
Matthew Forys: to do one volunteer opportunity throughout the year, and you
Matthew Forys: do need to be a member as of the end
Matthew Forys: of the year, 12/ 31, to get that guaranteed entry
Matthew Forys: to the 2028 TCS New York City Marathon. So very similar
Matthew Forys: process once you become a Passholder, except we're helping you
Matthew Forys: get in the races.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. Someone named Sonya Rose asked, " What happens if
Rob Simmelkjaer: a runner is sick or injured or unable to run
Rob Simmelkjaer: in a specific quarter? With the new rules, they're only
Rob Simmelkjaer: matched to six races throughout the year. Does that make
Rob Simmelkjaer: it impossible to sit at a quarter and still complete
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1?" No, it is not impossible to sit at
Rob Simmelkjaer: a quarter and still complete 9+ 1. What that would
Rob Simmelkjaer: mean if that happened to you is you'd have to
Rob Simmelkjaer: go and replace whatever races you missed in that quarter
Rob Simmelkjaer: with other races that you would get on your own
Rob Simmelkjaer: through the normal signup process. So let's say you get
Rob Simmelkjaer: hurt in the first quarter and you miss the one
Rob Simmelkjaer: race that you're assigned to through the past program, you
Rob Simmelkjaer: would just have to go out when you're healthy again
Rob Simmelkjaer: and find another race to sign up for on your
Rob Simmelkjaer: own that would replace that race.
Matthew Forys: Exactly. Yep.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. Another question came from someone named Lindsay who said, "
Rob Simmelkjaer: Given how much money you're charging and the inaccessibility that
Rob Simmelkjaer: you're creating for runners, will you walk back the program
Rob Simmelkjaer: and consider community feedback?" I'll say a couple things about
Rob Simmelkjaer: this. First of all, we did get feedback from members
Rob Simmelkjaer: as we were considering these changes. We went through a
Rob Simmelkjaer: whole set of focus groups a couple years ago when
Rob Simmelkjaer: we were thinking about making changes for members, and this
Rob Simmelkjaer: was one idea that was very prominent in the set
Rob Simmelkjaer: of suggestions we got from members in those focus groups.
Rob Simmelkjaer: But I talked about the money before, I talked about
Rob Simmelkjaer: what this actually means from a financial point of view,
Rob Simmelkjaer: and we think it is a very reasonable positioning that we're
Rob Simmelkjaer: creating by offering this while also rolling back Member Plus.
Rob Simmelkjaer: One thing I do want to add when it comes
Rob Simmelkjaer: to the accessibility of this, if you're not familiar with
Rob Simmelkjaer: our Race Free program, our Race Free program gives thousands
Rob Simmelkjaer: of New Yorkers every year the opportunity to run our
Rob Simmelkjaer: races, including the marathon, for free. This will be extended
Rob Simmelkjaer: to the 9+ 1 Passholder program. There will be an
Rob Simmelkjaer: opportunity for people who need the economic assistance of running
Rob Simmelkjaer: races for free to be able to get free entry
Rob Simmelkjaer: into the 9+1 Passholder program, into the races, and into
Rob Simmelkjaer: the marathon all for free. That will only be available
Rob Simmelkjaer: to people who meet the criteria that is needed to
Rob Simmelkjaer: be in our race- free program, but that will be something
Rob Simmelkjaer: that we'll be rolling out a little bit later on
Rob Simmelkjaer: this year. So more to come on that. All right, "
Rob Simmelkjaer: How many 9+ 1 passes will be available? And how
Rob Simmelkjaer: does this number compare to the number of 9+ 1
Rob Simmelkjaer: entries for 2025 and '26?" I talked about this a little bit.
Rob Simmelkjaer: We're going to select at least 15,000 people into this
Rob Simmelkjaer: program. That compares to '25 and '26. I said it's going
Rob Simmelkjaer: to be about a 20% reduction in the number of people
Rob Simmelkjaer: who actually get into the marathon through 9+ 1, and it
Rob Simmelkjaer: will be even a bigger reduction from the number of
Rob Simmelkjaer: people we think have been trying to do 9+ 1.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So it's a reduction, but it is not a crazy
Rob Simmelkjaer: reduction. And, Matthew, as we said, if you go back
Rob Simmelkjaer: four or five years, this is actually an increase from
Rob Simmelkjaer: 2019 levels in terms of how many people were completing
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1 back then.
Matthew Forys: Yep, exactly.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. Go ahead.
Matthew Forys: No, I was going to say, yeah, that's spot on. I think it's going to be
Matthew Forys: a really large group that we accepted or we accept.
Matthew Forys: As you mentioned, it's going to be potentially over 50%.
