This summer saw the launch of ambitious new endurance race comparison website Let's Do This; a brand new digital marketplace and comparison website for sporting and mass participation events, which will bring together races from 1km through to 5,000 km under one roof.
Offering global run, cycle, triathlon and obstacle events, Let's Do This helps athletes to find and book the event that is best for them and offers local and personalised email communications to all users, sending information on what events are happening locally and tailored to users' preferences, fitness and goals.
Post event athletes will be able to review events online, helping their peers find the best challenges and provide valuable feedback to the race organisers.
Launched at a special event hosted by Bike Channel Canyon pro cyclist James Lowsley-Williams at his ancestral home of Chavenage House, as seen in the TV series Poldark, guests included pro cyclist and Le Col owner Yanto Barker and explorer Levison Wood, with an inspiring talk given by seven-day riding record holder and two-time cancer survivor James Golding.
Although started in 2016, the official launch marked the team's completion of what they claim to be 'the world's biggest multi-disciplinary events and race database including run, cycle, triathlon and ultra-events', as well as the closure of its second round of investment, totalling over £1 million.
Backers include former CEO of BBC sport, Channel 4 sport, and the International Rugby Board Mike Miller; Brian Schuring of Fynder, Rubicon Ventures and Heartcore Fitness, and Jonnie Goodwin of Lepe Partners and Founders Forum. Add to that the technical development clout of former head of technology at moneySupermarket.com Neil Locke, and Let's Do This certainly seems to have the backing to match its ambitions.
Co-founder, Cambridge graduate and self-confessed endurance sport nut Sam Browne said, "The endurance events market has had explosive growth in the last 20 years and there are now about 1.5 million awesome events worldwide. But as they exist in a disorganised mess, it's currently very difficult to access the best events for you personally. We're building the definitive hub to search, rate and book your next race".
Fellow co-founder and Cambridge graduate Alex Rose added, "The site also allows users to discover the lesser known and often smaller more personal, independent sporting events which don't have the big name, brand or budget but which athletes love to discover".
By the end of the year, Let's Do This is hoping to add an algorithm that will predict race difficulty, as well as social integration to make it easier for users to organizing event teams. By allowing users to log in via Facebook and Strava you'll be able to see which events your friends have done, invite them to compete with you and share upcoming races and results.
It is also hoped that sharing and connection with fitness community sites such as Strava will enable the site to uniquely asses your selected events for difficulty based on your own personal fitness levels, thus making it an ongoing part of your event planning and training.
