British 10k 2013

Hi,

I entered the British 10k a couple of months ago with my boyfriend. We paid for both of our entries on one card. Boyfriend received his race pack a couple of weeks ago but I have received neither confirmation email NOR race pack. Only confirmation I have is from the Runcoach emails that know my name and know I've entered the race but nothing from the official British 10k system. 

I've looked for contact details everywhere on the internet and can't find anything. All I have found is a page on the website which says there will be a desk set up tomorrow (the day before the race) at piccadilly which:

"This facality will be for the 120 late race packs sent out this week, those whos packs have not arrived due to wrong post codes having been keyed in when entering & those who since receiving theri pack have lost their number. Proof of race entry must be brought."

As I don't have any official race confirmation I'm wondering whether they're likely to just fob me off. Has anyone else gone through this?

Having just read previous threads about this race and bad reviews I'm now starting to dread it. 

Comments

  • I had a confirmation email, but haven't received a pack.

    Going to go and try get a race number tomorrow, but worried I won't get the tshirts, which will mean I've paid £50 for a poorly organised 10k. Wish I'd researched the race a bit more before entering. Don't think I would have bothered, having read of all the problems and poor reputation it has.

  • Another annoying thing is- how are you supposed to know whether your pack is one of the 120 or whether you just didn't receive it for some other reason?! May well be a waste of time going to Picadilly tomorrow.

  • Grendel3Grendel3 ✭✭✭

    @luci hall have you got p[roof your payment was taken?  (Must admit £50 seems an awful lot for any race let alone a 10K) do they have a facebook page where you could ask questions?

    Just checked they do have a FB page  it might be worth posting on there or sending a message - they are also on twitter

  • Grendel3Grendel3 ✭✭✭

    Just read their FB page you are not alone loads of complaints

  • Year in year out - lots of complaints and still thousands sign up.



    If the money has gone from your bank account - take a statement as proof ?



    Hopefully they'll sort you out.
  • £50 is a lot for a 10km, but you get two tech tshirts for it (one long sleeved). The event was sponsored by Nike last year, so I assumed I'd be getting two Nike shirts plus race entry, so thought £50 isn't too bad when looked at like that.

    Live and learn though I suppose.

  • SEdanSEdan ✭✭✭

    My wife is an exactly the same position as the OP. What a shambles.

    She is having to trek down to Waterloo Place to have the inevitable argument - not fun on the hottest day of the year.

    Apparently they have had some issues transitioning from their old database to the new one. Difficult to believe in 2013... 

    On one of the registration emails there is a link to the old database where my wife's name shows up but she has not been receiving emails (I paid her entry with my email too).

    Worth checking this and printing out as additional "proof".

    https://british10klondon.co.uk/search_entry.asp.

  • Does anyone know - do we have to wear their shirt? It is a bit unclear from the booklet.

  • Rube wrote (see)

    Does anyone know - do we have to wear their shirt? It is a bit unclear from the booklet.

    It's poorly worded in the programme but I'm taking it as they'd like you to wear their shirt but it's not compulsory. I'm wearing my usual kit. 

  • MillsyMillsy ✭✭✭
    The organisers must be laughing.

    They get awful reviews every year, yet thousands of people keep on paying 50 quid to enter.

    Why do people keep doing it?
  • Beats me Millsy.

    Another thing I don't understand is how the "organisers" are actually allowed to stage this event every year. Surely they have to be issued with a licence or something?

    I mean who would that be from? Westminster City Council?

    It seems to me that if people start complaining to them instead, something might eventually get done about it.

  • Hi Luci,

     

    I randomly received 2 extra race packs through the post this morning, so if you have any problems I would be glad to put the extra ones in my bag tomorrow?? The only problem maybe that your time may come up as somebody else but I have no idea which number to use myself. It appears that the 2 tops I have in my first received race pack are as advertised but the ones sent to me this morning look like they have been quickly printed out last minute. They are v poor quality and not red white and blue as advertised. I am guessing they ran out last minute lol! I have no idea if I would be allowed to do that but it seems a shame that I have 2 numbers extra and 2 other people are missing theirs and wont be able to do it!

    My boyfriend also received more than one but because it came ages ago we had time to send it back but clearly I cannot do anything about these 2 now!!

