In this episode, Marcel Altenburg, senior lecturer in crowd science at Manchester Metropolitan University, explains how crowd science helps both race organizers and runners by improving race logistics and participant experiences. He shares insights into how marathons are planned, how start waves and corrals are determined, and how crowd management can increase race capacity. Marcel also discusses how race organizers use predictive algorithms to ensure safety and efficiency throughout the course and how these principles extend beyond running events.Key Topics Discussed: How Crowd Science Improves Runner Experience

• Runners benefit from optimized start times and corral placements, ensuring smooth movement from start to finish.

• Predictions about density, overtaking patterns, and hydration stations help organizers create a better race experience.

The Role of the Start Right Algorithm for Race Organizers

• The algorithm helps race directors assign runners to waves and corrals based on pace, past race times, and expected conditions.
• It predicts how many runners will cross the finish line at peak times, enabling organizers to prepare medical and volunteer support.

Increasing Race Capacity While Maintaining Safety

• Adding more time or space isn’t always the best way to increase participants. Instead, better runner order and wave management can allow more people to run.

• Race organizers can adjust race logistics dynamically to ensure safety while allowing more participants.

Real-Time Adjustments and Crisis Planning for Races

• Unexpected challenges like transportation delays, protests, or weather changes require quick adaptations.
• The system allows race directors to shift medical teams, aid stations, and crowd control measures in real time.

Lessons for Runners and Race Organizers Beyond Running Events

• Marcel explains how the same crowd science principles apply to concerts, stadiums, expos, and airports, improving overall crowd management.
• Runners can appreciate why races structure waves and corrals in specific ways, ensuring a fair and smooth race experience for everyone.

In this episode of "Tech in 26.2," I sit down with Ted Metellus, Chief Event Production Officer and Race Director for the New York City Marathon, to explore the intersection of technology and running.

The conversation delves into the high demand for the NYC Marathon, with over 200,000 applicants vying for limited spots. This demand is attributed to the global growth of running as a community activity, which has seen significant increases over the past five years. Ted explains the various entry paths to the marathon, including qualifying times, charity programs, and the "9+1" program for local runners.

Ted discusses how the NYC Marathon is considered one of the most technologically advanced running events. He highlights partnerships with companies like TCS, which have led to innovations such as a new running app that allows participants to track themselves and their loved ones year-round. The app also provides real-time updates and streaming features, enhancing both the runner and spectator experiences.

The episode also touches on how technology enhances the participant experience through partnerships with platforms like Runna, Strava and CrowdRx. These collaborations help manage medical operations and provide insights into athlete movement, ensuring a safe and efficient event.

Finally, Ted shares his vision for future technological advancements, including expanding app features to provide more personalized experiences for runners and spectators alike. This episode offers a comprehensive look at how technology is revolutionizing the running industry, particularly at iconic events like the New York City Marathon.

Podcast Outline

0:05 Episode Summary

1:08 Introduction

3:14 Its harder to get into NYC Marathon than Harvard University

5:31 what goes in deciding the race size?

9:06 What makes NYC Marathon the most technologically advanced marathon in the world?

9:38 Partnership with TCS

10:25 Race timing

11:05 communicating with friends n family

11:46 streaming the race

12:58 ability to locate the nearest subway station on the course

14:04 enhancing participant experience with technology partnership

16:45 Plan for knowns and prepare for the unknowns

21:59 Leveraging crowd science to manage 50000+ runners

27:13 Spectator experience with augmented reality

28:45 After 25 years in the industry , Ted’s take on the trends and what’s ahead

31:54 What is dynamic bib assignment?

