Officials for two popular endurance events have announced their cancellations—the Boulder Marathon and the Ironman Lake Tahoe.
Boulder Marathon
Two weeks before the Boulder Marathon, Half Marathon, and 5 Mile races were scheduled to take place, runners received a cancellation email from Race Coordinator Jeff Mason citing flood-related issues from 2013 that would prevent the races from being carried out on October 5. The email stated that participants will be able to apply their entry fees to participate in either the 2015 Boulder Spring Half Marathon or the Boulder Marathon next fall. Mason said runners can expect to receive a no-charge registration link soon.
In the email, he also mentioned the death of 20-year-old runner Jessica Dillon following the Boulder Spring Half Marathon in May, which he also coordinates, as well as the recent death of former race director of the Boulder Backroads Marathon, Lesley Kinder.
However, the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office told 9 News the reason for cancellation was that Mason failed to apply for imperative permits by a certain deadline that would have allowed for the event to be carried out. “They were required to get permits from the Colorado State Patrol, the Boulder Reservoir, Boulder County Transportation, and the Boulder Police Department,” Commander Heidi Prentup of the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office told the Boulder Daily Camera. “He did not meet the deadlines that are established to receive the permits, so he was not permitted.”
Authorities also stated that if registrants would like a refund rather than receive free registration to one of the other two events, they will have to read the fine print on their paperwork. If the registration states it is “non-refundable,” it’s unlikely they’ll receive a refund unless runners decided to take Mason to small claims court. Coordinators of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Denver Marathon & Half Marathon have announced that those who were registered for the canceled races will be able to run in their race for free.
Ironman Lake Tahoe
The King Fire wildfire has torn through more than 80,000 acres in northern California, demolishing at least 10 homes and forcing thousands to evacuate. Wayne Allen Huntsman was arrested last Wednesday for allegedly setting the fire, and he was charged on Friday.
Because of the quick spread of the fire, the Ironman Lake Tahoe and Ironman 70.3 Lake Tahoe that were scheduled to take place this past Sunday were canceled because of unsafe air quality. “As always, the safety of our athletes, volunteers, spectators, and staff is our number one priority,” the website stated.
“Due to high early morning unhealthy concentrations of particulate matter in and around various areas of the Tahoe Basin where the Ironman event is occurring, we feel that the event management made the right decision today in the interest of the athletes, event volunteers, and spectators,” Tom Christofk, Air Pollution Control Officer for Placer County, said in a statement. “We have been monitoring the air quality impacts from the King Fire on the event for several days, and have been reviewing near real time data from sensors located in Squaw Valley, Tahoe City, Kings Beach, and Truckee. The data from this morning indicates unsafe levels of air quality to commence the event.”
Registration for the 2015 Ironman Lake Tahoe will open on September 29. Further information regarding the canceled event will be sent directly to registrants.