Two scandalous happenings at recent events have set me thinking about whether racers who spend their hard earned cash on event entries and all the costs of associated with racing have any recourse when things go wrong. Not much is the short answer.By the time travel, gear and sundry costs are added in its not a cheap sport to participate in and entry fees are high compared to other sports, though you get a lot more for your money and good value in most cases ... but unfortunately there are always the exceptions.The two events I came across were at recent ends of the racing spectrum. The Norse Challenge was to be a 10k mud/obstacle run in Northern England, but the organisation was a shambles and the race was cancelled after the runners had all arrived. A rescheduled race was then cancelled too. Refunds are being given, but that won’t cover travel costs, a wasted day or the disappointment, especially to charity fundraisers. (See here for a recap.)The other was Bimbache Extrem a World Series Expedition Race in Spain. This was under new ownership and just before the start the new Race Director incredibly ran off leaving the teams (and his organisation) in the lurch. Teams had traveled from all over the world for the event, and though they’d reported very poor pre-race communications they were stunned and potentially out of pocket for a large sum. Fortunately, the race was saved and went ahead successfully thanks to the organising team and previous owner Antonio de la Rosa, who put in an amazing effort, but it was a shocking occurrence and a close call.
So, the question is what recourse do racers have when they are let down or things go wrong at an event? If the event is cancelled or actions are fraudulent there is the normal legal recourse and any organiser who messes up probably won’t get the chance to do it again, but that’s about it.
There are no governing bodies to check out organising companies in advance or to hold them to account. Racers often have to be accredited and tested ... but not the organisers! Nor are there any representative groups to speak for the competitors interests – it is a completely free market economy, with all the risks and the benefits that brings!
There are benefits as organisers can be creative and often go above and beyond what’s required or is commercially sensible, especially for the longer races it’s a commercial risk rather than a good money maker! A lot is taken on trust and it generally works well, with a bit of give and take on all sides, which is perhaps better than having a lot of regulation. (I don’t think adventure racers are big on committee meetings and paper work, they’d rather be outside!)
The down side is that things can go wrong and racers should be aware that if an event does go pear shaped they may lose out. They can make some simple checks on the track record of organisers or ask a few questions about public liability insurance, cancellation terms etc. but I wonder how many do? It really is a case of Buyer Beware!