Matthew Forys: Obviously, that depends on how many people apply for it,
Matthew Forys: but I think based on our projections right now, it's going to be
Matthew Forys: a solid group that gets accepted into the program.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Someone named Jenny asked, " While I understand the demand has
Rob Simmelkjaer: grown steeply and changes have to be made, I want
Rob Simmelkjaer: to know if there was any consideration to grandfathering in long-
Rob Simmelkjaer: term members, maybe those with 15 or more years, as
Rob Simmelkjaer: being eligible for a 9+ 1 passport each year." No, this
Rob Simmelkjaer: is not something that we consider, Jenny. This question gets
Rob Simmelkjaer: asked a lot. We have a lot of long- time
Rob Simmelkjaer: members back from the days when it was much easier
Rob Simmelkjaer: to do all of these things and there wasn't nearly as
Rob Simmelkjaer: much interest in the races as there is now who
Rob Simmelkjaer: want some special consideration. Our mission at New York Road
Rob Simmelkjaer: Runners is to get people running. We want both new
Rob Simmelkjaer: people and existing longstanding members to run, and we have
Rob Simmelkjaer: never felt it made sense or was fair to advantage
Rob Simmelkjaer: people who've been running with us for a long time
Rob Simmelkjaer: over people who are new who want to start running.
Rob Simmelkjaer: We want as many people running in our community as
Rob Simmelkjaer: possible, and so we will continue to treat all members, whether
Rob Simmelkjaer: they've been members for a long time or just joined
Rob Simmelkjaer: yesterday, the same when it comes to this program and
Rob Simmelkjaer: everything else that we do. So that is not something
Rob Simmelkjaer: that we consider. Thank you for the question. Sonya Rose
Rob Simmelkjaer: asked the question we've talked about a bit before, " Is
Rob Simmelkjaer: it possible to complete 9+ 1 without signing up for
Rob Simmelkjaer: virtual races?"
Matthew Forys: Absolutely. As mentioned, we're going to help you create a
Matthew Forys: path to six in- person races, so the other three
Matthew Forys: will be on you to make sure you log in
Matthew Forys: on the day that we launch races to sign up
Matthew Forys: for three more. You can do that throughout the course
Matthew Forys: of the year, so it's not required that you do
Matthew Forys: virtual races. It's just a suggestion. If you want to
Matthew Forys: take a little stress off the keyboard time, you'll know you
Matthew Forys: at least have three through the virtual program.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Someone named Matt asked the question whether we could prioritize
Rob Simmelkjaer: local members in participating in 9+ 1 over those who
Rob Simmelkjaer: live outside the New York City area? So the 9+
Rob Simmelkjaer: 1 program is primarily for local runners, for obvious reasons.
Rob Simmelkjaer: You got to be local for the most part if
Rob Simmelkjaer: you're going to run nine races and volunteer at one. Now,
Rob Simmelkjaer: we're not creating any preference or advantage in the drawing
Rob Simmelkjaer: for people who have certain ZIP codes, but we believe,
Rob Simmelkjaer: and this is consistent with the historical 9+ 1 data-
Matthew Forys: Absolutely.
Rob Simmelkjaer: ... that the vast, vast majority, practically all 9+ 1 people
Rob Simmelkjaer: are living within the Tri- State area.
Matthew Forys: Yeah, it's majority. You'll see one or two from outside
Matthew Forys: the Tri- State area, but it really is very heavy
Matthew Forys: local, people that can drive in on the weekends. And
Matthew Forys: obviously, the five boroughs, a huge presence from the five
Matthew Forys: boroughs in the program. So we don't expect this change
Matthew Forys: to change the demographics of the program, and we expect
Matthew Forys: it to be very heavily New York City area folks.
Matthew Forys: So yeah, I don't see a change there.
Rob Simmelkjaer: A non- New York City person asked the question whether
Rob Simmelkjaer: there will be an opportunity to make the 9+ 1
Rob Simmelkjaer: program virtual for people who do not live in New
Rob Simmelkjaer: York City. And the answer to that is no, we're
Rob Simmelkjaer: not going to make the 9+ 1 program virtual. A
Rob Simmelkjaer: huge part of the reason we have 9+ 1 is
Rob Simmelkjaer: because we want New York area runners to have a
Rob Simmelkjaer: special opportunity to run their whole marathon. That is why
Rob Simmelkjaer: we have such a big program for 9+ 1, that
Rob Simmelkjaer: is why 15,000 or more people will be selected through
Rob Simmelkjaer: this drawing because we want New Yorkers to have a
Rob Simmelkjaer: real leg up when it comes to running the TCS
Rob Simmelkjaer: New York City Marathon. And that will continue to be
Rob Simmelkjaer: the case. There are lots of opportunities for non- local
Rob Simmelkjaer: and international runners to run, whether that be through charity,
Rob Simmelkjaer: through our International Tour Operators program, or through the drawing,
Rob Simmelkjaer: and others as well, speed as well if you're a
Rob Simmelkjaer: time qualifier. So those methods will remain in place and there will
Rob Simmelkjaer: be no change to any of that. " Will 9+ 1
Rob Simmelkjaer: Passholders receive a prorated race fee since they already paid $
Rob Simmelkjaer: 99?" Want to take that one?
