Caveat emptor.
I’ve really been struggling with how to write this post for a while. The tri community in Vancouver is quite small, and people generally seem to know each other well, so when it comes down to holding someone to task for basically falling down on the job and not delivering what they promise, I’m always nervous about coming across too harsh. I’ve tempered some of my comments on various volunteer experiences because I honestly believe that every organizational group is really trying their best to develop and promote an enjoyable event.
Having said that, however, I feel that I am duty-bound to warn new potential triathletes about a certain organization in the local tri community. I have first hand experience with regards to Brent Kamenka and World Endurance Sport - I ignored one of the most important caveats of being a beginner triathlete, and didn’t do my proper research beforehand on the event/organization that I chose as my first tri. I can now say with absolute certainty that I will never again participate in any event that is associated in any way with this organization or Kamenka as a R.D.
Here’s why, in a nutshell - I’ve really attempted to take all emotion out of this post and just stick to the facts:
- The registration was non-existent. People drove upwards of 2+ hours out to a restaurant that had no idea what was going on since they were no longer associating themselves with this race, and the change of location for package pickup wasn’t posted on the My First Tri website until after 4pm that afternoon. I wound up having to drive to the campsite where the swim was supposed to take place, and talked to one of the women there who had just found out a couple of hours earlier that this event was happening at their site the next morning. If we hadn’t gotten on her computer and looked at the website, I would’ve wasted $40 worth of gas and 4+ hours of my life for nothing, not to mention that was the evening that I was supposed to pick Cin up at the airport, and wound up being 2+ hours late.
- Race package pickup didn’t happen - no numbers, no chips, no nothing. We received the excuse that ‘one of the trucks broke down’ which, it was later determined, translates directly into ‘we’re trying to mooch timing chips from someone right now and race bibs from a totally different race’.
- Registration and pickup the next morning was a complete gongshow. I wound up with a race bib that, according to the stub at the bottom, previously belonged to a 46 year old woman named Sharon Williams. At least 30+ athletes had shown up before Kamenka rolled up in a rental van with a World Endurance sign taped to the grill. We were all milling about, not even knowing if the damn thing was going to go off or not.
- The disorganization was absolutely shocking - no one knew where they were going, where the athletes had to go, what time we were going to get started, nothing. Brent looked like a deer caught in the headlights whenever people asked him anything. Luckily I’d done my research and was able to let people know where the campsite was and how to get there.
- The swim course took place in a slough, in water that was barely waist-deep, in water that was so cold that TriBC would’ve instantly removed people who were not wearing wetsuits. There was one kayak for over 100 racers, there was complete chaos with people trying to figure out where to place the buoy marker for the turn-around, and absolutely no lifeguards or safety staff from what I could see aside from one young woman on the shore and the aforementioned kayak. This led to some issues on this swim course, not the least of which was this poor woman’s experience (Tracy321).
- The swim to bike transition in the campground was anarchy, pure and simple. People milling about in transition, walking across the athletes’ paths and in some cases almost getting run over by bikes, absolutely no crowd control, one person at the entrance to the highway, and one person attempting to control traffic at the point where we had to split across the highway and head up the side road. How no one was struck and injured on the bike course is beyond me. There was not a single RCMP auxiliary officer in sight, and I was left wondering if permits had been granted and the RCMP notified that a road race was taking place on a major highway in their district. One Marshall on the road, and one Marshall at the turnaround = disaster waiting to happen. If I hadn’t scouted out the route several times beforehand, I have no doubt that I probably would’ve gotten lost.
- A grand total of eight people working the entire course from my count. Eight. That includes the ‘lifeguard’, the ‘road Marshalls’ and the ‘race director’. If there had been a serious medical emergency, I shudder to think what the reaction time would’ve been. I didn’t see a single person sweeping the course on the bike or run, either on a bike, a motorcycle, or a vehicle. Instead, we had trucks and cars racing by us constantly - kind of nerve-wracking when it’s your first tri and you aren’t used to riding with traffic. However, given the steady flow of negative reports on this organization and Brent Kamenka, this shouldn’t come as a surprise.
