Sheffield Half Marathon is a shambles

[tinfoilhat]

Dunno you tell us. hard to see what they could have said that would have averted the problem, especially if it happened that morning.

 

This is it - unless there was a total breakdown of the vehicles turning up, it needed a few phonecalls on the Friday and prior to that the proper checks and verifications the water suppliers were on the up and up. Event organising 101. If you are getting an events company in to do it, you don't need an SCC (or anyone else for that matter) muddying the waters unless roles and responsibilities are clearly defined. I'd have thought the water supply was the easier bits.

[JFKvsNixon]

This is it - unless there was a total breakdown of the vehicles turning up, it needed a few phonecalls on the Friday and prior to that the proper checks and verifications the water suppliers were on the up and up. Event organising 101. If you are getting an events company in to do it, you don't need an SCC (or anyone else for that matter) muddying the waters unless roles and responsibilities are clearly defined. I'd have thought the water supply was the easier bits.

 

What if after the phone call on Friday the water people said everything was sorted and going ahead as planned?

[Squiggs]

It strikes me there's some people really struggling with the concept that the council had no dealings with this. Oh, and while we are at it, struggle to see there's no link between the organisers of SHM and TdF.

 

The water calamity doesn't bring shame on me as a Sheffielder... the stupidity of some of my fellow Sheffielders does.

 

In fact Sheffield as a city comes out of it in a rather positive light, if you ignore the silliness of people with a juvenile mentality, an event going ahead supported by the local population regardless of ****-ups in officialdom.

 

As for the nonsense of people blaming "the Sheffield Socialist Republic" for the shortcomings of a private enterprise employed to operate a part of the proceedings...I think you'll find "socialism" has more to do with people co-operating and the event going ahead regardless

[BEDROCK]

Maybe the water got diverted to some hallow foreign aid cause instead

[sheff71]

It was all about water. SCC won't have to do anything except close off the roads. There will be other agencies involved to make sure things run smoothly. The TdF finishes every year in Paris. It hasn't been taken away from there despite a lot of municipal failings by the Hotel de Ville.

 

---------- Post added 06-04-2014 at 17:46 ----------

 

 

 

It wasn't just the water though, the lack of good communication about the cancellation is clear from some of the runners - shambolic really. Now while that's presumably down to the organisers for not providing clear information to the competitors, if DVS had still been open with a fully functioning PA system...

 

I expect this fiasco will be a major topic on Toby's RS show tomorrow, should be interesting listening

Edited April 6, 2014 by sheff71

[PeteM01]

It wasn't just the water though, the lack of good communication about the cancellation is clear from some of the runners - shambolic really. Now while that's presumably down to the organisers for not providing clear information to the competitors, if DVS had still been open with a fully functioning PA system...

 

I knew someone would bite. #306.

Edited April 6, 2014 by PeteM01

[Waldo]

Be interesting to see if people get a refund or some compensation.

 

Think they should they paid for a service that was not delivered.

 

I thought (actually, another runner told me) there's something in the T&C about no refunds? It's complicated though; I was also thinking refund, but with a large portion of the profits apparently going to charity, it seems a bit like depriving a charity if you get a refund?

 

Anyhow, I imagine all this is going to seriously harm the future of the SHM, with less numbers in future years, which is a real shame. Definitely lessons need to be learned, why was there no contingency plan? Surely, with an event on this scale, you have to anticipate being let down by suppliers, and know in advance what you'll do if and when that happens. The organisers got that wrong. They can't just blame the supplier; they need to accept responsibility for their own part in the fiasco; why appropriate checks and procedures weren't in place?

 

Still, I hope it doesn't die here, I hope lessons are learned, and things change for the better; mind you, was also a bit of an anti-climax at the finish, with it not being in DVS. I'm missing the final 100m sprint along the track to finish gantry!

 

Support from the public was absolutely awesome, and the general mood and camaraderie from other runners was great, passing water around like it was liquid gold!

 

Also, what someone was saying about people running 13+ miles with no water; it's definitely possible, but for slower runners, or on a hot day; it's probably not a good idea. A lot of runners though, will just take a few sips here and there, you don't want to guzzle as you get water logged and may get stitch etc...

[Gleadly]

Until we hear anything from the organisers, we are clearly speculating as to what went wrong and who's to blame.

 

That might be a bit too difficult for some members to comprehend.

 

I don't for one second believe that SCC had anything to do with the lack of water.

[Squiggs]

Could be numerous reasons in the chain for the water. No excuse for the poor PA though, the organisers definitely got that wrong - although that probably turned out for the best, inadvertantly facilitating the continuation of the event as many people weren't even aware until later - I know one who was just confused by the lack of water in the first stage and the amount of random non-stewards handing out various containers of water after about 5k

 

There was a balls-up at the Jane Tomlinson Hull 10K last year, couldn't be helped, a bridge which is crossed as part of the route, got stuck open on the morning of the run. The route was diverted and shortened by 1K which the pros and PB-seekers were peeved about but in the 1/2 hour delay whilst the route was being re-arranged, everyone knew exactly what the score was, as the PA speakers were audible enough and spread out enough so that if you didn't catch it, someone near you in the line-up did and relayed the info

[tinfoilhat]

What if after the phone call on Friday the water people said everything was sorted and going ahead as planned?

 

Then the water people will have to front up and say what resulted in a total breakdown of all vehicles and no other replacement/rental vehicles available which sounds ever so slightly unlikely. I'd have been surprised if they weren't in Sheffield somewhere on Saturday ready to go if things were going as planned. I've a feeling they either didn't leave the yard or turned up at Cheshire. The water company weren't running late in my view.

 

As an events company they will still carry the can, and that's assuming phonecalls were made. I suspect either they thought it was someone else's job or they put too much faith in their suppliers.