  • This race is a shambles, price is sky high, and they can't be bothered to organise wave starts, if you want to be at the front and try a fast time, you have to get there 90' before race start, this year it was started late whilst some pointless singer was giving a concert and we fried in the blistering heat. They didn't even give a goodie bag. The t-shirts were advertised as technical, and there was nothing technical about them, and there is a horrendous logo which will make me stop wearing mine, I don't mind using charity logos, but this one is some sort media company, which I never heard of, if they are as skilled as the people who designed the logo, then I guess all the rubish organisation explains itself.

    bottom line is: want to spend a lot of money to run the worse race you have ever done in terms of set up and organisation, go for this one

    I could go on and on about what needs to improve, and they never do, but I won't , please check the race's facebook page, you will see hundreds if not thousands of people describing their experiences https://www.facebook.com/TheBritish10k

    a

  • SlowkoalaSlowkoala ✭✭✭

    The BUPA 10k is half the price, still in central London and loads better organised. It's run by the people who do the London Marathon and always seems to run smoothly. Also has different starting bands.

  • Here is an e-mail that should be contacted if you want to make your voice heard, the more people raise their issues and concerns, we might one be willing to go back and do the British 10k 

    specialeventsep@westminster.gov.uk

    It's worth trying, the British 10k shambles has been going on for way too long

  • I have run this event several times over the past. This year took the biscuit. I was out of the country until the night before the race and got a few emails about runners not getting their race packs but assuring them that the last ones were "in the post". Sure enough, when I arrived home, no race pack. I couldn't find any contact details for the race organisers on the website so reluctantly did not run as I didn't intend to spend hours before the race queuing for a replacement pack. £50 down the drain. When I politely emailed an address I found in my inbox from previous events the fun started. Mike O'Reilly the event organisers offered no apology and no hint of a refund. Instead he told me I could have come the day before or before the race to queue for a replacement number. Due to my circumstances I said ths was unacceptable to me as the application form clearly states that packs will be sent to runners adresses. I reiterated my request for a refund as this was their mistake. Same reply. I expressed my disappointment and said I would write to running mags and tell friends about my experience. The next bit is astonishing. He told me I have made a "threat to the race" and if he didn't receive an apology and a written undertaking not to deter runners from entering I would be subject to legal action!!!

    Since when has an honest review of a product or service been subject to censorship by the provider. What happened to free speech. I am not actively deterring anyone from entering, merely offering an honest review. If that saves others from my experience so be it.

    Good luck to anyone who doesn't praise a product or race in the future.

    Will I run the London 10k again. Not likely! As for you guys. The choice is yours.

     

    A complaint to the westminster special events team might have an impact:

    info@westminster.gov.uk

  • Many newspapers have consumer champion pages (e.g. The Guardian), you could try writing to one of them.

  • JindaleeJindalee ✭✭✭
    Reading all this makes me realise how lucky I have been so far with the races I entered.

    Hope they will listen and improve the organization of this race and offer refunds to the ppl who were unable to run due to their mistake.
  • I've just been looking at that facebook page and the comments from British 10k to some of the concerns are written with dreadful spelling and grammar. Pedants would have a field day.  Where's my red pen? 

    I haven't run this for years. Once was enough - no chip timing and no real finish line then either. Dreadful. 

  • So sorry to hear that your first event was ruined Luci. There are more friendly, cheaper and better organised events than this one so don't let it put you off. 

    Good luck with your first race when you pick one image

  • Luci,

    There are hundreds and hundreds of better 10ks out there to do so don’t be put off by this shambolic event. I still can't understand why anyone signs up for this event given it's high price and shocking reviews...

    I can recommend any of the following that I've done:

    Blenheim Palace 10k

    London Zoo Stampede

    Goring, Woodcote and District 10k

    Ashford 10k

    Wrap Up & Run Milton Keynes

    Oxford Town & Gown

    BUPA London 10,000

    Try any of these (or any other highly rated ones on the RW website as like I said there are hundreds out there) and you’ll catch the running bug…

  • MillsyMillsy ✭✭✭
    If I am going to spend over the odds for a race I will always try and find reviews of the previous years events too see if there were any issues.
  • I just emailed Mike for a refund but was refused (I had sent him several emails  leading up to the race and called in the P.O. to see if any race packages there), he was not contactable by phone before the race so we were all left to fend for ourselves.  A few of us ran this race last year and it seemed OK, but the organisation this year has been dreadful - I told him my race pack never arrived but he is going to locate this for me  (bit late now). From our group of 8 - three people received two packs each, one received two days after race and I never received mine !! We arranged for one of the group to try to collect relacements the day before, she said people were very cross and angry.  Race day was full of people complaining and we are definitely not running this 10k again..hanging around for over 1 hr to run in that heat!!! Where is all our money going??

  • I

    don't normally review races but I feel that a review of this race is mandatory. There were so, so many issues I feel it's easier to bullet point them.