Matthew Forys: Sure. Oh, sorry. No, there's no prorated race fee. The $
Matthew Forys: 99, as mentioned, is to be part of the Passholder program. It's going to support
Matthew Forys: your journey to accomplish the nine races. And as Rob
Matthew Forys: mentioned, we've removed a whole membership tier. The base level
Matthew Forys: membership now is $ 60 across the board for everyone. So this is
Matthew Forys: a different fee. You still have to pay all your
Matthew Forys: race fees. You have to pay the marathon fee once
Matthew Forys: you complete your 9+ 1 program. So everything from that
Matthew Forys: perspective is the same. You'll just be charged $ 99 if
Matthew Forys: you're accepted into the program.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right, Matt, we got a couple of questions about
Rob Simmelkjaer: the 15+ and Streakers programs as we knew would be
Rob Simmelkjaer: the case. And the question is, " What about people who
Rob Simmelkjaer: are working towards their Streakers or 15+, which would give
Rob Simmelkjaer: them guaranteed entry for life into the marathon?"
Matthew Forys: Yeah, for sure. This was a group we wanted to
Matthew Forys: make sure we accommodated. So for those runners that will be
Matthew Forys: at 13 or 14 marathons after this year's marathon, we're
Matthew Forys: creating a grandfathered process for them to get a pass
Matthew Forys: for the next two years. So if you're really close
Matthew Forys: to achieving your streaker status, we're going to support you
Matthew Forys: over the next two years to get there. For folks
Matthew Forys: that are under that, so if they're at 12, 11, 10,
Matthew Forys: there's plenty of different ways, as you discussed, to get
Matthew Forys: into the marathon over the next few years to still
Matthew Forys: hit your 15. So that's currently the plan. And those
Matthew Forys: runners have already been contacted directly. They got a little
Matthew Forys: bit of a different email today. So they know what
Matthew Forys: they need to do in order to claim their pass.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Right. And that's one area that we did feel it
Rob Simmelkjaer: was necessary to give some grandfathering to if people are
Rob Simmelkjaer: that close to getting that Streakers, 15+ status. We didn't want
Rob Simmelkjaer: to take it away from them when it was that close.
Rob Simmelkjaer: But even if you're at seven or eight or nine,
Rob Simmelkjaer: you still have a great chance to do it. You
Rob Simmelkjaer: can try the drawing, the 9+ 1 eligibility drawing, I
Rob Simmelkjaer: mean. If you don't get in there, then you can
Rob Simmelkjaer: look for options like Team for Kids, like the drawing,
Rob Simmelkjaer: and other options as well. So that's still very much available
Rob Simmelkjaer: to people who want to do that. Ted asked a question, "
Rob Simmelkjaer: What options will exist to participate in the marathon if
Rob Simmelkjaer: a member is not selected in the drawing for the
Rob Simmelkjaer: new 9+ 1 pass?" Well, we just talked about that.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All the ways that we've had, whether it's running for
Rob Simmelkjaer: a charity, including Team for Kids, entering the drawing, all
Rob Simmelkjaer: those are still available to you and those are still
Rob Simmelkjaer: very good ways to get into the marathon. We're doing this
Rob Simmelkjaer: drawing, keep in mind, more than two years away from
Rob Simmelkjaer: the marathon that is actually affected. We're doing a drawing
Rob Simmelkjaer: on October 1st, 2026 that affects eligibility to run the 2028
Rob Simmelkjaer: TCS New York City Marathon. So if you don't get
Rob Simmelkjaer: selected in this drawing, you still have lots of time
Rob Simmelkjaer: and lots of time to figure out how you can
Rob Simmelkjaer: get into that marathon, which is still going to be
Rob Simmelkjaer: two years away. All right, we've got a question about
Rob Simmelkjaer: from Sarah. And the question is, " How are you managing
Rob Simmelkjaer: the issue of people who have the 9+ 1 passport
Rob Simmelkjaer: but don't complete it? Is there a wait list for
Rob Simmelkjaer: people to get the 9+ 1 passport?"
Matthew Forys: No, no. We're planning to accept the number of people
Matthew Forys: that we want to have the ability to complete the
Matthew Forys: program. We know there'll be a little bit of fall
Matthew Forys: off. Life events happen throughout the course of the year, but
Matthew Forys: we are projecting to have kind of the number that
Matthew Forys: we need or want to fill the races throughout the
Matthew Forys: year. So there's no wait list, there's no process for
Matthew Forys: that. But as you mentioned, there's other ways to get
Matthew Forys: in if you don't get a passport this year.
Rob Simmelkjaer: We're continuing to get questions and answer them as they
Rob Simmelkjaer: come in, so we're going to keep doing this for
Rob Simmelkjaer: quite some time. Okay. Someone named Alaria asked, " If a paying
Rob Simmelkjaer: member who's not interested in the 9+ 1 program, will
Rob Simmelkjaer: they still have access to advanced registration to races?" Absolutely
Rob Simmelkjaer: yes. So if you're not interested in doing 9+ 1,
Rob Simmelkjaer: do not sign up for the drawing. You as a
Rob Simmelkjaer: member will have advanced registration to those races. So 100%,
Rob Simmelkjaer: if you're not trying to do 9+ 1, this is a
Rob Simmelkjaer: huge benefit to you because now you're going to be
Rob Simmelkjaer: able to get advanced registration and you're not going to
Rob Simmelkjaer: have as much competition to get into the handful of
Rob Simmelkjaer: races that you might want to do as a non-
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1 runner. So you're one of the groups that
Rob Simmelkjaer: we were really thinking about when we designed this program.
