Registration Fees
Posted on June 4, 2008
Touchy subject as I know promoters are in for the money – AND THAT IS ABSOLUTELY OK. Cause if I was not I would either volunteer and get a free entry of simply not show up!
My question is, why are some races so much more expensive than others? I know there are fees related to permits, prize list, location, police, etc, etc. But when it boils down to it, what makes one race more expensive than the other?
I know “most” mountain bike races and even triathlons have no prize money and people are used to it. PLUS entry fees there are just stupid. So without mentioning any names and keeping this as a general topic, other than a larger profit margin and a lack of sponsorship is there anything else driving up the price of the races this year?
I have noticed that the $1 to $3 added to certain races might have some impact on registration. Personally I would “feel” better paying $26 than $29 for a crit. But even $26 is pushing it. So maybe $23, but would that cover expenses? Would it be enough?
I am not sure what type of answers I want to get, but I have noticed just a slight increase in overall fees. But then again it might just be ME…. the cheap bastard that I am.
Its tough to race on a $6.75/hour job.
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8 Responses to “Registration Fees”
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i know the city fees for our race went up this year
Triathlons — I can understand that the entry fees are higher, as the logistics of putting are significantly greater. Transitions zones, “road race” bike course in highly populated area, lifeguards, chip timing, etc. Plus, triathletes demand t-shirts and goodie bags.
For profit races — It’s not that big a deal to me, and I understand that without volunteers, we may not even get some races. But isn’t there something inherently wrong with making a profit off of volunteer labor? Is it even possible to legally volunteer for a for-profit enterprise?
two points:
one–most volunteering at races is quid pro quo; you get a cashless entry for volunteering…so it’s not volunteering, per se.
two–the range of $$ expended on police fees, in particular, varies greatly with course specifics, municipality cooperation, etc. If the city is on board with your race, you might pay nada for fourteen squad cars and two Police Segways. If not, you could end up paying through the for a platoon of not-really-da-police….in which case you might get a hungover doofus in blue manning turn two and telling people they can park ‘wherever’ and telling business owners ‘you can’t get through today–try tomorrow’ such that three racers get towed this year, and the course is lost for the future….
Personally, I think it all works out–I’d rather race in cities/towns where I’m welcome and the cops are running down motorists who interfere in the race (Murrieta!) than in those places that can’t manage to keep the road pothole-free in a climate where it never snows/freezes.
oops. that’s probably more than two points.
@ marvelous5000
Nobody will ever explain why. That is just how the city works.
@ Roger
The thing with tris, is that participants buy a bunch of swag AND the majority of the participants go to maybe 2-3 a year, so you can afford $300/event
You are right on logistics.
@ Scar
If I remember correctly, CBR this weekend has full support of the City. So there is a current example of a race that is fully supported.
@ general
I just want to get an idea why this is happening. All points are taken and all are valid ones. There will be a point where some people will say enough is enough. Right now I can only complain, hopefully soon I can help some things.
I’ll pay for any race as long as it isn’t going to Active.com. Hey Jani……I figured out a way for us to talk shit about others without you getting in trouble…..Let me do it!!!! Active.com SUCKS!!!! I can see the reviews ow….”Whelsuckers.com is a great open forum website, however, some of it’s contributors are hostile….Most notably, the P-Diddy character…he is really angry.”
I don’t know what the big deal with Active.com is. I like the fact that they are a one=stop=schop for all my needs. They’ve got a “Community” that’s full of people just like me–we all have Active lifestyles! Neat-o! I can get laid through Active Singles, register for my race, get training tips, get training music (Active Tunes….”Eye of the Tigger”) and all for just 2.95 per mouse click.
It’s definitely my homepage. I’m just hoping they’ll have an Active Religion and Active Online Grocery soon and all my needs will be met.
Has anybody taken out the domain inactive.com?
Scar…….YOur Kung-Fu is good. I see your point, perhaps the fault lie with the promoters who force us to use Active. We all need to come up with a portable registration page to compete with Active and it can be for Cycling only, we will only charge $1.50. Jan….There is your Million Dollar Idea!! As for onlie grocery….The problem with that is one doesn’t get to perve on the hotties in the store.
yep it’s pretty bad…most racers probably earn less $ an hour than they for less than an hours racing..in fact going by your numbers they pay alomst 4 times what they make to race for an hour..
doesn’t make sense to me never has…
back in the UK or Ireland you pay about 10 euros to ride a real good 80 mile road race any weekend you want… Crits are 5 euros since they are 1 hr in length