The location of your start is crucial as it is the first thing runners will encounter when they run your course. Remember there is nothing actually present on the ground, so it needs to be very obvious how to find it (probably even more so than the controls as, without hitting the start, nothing can be done).

• Must be easy to describe (description can be added to MapRun.uk), e.g. Junction between High Street and Main Road or Corner of cafe nearest the car park
• Must be a clear feature on the map so runners are certain when they are there
• If using control descriptions, must have a control description (often overlooked!)
• If co-located with the Finish (strongly recommended), must not be in a location that runners may run past mid-course. If an organised event and the start is co-located with the finish, this means that the meeting point should not be too close to the start
• Should not be in the middle of, or immediately adjacent to, likely parking or an assembly/meeting location for an organised event. Runners will want to park up (or collect their map), load the course and then pick Go to start on their phone or watch before heading to the start. They will not expect the start to punch immediately
• On the other hand, the start should not be a long way from where runners are likely to meet or park. If runners are using only their watch they will need their phone nearby when downloading the course onto their watch, but after that they will probably leave their phone in their car

MapRun.uk uses the start location to group one or more courses into an event (if they are within 100m they will be combined). An event page (example) specifies things like:

• Start location (on a map)
• Start description (text)
• Parking details
• Any other information the club wishes to specify, e.g. safety or entry information

It is therefore strongly recommended that when you are planning a course in an area used for a previous event that you use the same start location. The parking, start descriptions and safety information will be the same, thus avoiding duplication. It also reduces clutter when people search MapRun.uk for an event. You can get the exact latitude and longitude of the start of an existing event on MapRun.uk by clicking on the marker on the map. When in Google Earth (as decribed later on), you can edit the start coordinates to exactly match.

By the time they reach the finish, runners will be tired and up against the clock (particularly on a score course). It is very important that they can easily find and punch the finish as wandering about waving your phone in the air will leave a poor impression. Unless there is a very good reason, the start and finish should be at the same spot. By definition, runners have already found the start by the time they reach the finish, so they can have certainty they will find it again if they return to the same place.

Because the start should be convenient to find and be close (but not too close) to parking, there may occasions where the finish cannot be located in the same place because runners may return to that area mid-course. This is particularly true for a score course where you cannot control what direction runners may approach the finish from. The finish does not have a control description and cannot be described on MapRun.uk except in the general information section, so it is imperative that the map gives all the information needed to find it.