Factors affecting return participation in sport tourism running events: The role of running involvement, place attachment, event attachment and travel patterns.

This presentation examines active sport tourists (runners) engaged in a small-scale, annual sport tourism event (Melissa’s Road Race held in Banff National Park, Canada). More specifically, the affect of a number of factors on race participants’ intensions to compete in the event in the future was examined. These factors included: physiological involvement in running, attachment to the park and the event, and selected travel patterns. Multiple regression analysis was used to examine 421 participant’s responses, to determine what factors might positively predict return visitation and participation. Attachment to Melissa’s Road Race, perceptions that the park was an “appropriate” venue for the Race, attachment to Banff National Park, plans to return to the Park as a place to visit, and the number of days event participants had visited the Park in the last 12 months all contributed to the prediction of intensions to participate in Melissa’s Road Race in the future. These variables explained 34% of respondent’s intensions to re-participate. Interestingly psychological involvement in running failed to significantly predict future participation