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Rip-off entry fees

Looking ahead to the 2009 season of races, i cant help but feel that so many organisers are completely ripping people off, with many events costing over £60 before you have even travelled, parked, stayed over etc.

Am I alone in thinking that these prices are unreasonable? I do a few triathlons 'up north' and down on the Cornish coast etc, and they average between £20 and £40, including events with a sea swim, so how can a triathlon in a man-made lake cost up to 3 times that? And dont get me started on London Triathlon ...

Comments

  • JulesJules Posts: 987
    Where "up north"? The Deva Triathlon (Olympic Distance) in Chester is £55, as is the OD version of Tatton Park, as is the OD tri at Bala (obviously Wales not the north) in September. The Rother valley OD is £50. Liverpool is £59. Sprint distances are a bit cheaper, but not an awful lot.



    Entry fees are expensive, but there are lots of overheads.



    I guess the bottom line is market forces. If no-one enters entry fees will have to come down in subsequent years (alternatively, races will not take place).



    If there are cheaper races about enter these and avoid the expensive ones.
  • Tri virgin so comments based on running entries.



    Personally i dont mind if the money appears a) to have been spent wisely on the event e.g. road closures, stewarding, facilities etc and b) maybe some charitable element



    What i hate is excessive fees with little to show for it (Run to the Beat 2008!!)



    I imagine Tri is more costly than say a half marathon with transition etc. That said Tri appears to be enjoying more sponsorship

  • MGMG Posts: 470
    Triathlons are expensive, fact!! It comes down to logistics. Run races (Half mara, mara, 10k etc...) dont have to have people in kayaks ready to pluck people from the water, they also dont have to have 25mile+ roads to close for a bike leg all day AND then some additional roads to close for the run.



    Draft busters on motorbikes, tons of marshals, St Johns, Police, big transition area, local authorities to bribe for road closures and bus diversions......................I could go on............



    Triathlon isnt cheap, the gear, events, travel blah blah blah. OK so some (humanrace!!!!!!!!!!!) take the piss and charge mega bucks for entry, BUT!!!!! they are usually impeccably well organised races. If you dont want to stump up the fees dont do the race.
  • [color=#1d1d1d]Fair enough, its just that it seems the norm to charge 60 odd quid for a race around London these days, which I cant afford on a regular basis.[/color]

    [color=#1d1d1d]Paying that kind of money to run around in circles at Dorney I don’t agree with, when I can spend half that in ‘sunny’ Conrwall.[/color]

    [color=#1d1d1d]I just think that if I want to enter a few races over the summer, it becomes a small fortune.[/color]
  • BopomofoBopomofo Posts: 980
    I often lurk around the Fast Twitch tri series (South coast-ish) which seem pretty good value, really. There's just a 400m pool swim, but the run and bike legs can get close to OD i.e 35km and 6km in one or two of them. Anyway, they're more than just sprint or super-sprint distances.



    For someone like me who finds the swim p**s easy but need to work on the bike and run they're perfect, and at less than £30 I can actually afford to do them, too.



    For that money you get plenty of friendly marshals, bike mounted draft-busters, decent venues and transition areas. Great.
  • jonEjonE Posts: 1,113
    [quote]ORIGINAL: Jules



    Where "up north"?



    Ripon,Cleveland,Hatfield,all good reasonably priced events.





  • JulesJules Posts: 987
    jon.E wrote:


    [quote]ORIGINAL: Jules



    Where "up north"?



    Ripon,Cleveland,Hatfield,all good reasonably priced events.









