Strava route embeds

We recently asked our users what they want to know before booking a race. Top of the list? Course routes. Unsurprisingly, runners want to know exactly what they're in for before committing to participate. With our new integration with Strava, they can know just that, with mapping, course flyovers, elevation stats, and route photos.

Here's the full list from our on-going user survey:

findarace.com user survey

Strava's 'route embed' feature covers several of the most important pieces of event information. In a few simple steps, you can now add a course route, a map, elevation metrics, and a flyover, to your event's page on findarace.com. The Strava route and elevation will show on the event page in the "Route & Elevation" section. For example, here's how it looks for Runfest's Richmond Marathon.

Richmond Runfest Marathon embedded route.

How to add routes to your events
on findarace.com

Before adding the embedded map to findarace.com, it must first be created on Strava. Many events will already have a Strava club but if not, you'll need to set that up first, before then adding the event and route:

Step 1: Create a Club

Anyone with a Strava profile can launch a Strava Club in just a few minutes. See Strava's 'How to create a Club on Strava'

Step 2: Add an Event

Within your Club profile, click 'Add Club Event' and complete the form. This can be as little as Event Type, Event Title, Date and Start Time. Again, see the Strava resource: 'How to create an Event on Strava'

Step 3: Create a Route

Full step-by-step guide on 'How to Create a Route on Strava'. Note the owner of the Route must be either Admin or Owner of the Strava Club as well.

Select the event in the Race Organiser's Dashboard

Once you've got your route, it's then simple to add it to findarace. From your Dashboard, navigate to a live event and from the dropdown, click Edit. Scroll down and to the Course details section there's a field to enter the Strava Route ID.

The Route Embed fields in the Race Organiser's Dashboard

Worth noting that due to the way Strava calculates distances, there is a degree of variation that may not match official measuring techniques. For this reason, we've included override fields to allow you to display the correct distance.

This doesn't replace or remove any of the current route maps or text data already in the course section. They'll still exist, and will be displayed alongside the route.

For a detailed breakdown of the features, there's more info on Strava's blog post. If you need any help adding routes to your events, email us at [email protected].