    1. Race pack never arrived in time

    2. They said to collect race number in London on Saturday...I live in Rugby, Warwickshire & wasn't in London till Saturday evening. There was nothing on the site for people like me - aparantly this was because they didn't want everyone turning up on Sunday to collect them, even though it was their fault the packs weren't sent out until 5 days before the race

    3. Collected number at bag drop off even though I had no bag. There were 2 people manning a stand that was surrounded by people collecting numbers. They had ran out of forms for us to complete with personal details and also ran out of safety pins - first race that's ever happened at!

    4. There were NO signs saying which way to go once number was collected. I was later told there were marshals saying which way to go, but I didn't see ANY people in hi vis vests on the mall. So I followed the huge crowd...to be told later this was the wrong way! How were we to know?

    5. Crowd finished up at the start line, as it doubled back on itself and caused huge, huge crowds and lots of pushing and shoving trying to work our way down a small pavement alongside the mass of runners in the fences to try and get to the end. This led to queue jumping galore.

    6. We were kept waiting in the pen for an absolute age. People had warmed up and then cooled down, and water was abandoned before reaching the pen so people were getting hydrated as at 10am it was already 25 degrees nearly.

    Oh, and the music at the start to 'motivate' us was shocking...Everybody Hurts by REM and Pavarotti? I don't think so somehow!

    7. There was a pointless singer that nobody could hear as the speakers were shocking and she continued with her act even though the event was running behind schedule, the runners were getting tetchy and getting dehyrdrated.

    8. The race started in waves, but I could only see about 3 waves start before everyone was allowed a free for all. I was about half way down the mass of runners and crossed the line 45 minutes after the due start time, heaven help those near the end.

    9.During the race I have never, ever seen so many water bottles which was brilliant - about the only saving grace of this race.  But...there were 2 people manning each table of water and people had to undo boxes of water to get their own. I have seen water stations much, much better managed at other events, with scouts etc helping to hand out water. There was none of this.

    10. Finish...what finish? It was barely noticeable! And once you crossed the finish there were people wandering around like zombies giving water out which, was great, but that was it! There were no officials to ask what to do, no finishing pen, nothing. I thought we got a medal but couldn't see anyone handing them out. It turned out we had to walk a 20 minute walk back to the baggage drop (I had no bags to collect!) to collect our medal! There were no toilets at the end and nobody had a clue what to do or where to go...not even those who appeared to be working the event.

    11. On the plus side...the medal is the best one I've ever had to date so I'm really pleased with it.

    12. Race pack arrived on saturday after I had left for London. So on my return home I opened it to find 6 safety pins - fab idea, shame I didn't receive them on time! I also received my 2 training technical t-shirts. But I was rather confused...everyone was wearing red blue and white t-shirts that looked so, so lovely...you can imagine my disappointment when I received 2 plain white t-shirts that were not technical in the slightest with a really rubbish logo of a desinging company in the top corner.

  •  

    I asked why and was told that they had ran out of the coloured material! How?

    13. The worst thing about the race? The organiser!

    I was so so disapointed and let down I called him and asked what had gone wrong. In his view...nothing! I explained all the points above...well, tried to. But he had an answer for everything and his view was the right view. The water stations supoposedly had 40 people per station...I saw 2 people per table. And he said they couldn't physically hand water to everyone and he has ran marathons all over the world (good for him!) and this is how the operate...really?

    He also said there were marhsalls along the Mall at 7am to guide people to the start. I advised they weren't there at 9am...so he asked for photographic evidence! Can you believe it? He also said that 4 runners went the wrong way down the Mall and that caused thousands of others to follow them and do the same...I very much doubt that!

    I tried to suggest improvements but he just wouldn't listen. He constantly spoke over me, shouted at me, told me I was wrong and wouldn't listen or let me speak at all.  Unfortunately I lost my temper and called him something I shouldn't have done and regret this (I didn't swear!) so sorry Mike...but this meant I never got chance to ask where the £50 went as he hung up on me! But I bet I know the answer...a decent portion of it must have gone into his pocket!

    He was the most arrogant, rudest man I have ever had the displeasure of meeting so I will never ever, ever be doing this race ever, ever again! What a horrible, horrible man...and I'm still waiting for a 'sorry'!

    I've also taken the liberty of emailing all the sponsors of the race as I think it's only fair that they know what they're putting their money into as it will reflect badly on them also.

    I would therefore like to implore every single disgruntled participant of this race's history to email their reasons for complaining to Mishcon de Reya, Projection Motion Media & Maritime Media Services.

  • Bet it sells out again next year.....
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