RunGo Launch

We are very excited to announce that RunGo is available in the iTunes App Store for iPhone. After we submitted to Apple, we weren't exactly sure how long the approval process would take.  Regardless, we celebrated that Friday with our small team of runners and programmers and a few friends at The Pint, a local pub here in Vancouver.  It took about a week to hear back, and the following Friday RunGo was officially in the App Store. One of the most exciting parts about launching an app was about to begin. Where in the world would people discover RunGo?

We eagerly purchased star-shaped stickers for the world map we have in the office to place on the countries RunGo had been downloaded. Within the first two weeks, it was downloaded 400 times in over 50 countries.  We expected countries in North America and Europe would earn the first stars, but we ended up placing them in places we didn't expect--countries like Turkey, Sweden, the Philippines and China.

Our top five countries in order of most downloads to date:

1. USA
2. UK
3. Canada
4. China
5. France

A fun challenge we have is creating routes in remote areas of some of these countries that we know nothing about running in first-hand. In so doing, we realized that many other runners must share this challenge as well, especially if they are visitors.  Even in our own backyards, there are enormous, beautiful trails and routes that runners must pay close attention to for safety reasons.  Lucky for us, many of the trails listed in our Route Store have been personally run by Craig and his first-hand experience has proven to be very useful for creating route directions!

Creating running routes is important to us for many reasons. We want to offer quality routes that are scenic, fun and also safe.  Being careful not to send some poor runner down train tracks, congested roads or unlit alleyways is part of what sets our routes apart from many of the thousands of routes available on the web. We are working with local running clubs to build popular running routes, as well as race directors to add official race courses. This way, runners can either practice an upcoming race or discover a great place to run without worrying about getting lost.

On Friday, we released a new version that includes:

1. Social media integration;
2. Improved navigation, allowing users to start anywhere on the route;
3. A motivation option that encourages you as you approach time and distance goals;
4. Improved voice

Check back here with us to learn more about upcoming features and let us know what you'd like to see in the app.  We also want to know what some of your favorite routes are, and where you'd like to see more running routes.  Connect with us on Facebook or Twitter or drop us a line in our Contact Us page.

Happy running!