Restrooms at the Start, Finish and Route of a Louisville Race

Start, finish and route are three different crowds

The start, the finish and the route each have a different crowd, so each gets its own count and placement rather than a single set spread along the course.

At the start the crowd is runners who are waiting, cold and nervous, and demand is heavy in the last half hour before the gun. At the finish it is short and sharp, as runners need a unit within minutes. Along the route it is steady and driven by the spectators at fixed points.

A plan that treats the three as one will fail at the one that matters most for the race, so each point gets its own count and its basis is shown on the course map.

Placement against the closures

Units sit outside the closure barriers and the runner lanes, reachable by spectators and by a truck during the closure windows the race sets.

A closed course is a barrier to a truck, so the truck is planned around the race rather than through it. Units go on the spectator side of the barriers where the route allows, and the servicing route is agreed with the organiser for the windows when the course is open.

Units are also kept out of the medical lane and the emergency access, and each unit's position is checked against the course map before the day.

• Outside the barriers and the runner lanes
• Reachable by spectators without crossing the course
• A servicing route checked for each closure window
• Clear of the medical and emergency lanes

The finish and the minutes after the line

At the finish a runner needs a unit close by and a flow that does not trap people, so the finish units stand beside the chute's exit and are staffed for a short peak.

The minutes after the line are the hardest. Runners are tired and sometimes unsteady, and they want a unit within a few steps. A unit placed a long walk from the chute will be found by the wrong people in the wrong place.

Friends and families gather at the finish too. The units are set so the crowd does not block the chute and finishers can reach them without pushing through.

Close-out and reopening the streets

The course is cleared in the order the closure plan sets, so the units come out after the last runner and before the streets reopen to traffic.

The sweep vehicle goes first, then the units are emptied and collected, and the street is inspected for litter and damage. Only then does the traffic plan reopen the route. A unit left in a lane after reopening is a hazard and an offence against the closure permit.

The race organiser and the city's traffic staff agree the reopening time in advance, and the restroom crew works to it.

Weather and a late start

A late start or a change of weather shifts the whole course timetable, and the restroom crew shifts with it, holding units back until the new start is confirmed.

A race delayed by weather keeps runners and spectators on the course for longer, and the units have to last. The crew checks stock and adds a visit to the revised timetable, and the organiser confirms the new start before any unit is moved onto the route.

A cancelled race is handled as the festival and show plans are: units not yet placed are held back and units on the route are collected the same day.

Post-race recovery and the family area

After a race the finish area fills with families and friends, and a separate set of units is kept for them, placed away from the finishers' recovery space.

Finishers need space to recover, and their friends and families need a toilet nearby. The plan sets a separate block for the family area, placed away from the recovery space so the two crowds do not mix.

The family block is checked on the same visits as the finish block, and its count is set for the time after the last finisher.