Eugene Marathon 2018

Venue: Historic Hayward Field, Eugene, Oregon
Services Provided: Custom Truss Banner for Finish Line Structure
Client: Eugene Marathon

Distance running events have become large production events with lots of opportunity for improvement. Pre and post event activities, event signage/décor, and of course the finish line all have an opportunity to make a lasting impact on the runners who will ultimately decide to do the event again the following year.

Here in Eugene, Oregon, where Stretch Shapes is headquartered, there is a rich history of runners and events that have provided this city with the nickname “Track Town USA.” From Steve Prefontaine to the recent success of the University of Oregon’s track team, there’s a lot of success to back that nickname. For that reason, among others, the Eugene Marathon has been a destination event for runners across the globe. The event just celebrated its 12th year with runners coming from all 50 states as well as dozens of countries.

This year, the Eugene Marathon sought out a specific and much-needed upgrade: the finish line. In years past, they had used vinyl banners attached to a “goalpost” style truss assembly. The banners were unsightly and left a lot of the truss exposed, leaving runners with an unfinished look as they crossed the finish line that they’ve been training so hard to burst through.

In need of an upgrade, the team at Eugene Marathon reached out to Stretch Shapes for help. Working with the truss company that was supplying the truss for the finish line structure, our team was able to design and pattern a beautiful stretch fabric finish line that covered the entire truss structure from all angles. Stretch Shapes patterned the covers into three separate panels so that while installed, everything came together as one cover; however, this will allow the marathon organization to keep the side panels year after year while only having to change out the centerpiece as sponsors come and go.

The entire structure and fabric install was done in less than two hours! This was less time than in years past and looked superb.

“Our experience with Stretch Shapes was fantastic from start to finish. They were quick to answer questions during the design process and gave us advice along the way that helped ensure that the end product looked great. I was especially impressed with how accommodating the Stretch Shapes team was during installation. Our event required an inconvenient installation time, but their whole team showed up exactly when we needed them and they got the job done perfectly. I would recommend working with Stretch Shapes to anyone and I know we’ll be coming back to them in the future!” – Ian Dobson, Eugene Marathon