Whether for a trail ultra or a big city marathon, these tips can help you save hundreds.
When we try to figure out what the most expensive parts of being a trail and ultra runner can be, one of the main items (just like in life in general) is housing/accommodations. Paying for that roof over your head can really set you back. Sean and I have put together a short list of ways we've tried to save money, but I'm sure you have some of your own and we'd love to hear them. Here's our list of 5, along with some of the dialogue that Sean and I had about them.
1. Stay with family and friends.
Most of us want complete focus before a race but if you don't mind mixing racing with socializing, this can be a way of getting to socialize and stay for free or nearly free. I haven't taken advantage of this so much be I've been the one to host. For St. Jude marathon in 2019 in Memphis we had a friend stay at our place that was 5 minutes from the start. This friend had driven up from Hattiesburg, was able to get in fairly late and still hang out with us before hand. This is a great option since it usually means all the conveniences of home, but with some camaraderie and none of the cost of hotels. You even get access to a kitchen! So it’s really a great option. So, what could be the negative?
WS: So, Sean, Have you ever done this? Stayed with someone for a race?
SD: Well, someone I know in Cleveland asked me but it just seemed like it was a bit far for Burning River.
WS: Yeah, so it’s unlikely that you will know someone that is close enough to make it as convenient. But then, I’d have to be more willing to ask for favors and I don’t do that very well. Even last summer, I could have asked my friend David about staying with him for Mohican because he lived closer than the hotel we stayed at in Mt. Vernon.
SD: Yeah. I’m awful at it.
WS: Yeah, yeh. You just want to be self sufficient and you don’t want to ask for favors.
SD: Yeah, exactly. yeah I had no like you know, of course, when I ran my first hundred I flew into San Diego and I was like hey Robert you want to you want to pace me for this? So I flew in, of course, and stayed at his place.
Since Sean and I don't really have that much experience with that, I guess we should move on to one that we have done several times which is:
2. Camping
The cheapest night’s stay that I’ve had before a race was when Sean and I were able to camp at the start/finish of Beast for a Day in St. Francisville, LA in 2018. Camping can take different forms and have different costs. Beast for a Day didn’t cost anything but Sean did bring food to prep and a cooler and had a stove, we both had tents, etc. so camping came with some additional costs . For Beast for Day, the convenience could not be beat since we literally camped at the starting line for the race. State Park camping like that available at Loup Garou (also in Louisiana--Chicot SP) has the bonus of more amenities (showers, full bathrooms, camp store, etc.) but also means that there will be a price involved. It runs $30 with taxes and fees per night, per two tent site. So for that one, for each person it's only $15 per night and that's hard to beat. Also related to the “free” camping version is sleeping in your car. While Sean and I camped at Hell’s Hills near Austin a friend of ours slept in her car and seemed fine with it. Right now in the middle of summer, I can’t imagine doing this since rolling down the windows would be a must and there is the issue of bugs. When we ran 3 Sisters in Maryville, Tennessee, we camped at an RV campground that had tent sites, but that was a bit more expensive ($35 per tent site per night, so that was $35 for each of the two of us). Cheaper than a hotel room but not that cheap. So, what are the other pro’s and con’s?
SD: If I was talking about the benefits, one would definitely be being right next o the starting line. But, it goes back to maybe, this word opportunity cost. It can be really uncomfortable sleeping on a freakin ground pad right before you try to go run 50 miles or 100 miles, you know. So, you've got o weigh that out, and then some of the state parks and camping places, their prices are pretty high.
WS: Like that place in Maryville was expensive but nice. It was only nice because it had laundry and showers.
SD: Yeah exactly, and you know, and when yeah that's a very, very good point. You know it's like a lot of those things are for multi day stays, and you know, when we run these races, we just pack up and leave.
SD: You know when you start thinking about running hundred milers, having a place after you get done running is is pretty big deal, but I don't know if I would want to be camping and to stay there after.
WS: We’re packed up at 4 or 5 am and we’re not going back. Yeah, but even at Loup Garou, I was at the state park, and I had booked my site through Monday, but Michael and Joy were leaving on Sunday. So, I crashed for half an hour after the race and took a shower, but there was a big storm coming through, so I was like “Fuck it, I don’t want to have to deal with a wet tent.” So I drove 30 minutes down the road to Opelousas and got a hotel for the night.
