Policy on Race Cancellation

Summary

Force Majeure. Forces beyond our control can lead to the cancellation of a VHTRC race, including things such as snowstorms, forest fires, hurricanes, tornadoes, government closures, and pandemics. These forces are not predictable.

The VHTRC is a volunteer, nonprofit organization, and we cannot absorb all the costs associated with the risk of a race cancellation by ourselves. Runners must share in the risk that a race be cancelled. Please understand this when you enter one of our races.

It’s possible that you will not get any of your money back when we cancel a race. We strive to issue refunds or make other compensation when funds are available to do so.

Here is the policy we expect to follow when a race is canceled. Each situation is different, so these are only guidelines.

Keeping You Informed

We try to keep race participants informed ahead of time when there is a potential for cancellation. We will likely use email and the event Web site to do this.

Reimbursement

If a race is cancelled, we cannot promise any refund. We will first pay all outstanding bills associated with the race. If there is money left over after paying those expenses, we will strive to reimburse you using the remaining revenue from the race. The closer the cancellation is to the race date, the less likely it is that we’ll have funds to issue you a refund.

If the amount of your refund is small, we reserve the right to keep that money and give you a credit in the same amount toward a future running of the same race.

Rescheduling

Rescheduling a race is unlikely given the complexity of putting on an ultra or trail run but may occur on a case-by-case basis.

If a race you were registered for is rescheduled, you have three options:

1. Participate on the new date and receive no refund.
2. Skip the rescheduled race and get a refund. The amount of the refund will depend on the circumstances of the race.
3. Skip the rescheduled race and get a credit to use for registration at the same race the following year. You will not receive a refund. If you choose this option and then cannot run the race the following year, you will not receive a refund.

If you have any questions about this policy, ask the race director or a member of the VHTRC Board of Directors.

Examples of prior cancelations

The VHTRC has been putting on races for more than a quarter-century and has only rarely needed to cancel a race. Cancelations are usually weather-related.

• In 2010 and 2014, we canceled the Hashawha Hills 50km Trail Run when record-breaking snowfalls closed our race venue.
• In 2018, Fountainhead Regional Park requested that we cancel the Women’s Half Marathon because of record-breaking rains leading up to the race.
• The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020 forced the cancellation of the Bull Run Run 50, the Massanutten Mountain Trails 100, and the Women’s Half Marathon.