The Cancelled Patriot Half & Simply Stu

Man, I can't believe I'm letting things slide so much. Between the kids going back to school (Redfish starts Monday) and getting ready to start my new job at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden on Tuesday, I've let things get away from me. For one, I've been blogging like crazy over at the Near West End News. And, I've been putting in alot of hours on my other new job managing the Facebook page for the Richmond Region and Richmond InsideOut. on top of all that, I've been trying to train for Sandman the day after Redfish's 4th birthday -- on September 14th.
I know, enough excuses! Finally, I'm writing because of a comment that someone left on my blog. Marcus was complaining about how Set Up Inc has handled the cancelling of the Patriot Half Triathlon scheduled for Saturday, due to Tropical Storm Hanna.

Ladies,I just saw that the race has been canceled and that they are going to
give us 50% credit! If anyone else thinks that this is absolutely unacceptable,
please join with me! As I see this, they run a business. In business, you take
risks. In business, if you cannot deliver your good or service for ANY reason,
your customer does not pay. I do plan to write to the race director and USA
Triathlon

When Sandman was cancelled 5 years ago due to similar circumstances the response was much better. Not only did they reschdule the race for several weeks later, but also they offered an alternative -- if you weren't free during the reschedule date or didn't want to race for some reason you were given free admission into the next years race. In my case, it was a total loss -- I was pregnant with Redfish the next year and couldn't race at all -- but still I never felt short changed. In this case, not only is SetUp not offering a make up race, but also they are pocketing 50% of the fee which could be as much as half of $220. SetUp is a large company with many races. Surely they could have expanded the Duke Liver Half (on Sept. 14) to accomdate folks who have trained for many months for this event. Or at least allowed as many folks as possible to switch over for free. This morning there were 35 spots left. Currently, there are 13 spots left.

On our team, we have 2 women who were set to do their first Half Ironman race, and had trained for it since last winter. Why isn't SetUp trying to reschedule the race or otherwise accomodate these athletes? I'd hate to think it is just about money to them.

On another more positive note, I'd like to just say thank you and give a shout out to Simply Stu out in Wisconsin. Some of you may remember last winter when my husband made a video about me and TRIgirls and I competed to get on Team EvoTri. Well Stu is on Team Evotri. He is a legend in the triathlon world (or at least the internet techy triathlon world). He symbolizes the comraderie and love for this sport that so many of love and try to represent ourself. He inspired my kids to do their first ever triathlon - the World Wide Triathlon. And, check this out:

Among his accolades, Stu is also the personality behind the Simply Stu Triathlon
Podcast, which has consistently ranked in the top 100 sports podcasts on iTunes.
The show has been featured on iTunes and has been ranked #2 of amateur sports
podcasts. He is the team manager for Evotri.

Anyway, to make a long story short, Stu, awesome guy that he is, took Dr. Rick, Coach Blake and Aimee G. all around Wisconsin, showing them the Ironman Wisconsin bike course, helping them upgrade their wardrobe at the local running shop, etc. All in an effort to get ready for the big race on Sunday. I'm sure this is typical for Stu, 'cause he's such a rockstar and all, but I really appreciate our folks from Richmond getting a warm welcome from such a great guy, who is so dedicated to the sport.
Good luck Dr. Rick, Coach Blake and Aimee! Have a great time, wish I was there to cheer you on.