Environmental Preferences and Concerns of Recreational Road Runners

Environmental Preferences and Concerns of Recreational Trail Runners

Trail running is a fast-growing sport, linked to improvements in both physical and psychological well-being. Despite its popularity, the preferences of trail runners are not well known. The objective of this study was to examine the environmental preferences and concerns of trail runners with respect to age and gender. We conducted a cross-sectional survey of recreational trail runners. A total of 548 people responded, of which 50.1% of respondents were women and 44.2% were men. The sample was distributed relatively evenly across age groups, up to 54 years; respondents over 55 represented only 9.4% of the sample. Comparisons of runner characteristics by gender indicated significant differences (p < 0.05) according to age, distance run per week, and number of days run per week. Certain runner preferences also differed significantly by gender, including importance of running around others, the type of trail races they seek, and whether or not they like to seek "vert" or elevation in their runs. Major concerns for both genders while running included lack of cell reception (Men: 33.8%; Women: 50.8%) and getting lost (Men: 26.8%; Women: 35.5%). Comparisons of the results of this study help to strengthen our understanding of trail runners' environmental preferences and concerns and can be used to guide future design and maintenance of trail environments to encourage greater participation in the sport.

Using geospatial trajectories to explore how the COVID-19 pandemic affects the associations between environmental attributes and runnability of park trails

The worldwide coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the associated social distancing measures have produced alterations in park visits of individuals, as well as their park-based physical activity (e.g. running exercise). Although studies on the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on changes in running activity patterns are becoming an emerging focus, less is known about how these changes are related to the environmental attributes of parks before and after the pandemic, the knowledge of which is essential to planning green infrastructure that better supports physical activities. Therefore, we employed a volunteered geographic information approach to investigate the runnability of park trails in Shenzhen, utilizing self-tracking routes from Strava, in order to uncover the associations between trail characteristics and park features with the running intensity before and after the pandemic. Multilevel regression model analyses revealed that trail network connectivity was the only environmental attribute indicating consistent and positive associations with running intensity. Blue space density was positively correlated with running intensity in urban parks but indicated no significant association in forest parks before the pandemic. In the pre-pandemic era, population density was positively related to running intensity in urban and forest parks. However, after the pandemic, the associations between running behaviours and population density remained positive in forest parks but turned insignificant in urban parks. The outbreak of the pandemic also altered the influence of other park features (e.g. park shape and trail density) on running intensity. The evidence-based knowledge provides planners with significant insights into pandemic-resilient park planning for the post-COVID era.

Neighborhood Characteristics Associated with Running in Metro Vancouver: A Preliminary Analysis

Running can improve physical health and psychological wellbeing. However, the characteristics of conducive running environments are relatively unknown. This study determines neighborhood factors that attract running and explores how age and gender mediate built environment preferences. Spatial patterns of runners in Metro Vancouver were identified using crowdsourced fitness data from Strava, a popular application for tracking physical activities. The influence of socio-economic status (SES), green and/or blue space, and urbanicity on route popularity was assessed using a Generalized Linear Model (GLM). The influence of these neighborhood variables was also calculated for runners by age and gender. The results show high neighborhood SES, the presence of green and/or blue space, and high population density are associated with increased running activities in all age and gender groups. This study contributes a novel approach to understanding conducive running environments by demonstrating the utility of crowdsourced data in combination with data about urban environments. The patterns of this large group of runners can be used to inform planning for cities that promote running, as well as seek to encourage equal participation among different ages and genders.

Motivation and Eco-Attitudes among Night Runners during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Running surrounded by nature at night, often with limited contact with other people, is one of the safest physical activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this article is to determine what motivates night recreational runners and to analyse the differences between men and women according to age, and also to see whether the fact of having had COVID-19 or not matters when it comes to athletes’ motivation behind participating in runs. Runners were also asked about participating in cities or out-of-town events in terms of verifying the cleanliness of the air before running, using masks or running in green areas. 233 individuals in total participated in this descriptive, quantitative, cross-sectional study. The questionnaire uses the division of motives used in the Marathon Motivation Scale (MOMS) and a number of additional questions on environmental factors. Overall, the main motivation that drives night-time runners is health orientation, weight concern, personal goal achievement, psychological coping, life meaning and self-esteem. The research also showed higher scores for health orientation, recognition, psychological coping, life meaning and self-esteem among runners who had had COVID-19 than runners who had not had the virus. In addition, respondents clearly indicated that night running makes it easier to fall asleep and improves the quality of sleep. Most runners rated their mental health as being good, did not run in the morning despite better air levels, did not choose running events outside the urban area and did not check the air quality index before running. Therefore, it will be important for coaches, event organisers and other professionals to consider athletes’ age, gender, whether they have had COVID-19 and runners’ approaches to eco-attitudes when trying to understand their reasons for participating in different sports or leisure events, especially those that focus on a priority in shaping environmental attitudes.