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  #1  
Old 08-26-2021, 06:57 PM
pottshead pottshead is offline
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Grinduro CA Cancelled

Grinduro in CA has been cancelled with a 20% refund being given to those who registered. That means the event organizer is taking about $185 from each person who registered, despite numerous corporate sponsorships.

This is on the heels of a quagmire at the Canadian Grinduro where many participants were left without water at fill stations in sweltering heat.

My recommendation - Skip any Grinduro event if you want to avoid being ripped off.
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  #2  
Old 08-26-2021, 07:00 PM
Spdntrxi Spdntrxi is offline
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wow that's pretty bad...
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  #3  
Old 08-27-2021, 08:09 AM
herb5998 herb5998 is offline
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Was looking at the Canada event as a nice weekend for this year, but honestly, given the registration cost (250CAD), and the route, it wasn't worth it for us, hearing about the mess it become is not surprising, much better organized events that have agreements for private land use at much lower cost.
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  #4  
Old 08-27-2021, 11:37 AM
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jkbrwn jkbrwn is offline
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From their website, before people get the pitchforks out:

As a reminder, our refund policy has always stated that Grinduro California may be cancelled without refund in the event of extreme weather or natural disaster, including wildfire and related forest closures. Despite this policy, we would like to instead give you a 20% refund on all Grinduro and Grindurito registration fees, plus a 100% refund on any purchased meal and/or camping packages (minus processing fees).

This is consistent with our COVID refund policy, which states that participants would receive a 20% refund should the event be cancelled between 1 and 29 days before its scheduled date due to State Guidelines related to COVID. Although we are forced to cancel because of forest closures, not COVID, we still would like to give 20% back to you. It’s our way of thanking you for understanding and accepting this unfortunate and disappointing situation.

We realize you might be disappointed that we aren’t refunding a larger portion of your registration fee. The reason why we cannot issue full refunds is because so much money has already been spent on Grinduro California—nearly $100,000. Some of the largest expenses come months before an event, including non-refundable deposits for venue, catering, live music, tent rentals, porta potties, photographers, timing services, and other event service providers, plus contractor fees, merchandise and equipment purchases, and more.

These expenses are incurred by Grinduro California’s regional organizer, the Siskiyou Outdoor Recreation Alliance (SORA), a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. SORA is responsible for all event finances, and Grinduro California revenue then goes to SORA to support their important work. If additional registration fees were to be refunded, SORA would lose many tens of thousands of dollars, which would be detrimental for the organization.

We ask you to please understand that by issuing 20% refunds, we are doing what we can to support you, while also ensuring that SORA is in a great position to host Grinduro California in 2022.
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Old 08-27-2021, 01:56 PM
pottshead pottshead is offline
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That’s all fine, and I was aware of the fine print, but I feel like saying SORA needs the funds is a bit of a cop out. How much of my $185 is going to protect Grinduro’s bottom line? I expected an organization that was all about diversity, inclusion, and “party vibes” to have more integrity when it came to things like this, too.
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Old 08-27-2021, 02:07 PM
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sparky33 sparky33 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pottshead View Post
Grinduro in CA has been cancelled with a 20% refund being given to those who registered. That means the event organizer is taking about $185 from each person who registered, despite numerous corporate sponsorships.

This is on the heels of a quagmire at the Canadian Grinduro where many participants were left without water at fill stations in sweltering heat.

My recommendation - Skip any Grinduro event if you want to avoid being ripped off.
Yikes, that should firmly close the door for folks who might already have felt ripped off paying $225 for a bike ride with a bib number and a thousand other people. No thanks to that.

DIY bike adventure is the best deal going these days.
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  #7  
Old 08-27-2021, 02:10 PM
herb5998 herb5998 is offline
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Agreed Steve, I was able to build the same route for the Canadian event, which I’ll try and do later in the fall. Also probably a nicer ride with colors changing here


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  #8  
Old 08-27-2021, 02:27 PM
ibis ibis is offline
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Yeah, it's a bummer but figure if they are treating part of my entry fee as a donation then I can use that on my taxes.
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  #9  
Old 08-27-2021, 04:07 PM
CNY rider CNY rider is offline
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Yeah, it's a bummer but figure if they are treating part of my entry fee as a donation then I can use that on my taxes.
Maybe that makes you feel better about it, but nowadays most people take the standard deduction so that small "donation" is irrelevant for most.

They are ripping people off, plain and simple.
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  #10  
Old 08-28-2021, 11:39 AM
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AngryScientist AngryScientist is offline
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Yea; that would grind my gears also. An event of this size charging that much for a entrance fee should absolutely have purchased insurance against natural catastrophes. Using people’s money to self insure and not refunding the full $$ is not fair and a poor business decision on the organizers part IMO.
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Old 08-28-2021, 03:36 PM
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ntb1001 ntb1001 is offline
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If you paid with credit card…have a charge back issued.
Credit cards protect you from things like that.


