Posted: June 30, 2006

Athletics: State of the Sport of Running - Part I

By Running USA's Road Running Information Center

The U.S. Running Industry continues to grow by all measures as the below shows.

RUNNING MERCHANDISE
More Running/Jogging Shoes sold: 40,274,000 (up 4%) - NSGA (2)
More Dollars spent for those shoes: $2,156,733,000 (up 8%) - NSGA (2)
More Female Users of Shoes: 49.2% in '05, 48.1% in '03, 38.4% in '93 - NSGA (2)
More Running Clothing purchased: $656,200,000 (up 2%) - NSGA (2)
More Track Running Shoes sold: 815,000 (up 4%); $40,071,000 (up 7%) - NSGA (2)
More Trail Running Shoes sold: 528,000 (up 5%); $27,324,000 (up 5%) - NSGA (2)
More Running Shoes sold in Specialty Athletic Footwear Stores: 24.5% of dollars - NSGA (2)

RUNNERS
More Runners who ran at least once in 2005: 37,810,000 - ASD (1)
More Runners who ran at least 6 times in 2005: 29,246,000 - NSGA (1)
More Frequent Runners who ran at least 100 days in 2005: 11,583,000 - ASD (1)
More Male Runners in 2005: 21,104,000 - ASD (1); 16,368,000 - NSGA (1) 
More Trail Runners as defined by Outdoor Industry Foundation: 40.4 million - OIF (1) 
More Hispanic Runners: 48% of surveyed Hispanics run or jog - OIF (2)
More College Students who are Runners: 3,693,000 (students age 18 to 34) - ASD (2)
More College-Educated Runners: 17.3 mil males + 19.7 mil females - NSGA (1)
More Runners with $75,000+ annual household incomes: 16.033 million - ASD (1)
 
ROAD RACES
More Money Raised for Charities by Running Events: $656 million (up 14%) - USATF
More Road Race Finishers in the U.S. in 2005: 8.1 million - Running USA RRIC
More 5K Finishers in the U.S. in 2005: 3.1 million - Running USA RRIC
More 10K Finishers in the U.S. in 2005: 1.045 million - Running USA RRIC
More Half-Marathon Finishers in the U.S. in 2005: 536,000 - Running USA RRIC
More Marathon Finishers in the U.S. in 2005: 432,000 - Running USA RRIC

Running Bucks the Trend of Declining Participation Noted by SGMA and OIF
In a recent press release describing its 2006 State of the Industry Report, the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association (SGMA) reported that wholesale industry sales grew by about 6.8% (to $55.7 billion) in 2005, outperforming the U.S. economy which grew at 4.3%. But there was a word of caution about the industry's future. "Over the past decade, participation in almost all the 100 activities measured by American Sports Data has either decreased or grown more slowly than the overall population itself. While there are a few bright spots in terms of individual sports and fitness activities, the overall picture is one of an increasingly sedentary population."

Running/Jogging has held its own in that context and is one of the small number of sports tracked by American Sports Data since 1987 that had more participants in 2005 than in 1987, 1998 and 2004. The others were Surfing (2.6 million participants in 2005), Cheerleading (4.1 mil), Snowboarding (7.3 mil), Skateboarding (11.3 mil) and Treadmill (47.9 mil). The list of all sports/activities and their participation numbers for the 3 years above can be found in the Sports Participation Topline Report 2006 Edition which can be downloaded for free on SGMA.com.

The Outdoor Recreation Participation Study released this month by the Outdoor Industry Foundation (OIF) also had good news and bad news. While the number of participants in the 22 outdoor activities tracked by the study increased from 2004 to 2005 (159 million Americans age 16 and older in 2004 compared to 161.6 million in 2005), the number of outings decreased by 11%. The study's executive summary noted that "Overnight backpacking's dramatic 22.5% decline in participation over the past eight year period and the significant increase in snowshoeing (83%) and trail running (22%) participation indicate that individuals are looking for less commitment-heavy activities. Activities that can be done occasionally and without great planning effort seem to be on the rise."

See continuation of State of Sport of Running in upcoming Running USA wires:
Part II - Runner Demographic Trends & Part III - Largest Races Lists

Sources
ASD = American Sports Data Inc. (1) = American Sports Data 2005 Superstudy of Sports Participation, Volume I. (2) = American Sports Data 2005 Lifestyle Segmentation Report. To obtain information on sports demographic products and services offered, contact Harvey Lauer at American Sports Data, Inc., 15 Kent Dr, Cortlandt Manor, NY 10567; (914) 461-3271 or go to AmericanSportsData.com

NSGA = National Sporting Goods Association. (1) = NSGA Sports Participation Series I for 2005. (2) = NSGA Sporting Goods Market 2006. To obtain information on any of the NSGA products and services email info@nsga.org, phone (847) 296-6742 or go to NSGA.org.

OIF = Outdoor Industry Foundation. (1) = Outdoor Recreation Participant Study, published June 2006. (2) = The Hispanic Community and Outdoor Recreation conducted by UCLA Anderson School of Management, published in March 2006. Information on these reports as well as other useful services for the outdoor industry can be obtained by visiting OutdoorIndustryFoundation.org.

RRIC = Running USA's Road Running Information Center. State of the Sport reports, many types of running data and analysis and lists of the Largest Races from past years can be found on RunningUSA.org in the 'Statistics' section. For other questions about running trends and demographics, contact Ryan Lamppa [ryan@runningusa.org] or Linda Honikman [rric@runningusa.org].

SGMA = Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association. For more information on the State of the Industry Report or Sports Participation Topline Report 2006 Edition, go to SGMA.com.

USATF = USA Track & Field. The press release regarding charity fundraising by road races can be found on USATF.org.

Ryan Lamppa, Running USA Media Director
(805) 696-6232; Fax = (805) 659-0016
Ryan@RunningUSA.org
www.RunningUSA.org.

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