Matthew Forys: Confirming it's October 14th for advanced reg.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Sorry.
Matthew Forys: No, it's good.
Rob Simmelkjaer: He's got the numbers. Okay, great. Here's another question. Oh,
Rob Simmelkjaer: thank you for this question, Drew. " How will this affect
Rob Simmelkjaer: the 4 Out of 6 program and the 6 Out
Rob Simmelkjaer: of 6?" I think that's the Virtual 6?
Matthew Forys: Virtual. Yeah.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah. So we talked about this at the top of the show.
Rob Simmelkjaer: It will not affect either of these programs. 4 Out
Rob Simmelkjaer: of 6 to get entry into the United Airlines NYC
Rob Simmelkjaer: Half, and the Virtual 6 to get into the RBC
Rob Simmelkjaer: Brooklyn Half are not affected by these changes. Those programs
Rob Simmelkjaer: will continue as they already have been.
Matthew Forys: Yeah. And I'll just add, your 4 Out of 6 races, if you run
Matthew Forys: those, those four count towards your nine, so it's not
Matthew Forys: separate in any way. If you're a Passholder and do 4 Out
Matthew Forys: of 6, those four races would count towards your nine.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yes. Barry asked, he said, " I'm a member, a plus
Rob Simmelkjaer: member for the New York Armory Track Access Discount. What
Rob Simmelkjaer: happens to that?" So because you're being downgraded to the
Rob Simmelkjaer: regular member level, you'll get the benefits for the armory
Rob Simmelkjaer: that regular members get.
Matthew Forys: Yes, we are in discussions with the armory. So what
Matthew Forys: I'll say is more details to come here, but there
Matthew Forys: will be a track access discount that we think you
Matthew Forys: guys will be excited about.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Okay. So we're working on that one. Thank you, Matthew.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Jasmine asked a question, " If I cancel my membership, will I
Rob Simmelkjaer: still receive a refund?" Yes.
Matthew Forys: Yes. So what I would recommend, if you're a Member
Matthew Forys: Plus, you got an email that had the process to
Matthew Forys: request a full cancellation. There's a form you can fill
Matthew Forys: out. What I would say is if you are planning
Matthew Forys: to run the marathon, like if you're doing 9+ 1
Matthew Forys: right now, you need to be an active member at
Matthew Forys: the end of the year. So just make sure before
Matthew Forys: you cancel that that's not the path you're on because
Matthew Forys: you still need to be a member in order to
Matthew Forys: claim your guaranteed entry for the 2027 marathon. So just
Matthew Forys: keep that in mind. But yeah, if you want to
Matthew Forys: cancel now or if you want to wait till your
Matthew Forys: expiration date, you can just go in and cancel.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. John asked, " I've been using the family account
Rob Simmelkjaer: to register my kids for races. How will this change
Rob Simmelkjaer: impact that? Will I have to get an account for
Rob Simmelkjaer: each person or minor in my household?"
Matthew Forys: So, Family Plus, everyone in Family Plus is just getting
Matthew Forys: transitioned to a family membership, so you will see no
Matthew Forys: difference. It's going to be the same process for you
Matthew Forys: to register your kids and your family members as it
Matthew Forys: is right now. It's just not the advanced, the different
Matthew Forys: set of benefits. So you should see no change there
Matthew Forys: and the process will be pretty smooth.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. Someone named Nona asked, " For clarity, is the $
Rob Simmelkjaer: 99 Passholder fee on top of the $ 60 membership fee or
Rob Simmelkjaer: is it an upcharge?" It is on top of the $ 60
Rob Simmelkjaer: membership fee. So if you are a regular member at $
Rob Simmelkjaer: 60 and you are selected in the 9+ 1 eligibility
Rob Simmelkjaer: drawing, you'll be charged an additional $ 99 for a total
Rob Simmelkjaer: of $ 159 for the year to have the opportunity to
Rob Simmelkjaer: do 9+ 1 in that year. Tim asked the question, "
Rob Simmelkjaer: If we're decreasing the amount of 9+ 1 marathon entries,
Rob Simmelkjaer: where is the 20% delta going to in terms of
Rob Simmelkjaer: marathon entries?" We talked about that a little bit already.
Rob Simmelkjaer: We're going to expand the size of the drawing for
Rob Simmelkjaer: the marathon itself, so there'll be more entries in the
Rob Simmelkjaer: drawing, the traditional marathon drawing that happens in February every
Rob Simmelkjaer: year. We're going to be able to add some entries.