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  #12  
Old 08-28-2021, 03:52 PM
Clean39T Clean39T is offline
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Originally Posted by CNY rider View Post
They are ripping people off, plain and simple.
"Ripping people off" is a little harsh and generally uncalled for - ATMO.

If you sign up for an event between June and November anywhere on the west coast or in the inter-mountain west, you need to expect that it may have to be cancelled due to wildfires and/or wildfire smoke. It is what it is. And in these times, you need to understand there is a risk that pandemic rules imposed for rider and supporter / staff safety may prevent the event from happening as well. Again - it is what it is. If you can't write off the registration fee when xyz uncontrollable situation arises, don't sign up in the first place.

Last edited by Clean39T; 08-28-2021 at 08:22 PM.
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Old 08-28-2021, 03:55 PM
Clean39T Clean39T is offline
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Originally Posted by AngryScientist View Post
Yea; that would grind my gears also. An event of this size charging that much for a entrance fee should absolutely have purchased insurance against natural catastrophes. Using people’s money to self insure and not refunding the full $$ is not fair and a poor business decision on the organizers part IMO.
It is generally on the individual to purchase "trip insurance" of some form, which - the last time I registered for an event.. some 2+ years ago - was an option through the registration system. Whether that would reimburse you for the annual occurrence of wild-fires and hazardous air is another question.
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  #14  
Old 08-28-2021, 04:21 PM
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AngryScientist AngryScientist is offline
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Originally Posted by Clean39T View Post
If you can't write off the registration fee when xyz uncontrollable situation arises, don't sign up in the first place.
Whether a person can "afford" to absorb the loss of the reg fee is completely immaterial to whether it's the right thing to do or not.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Clean39T View Post
It is generally on the individual to purchase "trip insurance" of some form, which - the last time I registered for an event.. some 2+ years ago - was an option through the registration system. Whether that would reimburse you for the annual occurrence of wild-fires and hazardous air is another question.
Trip insurance is generally purchased to protect a person if they have an individual issue that makes it difficult or impossible to attend the event. it could potentially cover the cost of airfare, travel, hotels, etc - which would be much higher than the reg fee. It's a different concept from an entire event being cancelled and expecting to recover reg fees in that manner.

All that said, like with most things, it's all in the fine print. The registration agreement probably included a no refund clause of some kind that allows them to keep the fees, or portion thereof if a natcat event happens, which is what happened here. they could absolutely have purchased insurance to protect themselves and the riders from having to absorb this but they chose not to. that's fine and is what it is. as you guess, likely all of the would-be participants can afford this hit without missing a beat, but it's still not, in my opinion - a good way of running an event.

it's all trivial though, wildfires really suck, and there are a lot of people actually suffering, much beyond losing a couple hundo over a reg fee. i freaking love norcal and all that's up there in the remotest of remote areas and i was scared to death as i drove through a couple weeks ago and saw just how tinder box dry everything was as i choked on the smokey air. it sucks.
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  #15  
Old 08-28-2021, 04:34 PM
Clean39T Clean39T is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AngryScientist View Post
Whether a person can "afford" to absorb the loss of the reg fee is completely immaterial to whether it's the right thing to do or not.

Trip insurance is generally purchased to protect a person if they have an individual issue that makes it difficult or impossible to attend the event. it could potentially cover the cost of airfare, travel, hotels, etc - which would be much higher than the reg fee. It's a different concept from an entire event being cancelled and expecting to recover reg fees in that manner.

All that said, like with most things, it's all in the fine print. The registration agreement probably included a no refund clause of some kind that allows them to keep the fees, or portion thereof if a natcat event happens, which is what happened here. they could absolutely have purchased insurance to protect themselves and the riders from having to absorb this but they chose not to. that's fine and is what it is. as you guess, likely all of the would-be participants can afford this hit without missing a beat, but it's still not, in my opinion - a good way of running an event.

it's all trivial though, wildfires really suck, and there are a lot of people actually suffering, much beyond losing a couple hundo over a reg fee. i freaking love norcal and all that's up there in the remotest of remote areas and i was scared to death as i drove through a couple weeks ago and saw just how tinder box dry everything was as i choked on the smokey air. it sucks.
I hear you. I just don't know what the alternative is for event organizers. It's not like they are getting rich off putting these on - and they can't just absorb the losses year after year. Until there is a major cyclical climate change that pulls us out of the severe drought in the west, this is going to the reality - and who knows if/when that will ever happen. It is sad, tragic, etc. - no two ways around that. It is beautiful and mid-20s AQI in Bend today. Tomorrow could be in the upper 100s and have everyone (smart) indoors. How do you plan an event in those circumstances? You can't wait until the morning of the event to buy permits, mark a course, and have all the infrastructure in place. It is quite a predicament and the only real cure is to just do your own thing, with plenty of flexibility - and probably in the off months.
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