SD: Oh man it just doesn't again it's the opportunity cost. What do you give up by staying in the tent that night? Some of these costs can be deceptive. You think it's going to be cheap, but it's not as cheap as you think it is, especially if you end up bailing like that.
SD: For my first hundred, I finished around 11:45 at night and then got in Rob's car cause it was raining outside and I was there for like 30 minutes. Then I walked over to the tent and I slept in that, but it was the shitty asleep. But I guess in a lot of ways, it's going to be shitty sleep even in a freakin five star hotel because you have your adrenaline still going.
3. Hostels
This is something that Sean has done for a race but I haven’t. I’ve stayed in a wide variety of types of hostels when hiking along the Appalachian trail. Everything from bunk-style rooms (I’ve also stayed in those in the Middle East) to semi-private, to private rooms with shared bathrooms to full rooms with full bath, more like a hotel room. These can be much cheaper than any hotel you can find, especially in a big city. Sean stayed at a hostel when he ran the San Francisco Marathon. Pro's and con's?
SD: That was a while ago. I don't remember a lot of the specifics. But you usually cheaper than a hotel room, right? And you can get a private room, but you have to share a bathroom, but that's not a big deal. But you can bring your own food in and that's a big benefit.
WS: That's cool. Yeah, a lot of the Appalachian Trail hostels only give limited kitchen access.
SD: But if you stay in the big bunk room, then that can get loud. A lot of drunk people and stuff. So you have that.
4. Private room in an Airbnb
Private room options. In our trip to Bighorn, we stayed in a private room that ended up being most of the basement of a house. This I think is my favorite. You get a comfortable bed; you have access to a kitchen; you have a degree of privacy, but you can also socialize if you want to. Unlike staying with friends and family, there is no additional obligation to hang out and socialize and have to explain to people "hey, thanks for the room, but I really need to sleep." The out of pocket cost can be really reasonable, too. For the two nights we stayed in private rooms in the AirBNBs for Bighorn, the total cost was $71 for one night and $74 for the other. That's compared to over $150 each night of the hotel in Sheridan, and with hotels, you have to eat out, which will cost you that much more. Pro's and Con's?
WS: I think the balance is just about right for this but there are always some drawbacks.
SD: What I think of with cons that you are in someone else's house. You feel like you have to be extra careful with things. Afraid of breaking stuff and worried about being a burden and inconveniencing the host.
WS: Even in Trinidad after we cooked, I spent a lot of time picking up, cleaning up the kitchen, knowing that they are going to review you, you don't want to disappoint them or do something that messes up your review.
SD: Also if the airbnb has multiple rooms and renting out to the other people at the same time. Maybe you have conflict. Sharing a bathroom, may be inconvenient. Typically not an issue, but you are of running into other people or them using the bathroom or ktichen when you are needing to get in there.
WS: We were moving around at 6 so we were worrying about that. You never really know what you're gonna get. You can look at pictures, but you don't know if the mattress is going to be terrible, if there's noise or anything, but I guess that's true of a lot of hotels.
5. Use hotel points
This is going to be probably my joint favorite, along with private room in an Airbnb. For the Twin cities marathon in October 2022, I’ve booked a room downtown less than a quarter mile from the start with $0 out of pocket. That whole trip, including airfare for two and hotel for four nights so far is only going to cost me $40 plus food and transportation from the airport. I'll do a whole blog post about the budget for that one and another post about travel hacking. I'm also staying for free the night after Burning River this year since I'm using points for that, too.
Final Thoughts.
If you do end up staying in a hotel or an Airbnb, there will aways be some balancing of convenience and price. For the Chicago Marathon, staying out near the airport can be ok so long as you trust the public transit to run on time. If you’re an anxious traveler like I am (I have anxiety dreams about missing the starts to races all the time), it may not be worth it to stay 45 minutes away from the start, but if you don’t mind the hassle of public transit, it can be a good option.
Also, depending on the race, there may be options that are completely unique. We crashed in a ski lodge at the start/finish of Notchiew Ultra in 2019 and those benches were just about perfect.This can be true about trail races and staying the next town over or something too. I hope the general ideas here have been useful, we've probably missed some ideas that you have. Please fill out the contact info and send us your ideas. Thanks!
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