33:55 Breaking down sustainability efforts at NYC marathon

36:15 Leveraging technology in connecting communities, sharing information and creating unforgettable memories

References

• TCS New York City Marathon - https://www.nyrr.org/tcsnycmarathon/runners/entry/2025
• New app and runner tracking - https://www.nyrr.org/tcsnycmarathon/race-day/mobile-app
• New York Road runners - https://www.nyrr.org/
• Personalized training plans for running - https://www.runna.com/
• Event Medical Service - https://crowdrx.org/
• Peleton Running - https://www.onepeloton.com/classes/running

Episode info:

• Youtube -https://youtu.be/zTrEivjtIpk
• Apple Podcast link -
• Spotify podcast link -

Transcript and Show notes:

• https://www.traxamo.com/tech-in-26-2-ted-metellus

Enjoy the episode!

n this episode of the Fundraising in 26.2 podcast on Traxamo, I sit down with running legend Dave McGillivray - An entrepreneur (Founder & President of DMSE Sports), philanthropist (Founder of Dave McGillivray Finish Strong Foundation), motivational speaker (~1600 appearances from Ted Talks to corporate & local events), author (written 4 books), and athlete (ran more than 160,000 miles - 167 marathons, including 51 consecutive Boston marathons, 10 Ironman Triathlon World Championships to name a few). He is also the race director of iconic Boston Marathon since 1988. Our discussion focuses on evolution of charity running and his pioneering role. Enjoy the episode! Here are the highlights from our conversation:

Pioneering Charity Running: Dave's 1978 run across the U.S. for the Jimmy Fund was one of the first recorded instances of combining endurance sports with charity fundraising. This event helped establish him as a pioneer in this area.

Evolution of Charity Running: The landscape of charity running changed significantly as races became more popular and started selling out. This led to charities partnering with races to secure bibs for runners who would commit to fundraising.

Impact of Prestigious Events: The prestige and difficulty of events like marathons and Ironman races contribute to higher fundraising amounts. For example, the Boston Marathon collectively raised over $70 million for charities in a recent year.

Growth of Charity Partnerships: Major races now have numerous charity partners. For instance, the New York City Marathon has over 300 charity partners, and the London Marathon sees more than 75% of its runners raising funds.

Personal and Collective Impact: Dave's efforts, both personally and through his business, have helped raise approximately $3.4 billion for various causes. His journey highlights the transformative power of combining endurance sports with philanthropy

Podcast Outline

0:05 Episode Summary

1:06 Introduction

1:56 Dave’s 10th Ironman

4:18 Fascinating story behind running from ~3800 miles across the country and raising $150000 for for Jimmy Fund

10:55 Pioneering Charity Running - running + fundraising for charity

20:36 Why Boston Marathon can not have more charity runners?

23:25 Why a charity want to associate themselves with a race

30:05 How does a charity decides on minimum fundraising goal?

33:17 How does charity choose a charity runner?

37:56 evolution of charities helping charity runners to fundraise

41:25 Raising $300M+ and counting

References

• Dave McGillivray personal website - https://davemcgillivray.com/
• DMSI Sports - https://www.dmsesports.com/
• Dave McGillivray Finish Strong Foundation - https://www.davemcgillivrayfoundation.org/
• Boston Marathon - https://www.baa.org/races/boston-marathon
• Fallmouth Road Race - https://falmouthroadrace.com/

Episode info:

• Youtube - https://youtu.be/L-uGuniSJSc
• Apple Podcast link -
• Spotify podcast link -

Transcript and Show notes:

Enjoy the episode!

In this next episode on Tech in 26.2 podcast, discover the future of personalized running training with Sean Bradford, founder and CEO of TrainAsOne. In this eye-opening interview, Sean shares how his unique background in medicine and technology led to the creation of an AI-powered training app that's changing the game for runners worldwide. Learn about:

Podcast Outline

0:05 Episode Summary

1:32 Introduction

2:25 Sean’s journey from medicine to technology entrepreneurship

8:15 Using AI technology to solve for training for running with scientific evidence, that works and with less injury

12:49 Why do we get running related injuries?

17:34 What is TrainAsOne?

22:49 Data TrainAsOne’s data model trained on

38:01 Achieving race day timing goals with TrainAsOne

48:06 You don’t need to run 20+ miles as the longest run to train for marathon

References

Episode info:

Transcript and Show notes:

Enjoy the episode!