Rob Simmelkjaer: We still don't know exactly how many of all these
Rob Simmelkjaer: will be available because we still have to see how
Rob Simmelkjaer: many people actually will complete 9+ 1 in 2027. So
Rob Simmelkjaer: these are decisions we won't make until early 2028, but
Rob Simmelkjaer: we know the drawing will be bigger, we know that
Rob Simmelkjaer: we'll have more flexibility for entries based on time qualification,
Rob Simmelkjaer: and we know we'll have more flexibility for charities as
Rob Simmelkjaer: well, which is a big priority for us. So those are
Rob Simmelkjaer: all places that the additional entries will likely be going.
Matthew Forys: Yeah. I mean, as you said, we still don't even
Matthew Forys: know how many people are going to complete for 2026.
Matthew Forys: So in terms of how we plan our marathon field,
Matthew Forys: we don't know yet. So this is sort of preemptive,
Matthew Forys: we'll see how the numbers fall this year, and then
Matthew Forys: we'll see how everyone finishes the Passholder program next year.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. Ray asked whether people need to enter the
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1 eligibility drawing every year to get the 9+
Rob Simmelkjaer: 1 pass. The answer to that is yes. Every year
Rob Simmelkjaer: we will have this drawing and every year we will
Rob Simmelkjaer: select people, and that will be something that repeats year in
Rob Simmelkjaer: and year out. So if you're selected once in the
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1 eligibility drawing to get a pass, that's just
Rob Simmelkjaer: for that one year. It doesn't roll you over to
Rob Simmelkjaer: future years. You'll have to sign up for the drawing
Rob Simmelkjaer: year in and year out. Someone named Aaron asked the question, "
Rob Simmelkjaer: Does this change to 9+ 1 affect other NYRR events
Rob Simmelkjaer: that have a lottery like the United Airlines NYC Half or
Rob Simmelkjaer: the RBC Brooklyn half?"
Matthew Forys: Nope, no changes there. You'll be notified when those applications
Matthew Forys: open. There's going to be a drawing, there's guaranteed entry
Matthew Forys: methods for those races, 4 Out of 6, the Virtual
Matthew Forys: 6, lots of different opportunities to get into both of
Matthew Forys: those races. So more information to come. We'll announce those
Matthew Forys: launch periods and application periods as soon as we have
Matthew Forys: them available. So no change there. Again, if you run
Matthew Forys: the New York City Half or the Brooklyn Half, it
Matthew Forys: counts towards your nine races as well.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. Joe asked whether we'll send out an email
Rob Simmelkjaer: heads up that the virtual races are open for registration.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Absolutely yes, we will send... We do it already. We
Rob Simmelkjaer: already send an email and there are social posts saying
Rob Simmelkjaer: that virtual races are open for registration. We will do
Rob Simmelkjaer: that again. And for those who are selected in the
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1 eligibility drawing, we will specifically email that group
Rob Simmelkjaer: to make sure they know that those races are open
Rob Simmelkjaer: as well. If you're selected in that drawing, your email
Rob Simmelkjaer: address will automatically be entered into the set of emails
Rob Simmelkjaer: that will get messaging specifically about the 9+1 Passholder program, which
Rob Simmelkjaer: is kind of exciting for us because we've never actually
Rob Simmelkjaer: been able to speak directly to people who are trying
Rob Simmelkjaer: to do 9+ 1. We've kind of had an idea
Rob Simmelkjaer: of who was trying to do 9+ 1, but we
Rob Simmelkjaer: never had any record of it. We had to guess
Rob Simmelkjaer: at who was doing 9+ 1, and now we can
Rob Simmelkjaer: speak to that group directly.
Matthew Forys: Yeah, there's no part of our registration process where we
Matthew Forys: tell people to opt in, " Are you running 9+ 1
Matthew Forys: this year or attempting 9+ 1?" So we do a
Matthew Forys: lot on the back end to say, " Okay, this person's
Matthew Forys: six races and they're signed up for a volunteer. They're probably
Matthew Forys: on their journey and we can communicate with them." In
Matthew Forys: this case, we know the exact group, we're going to
Matthew Forys: communicate very directly with you, what you need to know,
Matthew Forys: and how to do it. So it's going to be
Matthew Forys: a really great thing from a communication standpoint, and we're
Matthew Forys: going to make sure you're on track to get those
Matthew Forys: nine races and your volunteer spot.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. Garrett asked whether this change will also affect
Rob Simmelkjaer: the way people register for volunteer opportunities for the plus
Rob Simmelkjaer: one of 9+ 1. So we talked about it a
Rob Simmelkjaer: little bit earlier, the registration process for volunteer opportunities will
Rob Simmelkjaer: stay the same. We're not changing that, but we know
Rob Simmelkjaer: that it's going to get much easier to find those
Rob Simmelkjaer: volunteer opportunities because there will be fewer people chasing them.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So process stays the same, but we can just about
Rob Simmelkjaer: guarantee you, we really can, because we know we're going
Rob Simmelkjaer: to find ways for everyone who is selected in this
Rob Simmelkjaer: drawing to get the volunteer opportunity, so you will find
Rob Simmelkjaer: a volunteer opportunity if you are selected in the 9+
Rob Simmelkjaer: 1 eligibility drawing.
