I kind of find it funny that in the same city that’s supposed to lead our nation, you know the one full of people who are supposed to be quick on their feet in times of urgency, they can’t quite figure this race out. From what it seems, there’s about a 50% chance of the swim happening each year, which for me, with a swimming background is a huge deterrent. I’m not into duathlons. And I’m certainly not into driving a couple hours, forking out money for a hotel, and dealing with crowds to race a duathlon. I’d rather find a local one, which I ultimately did. Other big cities have been able to figure it out. New York. Philadelphia. Chicago. I would imagine that New York hast even more hurdles when it comes to clean water. Right? The Hudson River was on fire not that long ago.
Shame on me for registering and rolling the dice.
From what I can surmise, the swim was cancelled previous years because of crazy storms that kicked up some shit in the river (laymen's terms of course). So this year, i followed the weather dutifully. All seemed good, but then the Friday before the race, all of the racers were made aware of the water situation via email. I like the the fact that they at least let us know a couple of days in advance (although wouldn't they have known even further in advance?), it gave me time to call an audible and sign up for another race. Although for folks traveling further, I imagine that they were screwed. Here's what they sent:
Nation's Triathlon Swim Cancelled
As of 10am ET, the swim portion of the Events DC Nation's Triathlon has been cancelled; the current water conditions in the Potomac River do not meet the DC Department of Energy and Environment's EPA-based safety standards for permitting full-body human contact with the river's water.
While we are disappointed to be forced to cancel the swim, athlete safety is and will continue to be our top priority. The swim practice scheduled for Saturday morning has also been cancelled.
With the exception of the swim, the event schedule remains nearly the same. The race will start at 7AM via a time trial start from Ohio Drive directly into the transition area for athletes to get their bikes and start the bike portion of the race. The rest of the event will remain unchanged.
Further information can be found by reading these FAQs and by attending the athlete course briefing meetings at the Sports & Fitness Expo at the Hampton Room of the Omni Shoreham Hotel.
If you have further concerns, please don't hesitate to reach out to our customer service department at nationstri@competitorgroup.com Thank you for your support, flexibility, and patience as we strive to provide the safest and best race experience possible.
Hmmm. This stinks. I get it. But it stinks. I totally get it. But I’m not driving 2.5 hours to do a duathlon, so I’d like my money back please…or least a transfer to next year. Nope. If you dig further into the FAQ’s…no money back, no transfers. When I emailed pertaining this, I got a cold/scripted email back.
Hi Joey,
We understand your frustration, however we cannot issue a refund or a transfer due to the swim cancellation. We appreciate you understanding the importance of athlete safety. We hope you'll still decide to join us at the start line this year.
Thank you,
Thank you for copying and pasting. Even on their facebook page full of disappointed triathletes, the responses all are just form responses. It’s disappointing, because this is the same company that sends me Triathlete magazine every month (for seven years). The same company that puts on TriRock here in Philly (which I’ve done four times now). The same company responsible for the Rock n Roll series of runs. So much for valuing the consumer. (It really gives me pause about doing TriRock ever again).
I get it, safety first. Heck, I don’t want swim in poop or whatever it is that are in the waters of the Potomac. But also, if it keeps happening, maybe we should evolve. That’s what we do as humans. We have to evolve. We change things up when they’re not working. If Tim Tebow can play baseball now, surely we can MOVE THE SWIM. From what I understand from some SUP riders in the DC area, the water just a little further up river is gorgeous (but I’m no ecologist). Or just say it’s a duathlon and call it a day.
I was really looking forward to this race. I was going to meet up with a bunch of friends who haven't seen for ages (one since college). I was training to peak for this race and was on pace to get a new PR (which I got at a different race).
Frankly, the more I hear about the bike course situation (no passing zones, a lot of 180 degree turns) and hotel issues, the more I’m not into it. It was a bucket list type race for me…I think I’ll just leave it in the bucket. Because...
Shame on me for registering and rolling the dice.
From what I can surmise, the swim was cancelled previous years because of crazy storms that kicked up some shit in the river (laymen's terms of course). So this year, i followed the weather dutifully. All seemed good, but then the Friday before the race, all of the racers were made aware of the water situation via email. I like the the fact that they at least let us know a couple of days in advance (although wouldn't they have known even further in advance?), it gave me time to call an audible and sign up for another race. Although for folks traveling further, I imagine that they were screwed. Here's what they sent:
Nation's Triathlon Swim Cancelled
As of 10am ET, the swim portion of the Events DC Nation's Triathlon has been cancelled; the current water conditions in the Potomac River do not meet the DC Department of Energy and Environment's EPA-based safety standards for permitting full-body human contact with the river's water.
While we are disappointed to be forced to cancel the swim, athlete safety is and will continue to be our top priority. The swim practice scheduled for Saturday morning has also been cancelled.
With the exception of the swim, the event schedule remains nearly the same. The race will start at 7AM via a time trial start from Ohio Drive directly into the transition area for athletes to get their bikes and start the bike portion of the race. The rest of the event will remain unchanged.
Further information can be found by reading these FAQs and by attending the athlete course briefing meetings at the Sports & Fitness Expo at the Hampton Room of the Omni Shoreham Hotel.
If you have further concerns, please don't hesitate to reach out to our customer service department at nationstri@competitorgroup.com Thank you for your support, flexibility, and patience as we strive to provide the safest and best race experience possible.
Hmmm. This stinks. I get it. But it stinks. I totally get it. But I’m not driving 2.5 hours to do a duathlon, so I’d like my money back please…or least a transfer to next year. Nope. If you dig further into the FAQ’s…no money back, no transfers. When I emailed pertaining this, I got a cold/scripted email back.
Hi Joey,
We understand your frustration, however we cannot issue a refund or a transfer due to the swim cancellation. We appreciate you understanding the importance of athlete safety. We hope you'll still decide to join us at the start line this year.
Thank you,
Thank you for copying and pasting. Even on their facebook page full of disappointed triathletes, the responses all are just form responses. It’s disappointing, because this is the same company that sends me Triathlete magazine every month (for seven years). The same company that puts on TriRock here in Philly (which I’ve done four times now). The same company responsible for the Rock n Roll series of runs. So much for valuing the consumer. (It really gives me pause about doing TriRock ever again).
I get it, safety first. Heck, I don’t want swim in poop or whatever it is that are in the waters of the Potomac. But also, if it keeps happening, maybe we should evolve. That’s what we do as humans. We have to evolve. We change things up when they’re not working. If Tim Tebow can play baseball now, surely we can MOVE THE SWIM. From what I understand from some SUP riders in the DC area, the water just a little further up river is gorgeous (but I’m no ecologist). Or just say it’s a duathlon and call it a day.
I was really looking forward to this race. I was going to meet up with a bunch of friends who haven't seen for ages (one since college). I was training to peak for this race and was on pace to get a new PR (which I got at a different race).
Frankly, the more I hear about the bike course situation (no passing zones, a lot of 180 degree turns) and hotel issues, the more I’m not into it. It was a bucket list type race for me…I think I’ll just leave it in the bucket. Because...
Or something. SMH, how was this guy ever president?