Fees for measuring

I charge a flexible rate. If it is a big, well funded event I charge about $200/event for multiple events (eg. if there is a full, half and 10km the fee would be $600), $400 if it is only a marathon and $200 for shorter single events. Events that are complex and require more than one day to measure I'll increase the fee. In addition to these fees I recover my out of pocket expenses, like registration fees, travel and vehicle use.

For smaller, community events I give them a break.

Some measurers charge quite a bit more and others quite a bit less.

Take a look at the topics on the BB. There was much discussion on rates various people charge.

Thank you both! I have been digging in the BB and the more I search, I do see some on fees. Working on getting use to this GREAT resource~

Wow, Paul. You are awesomely generous. I am personally closer to Duane's rates, sometimes even higher. I have plenty of work.

ZOW! I agree with Lyman.

Likewise. After a discussion with Doug Thurston a couple of years ago I changed my fees to a "per kilometer" charge, dependent on how busy the road is. The more dangerous the course, the higher the $/km charge. I've had a few directors suffer from "sticker shock" but they tend to be the events which are cutting corners (if one pardons the pun) in other areas, too.

As a believer in free enterprise, I would never be in favor of RRTC or USATF mandating or recommending certain certification fees. For one thing, some courses are relatively easy to measure, while one of the same distance might be complicated and time-consuming. Imagine the Marine Corps Marathon, traversing two states, several law enforcement jurisdictions, Interstate highways, and National Park Service properties. Bob Thurston charges an hourly rate for this work. It just wouldn't make sense any other way. Then, there are the cost of living differences from city to city and state to state. There are differences in the quality of the final product from measurer to measurer e.g. the map.

I modeled my fee structure somewhat on Duane Russell's excellent web site. Some clients I work with require a design from scratch, then tweaks or changes as required by the permitting authorities. I took this a step further a few years ago, charging an hourly rate for course design, permitting, police coordination, course layout, and other related services.

If some measurers want to charge low fees, that is his/her business. The one thing that bugs me about measuring fees is that there is such a wide variety of fees charged by measurers working in the greater D.C. area that shopping goes on here all the time. I get a referral for a measurement. I send out a list of certified courses in their area, my fee structure, sample maps, and sometimes a quick analysis of the course. Then, sometimes, I hear nothing back because the shopper calls or emails measurers around the region until he/she feels he/she has hit the bottom price, and feels no need to advise me or some other measurer accordingly.

A few months ago, many of us on this list serve were approached via email from a shopper. I can guess many of us wasted time crafting responses to her. I do not know who finally got the job - if there actually was a multi-event measurement job as stated.

I do not know what to do about this. There probably isn't anything anyone can do.

Lyman, all you can do in the situation you describe above is to give your best pitch, and see what happens. I always suggest they look at each measurer's maps, as that is our most-visible "product".

It's all part of the bidding process. Many businesses bid for work, taking hours, days, or weeks of time to produce the bid. Only one company gets the work, but all have put time into the bid process. That's business. Don't worry about times spent on bids, as it does lead to work. Not all of our time produces income. We just hope that most of our efforts either produce income, or satisfy us in other ways.