Signing Up For Track Meets: 6 Ways To Get Into Competitions
Because how do you even sign up for meets in the U.S. without a team or a coach?
ANYONE can sign up for a track meet. You do not have to be a part of a collegiate team or even restricted by age. And no one tells you this!
Navigating the world of track and field meets, whether you are in high school, college, on a red shirt year, or post-collegiate can be confusing. I remember the stress of trying to find meets within a manageable 2-3 hour drive, competing, and then repeating the process all over again. Little did I know that post-college, not only would I need to pay for each competition, but finding the right meets would become a bit of a challenge.
It was only after connecting with fellow athletes and absorbing their wisdom about valuable websites that I realized there's a whole world of opportunities out there. In an effort to ease the journey for others, I've decided to compile a list of websites that have personally led me to success. Let's dive in together!
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Direct Athletics: Sign Up For Your Local Meet
How Easy To Use: 9/10
So, what is it? Direct Athletics is a website for local track meets. You can sign up for meets here or even host registration for a meet you want to host. To get started with registering, create your account—it's free, allows you to sign up for meets, pay for entry, and saves all your personal bests and marks.
How To Use It:
- Go the meet calendar through the home page by clicking "I'm An Athlete."
- Open the filter menu to select: The Date, State, Registration Status, Registration Type and Sport (this is a great space to select public/individual so you can compete unattached)
- Click the link to the meet that you want to sign up for
- Check the events on the upper left hand part of the website (if it's available)
- Look out for "Meet Notes" below for additional information on how to sign up like contacting the meet director or if you need to bring a check in person. Meets typically cost anywhere from $25 - $60 for entry as a single athlete. You can usually compete in up to 4 events.
- Click "Enter Now"
- Fill out your personal information
- Select your events and team affiliation, if you don't have a team, select unattached.
- If prompted to pay, pay your meet fee and then click submit.
College Track and Field Meets: The Power Of Email
How Easy To Use: 7/10
College track and field websites provide a huge amounts of information for athletes, even post collegiate. From Division 1 - Junior College, different college's athletics websites will share their schedule. From here you can see what meets the school is hosting and where they are traveling to through out the year. Usually Division 1 schools will have some open entries available but not always.
How To Get Into Contact: Identify the meet director—the mastermind behind each event. Usually a meet director will be listed in the track and field section where the staff is mentioned. Or on past or current track meet schedules. When you find the name, you can generally find a number or an email. Now you can contact them to get into the meet. If the meet from the college is not listed on Direct Athletics you can simply ask to join the meet and if they have room for your entry. It helps if you have competitive marks with the other athletes. It will be hard to get into higher performance meets if you don't have nay times or marks yet.
Strategic Approach: Contact them about the possibility you to join the meet as an unattached runner or field athlete for the specific event you do. Include what your best mark is from the previous year if you have one and ask how you can register during the open period to secure your spot on the track. Be prepared to pay a meet fee in person, either cash or personal check. This is completely normal and meets that are free are a gift! Enjoy those.
Coacho.com: Your Smaller Back Up
How Easy To Use: 4.5/10
Dislclaimer: This one is a little hit and miss and are not always sanctioned meets. So read the descriptions carefully. It caters a little more to youth meets and don't always have all the track events, so just beware. There are still good meets on these platforms though.
Setting Up Your Profile: Coach O is another website for track events being held that allows you to sign up in the platform. Also there is Athletics.c. Begin by creating a detailed athlete profile that serves as your virtual identity, showcasing your skills and accomplishments.
Navigating Events: Utilize the meet calendar on Coach O to explore various events. Identify meets that align with your objectives and mark them as potential milestones in your track career.
Registration Protocols: Ensure you check for open registration dates and promptly register during the specified period. This strategic approach maximizes your chances of securing a coveted spot on the podium.
MileSplit USA: Your Open Meets Along Side High Schools
How Easy To Use: 7/10
Registration Protocols: Ensure you check for open registration dates and promptly register during the specified period. This strategic approach maximizes your chances of securing a coveted spot on the podium.
- Find The Calendar At The Top Of The Website
- Discover Events on the Platform
- Use The Schedule Filters to Find The Right Meets For You - Click on the event, review the details, and hit the registration button.
- Follow the intuitive prompts to input the necessary information, and voila – you're officially registered and ready to hit the track!
MileSplit USA is very tailored to high school athletics, but don't let it discourage you from signing up for meets. That being said, if you are in a field event, you might have to go off a shorter board to acomodate the youth athletes.
Setting Up Your Profile: Like the other websites, you can register to hold you marks and make registering for events easier and the sign up is free.
Athletic.net: Smaller Meet Registration
How Easy To Use: 6.5/10
If you're an athlete on the quest for a meet during the summer or during a period where there really aren't many opportunities around you, sometimes Athletic.net can be a life saver.
Signing Up Made Simple:
- Create Your Athletic Profile
- Explore the Event Calendar - Scan through the listed meets, filter by location or event type, and identify those that align with your goals and schedule.
- Register for Your Chosen Meet: - Click on the event, review the details, and hit the registration button. Follow the prompts to provide the necessary information, and voilà – you're officially on the roster!
World Athletics: Your Gateway to Global Opportunities
How Easy To Use: 2/10
What is it: World Athletics is the international governing body for track and field, opening doors to global opportunities. Begin by exploring the event calendar, akin to planning an international tour of track and field competitions. Most of these meets require an agent to contact the meet to get you in.
Date Check: Check out the dates in the filters on the website and you'll begin to see what meets are available and what country they are in. If you are feeling bold, you can reach out through the contact on the page for each meet listed. Not every meet has a contact. Most meets will only answer though if you have a sports agent representing you.
Navigating Track Meets: Some Take Aways
Choosing Sanctioned Meets:
You can pick any meet you want that is open to your category. If you want to compete or qualify for nationals, be sure to choose sanctioned meets. Sanctioned means that the meet has standards that will count towards national competitions, with certified officials.
Usually any collegiate track meet will be sanctioned but be sure to check the qualifications of the meet. Also pick meets aligned with your goals, ensuring that each competition contributes to your overall track journey.
Traveling:
If you are traveling, it's nice to see how far away the meet is from where you currently are. Usually the venue is usually listed. So you can pop that into Google Maps to see how far your drive or hotel from the venue is.
Usually a two hour car ride is my personal limit for driving myself to meets otherwise I will stay overnight the previous day. If you are a road warrior feel free to choose any meet that you can get to and warm up properly for.
Key Considerations:
- Review if the meet allows unattached entries if you are not competing with a program.
- Sometimes meets will come back later and apologize saying they do not allow unattached entires.
- Be mindful of the registration dates on your calendar. Missing this window could mean missing out on valuable opportunities.
- If the meet offers meet information, print it out so you know where to park and get into the facility for bigger meets.
- If a meet is available but not open yet, check the open registration dates and you can sign up during that time period.
Other Meet Opportunities:
Now that we have some of the main websites to sign up for meets in the US, sometimes there are stand alone meet websites for events such as the American Track League, Drake Relays, Texas Relays, and more. If you have some websites you want to share, comment them below.
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There you have it! Armed with this information, navigating the track meet circuit becomes a little more fun and less stressful. Checkout these websites or other stand alone meet websites.
Remember anyone can do this. Just have to hit that register button to propel yourself towards personal bests and track success! You got this.
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