    Rippon and Cleveland - properly North! Sadly any savings in entry fees would be eaten up for me by extra travel costs [:D]
  • ardkeenardkeen Posts: 152
    Triathlons are expensive and overpriced by and large. The larger ones are probably run as a business venture rather than anything else. For cheaper better value it's best to stick to ones organised by clubs. Our olympic distance is 65 euros, most of the work is voluntary and we aim at breaking even rather than generating money, westcorktri.com, Lough Ine Challenge.
  • jonEjonE Posts: 1,113
    I agree that some events are way overpriced but they tend to have a nice carrot dangled on the end of a stick,qualifying age group event,worlds biggest tri,the only event that includes running across shark infested custard etc.But if you break the event down to,cost of using a swimming pool £2.50+,the race fee for a 25mile cycling time trial £9 -£15,cost to enter a 10km road race again about £10+.so the combined cost is not totally ballistic but over the years the number a races that my budget allows me to enter has halved.(short arms deep pockets,Scottish etc).
  • JulesJules Posts: 987
    ardkeen wrote:


    Triathlons are expensive and overpriced by and large. The larger ones are probably run as a business venture rather than anything else. For cheaper better value it's best to stick to ones organised by clubs. Our olympic distance is 65 euros, most of the work is voluntary and we aim at breaking even rather than generating money, westcorktri.com, Lough Ine Challenge.



    Deva and Bala tris are organised by tri clubs, Chester (which I'm a member of) and Wrexham respectively, not by commercial organisations. No idea how much profit they make though.



    I agree it would be nice if they were cheaper of course.



    65 euros is about sixty pounds anyway at the moment!
  • BritspinBritspin Posts: 1,655
    Road closures? hmmmmmmmm, never have I raced on closed roads.
  • bennybenny Posts: 1,314
    Britspin wrote:


    Road closures? hmmmmmmmm, never have I raced on closed roads.

    All races are on closed roads here in Belgium. Can't imagine giving it all otherwise, way too dangerous, peletons of 15 madmen going all out, alongside cars????? They should pay you for that!![&:]
  • treefrogtreefrog Posts: 1,242
    No rip-off about it if you don't like the entry fees then ...guess what don't enter.

    This amazes me just how much athletes are in the dark about organising events. Organisers have to pay for : insurance, venue hire, food for volunteers, timing devices, road closures, hire of equimment (barriers, racks, cones etc), purchase of equipment (road closure tape, first aid kits) PA hire, administartion costs, trophies ....

    Two points

    1. Triathlon is actually on par with other sports - you get a reasonable return for your money. In rowing some venues (even at top end) are spartan and if you don't win you get nothing for your money!

    2. The ,for want of a better term, tight-fisted attitude to sport ruins your enjoyment of it. The fact is that the sport, its kit and the actual execution of the sport costs what it costs - accept it as an investment in your self-improvement, get on with it and enjoy it. You miserable shower!
  • JulesJules Posts: 987
    benny wrote:
    ORIGINAL: Britspin



    Road closures? hmmmmmmmm, never have I raced on closed roads.

    All races are on closed roads here in Belgium. Can't imagine giving it all otherwise, way too dangerous, peletons of 15 madmen going all out, alongside cars????? They should pay you for that!![&:]



    No peletons in a non-drafting race though (at least if there are enough marshalls!). I don't know if roads get closed in races here where drafting is permitted? I get the impression the triathlon is a much bigger deal in continental Europe than over here, so there's more sponsorship available to pay fror events? Closing 25 miles of road here would cost a fairly chunky sum I'm guessing.
  • BopomofoBopomofo Posts: 980
    I'm in agreement with treefrog on this.... hiring out the swim facilities and transition areas, hiring all the racking and kit etc is expensive, but just wait until you try to get liability insurance for a paid event that requires people to go mad on their bikes on a public road. <shudder>



    There's also the fact that even on an open road event you'll still have some smaller area around transition that needs to be closed or marshalled. You also need to inform the police of what you're doing so they can pay special attention. Guess what? They charge you for it.



    Some local events in my neck of the woods have been threatened with closure or actually closed because of these rising costs: Wimborne sprint tri has stopped, Stubbington 10K was under threat this year, Eastleigh 10k only goes ahead because of sponsorship from B&Q and there are others.



    Given the amazing levels of organisation involved I think £30-£50 is pretty reasonable for a tri, and £60-£80 for a unique location like Blenheim, Windsor or London seems fair too. It is a fair chunk of cash, but this sport costs what it costs and the whole event is far more than the sum of its parts. You can't compare to the individual costs of a swim, bike or run race.



