THE PANDEMIC PANIC
DAVE MCGILLIVRAY
One of my all-time favorite expressions is, “The comeback is always stronger than the setback.” I try very hard to always remind myself of this, but lately, it has become increasingly challenging to put a lot of stock into this belief. I also hear many saying, “This, too, shall pass.” Yeah, I know it will pass, but what do we do between now and then?
When COVID hit in March, my company, DMSE Sports, had 35 race/event management contracts locked and loaded. It was going to be a banner year for the company—our best in almost 40 years of producing events. Then, shockingly, one by one they all started going over the proverbial cliff: some initially postponed, some committed to going virtual, and some immediately canceled.
I’ve always prided myself in thinking I was always prepared for anything.
Well, I was not prepared for this train wreck. I suppose I always fooled myself into thinking this industry was bulletproof, that it was invincible—in good times and in bad—that there was no road race kryptonite of which to be afraid. Until now.
This pandemic flies right in the face of what we all do: we get as many people as we possibly can and jam them all in a relatively small space so they’re breathing all over each other and eventually perspiring profusely as they run and finish within inches of each other! Then in a heartbeat, we are told, “You can’t do that anymore.”
So many races in the past have had the name “Race for a Cure” or something along those lines. Nothing is more appropriate than this goal for each and every one of us now, as the entire world is now in this race for a cure.
By mid-June, each of our events was canceled. Because DMSE does not own the events we manage (unlike many other event management companies), it wsn’t our decision to decide the 2020 fate of these events. So, we went from 35 events to NO events... nada, zippo, none. Most of our contracts did not have clear or specific cancellation clauses (my bad), so we then had to go through the very difficult task of discussing reduction fees with all of our clients. For most events, we had already done some of the work of planning. However, because the events did not happen, we did not do all of the work, so we had to somehow come up with an agreement with each client as to what was fair compensation for the work that had already been done. For the most part, it all worked out amicably, but it wasn’t the most fun I’ve had in this business in trying to settle all these arrangements.
So, did someone say the word, “pivot?” Well, like most businesses trying to pull themselves out of the quicksand, we had to think fast. In place of event management skills, our main asset became our event equipment. We started supplying equipment (barricades, cones, sandwich boards) to restaurants for outdoor dining and to schools for their outdoor graduations. Next came the drive-in movie craze, and without hesitation, we jumped onboard, laying out the parking lot; placing equipment like cones, sandwich boards, and barricades; and managing the entire parking operation. All this certainly helped, but it only plugged about three holes in a boat that had about 10 by the end of the summer and was beginning to sink. For me, another somewhat side business has been giving motivational speaking appearances all over the country. Of course, every one of them went away, too! Ugh x 10.
Like millions of small businesses in America, we applied for and received a federal government PPP loan. Certainly, that was helpful and appreciated, but it only prolonged the inevitable for a few months. I was forced to make the most difficult business decision of my career: laying off dedicated employees who have been with the company for 10-20 years and who were the backbone of the business. My fear was, if I laid them off, would they ever come back once we get back to producing in-person events? I still don’t know, but of course, some have had to find new jobs already, so the challenge down the road will be in rebuilding the experienced team we once had and was arguably one of the most experienced teams in the industry. Those of us who remain had to regrettably accept pay cuts and reduced weekly hours and are now on the state’s workshare/unemployment program. To add to the drama, we are now being forced to move out of our existing office space and warehouse and into a more affordable location.
Then we started focusing on virtual events. Again, since we didn’t own our own events, we had to create virtual events from scratch versus being able to simply turn an existing event into a virtual one. Our clients were able to do that on their own and didn’t need us, the boots-on-the-ground company. Once again, the virtual events we have done and continue to do certainly help, but they probably won’t get us back to where we once were.
So, where does that leave all of us in this industry who produce road races, charity walks, triathlons, cycling events, and the like? What about all the other companies and individuals who support our industry, like the timers, online registration companies, medal manufacturers, merchandise providers, announcers? Many of them are out of a job, too, or are hanging on by the skin of their teeth. The truth is, no one really knows at this very moment—myself included—because no one can predict the future. There is currently a surge in the virus, so things remain even more uncertain. As has been said over and over again, the only thing certain these days is that everything is uncertain. Planning is one of the hardest things in the world to do when you have no idea what you are actually planning for. This is all new to all of us.
Challenges Ahead
As I see it, these are just some of the challenges we now all face:
Politics and Science – This is an interesting balance. In my opinion, our fate is based solely on these two factors. The science may say one thing, but those making the decisions might decide things about your event based on other factors (we’ll leave it at that).
Permission – We have not truly lost our actual business. All our customers are still out there, as anxious to get back to racing as we are to getting back to putting on the races. In fact, a case can be made that there are even more people now walking, running, and cycling than ever before because of the pandemic. Most of us just don’t have PERMISSION right now to conduct our events, and for the most part for good reason – we all get it.
Phase 4 – In Massachusetts, road races are part of the governor’s Phase 4 re-opening plan. I’m still not 100% sure what this means, but it is close to being back to normal, which doesn’t bode well for us any day soon. They say it will be when a vaccine is produced. But, again, what does that really mean? The world will need billions of doses, it will take time to produce, distribute, and vaccinate everyone, perhaps as many as one to two years. We need billions of vials, dry ice, coolers, cargo planes to deliver, medical personnel to administer, tracing, and on and on it goes. That could mean another mulligan year for us, which would be tough to stomach. Our current goal would be to try to develop a plan that would be approved by the state to be categorized as part of Phase 3. As such, I, along with about 30 event directors and industry leaders in Massachusetts, have formed the Massachusetts Endurance COVID Coalition, and we are currently meeting regularly with the intention of finalizing an acceptable mitigation strategy to bring back races in 2021 at some level and capacity... safely. Science seems to suggest that COVID is more of an indoor virus than an outdoor virus.