In the next episode of the Tech in 26.2 Podcast on Traxamo, I sit down with Brad Kroll, President of MarathonFOTO and Conor Gay, VP of Internal Operations at MarathonFOTO. For 45 years, over 10 million runners have trusted MarathonFoto to capture and deliver the best in race and endurance event photography. MarathonFoto partners with the biggest and best names in running including Boston Marathon, Chicago Marathon, NYC Marathon, Stockholm Marathon to name a few. In our discussion, we cover a lot of grounds from state of race photography in early 2000s to how technology has enabled MarathonFoto to share race day moments with the runners almost instantaneously at the finish line. Enjoy listening! Here are the highlights from our conversation:

⛳  Overview of MarathonFoto's race day photography workflow and operations

⛳ Technological innovations enabling near-instant photo delivery at race finish lines

⛳ Examining the feasibility of fully automated race day photography

⛳ Exploring potential applications of race photography in identifying unauthorized participants

References

Episode info:

Transcript and Show notes:

Enjoy the episode!

In the next episode of the Tech in 26.2 Podcast on Traxamo, I have a conversation with Gerry Perez, the Founder and CEO of RUNGP, the leading CRM platform for the running industry. Gerry, who has a background in digital marketing, recounts how attending an industry event inspired him to transition his digital marketing agency into a software company. We delve into various case studies and the data supporting them, emphasizing the most effective channels that event organizers should prioritize to maximize their marketing ROI. This discussion promises to be extremely beneficial for event marketers and organizers alike. Enjoy listening! Here are the highlights from our conversation:

⛳ Pivoting from digital marketing agency to building a SaaS business

⛳  Deep dive into event marketing landscape in endurance industry

⛳ Why SMS marketing is the best marketing investment for event organizers?

⛳ Intersection of AI and event marketing -

⛳ Navigating compliance and what is SWAS (software with agency service)?

Podcast Outline

0:05 Episode Summary

1:05 Introduction

1:51 Founding story of RunGP

3:03 What’s RunGP

3:55 Transitioning from Digital agency to software company

11:45 Background in endurance industry marketing and channels

13:19 RunGP’s core offerings

17:14 Why SMS marketing is the best investment for event organizers

21:29 Key metrics to measure ROI on event marketing investment

26:12 Approaching event marketing for different generation

28:31 Using AI for event marketing for FAQs, content or reputation management

33:54 Marketing trends in the endurance industry

36:45 Handling compliance in SMS marketing

40:21 Supporting the endurance sports ecosystem through Software as agency service (SWAS)

44:40 Scaling with SWAS business model?

46:19 What’s next for RunGP?

References

Special mentions

Episode info:

Transcript and Show notes:

Enjoy the episode!

In the next episode of the Tech in 26.2 Podcast on Traxamo, I sit down with running legend Dave McGillivray - An entrepreneur (Founder & President of DMSE Sports), philanthropist (Founder of Dave McGillivray Finish Strong Foundation), motivational speaker (~1600 appearances from Ted Talks to corporate & local events), author (written 4 books), and athlete (ran more than 160,000 miles - 167 marathons, including 51 consecutive Boston marathons, 80-day trek across the United States, running the 3,452 miles from Medford, Ore., to Medford, Mass. in the summer of 1978 to benefit the Jimmy Fund, 9 Ironman Triathlon World Championships to name a few). He is also the race director of iconic Boston Marathon since 1988. Our discussion focuses on Dave’s approach to adopting technology in races and some of the challenges he believes technology can help solving. Wish Dave all the best for his 10th Ironman Triathlon World Championship in couple of weeks. Enjoy the episode! Here are the highlights from our conversation:

⛳  After running 160000 miles in his legendary career what still drives him?

⛳  Dave’s take on scaling races

⛳  How a trip to NYC Marathon expo in 1995 changed the course of timing races forever

⛳ Covid’s impact on running industry

⛳ Can technology solve for uncertainty posed by climate changes

Podcast Outline

0:05 Episode Summary

0:53 Introduction

3:05 What drives Dave?

5:23 being the race director for Boston Marathon for 37 years

7:28 Dave’s take on scaling a race - Visualizing the event before it happens

8:34 Adopting chip based timing in Boston Marathon in 1996 - there gotta be a way to time and chip a race

11:47 Incremental improvement in race timing industry

14:35 How Dave approach technology to elevate race day experience - managing space and time

19:49 Under deliver or over deliver of promises from technology

24:16 Covid’s impact on running industry

27:39 Challenges on top of Dave’s mind that technology can potentially solve

34:03 Table top exercises for planning for weather forecasts

38:35 Maintaining integrity of sport in running events

References

Episode info:

Transcript and Show notes:

Enjoy the episode!