    Given the credit crunch (and the job crunch!) I'll be entering just a few races this year, so I'm going to make sure I get my damned money's worth! [8D]
  • graham33graham33 Posts: 265
    I agree, - I normally look at the event see if I like the look of it where it is etc and then how much it costs before entering.



    But it's seems to me in the south west to be fair - the Aquathon series is £12 a race and I did the 100 mile Exmoor beast last year and it was only £35 - which a 100 mile marshalled route and a tankard inc beer is pretty good value.



    actually I normally only enter event that come with a free t-shirt......I nearly have a full wardrobe! [;)]
  • deeessdeeess Posts: 150
    @ bopomofo - the slower you go, the better the value for money (£/minute)
  • BopomofoBopomofo Posts: 980
    Good point, deeess. I've swapped my red bike for a black one, can't stand porridge and I haven't shaved my legs for years. My races will be excellent value this year!
  • EdstgEdstg Posts: 83
    i have yet to meet a millionaire who made his / her money in the "lucrative" business of traithlon events. Also don't take this the wrong way but why if you have found great and cheap triathlons with a sea swim on the beautiful cornish coast, why on earth would you want to come to london to drink aviation fuel while swimming with rats on a packed course?????
  • BritspinBritspin Posts: 1,655
    BTW..I wasn't moaning about non closed roads..merely observing, traffic dodging sharpens the senses, makes it more like training really. The oranisation load is phenomenal for such a public event, just letting the right people know is a job in itself, so whilst I have no particular wish to race London, it is mostly the non tri costs that would put me off, travel, accom, food & time. Localish events & the odd away trip to sample a nice part of the world. T o answer Edstg..because its in Cornwall...just kidding, I have a desire to do Fowey..one day.
  • bennybenny Posts: 1,314
    Maybe the people who are really bothered by the expensive entry fees some races ask should check out this previous thread: http://forum.220magazine.com/fb.asp?m=22540&key=

    It involves talk about not doing the expensive IM-label races if you find it too much.

    Or one could use the other tips to save money to still do the expensive races?

    It's all up to yourself.



    PS: or you could ask treefrog to donate a bike to you!![:)](just kidding froggy, I know you'd defend those Cervélo beauties with your own life[image]http://forum.220magazine.com/micons/m6.gif[/image][8D]).
  • If you're in or near London then try the Thames Turbo series - 4 races, all super sprints (426m, 21km, 5km) at £35 a race. The roads aren't closed but they're fairly quiet, it's well organised and it's friendly. It's the sort of race where you feel every penny has gone on the organisation, not on the profit bank.

  • CalimaCalima Posts: 35
    Having read most of the comments regarding this subject, I can only agree that in the UK entry fees are expensive. As to how the money is spent & if it is spent wisely is another subject. Dorney Lake for instance should be a lot cheaper, it is an enclosed venue, no police costs, & I thought marshalls were suppose to be volunteers?????? Here in the Canaries the going rate for a sprint tri is €20, for a series of 3 races the cost is 40€, albeit you have to travel around the islands for the races, but even that is cheap, as the local councils pay half of the ferry costs (per person) to the tri clubs. The entrance fee includes food, prizes, t-shirts, marshalls & canoe cover. Even at Club La Santa in LZ spanish residents paid 15€ for the Int Duathlon in January. So come on organisers its about time you cough up the information on where all the money goes.
  • treefrogtreefrog Posts: 1,242
    UK is expensive because of insurance costs and administration costs. UK in general has an antisport attitude (how many motorists have expressed their displeasure when you cycle, how many comments have you had re. lycra, how many fatties are there out there?)

    Other countries are more prosport and therefore when they host events they get greater sponsorship, better government backing, and community support (all Euo IM events are supported by local schools etc) and there is not the same claim culture so insurance is cheaper!

  • They are expensive compared with just running events etc. But the organisers do have a lot of work to do and a lot of overheads. Just about all events I have done I have been impressed with the setup.



    Just dissapointed with some of the cr@p goodie bags at the end (or lack of them), often club runnning events can be better with t-shirts, food and drink etc. A t-shirt of the advent is free advertising for future ones.
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