Winter updates from Run Waterloo

Important update, March 2: On March 2, Athletics Ontario removed vaccine mandates for outdoor events, and in consultation with the Region of Waterloo, we are following this recommendation and will no longer be enforcing vaccine mandates for events at this time.

We are up and running. Or at least, we think so!

It’s been a minute and a variant since our last big update. Since then, we’ve successfully organized a real live road race and we’re excited for all 2022 has to offer.

Deferred entries. First, let us say that when we deferred an enormous amount of entries in 2020, most would have thought we would have resolved that by December, 2021. This is continuing to be a very meticulous and complex audience, and it’s hard to keep everyone updated, but rest assured that you are first in our order of priority. Don’t ever hesitate to inquire. We are protecting your entry even as our costs rise. Thank your for your continued patience. The wheels are now rolling and you will see information arrive to your inbox as it is available.

Live events. We are bringing back live events, with caution (see 2022 Re-Fridgee-Eighter for our first race back). We believe that outdoor running is very safe, and we are using all the tools available to keep the running and the peripheral activities – kit distribution, start line, awards, post-race activity, water stations, volunteering – as COVID-19 safe as possible. Huge thanks to Athletics Ontario, Race Roster, Canadian Endurance Sport Alliance, and Region of Waterloo Public Health for working with us, and in many cases, for our industry.

As for what the events will look like, we have lots of fresh ideas and innovations we’re working on, but for this year, for the most part, you will see us rolling out very familiar events. These are important both for redeeming the deferrals, but also in the face of massive uncertainty, these events provide us with controlled environments. You can find the most up-to-date events from the menu in “Find a Run.” This page was dormant for 2 years, but it is now actively being populated with races, dates, and clearly indicating which are open for registration.

What else has changed? Here are a few key points.

• Price. Our costs have increased dramatically, and to deal with this, we are moving towards a model where t-shirts are now an add-on purchase. This keeps the minimum entry fee down, and delivers higher-quality shirts to where they are wanted with less waste. A big but measured win-win in times of challenging inflation.
• Rules. We won’t stop following the guidance and the science. For now, that means some streamlining of events (ie. no food), and also mandatory full COVID-19 vaccination. We are not experts and we will continue to rely on the expertise of Athletics Ontario and the Region of Waterloo Public Health, and support this mandate for as long as it is in force. Note: AO lifted this mandate on March 2, 2022 and we have followed suit.
• Membership. Another casualty of the uncertainty is that we are not running our full Membership program this year. It’s just too hard to calculate the value the program. We are going to launch a pared-down version that will have the benefit of making it more accessible to all with less investment.

One last point we want to underline is that we are going to continue to offer our self-assessment deferral for our spring calendar. This is a big risk for us, but we see it as an essential tool to give our participants peace of mind and put the public benefit first. If you can’t attend the race due to COVID-19, you will not lose your entry fee.

That’s it for now. We’re warmed up and ready to roll. Next up, a brand-new event on March 26: cone5togo.