Ticket sales for this week’s 103rd running of the Drake Relays are described as “brisk.” Drake Associate Athletic Director Dennis Francois says, barring bad weather, the stands should be packed both Friday and Saturday.
“We’re definitely preparing for record crowds again,” Francois said. “We had a record year last year in terms of attendance and we had four beautiful days of weather. It looks like we might have a little chance of rain on Friday, but as always, we’ll run it right through and without any lightning, we’ll keep things on schedule.”
Just over 14,000 people attended the Drake Relays on Saturday last year, which amounted to a sell out. “This year, how we’re going to fair against that will be determined by our walk-up crowd. We had a big uptick today with the high school (participants) announced over the weekend,” Francois said.
One of the first big Drake Relays events, the pole vault, will be held Wednesday night inside Jordan Creek Mall in West Des Moines. The heptathlon and decathlon begin on Thursday, with the bulk of the Drake Relays events scheduled for Friday and Saturday at Drake Stadium in Des Moines.