Sportive cancelled - should the cash be refunded?

[Banjo]

The official word is the the event will be rescheduled for another weekend later in the year. However, it's not quite as simple as that. What if I can't make the new weekend, and what about all the arrangements I already made for tomorrow?
I think if these events start getting cancelled because of weather forecasts people will soon turn their backs on them.

I dont imagine the organizers take the decision to cancel lightly. If theres a significant safety risk due to cold weather then they have no other choice.

I think they should make at least a partial refund for expenses such as food fuel ,casual marshalls etc which they now wont incur.

 

[albion]

It is rescheduled.


Obviously costs will increase.

 

[e-rider]

so the event has been rescheduled for 3 weeks time
turns out the weather was fine today - a little cold at 1-2 degreesC, and breezy but otherwise a pleasant clear day!!!

 

[fossyant]

The weather wasn't fine today on the Cat route. Some areas have had significant snow and ice, others nothing.

 

[zizou]

I was supposed to be doing the Evans Ride It sportive in Callander today - it was cancelled and we either have the option to attend another event in May or get a refund. Seems a fair and reasonable way to do things. I realise Evans are a big company who can maybe take the hit better if things like this happen, however the entry fee is only about £10 which is much cheaper than most other sportives - If paying £30 or so on entry then IMO it is not unreasonable to expect that part of that fee should be towards insurance for the event incase it gets cancelled.

Different story if it is a 100% charity event or something like a race that gets cancelled as these are mostly put on by volunteers and are not run by an event organiser to make a profit. But with the premium the event organiser charges they should be some benefits - like insurance.

 

[dellzeqq]

Not sure which event the OP was doing but with regard to DCLane it is quite apparent that it is bad luck.

The Extract from their Event Rules page. They are certainly clever enough to cover themselves. On a slightly different I have done several of their events and tried to contact them to clarify a point after an event.
Several polite emails received no response, so I would be surprised if you were to get a response.
11) KILO TO GO reserves the right to terminate an individual's ride on health and safety grounds. Rides will only be postponed, re-routed or stopped for reasons of safety. Entry fees are not refundable. Entrants may not transfer or defer their entry. If KILO TO GO has to cancel an event as a result of hostilities, political unrest or other circumstances amounting to force majeure, it shall inform the entrants without delay and shall provide entrants an alternative ride in an event of comparable standard, if available.

that's a bit rubbish, though, isn't it? The re-arranged date is some ten weeks off - people could be doing all kinds of things then. Then again, there's Evans and there's Wiggle.

Mind you, if I cancel this Thursday's FNRttC you can all whistle for your two quid.

 

[400bhp]

I'd be surprised if that were really the economics for most events. For a 3000-rider event, I suspect that the £75k income from riders basically covers pre-committed costs - own office costs (£50k doesn't seem generous for that alone for a professional organisation), the cost of signage, free food and drink, loo hire, venue hire, tent hire, first aid provision, mechanic provision, publicity, timing equipment hire, hire of marshals, insurance and so on. I suspect the money is made by selling pitches at the venue site to companies to sell their wares, and by taking a commission on food and drink sold.

If I'm right (and it's how I'd run the show if it were mine), a cancellation will result in a significant loss of profit, as well as reputational damage. The more astute organisers will have cancellation insurance - I've just found a quote online for a premium of £250 for £75,000 cover, which seems intuitively about right to me.

I disagree somewhat.

I'm unsure where £50k own office costs has come from? I assume you're talking about cost of leasing office space and all that comes with it. From my own experience an office that can hold 2 dozen people right in the centre of Manchester for example would be around £150k a year. Not withstanding that it's a fixed cost, I don't know where they are based, how many staff they have, how many events they run a year, it's not £50k for one event.

signage - coloured laminated cards which are reusable. peanuts
timing equiplemt, agree not likely to be cheap
marshals - IIRC most are volunteers
insurance - well, you know about that.

There isn't that much in terms of pitches at the end, so no, I think the vast majority of their income comes from entry fees.

I'd forgotten then"free" gifts you get at the end. Last year this was a water bottle, some gels, a head scarfe, some smellies which I'd estimate was worth about a tenner. So, the fact they aren't giving these out means they are making more money that they were expecting.

 

[400bhp]

Would people volunteer to marshal a commercial sportive?

Yes, believe it or not they do

 

[Andrew Br]

Would people volunteer to marshal a commercial sportive?

Yes, believe it or not they do

I've worked on the starts of Manchester-Blackpool and Manchester 100 (with lots of other people).
The pay us and they would have to 'cos there's no way we'd get out of bed at 05.00 on a Sunday morning otherwise.
And we're needed at the starts; you wouldn't believe the stupid questions we get asked. We're surprised that some of the participants have found their way to the start. How they'll get to the finish is anyone's guess.....

