Hell of the Ashdown sportive cancelled – but no refunds for those who entered

CJ19 wrote:

It would be interesting to know what the expenses are and how much goes to charity as a portion, with the entry of £30 and 1500 riders, £45,000.00 is a lot of money...

Exactly this. Catford CC should be making public the costs they have incurred and the amount they are giving to charity. Indeed, it would be good to know what proportion goes to charity from this event every year

Why? They're not public sector, there's no obligation to make their financial records open to scrutiny. They might want to do that for the people who actually entered and have "lost" £30 but frankly, why should anyone else care?

If you did not enter it and don't like what they're doing with the no refunds policy, make a mental note never to enter that event.

If you did enter it and don't like their policy then (a) you should have read the T&Cs better because it is there and (b) take it up with the organisers directly rather than shout on social media / forums about it.

And if you're not bothered either way (whether you entered the event or not) then you can take comfort in the fact that lots of people have made a sort of involuntary donation to charity.

Other events I have entered that have been cancelled have either rolled over the entry to another event in their stable or to the same event the following year, even though the terms and conditions often say they don't have to, as in this case.

I'm more than happy for the entry fees to be donated to charity, but the statement they issued said that they would take money for costs already incurred, then give a proportion of the rest to charity. All I'd like to know is how much that is. If it's £40,000, happy days. If it's £5,000 I'm not sure that's ethical.

Also, I have taken this up with the organisers but they haven't got back to me.......

I believe there is a £100 minimum for claims on credit cards, so unless you have bought for a few it won't cover in this case.

This is Section 75 and it applies when the "value of goods" is >£100, i.e. £100.01 or more.

You only have to have paid 1p of that on a credit card for it to apply - you could have paid the rest in cash, cheque, cabbages or whatever.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/section75-protect-your-purcha...

You are right that you would have to have paid for several members, but in this case, however, the terms and conditions of the event may take precedence.

Yes it would be great if they were donating all the proceeds (£40,000 or so) to charity. Does anyone know what "proportion" is going to be given to charity by the club? If it a small amount then that's not so impressive

You'd never clear it with the Police in such short notice, they usually need to be notified months in advance. 

roadmanshaq wrote:

Usual comments section armchair organisers out in force. Organising an event let alone a sportive is a huge undertaking, highly intensive in volunteer energies and finances. These are unrecoverable funds - the money has been spent. If you enter a community run event especially this time of year, whether it's an audax or whatever else, you note the terms and conditions and if it can't happen for safety reasons then that's just bad luck.

I accept the fact that a lot of work has gone into it, but this sort of event is designed to make money, be it for the club or charity or whoever.  The way this is set up is ensuring the organiser can't lose, which is a risk you should be prepared to bear if you decide to run such an event, which given it's in the middle of winter means that there's an increased probability it won't run.  I have seen other organisers offer free entry for a future event, this seems like a fairer outcome.

WDG wrote:

I accept the fact that a lot of work has gone into it, but this sort of event is designed to make money, be it for the club or charity or whoever. 

Nope. It's to do nothing of the kind. The surpluses are given to local charities but the entry fees are to cover the cost of the event which include indoor sheltered areas, safety marshals and mechanical support as well as the timing system. This is all money that's been spent even if the event is cancelled on safety grounds. There is no money to get all these resources in for the next iteration of the sportive without people paying to register.

Maybe educate yourself before you start lecturing cycling clubs on how to organise community events.

http://www.hellgb.co.uk/

Audax's cancelled? The Mayo 200 happened yesterday on the west coast of Ireland. Thats why I love audaxing, you don't seem to get these problems you just turn up and ride it whatever happens. And if something goes wrong you sort it out.

If you like sportives this seems to be the sort of thing you have to put up with. Fair enough decision in this case as it seems to be a smaller club run event. To busy for me so I just help out on a couple. 

Tim K wrote:

Audax's cancelled? The Mayo 200 happened yesterday on the west coast of Ireland. Thats why I love audaxing, you don't seem to get these problems you just turn up and ride it whatever happens. And if something goes wrong you sort it out.

Lots of organisers cancel on safety grounds. Others go ahead regardless. There's no rule.

I guess that as long as you're riding with a tailwind then it doens't matter  

Yes I'm assuming it's an insurance or lack of it issue,I guess the small print you agreed to when signing up covers them though...

Cancellation insurance is incredibly expensive - I'd guess even more so in mid-February where it's highly like that the weather will be shit.

That event always puzzles me - somehow the organisers have managed to turn a bog-standard 100km club reliability ride into a £35/person Sportive which sells out every time. Funny old world.

crazy-legs wrote:

Cancellation insurance is incredibly expensive - I'd guess even more so in mid-February where it's highly like that the weather will be shit.

That event always puzzles me - somehow the organisers have managed to turn a bog-standard 100km club reliability ride into a £35/person Sportive which sells out every time. Funny old world.

They've done it by putting on catered indoor accommodation, mechanical support coverage, marshals, and a timing system. Maybe you should educate yourself before mouthing off online about how an acclaimed community event is 'bog standard'.

The original iterations of that event WERE bog standard club reliability rides - that was what the entire thing started as! Yes, I know they've added extras and "converted" it to a Sportive, I've ridden it a couple of times (happily paying the money to do so).

I didn't mean it puzzles me in a bad way, I think it's a triumph of marketing and in these days of cash-strapped clubs losing membership, it's great that Catford CC (and local charities) get some money out of it. It's interesting how some Sportives sell out every time (Fred Whitton, HotA,...) while a few others struggle along for a few years barely breaking even never mind having enough left to give to club funds or charity before falling by the wayside.

And yes, I know how much refunds cost in time and effort (and sometimes, bank/card charges) to process so I'm not entirely surprised they've said no refunds - it's the marketing of that they'll need to cover off to minimise the complaints.

That's twice in one thread you've suggested that someone educates themselves, despite not knowing the slightest thing about them. Maybe you should educate yourself on how to not come across as arrogant?

Why bother with insurance if you can just cancel it and not give the money back?