Matthew Forys: Yeah. And I think what's important to note there is,
Matthew Forys: A, don't wait till the end of the year. If
Matthew Forys: we have everyone waiting till December, then it's a little
Matthew Forys: tricky. So plan out your year, think about the races
Matthew Forys: you want to run, think about which race you'd really
Matthew Forys: like to volunteer out, and just plan your year out
Matthew Forys: accordingly. We think the registration process is going to be
Matthew Forys: much easier for volunteers. And what I would say is
Matthew Forys: look at the calendar, map it out, we're going to
Matthew Forys: kind of help you on that pathway. So yeah, we
Matthew Forys: think there's going to be plenty of plus- one opportunities and just plan
Matthew Forys: your year accordingly.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Jerry asked this question, " If you are expecting more growth,
Rob Simmelkjaer: how is the organization going to adapt going forward? Are
Rob Simmelkjaer: you going to add more races?" So this is an
Rob Simmelkjaer: interesting question. First of all, we really want to see
Rob Simmelkjaer: how things play out in the future when we have
Rob Simmelkjaer: this program in place. We know that there are a lot
Rob Simmelkjaer: of people who want to run races who are not
Rob Simmelkjaer: trying to do 9+ 1, but because 9+ 1 has
Rob Simmelkjaer: dominated this for such a long time, we don't really
Rob Simmelkjaer: know how much non- 9+ 1 demand is out there.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So we're going to see how things play out next
Rob Simmelkjaer: year and what that looks like. And only then will
Rob Simmelkjaer: we really have a sense of whether we really need
Rob Simmelkjaer: much more in the way of inventory or races or
Rob Simmelkjaer: things like that because we've known for so long that
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1 was driving the demand. So don't know yet.
Rob Simmelkjaer: We have to see how things play out. Now, you
Rob Simmelkjaer: may have noticed recently that we've been doing some things
Rob Simmelkjaer: to give members benefits that are new and that are
Rob Simmelkjaer: allowing them to run races at a discount that aren't
Rob Simmelkjaer: even our races. So if you've seen recently emails you've
Rob Simmelkjaer: been getting, member discounts to run non- New York Road
Rob Simmelkjaer: Runners races, such as the Philadelphia Distance Run, the Hamptons
Rob Simmelkjaer: Marathon and Half Marathon out in Southampton, the Jamaica Queens
Rob Simmelkjaer: 5K, and I think there's... Is there one I'm missing?
Matthew Forys: The Yankees one.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Oh yeah, the Yankees 5K, that was one we did
Rob Simmelkjaer: in the past. So we've been sending out opportunities for
Rob Simmelkjaer: you to run non- Road Runners races. Of course, no
Rob Simmelkjaer: 9+ 1 credit for those, but discounted rates to get
Rob Simmelkjaer: into those races. And we'll be doing more of that
Rob Simmelkjaer: going forward because we're looking to find other ways to
Rob Simmelkjaer: benefit members. Growing membership and benefiting members, giving more value
Rob Simmelkjaer: to membership, is a really huge priority for us at
Rob Simmelkjaer: New York Road Runners right now. So we believe that
Rob Simmelkjaer: the things we've talked about today are adding a lot
Rob Simmelkjaer: of value, advanced registration for all members, making it easier
Rob Simmelkjaer: to get into races. But as time goes on next
Rob Simmelkjaer: year, we'll be rolling out more additional benefits, some pretty
Rob Simmelkjaer: big ones in fact, that will benefit members and add
Rob Simmelkjaer: even more value to the base level of membership at
Rob Simmelkjaer: New York Road Runners, so you can stay tuned for that.
Matthew Forys: Yeah, it's going to be a great year. We're really
Matthew Forys: excited about membership, and this is kind of the first
Matthew Forys: step in making those changes. So a lot of new
Matthew Forys: and exciting things coming. Make sure you're subscribed to our
Matthew Forys: email so that you get all of those announcements. I
Matthew Forys: think that's really key. But yeah, we have a lot
Matthew Forys: of exciting things in the works and this is kind
Matthew Forys: of the kickoff of that.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. Don asked whether members will still get discounts
Rob Simmelkjaer: into races. Absolutely yes. You still get the same discounts
Rob Simmelkjaer: to all of our races, including the marathon, that you
Rob Simmelkjaer: get now if you're a member, so member discounts are
Rob Simmelkjaer: not changing at all. Someone named Karen asked, " If we
Rob Simmelkjaer: just want to run a few races because we've run
Rob Simmelkjaer: them for 15+ years, how do we maximize our chances
Rob Simmelkjaer: of getting in? Do we increase our chances by being
Rob Simmelkjaer: a Passholder even if we don't want to run the marathon?"
Rob Simmelkjaer: I would say the answer to that question, Karen, is
Rob Simmelkjaer: that first of all, I would not recommend you sign
Rob Simmelkjaer: up for the drawing or the Passholder program if you don't
Rob Simmelkjaer: want to run the marathon. This drawing is specifically for
Rob Simmelkjaer: people who want to run the marathon via 9+ 1.