- The website for My First Tri boasts that ” Entry includes: official garment, race results, pre and post race refreshments and the coveted “World Endurance Sport/Triathlons.net” finisher’s medallion.” So far, eight weeks after the race, I’ve received two of those items included in the entry - the race results, and the finisher’s medallion. I have personally called Brent no less than three times - one of his contact numbers is now no longer in service, and my first three emails to his triathlons.net account were rejected by his Internet provider. After finally getting in touch with him and having a rather pointed conversation wherein he basically offered every excuse under the sun before settling on ‘waiting for the shirts from the US’ - five weeks ago - he gave me his ‘personal email address’ - a hotmail account - to which I’ve sent another three emails and have not received one single answer back from him. Also, there were absolutely zero pre- or post- race refreshments. At all. Period. There was Gatorade on the course, and that’s it. For $99, I expect far far FAR more from a race - the race fee was astronomically expensive and the event that was delivered was not worth the fee by any stretch of the imagination.
Once I started digging into this guy’s past and his race history, I started finding out all sorts of interesting things about him…I’ll let you read it all for yourself and make your own determinations. However, I can say that, based on the history of this organization and Kamenka as a R.D., I will never race under that banner again, and Cin will not even consider it for her first tri in 2008 - she’ll stick to the UBC or Delta Triathlons, both of which have a stellar reputation.
It’s a bit shocking to realize that a Supreme Court of BC injunction was granted to the City of Parksville this past June, and Harrison Hot Springs had previously sued World Endurance Sport to prevent him from putting on events within those districts. Lake Chelan even dispatched sheriffs’ deputies after they denied Kamenka the permits to run his race, yet he showed up and did the first one anyway!
Basically, it comes down to caveat emptor…buyer beware. Do your research on any event before you pay your money; make sure it’s legit, it’s properly run, and you’re going to get what you pay for and deserve as a hard-training athlete.
Filed under: Triathlons
Hi Paul,
I randomly came upon your website while googling triathlons close to home…you looked familiar in one of the pictures and I realized that me and my boyfriend were talking to you before the start of “My first tri!” (we are in one of your pictures in the water before we started) Since reading up on the race directors shady past, I can’t believe that he’s still in business! I am gong to look into some of the tri’s you have listed here…Anyways it seems like you have definitely gotten bit by the “bug.” I wish you luck in future races,
Cheers,
Kim
Hello,
Brent Kamenka here, the thing that puzzles me the most is that people that read these forms actually believe that myself or any of the organizers of our events would put on an event that would make anyone un-happy, since the events are word of mouth, why would we place in jeapardy our reputation for the sake of the event.
I persoanally have directed over 200 events from Vancouver BC to Maui Hawaii without a single insurance claim, over 20,000+ athletes crossing the finish line, if things were so bad then why has there never been an insurance claim? It all comes down to a sport association that wants to collect fees for the event.
I I have told only friends and family about any problems with the Triathlon association.
My name has come under attack for over 21 years… for the most part I do not care, however I have some family arriving from Russia who do not understand the simple politics of sport. Since they do not understand that it is politics they may take to heart any of the comments, therefore I must address these comments as to not embarrass my family name so if you have anything to comment I would personally appreciate your feedback as I would not want to upset my family and think that they were arriving in another country with much of the same corruption that they left.
Let me summarize something here - I had another massive post ready to respond to Brent’s comments, but after editing and rewriting it for over a hour, I’ve decided that it comes down to this…
As far as this whole ‘politics of sport’ thing…honestly, no one gives a damn. It’s a poor excuse for putting on a poor event.
When we pay almost a hundred bucks for a race, we want a damn well run and organized race for our hundred bucks, considering that it’s at least 30% higher than most other extremely well-run events (eg. Lifesport). We want an organized registration; we shouldn’t have to play ‘hunt the hotel ballroom’ in Harrison Hot Springs and waste hours of our lives. We want the pre-and post- race refreshments that were advertised. We want our t-shirts, and they better not be cotton. We want race bibs that aren’t recycled from another race. We want a race where there are enough marshalls to handle things in a safe manner. We want a professionally run race. That has nothing to do with politics, and everything to do with delivering a product that is worth the money charged. What we received was not worth a hundred bucks, plain and simple.
Playing the Deflection Game by blaming TriBC or Lake Chelan or the City of Parksville or whichever boogyman it is this week does not change the fact that the comments that are coming from the grassroots about these races and WES are coming from average Joes and Janes - everyday athletes who believe they did not receive value or experience for their money. It has nothing to do with politics, and everything to do with being an active consumer; try addressing the concerns of the consumer, rather than hiding behind the ‘i’ve done 200+ races and never had an insurance claim’. Just because there’s never been an issue serious and deadly enough to warrant an insurance claim, just means you’re lucky. It doesn’t mean there’s not substantial problems and issues with these races.
Where there’s smoke, there’s usually fire.
That’s my final comment on this matter. People, go do your own research, and make your own minds up. Knowledge on it’s own is just knowledge. Applied knowledge is power.