Incremental Innovations
There is an old adage about “building the plane as it flies.” At first glance that may seem like a bad plan, and it would definitely be impossibly bad if taken in the literal sense. I think the phrase is really about the nature of creating. Loft something skyward and then create the lift any idea needs to gain altitude. This kind of on-the-go building and creating leaves room for adjustment, adaptation, thinking and the ever-necessary rethinking. Most of all, it keeps the visibility clear for innovation. It will soon be 25 years since the PRFS took flight with the barest frame of an idea. It did not start as a series. It was built into a series by being riveted together with the hope of motivating people to move throughout the year rather than just for a single event. Healthy people, healthy communities and human flourishing were the plane’s destination. This on-the-fly construction continues today.
The new construction began with those who took our survey in February. The survey became the raw material for continued building beyond 25 years of flight. Earlier this fall, a focus group of 14 volunteers representing athletes, volunteers, race directors and sponsors met on multiple occasions to do a specific kind of innovation known as incremental innovation. By definition, this type of innovation involves minor adjustments to what is already being done to make it better. No need to build a brand-new plane, just make a few modifications to the one already built. This wholehearted construction crew added design and craftmanship to the plane and even more raw material to the architecture of the PRFS. I asked the group to focus on five key areas, the incentive structure, volunteer enhancement, sponsorship, scholarships and expansion to other communities. The final design would include a doorway so more people could come aboard and a furthering of our mission toward fostering whole human health.
The building material these 14 people generated was ample, expansive, creative and generous. In addition to their ideas, I asked them for the patience needed to build something that lasts. The construction of the PRFS was methodical, slow and intentional and I like to think that this approach aided in its longevity. Big, ostentatious, be-dazzled and splashy ambitions attract attention for sure but that is not how I am built. I could only build what I knew how to build, something plain, simple, slow and steady. Something that stays. Change is hard for most all humans even though it can be growth-producing and it is part of the human condition. Acknowledging that, the incremental innovations developed by our focus group and affirmed by our devoted Board of Directors will be rolled out over two or more years. In this edition of our newsletter, we’ll preview three innovations that will be implemented for the upcoming 2026 season.
The incentive structure is the heart of the PRFS. It is the engine that propels our plane. The incentives came not only from my love of running and racing, but weirdly, from my love of reading! The summer reading programs I joined as a kid were entirely motivating. “How many books can you read!?” was my perennial summer endeavor. A few word changes, and a reading challenge became “How many races can you run!?” Not particularly fancy but it seems to continue to speak to people. Beginning in 2026, the Finisher’s Challenge will remain as a primary motivator with a few small changes. There will be a single category of finisher, “Ultimate Finisher.” This category will include athletes who complete every event, including the virtual challenge, on the 2026 PRFS schedule. Grace matters and life happens so those who miss one event will also be considered Ultimate Finishers. This is an acknowledgment that even with the best map, life can take us off course. The Honorable Mention category and the 2-race allowance will be eliminated. All Ultimate Finishers will receive half-priced racing for the entirety of the 2027 season. In addition, they will receive an elevated PRFS Finisher’s custom jacket.
The Points Challenge structure will remain the same, participation points based on distance and difficulty, placing points for first through eighth place as follows, 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 points. The Top Ten in each age group and gender will be recognized as always at our award dinner. The Overall Winner by gender will also be awarded full complimentary racing for 2027. The overall winner won’t be eligible for full complimentary racing again for three years, although they will still be crowned as champion should they earn the highest point total the following year. In this case, the complimentary racing will be awarded to the runner-up. The designation of place will be based on points (the top points winner will always be overall winner) but the complimentary racing will only be awarded to the same athlete every three years to allow more opportunity for everyone to work toward this very special benefit.
The next innovation that will launch starting with the 2026 season is a volunteer incentive program. Much like the athlete incentive program, the volunteer program will award points to volunteers for helping with the core work of the PRFS. To be clear, individual races will still be responsible for their own volunteer support. These volunteers will be PRFS volunteers working in areas like timing, results, opening and closing races, posting results and points tabulation. Our core team of volunteers is loyal and truly dedicated but to keep our plane flying, we need to add re-enforcements to the structure. Ours is a fitness family, and like any family, shared responsibility makes family life run more smoothly. I am beyond grateful to those who have already come forward to volunteer. We will be training people in the coming year in these various tasks to lighten the load for our longstanding team. Sustainability keeps our plane in the air. Awards, swag and a dinner invite will be extended to the top volunteers. Please contact me if you are interested!
The final innovation that will roll out in 2026 is a plan to add additional seats, so to speak, to the plane. Each race will continue to secure their own sponsors. The PRFS will be implementing a program to encourage and recognize sponsors for the PRFS itself. We have a truly privileged relationship with our partners. We get to do the work because Great Plains Health continues to financially support it. Because they do, we can invite and support the work of organizations who give us the gift of a race in return. The race in turn benefits a wide array of worthy causes right here in our communities. It is a mutuality that I believe is foundational. We get to have an incentive structure that lavishes love and congratulations for effort, tenacity and persistence. We get to turn our full attention to you the athlete and our races. We also get to do the work because first the Rec Center and now West Central District Health Department supports the administrative side of running what is in reality, a non-profit. We have a home at WCDHD where the work is done, supported and made possible without the constant concern of how to fund basic operations. They give us an airport hangar to call home. We have other sponsors who help us add features like extra swag for double and triple events, keep our website paid for and running, allow us to support programs like Marathon Kids and StoryWalk and to tell our story. They provide essential services to us that we would otherwise be required to pay for. We are profoundly blessed, and we want to continue to build on what we have.
I am dedicated to my original commitment to keep the PRFS at the lowest possible cost per race. Our race entry fees are well below the national average, but costs to host a race only continue to climb. Twenty-five years ago, we could get an acceptable shirt and nice medal at one-fifth what those items cost now. Sponsors for individual races continue to amaze me, but they too are trying to do more with less. We are adding a sponsor incentive program along with our other incentive programs to encourage additional support for the PRFS so that we can continue to help keep race costs low. Right now, we cover the full cost of race insurance for every race, a hefty and necessary expenditure. Race fees would be higher if we were not able to help. We hope to someday be able to cost-share the swag for our member races so they can keep more of the dollars raised for their cause and the need to increase entry fees negligible. Financial sponsors to the PRFS will receive race credits based on our points structure. For every $100 donated, a sponsor earns a race credit. Five credits earn the sponsor an entry into a 5K of their choice. Sponsors can incentivize employees or make it part of a workplace wellness program, use the entry themselves, or gift the entry to a student in the Marathon Kids program. Sponsors can encourage participation and add to our ability to support our races. Athletes who recruit sponsors will also earn race credits identical to the sponsors. Maybe you’re not into spreadsheets or tech-savvy, but maybe you are happy to go out and get sponsorships while earning a free entry or two at the same time!
These three incremental innovations, along with the two I’ll explain in the next newsletter are meant to continue to provide for a sustainable, affordable program for health and wellness and to continue to grow the community that supports our collective flourishing. There will be kinks to be worked out, plans that need adjusted. That is the nature of building something. I welcome your questions, either in person, phone, text or email. I’m always happy to have a real conversation so no social media questions please. Congratulations and deepest gratitude to our focus group, our board, and our survey respondents for co-creating a stronger plane to fly us into twenty-five years and beyond!