The Voice from the Pacific Northwest Newsletter
Disappearing
Races....continued
By Glenn
Koshi
Why
Are All the Races Disappearing?
People
constantly ask me, “Why are there so few inline races?” Aside
from a shrinking market, one might have to look within. Promoters
of races, who often candidly confide in me, all seem to say
the same thing: skaters in general complain more than any other
athlete. Of course, we might have more to complain about. With
running or biking courses, the road condition is not as important.
Runners and bikers can utilize a rougher course, or even a wet
course, more effectively. There are hazards to skaters like
timing mats, hills, boardwalks and even reflectors on the road.
However,
from the perspective of the promoter, putting on a race is generally
a thankless job. Now, I know that there are a lot of skaters
out there who give praise to those responsible, when given the
chance. But, how many of you have actually written to a promoter
to tell them that you enjoyed the race? On the other hand, how
many times have you heard skaters complaining about one aspect
of the race, or another? Remember, very few inline skate race
promoters actually make money from a race…most actually lose
personal funds.
Then,
there’s the rogue case, albeit rare, but it goes like this (true
story): One particular skater entered the Rec/Fitness division,
but was disqualified for actually skating with the Advanced
group – in a race with separate starts. He did this to get a
better time, and subsequently was caught and DQ’d. Well, he
proceeded to make a huge scene at the end of the race, to the
promoter. At this point, the promoter must just be thinking,
“I can’t win.”
I instruct
my team to lodge all complaints through me. Then, I wait until
I have all the facts lined up, and approach the promoter with
what I hope is a constructive manner. My suggestion, if you
belong to a team or club, is to appoint one person to present
any gripes at one time. This way the promoter doesn’t feel bombarded
with negative feedback. Mention what went right with the race,
also. Individual positive feedback would be fine, as everyone
likes hearing praise…but make sure you do let them know that
you liked the course, prizes, race in general, etc.
Back to
race costs, I once tried to put a small 10k race on here in
Huntington Beach, about 10 years ago. The city wanted $10,000
just for Public Works (the road barriers) alone! Add to that
the fact that the city could not let me close off the streets
that I wanted, the safest route, because one portion would have
been a block away from Pacific Coast Highway. This meant that
Cal Trans would have had to have been involved, closing the
left and right turn lanes from PCH. Don’t forget that the police
that work the event have to be paid, too. Even if I would have
been able to secure sponsorship, I doubt that I would have been
able to avoid dipping into personal funds. In hindsight I feel
a bit crazy for even doing what research I had done! Now you
know why some race entry fees are $90.
I think
it’s best to look at traveling to a race this way: think of
it as a vacation to another part of the country, and the race
is just icing on the vacation cake. Have fun, but don’t forget
all the effort the promoter and volunteers have expended just
to get to race day. Change complaints to constructive criticism,
and voice your positive feedback!
Glenn
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