Rob Simmelkjaer: As we've said, we think it's going to become so
Rob Simmelkjaer: much easier to get into all of these races like
Rob Simmelkjaer: Joe K or the Gridiron because you're not competing with 20-
Rob Simmelkjaer: something thousand people all trying to get 9+ 1. So
Rob Simmelkjaer: I would recommend that people let this play out, show
Rob Simmelkjaer: up in October when the first set of races launch
Rob Simmelkjaer: and see that, " Wow, this is a much easier process to
Rob Simmelkjaer: get into races than it used to be." And I
Rob Simmelkjaer: would not recommend that anyone sign up for the 9+
Rob Simmelkjaer: 1 eligibility drawing if they don't intend to do 9+
Rob Simmelkjaer: 1 to get into the marathon in 2028.
Matthew Forys: Yep, totally agree. I think when this plays out, you'll
Matthew Forys: really see a difference in behavior for those that are
Matthew Forys: trying to achieve 9+ 1, so I do think you'll
Matthew Forys: be able to get into a lot of the races that you want
Matthew Forys: to run with us.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Someone named Randolph asked the question, Matthew, " How does this
Rob Simmelkjaer: change affect senior membership?"
Matthew Forys: No change to senior membership. It's still a discounted membership. The
Matthew Forys: process remains the same, so you can apply to be
Matthew Forys: a senior member. I think you need to supply some
Matthew Forys: documentation for proof, but that does not change the senior
Matthew Forys: membership at all.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. Hector asked, we've talked about this before but, "
Rob Simmelkjaer: What are the requirements to enter the drawing, the 9+
Rob Simmelkjaer: 1 eligibility drawing, that takes place on October 1st?" So
Rob Simmelkjaer: again, you have to be a member of New York Road
Rob Simmelkjaer: Runners by September the...
Matthew Forys: 16th at 11:59 PM.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Okay. So you must be a member by that date
Rob Simmelkjaer: and time. You must maintain that member... So I'll let
Rob Simmelkjaer: you handle this because you know the details on this.
Matthew Forys: Yeah. So you must be a member by September 16th, 11: 59 PM.
Matthew Forys: The application opens the next day on the 17th. It
Matthew Forys: closes on the 29th. You need to keep your membership
Matthew Forys: through that whole period and through October 1st when the
Matthew Forys: drawing happens. So as we mentioned, this is a member program,
Matthew Forys: a member benefit. So that is the purpose of that.
Matthew Forys: We want NYRR members to be getting this benefit and
Matthew Forys: being part of the program. So September 16th, 11: 59 PM,
Matthew Forys: key membership date. And then make sure you're still a
Matthew Forys: member through October 1st. And then continuing on, as per
Matthew Forys: the 9+ 1 program now, at the end of the
Matthew Forys: year in terms of you finished your nine races, you
Matthew Forys: did your plus one, 12/31/2027, you need to be a
Matthew Forys: member as well in order to be included in that
Matthew Forys: guaranteed entry process.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. So the bottom line is become a member,
Rob Simmelkjaer: remain a member, and that's going to make it easier
Rob Simmelkjaer: for you to do 9+ 1 through this entire drawing process.
Matthew Forys: Absolutely.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Carolyn asked, " Is there anything changing with regard to time
Rob Simmelkjaer: qualifying for the marathon via an NYRR Half Marathon?" Nope,
Rob Simmelkjaer: nothing is changing on that front. And as we said
Rob Simmelkjaer: before, we think that it will be easier to time-
Rob Simmelkjaer: qualify going forward because we're going to have more marathon
Rob Simmelkjaer: spaces available as we call back a little bit the
Rob Simmelkjaer: number of 9+ 1 finishers who are getting into the
Rob Simmelkjaer: marathon. Someone asked the question, " Are the prices for races
Rob Simmelkjaer: going to be higher next year?" No, we are not changing the
Rob Simmelkjaer: prices for most races. I don't think there's any except
Rob Simmelkjaer: maybe the United Airlines NYC Half is something we're looking
Rob Simmelkjaer: at, but we haven't announced anything on that yet, so
Rob Simmelkjaer: all races for the most part will be the same
Rob Simmelkjaer: price. We're not looking at any widespread changes on race
Rob Simmelkjaer: prices. What other questions do we have? Grayland Lucas asked, "
Rob Simmelkjaer: What's the purpose of the $ 99 Passholder fee?" I talked
Rob Simmelkjaer: about this before. I'll talk about it one more time.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Because we're eliminating the Member Plus level of membership, we're
Rob Simmelkjaer: looking at a very significant loss of revenue to New
Rob Simmelkjaer: York Road Runners. And so doing this as a way
Rob Simmelkjaer: to impart make sure that we're able to continue to
Rob Simmelkjaer: provide the services that we do by recouping some of
Rob Simmelkjaer: that lost revenue. We also know that most people who've
Rob Simmelkjaer: been doing 9+ 1 were already at the $ 120 Member Plus
Rob Simmelkjaer: level because that's what you needed to get into races.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So by giving people $ 60 back to become regular members,
Rob Simmelkjaer: we're really only charging a net additional amount of $ 39
Rob Simmelkjaer: when you consider $ 60 for membership and $ 99 for the
Rob Simmelkjaer: Passholder fee. And the value in that passholder fee is
Rob Simmelkjaer: really huge because you're getting a much easier pathway to
Rob Simmelkjaer: completing 9+ 1. So I think we've seen lots of
Rob Simmelkjaer: different questions. Somebody named William asked a question about the
Rob Simmelkjaer: random drawing. The drawing is completely random. We do not
Rob Simmelkjaer: prioritize any type of member. New members, older members, long-
Rob Simmelkjaer: time members, or people who just joined, there is absolutely
Rob Simmelkjaer: no prioritization of any type of member in any of
Rob Simmelkjaer: the drawings. All drawings are 100% random.
