Arriving in beta, the new feature links up with the training platform's personalized plans
Runna has announced the public beta rollout of ‘Races by Runna’, an addition to the training platform that aims to simplify the process of finding a running race event.
The new feature is essentially a race discovery search engine designed to solve the often clunky and fragmented process of finding your next race and linking up a training plan for it.
For runners like myself, the journey to the start line often involves juggling multiple websites to discover an event, and then hoping that another user on Garmin Connect has done the hard work of adding the GPX file, date, and start time so I can sync a Garmin Coach plan with it.
Runna aims to streamline this process—and, at least at first glance, it appears promising.
The fitness platform, acquired by Strava earlier this year, has incorporated a detailed filtering system into the database. It means users can search by the usual metrics (such as distance and location), but also by more granular preferences, including elevation, terrain, climate, or even niche tags like whether the race is dog-friendly or occurs at night.
The key draw, however, is the deep integration with Runna’s core coaching product. Once a user finds a race they like, they can use the ‘Races’ feature to generate a personalised training plan built around that specific event date and distance.
The system is also smart enough to handle a full season of events, letting users add ‘B-Races’ to their calendar. The training plan will then automatically adjust workouts, recovery, and tapering periods to accommodate both the main ‘A-Race’ and any tune-up events.
That means it’s right in line with the race-based tools available natively on Garmin, and, of course, the syncing to devices (like Garmin’s) remains an option for all the actual tracking syncing.
The Wareable take
Although we’ve not yet had the chance to explore the ‘Races’ tool properly (and see if it’s actually effective at streamlining the typically clunky race-finding process), it’s undoubtedly a logical next step for the platform—one that helps capture users before they even start their focused training.
In theory, it should create a stickier ecosystem: a runner can now find a race, build a plan, and sync that plan’s workouts to their smartwatch, running watch, or sports watch all under one umbrella. And if it can prove more ‘official’ and less community-reliant than Garmin’s existing tools, it could become the no-brainer way to find and train for your next race.
We’ll be testing it out over the coming months, so stay tuned for a full explainer.