In this episode of the Tech in 26.2 Podcast on Traxamo, I sit down with **Johan Tigér,** CEO and Principal Consultant of Tigertech based in Sweden. Tigertech provides digitization services for endurance sports events to create bespoke experiences for participants. I was curious to learn about Tigertech’s RunRedeem solution that Johan did for New Balance where the goal was to reward runners for their effort when training. We cover quite a few grounds on different custom solutions Tigertech built since its founding during pandemic to trends and role of AI. Enjoy the episode!

In this episode of the Tech in 26.2 Podcast on Traxamo, I have a conversation with Frankie Ruiz, the Cofounder of the LifeTime Miami Marathon. We delve into Frankie’s innovative approach to integrating technology as the race organizer for the Miami Marathon, which now boasts over 25,000 participants. Frankie also shares how, after selling the Miami Marathon to LifeTime, the event is utilizing LifeTime’s event management tools, such as Athlinks and Chronotrack, to enhance both the production quality and the runner experience. We wrap up our conversation chatting about what other interests Frankie is pursuing including to be the Mayor of City of Miami one day. Here are some key focus areas of our conversation:

⛳  Founding Story of Miami Marathon

⛳  Scaling Miami Marathon to 25000+ participants

⛳  Creating better runner experience through technology like crowd science, data drive coral verification, bandit control program

⛳  Areas race industry needs innovation

⛳  Reflection on selling Miami Marathon to LifeTime

Podcast Outline

0:05 Episode summary

1:18 Introduction

2:04 Founding Story of Miami Marathon

5:53 Scaling Miami Marathon through acquisition

10:27 Approach to leverage technology as race organizer

16:39 Data points for the bandit control program

20:58 How Crowd Scientists help to better plan race course

28:18 Corral verification program by Athlinks and Chronotrack

32:32 Frankie’s top of the ming challenges- photography, running expos , interactive race medal

34:13 Frameworks to select technology for better production and runner experience

37:14 Frankie’s reflection on selling Miami marathon to LifeTime Fitness

44:27 What’s next for Frankie

References

Episode info:

Transcript and Show notes:

Enjoy the episode!

In the next episode of Tech in 26.2 Podcast on Traxamo, I sit down with Shannan Gove, Cofounder of Rosterfy - an Australia based volunteer management platform used by 3 million+ volunteers and staff globally. If you have been to any events, you know volunteers play a critical role for the success of events especially mass participation sports events. Supporting events like FIFA World Cup, ParaOlympics, ICC T20 Cricket World Up, Super Bowl etc.. Rosterfy manages end to end volunteer journey supporting recruitment, onboarding, expense management, integrations with other platforms thus reducing cost and increasing volunteer retention for organizers. Here are some key focus areas of our conversation:

⛳  How looking for volunteering opportunities to land a job after graduation lead to founding Rosterfy

⛳  How Rosterfy supports volunteer management for nonprofits & charities, mass participating events, universities & colleges, cities & local governments, sporting federations etc

⛳  Solving for having enough volunteers and retaining them for the event organizers

⛳ Why only volunteers and not larger workforce?

⛳ Trends in volunteerism and AI

Podcast Outline

0:05 Episode summary

0:55 Introduction

2:35 How looking for volunteering opportunities to land a job after graduation lead to founding Rosterfy

6:16 How does Rosterfy support managing volunteers for Fifa World Cup, ICC T20 Cricket Worldcup, Super Bowl, Charities & Non-profits, Colleges & Universities

9:03 Improving volunteer retention

10:52 Solving for not having enough volunteers

15:53 Importance for integrating with other tools and processes

18:02 Why Rosterfy is only focusing on volunteers

20:54 “oh shit” moments

23:38 What’s next for Rosterfy

26:13 How Rosterfy is thinking and leveraging AI

28:36 Trends in volunteerism

References

Episode info:

Transcript and Show notes:

Enjoy the episode!