Matthew Forys: Yes. The only thing I'll add to that is there
Matthew Forys: is the member- only second chance drawing. So as long
Matthew Forys: as you meet the criteria for that, for Marathon New
Matthew Forys: York City Half, United Airlines NYC Half, and the RBC Brooklyn
Matthew Forys: Half, those three races have a member- only second chance
Matthew Forys: drawing, which is a great member benefit. We're able to
Matthew Forys: let more members in through that process, but even that
Matthew Forys: is completely random within the member base that are eligible.
Matthew Forys: So completely random on the first drawing and then the member-
Matthew Forys: only second chance also completely random.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Right. But in this case, there's no member second chance
Rob Simmelkjaer: drawing for the 9+ 1 eligibility drawing because everyone's going
Rob Simmelkjaer: to be a member, so you'll all have exactly the
Rob Simmelkjaer: same chance to get in through this drawing. All right.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Well, that's going to wrap it up for this packed
Rob Simmelkjaer: edition of Set the Pace. Matthew, I want to thank
Rob Simmelkjaer: you. I want to thank your entire team for literally
Rob Simmelkjaer: months and months of work. I think when folks out
Rob Simmelkjaer: there are digesting all of this and they're all thinking about
Rob Simmelkjaer: how it affects them, how it affects their chances of
Rob Simmelkjaer: doing 9+ 1, their chances of running the marathon, it's
Rob Simmelkjaer: easy to kind of gloss over how challenging a problem
Rob Simmelkjaer: this was to solve and how much work had to
Rob Simmelkjaer: go into solving it. I've talked a lot about the
Rob Simmelkjaer: fact that in the world of business, if you ever
Rob Simmelkjaer: take Economics 101 in college or whatever, if any kind
Rob Simmelkjaer: of a business or an organization has demand that is
Rob Simmelkjaer: much higher than the supply that they have for their
Rob Simmelkjaer: product, well, they do one of two very simple things.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Either they increase the supply of that product, which we're
Rob Simmelkjaer: not in a position to do because we can't just
Rob Simmelkjaer: add lots and lots of races willy- nilly or make
Rob Simmelkjaer: the races bigger because we have permits from the City
Rob Simmelkjaer: of New York that limit how much of that we
Rob Simmelkjaer: can do. So that option was not available to us.
Rob Simmelkjaer: The other thing that an organization can do is dramatically
Rob Simmelkjaer: raise the price for that. Dramatically. And we certainly know
Rob Simmelkjaer: that if we had wanted to choose that path, we
Rob Simmelkjaer: could have made all the races much, much, much more
Rob Simmelkjaer: expensive and solve the problem that way. We did not
Rob Simmelkjaer: want to solve it that way because we're a nonprofit
Rob Simmelkjaer: that has a mission to create healthier lives and stronger
Rob Simmelkjaer: communities through the transformative power of running. We want as
Rob Simmelkjaer: many people running as possible. So we decided this was
Rob Simmelkjaer: after much consideration the best way to figure this out,
Rob Simmelkjaer: that was solved in a fair way and egalitarian way
Rob Simmelkjaer: that gave all of our members and New Yorkers a
Rob Simmelkjaer: chance to run their whole marathon through the 9+ 1
Rob Simmelkjaer: program. So we encourage all of you to go to
Rob Simmelkjaer: our website, nyrr. org, click on the area that talks
Rob Simmelkjaer: about these changes. There's a lot of information in there.
Rob Simmelkjaer: We know that it's a big change, we know that
Rob Simmelkjaer: it is also not the simplest thing in the world.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Because it's so new, it may take a little while
Rob Simmelkjaer: for you to read it. You can go to the
Rob Simmelkjaer: frequently asked questions page, read all of those as well so
Rob Simmelkjaer: you have your questions answered. We hope that this time
Rob Simmelkjaer: has been useful in helping answer some of the questions
Rob Simmelkjaer: that are out there. Thanks to all of you who
Rob Simmelkjaer: submitted many questions. And Matthew, thanks again.
Matthew Forys: Yeah, it's been wonderful. Thanks for having me.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. Well, I'll see some of you up at
Rob Simmelkjaer: Harlem this weekend. Thanks for joining us. We'll see you
Rob Simmelkjaer: next time.