We’ve got exciting news ATRA followers! The American Trail Running Association is building a new and improved website at trailrunner.com. Scheduled to be unveiled at the Outdoor Retailer Show in early August, our new home on the web is getting more than a cosmetic upgrade - we’re adding more features and new ways for you to find race, discover trails and connect with the trail running community. Here’s a sneak peak at what you can expect to see:
Note: above is a "wireframe" & doesn't represent the final look & feel of the new site.
- FIND A RACE: No longer just a list of races; our expanded event calendar will have individual race pages, more race information, photos, course maps, links to results and historical data. You’ll be able to search or browse races, by date, location, distance or if the race meets our new “event standards”. In addition, you’ll be able to see which events are members of ATRA.
- FIND A TRAIL: ATRA has partnered with Traipse Media to add trail maps to trailrunner.com. Search for trails near you, see reviews and ratings by other users and add your own trail features or comments to the maps.
- MOBILE: Take ATRA to the trails! The new ATRA website will be fully mobile ready. You’ll be able to look-up race or trail information on the go with your favorite tablet or smartphone.
- TRAIL NEWS: Fresh dirt! Read all about it! We’re adding a new blog called “Trail News” where you can read feature stories, “Trail Times” articles, press releases from Nancy Hobbs and more. All articles will have a comments section so you can “sound off” and join the conversation.
- SOCIAL: ATRA is getting social. You’ve probably noticed that we’ve been pretty chatty on social media over the past year. We’re adding social links to all our webpages so you can share your favorite #trailrunning races, trails & more. Thank you to the over over 8,000 followers who’ve joined us on Facebook, Twitter and Google+ over the past 12 months. We’ll continue to seed your social feed with tasty trail nuggets from races, runners, brands & news sites from across the world of trail running.
- RESOURCES: It’s a big, big trail running world and we want to help you discover it. New to trail running? We’ll help you get started with tips for beginners. Training for your 2nd 100 mile race? We’ll help you connect with & learn from other experienced trail runners with a list of blogs & news sources so maybe next time you won’t bonk at mile 60 (just kidding). Also find links to popular trail running books, clubs, blogs, magazines, running camps & more.
- WHAT WE WON”T DO: Have you noticed how websites are using more and more space for ads? In many cases these are ads that follow you around the web and often have no relevance to trail running - even though they display on trail running websites! The American Trail Running Association is the oldest trail running non-profit in the country and we’re dedicated to providing the information you’re looking for quickly & easily without bombarding you with unsightly ads, pop-up windows or polluting your computer with tracking cookies. What you will find on the new trailrunner.com are small banner ads (no more than 2 per page) from select ATRA corporate members, highlighted listings from our member races and club members. These are all brands, races and organizations active in the trail running community and without whom we couldn’t do what we do for you, our followers, our community and our beloved sport. In the same way we don’t share the email addresses of our newsletter recipients, we’re also not going to sell your clicks to the highest bidder, drop re-marketing cookies or “spam” your web browsing experience. 100% pure #trailrunning - that’s the American Trail Running Association.
- WHAT CAN YOU DO? Let us know what you’d like to see on the new trailrunner.com. Your feedback and ideas are important to us and now’s the perfect time to make suggestions.
Happy Trails,
Richard Bolt
Director of Online Marketing
American Trail Running Association
richardbolt at trailrunner dot com
Yours truly after my finishing my first trail marathon.
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