Other States – Some of our neighboring states like NH, RI, and CT have been allowing road races to happen during 2020 with certain restrictions and field size limitations, but at least they are happening. However, CT just recently shut down in response to the surge in infections.
Sponsors – Will they come back? Will they be apprehensive about liability? Have they suffered so much financial hardship in 2020 themselves that they now cannot commit to the same financial investment as in the past?
Other Challenges and Unknowns:
Can we hold expos, registration, pre-race activities, post-race awards, or functions? If not, how much does that take away from the overall in-person experience?
Will some runners be hesitant to participate until they become more confident in their safety, thus driving registration numbers down?
Will participants want to wait as late as possible to register, fearing they could register and then have the race later cancel, which could risk their entry fee? If most do this, it will certainly become even more difficult to plan not knowing how many to plan for. Thus, we all need to consider a tiered refund policy for our events.
Will we have to all do vaccine evidence, rapid testing, contact tracing – all or some of this? Will all races have the resources and budget to do so? We didn’t sign up for this originally, so will race directors even want to take all of this on?
With limitations and restrictions that will most assuredly be imposed – and perhaps even self-imposed – will races have enough time and space to produce their races safely and at the field size needed to make it worth their while financially? And will less experienced event producers be as vigilant and be able to follow all these new rules? Most races will have to downsize, so who do they turn away, who do they accept, and can they take the financial hit? For DMSE, small events just don’t work, as we have developed our business over the years to manage races in the 5,000 to 30,000 range. Mitigation plans will include mandatory mask-wearing before and after racing; elimination of any touchpoints; gathering, minimizing or eliminating water stations along the course and food at the finish; time trial type starts (one to three runners at a time separated by 5 to 10 seconds), and much more.
Will it now cost more to produce an event and will we now have to tack on a new COVID fee to race registrations to help cover new costs in order to afford to continue with the event?
Will medical facilities and personnel and event supplies (PPE) be available at the level that we have needed in the past? Will personnel even want to take on this voluntary challenge of working races right away? Will local medical facilities and hospitals be able to provide the necessary support?
Will we be able to recruit enough volunteers, or will many say that they don’t want to take the risk? Certainly, with smaller field sizes and with an event that is more spread out, maybe fewer volunteers are needed, but if they are needed for twice as much time, perhaps now we will need shifts of volunteers, which will necessitate a higher number of volunteers.
If there is a community mandate of no spectators, who enforces that? If there is no enforcement, whose responsibility is it to keep spectators safe?
If a race needs to be postponed, can they find a suitable date that does not now conflict with other similar events on that date and within that area especially, with many or all of the early season events needing to postpone?
Will races now limit participation to just participants from the local area and not allow people from other states or countries to enter?
“Patience is a virtue,” as they say. We all will need to continue to be patient while this all sorts out. That will be tough, as most of us are go-go-go type people. No grass grows under our feet. And the list goes on and on and on.
So, where does all this now leave us? Event management companies and vendors in our industry are all in the same predicament. Some of our event management colleagues have already had to shut down their businesses. Like everyone, we have choices. Do you keep at it, do what you can to keep the lights on, cut back on as many expenses as possible and try to wait it out? Or do you get more aggressive about hibernating, meaning shut it all down for a while until it all comes back the way it was (if you can even do that)? If you opt for shutting down, will you actually be able to recruit your staff back and make a legitimate comeback?
I believe we all have this all in proper perspective. Many unfortunate folks across this country have it much worse than we do. Many have died, many are sick, many are family members of these people, many have lost their jobs and lost their homes. “Although we are not all in the same boat, we are all in the same storm. Some have yachts, some have canoes and some are drowning. Just be kind and help whoever you can.”
I’m personally not looking for pity, I’m just trying to save a business, save jobs, and continue to do the good we have been doing for 40 years. Our events have a significant economic impact on communities, they provide enormous philanthropic benefits, offer so much goodwill, and provide health and fitness opportunities to tens of thousands of people. Not a lot of other businesses can say that they do ALL of these things.
There are silver linings... there almost always are if you have the right attitude. We all get the opportunity to re-invent ourselves. We can step back and rethink how we do things. We can spend more time with our kids and our families. We can pivot and try new things. We can always believe the glass is half full, and that partly cloudy actually means it’s partly sunny, too!
After I graduated from college, I went to work for a benefit consulting firm and started studying to be an actuary. I then took three months off to run across the country. When I finished, my company said I needed to come right back to work. I asked for a few days to recover. A few days later, I received a termination letter... they fired me! I could’ve been angry, but instead, I thought it was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. I decided to follow my passion and get involved in the running business. I believe the same will happen to many of us now. We will find a way to turn this negative into a positive.
What will the immediate future look like for our industry? One can only guess and only time will tell. Will virtual events still be the rage and as popular and perhaps the only option? Will there be in-person races (but much smaller in size) that have a virtual component? If in-person events return, you can be certain that a lot of the language in event contracts will now clearly address insurance topics and cancellation potential.
Through it all, we should all remain positive and hopeful. I have a button in my office that reads, “My job is secure, no one else wants it.” I understand why, but I’m still good with that. Our industry is resilient and has persevered in the past. In Boston, we came back stronger after the bombings in 2013 – in fact, our entire industry did, too. The sport rallied and we all supported one another. I am not giving up. As I stated at the beginning, the comeback is always stronger than the setback, and such will be the case in our industry as we all work together to overcome this pandemic.
Be well. Keep the faith.