Those peeps that you see at junctions on sportives pointing the correct route (for several hours, sometimes in the rain) aren't doing it for charity (even if the organiser's promotions suggest that there is a "charidee" involved; check the small print).

I'd have a different view if I were helping out on an audax 'cos I see audax with a different perspective.
I'm pretty sure that the audax organiser doesn't make much from her/his effort but then they have audacity (see what they did there ?) to ask that you can do without signposts and complimentary gels at the finish although you may be offered rice pudding and tinned peaches instead.
And all for £5.50.


.

 

[BimblingBee]

Specifically talking about Cheshire Cat/Kilo to go, they are/have organised 12 other events nationwide this year so there should be absolutely no doubt that this is a commercial venture. Unfortunately this is rapidly turning into a PR nightmare for them due to a lack of any clear communication and knee-jerk reactions (re re-scheduling).

Hopefully GST Team Limited who run Kilo to Go will get their backsides in gear on Monday and dream up a plan to sort this mess out... BTW the directors of GST run KTG and its basically a one or two man band... Amazing what google and checking companies house throws up... including account records for those doubters that don't think they are in it for the money!!!

 

[400bhp]

I've worked on the starts of Manchester-Blackpool and Manchester 100 (with lots of other people).
The pay us and they would have to 'cos there's no way we'd get out of bed at 05.00 on a Sunday morning otherwise.
And we're needed at the starts; you wouldn't believe the stupid questions we get asked. We're surprised that some of the participants have found their way to the start. How they'll get to the finish is anyone's guess.....

Those peeps that you see at junctions on sportives pointing the correct route (for several hours, sometimes in the rain) aren't doing it for charity (even if the organiser's promotions suggest that there is a "charidee" involved; check the small print).

I'd have a different view if I were helping out on an audax 'cos I see audax with a different perspective.
I'm pretty sure that the audax organiser doesn't make much from her/his effort but then they have audacity (see what they did there ?) to ask that you can do without signposts and complimentary gels at the finish although you may be offered rice pudding and tinned peaches instead.
And all for £5.50.


.

How much did they pay you and would they pay you if the event was cancelled?

 

[Turning Worm]

A few years ago, my partner and I lost £250 due to a sportive cancellation. Aside from the £50 entry fee (never refunded), we also spent out on two nights accommodation. The decision to use overnight accommodation was clearly at my own discretion and not the fault of the organiser, but event cancellations do have a create a chain of consequences. This was another nail in the coffin of my sportive riding days.

Nowadays, I only enter audaxes within travelling distance from home. The risk is considerably lower and the events are just as fun albeit they are often tougher rides.

 

[Andrew Br]

How much did they pay you and would they pay you if the event was cancelled?

IIRC it was £15/hour.
If it had been cancelled then I'm pretty sure that they would have paid us for however long we'd worked clearing up or breaking the news to riders who hadn't heard about the cancellation.

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[Upstream]

This via email today...


More on the postponement of Wiggle Cheshire Cat
We emailed you last week to inform you of our decision to postpone the 2013 Wiggle Cheshire Cat to 7th July. We left the decision as late as possible to get the most accurate weather information but also as soon as we could to give people time to cancel any travel/accommodation arrangements and re-plan the weekend. Now the dust, or rather snow, has settled we can now tell you about some further important actions and options.
The re-scheduled Cat date is set and, as an officially registered participant you need to retain your Ticket to Ride. However, we appreciate that in some cases people may already have commitments or another ride booked for 7th July. If that's you then just send an email to contact@kilotogo.com by 29th March from the email address registered in your kilotogo account, specifying your rider number and we'll handle your transfer to our brand new Wiggle Shropshire Mynd sportive (full details available soon) which takes place on 15th September. This is the 'second option' for those who are unable to ride on the 7th July as a result of the postponement. What we can reveal about this new sportive ride here and now is that the event HQ for is only 36 miles from Crewe. Again, hang on to that all important Ticket to Ride as your chip and number activation will also be transferred.
If your original Wiggle Cheshire Cat rider pack never arrived in the post because we had to retain it, now is also an opportunity to log-in to your kilotogo account and check the reason why. Is your address wrong/in-complete? Have you been entered as part of a group by a friend and still not gone online and signed your e-disclaimer? Please check / complete this information – again by that all important date of 29th March – and we’ll post your original Wiggle Cheshire Cat Ticket to Ride to you. If your pack is lost in the post or retained for any other reason we can still sort things out at our service desk on the day.
Make sure you stay tuned in to our emailings for more news on this and all our other 2013 events.

 

[400bhp]

IIRC it was £15/hour.
If it had been cancelled then I'm pretty sure that they would have paid us for however long we'd worked clearing up or breaking the news to riders who hadn't heard about the cancellation.

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In this specific case (long postponement notice) then you wouldn't have been paid.