Due to the recommendation of the Centers for Disease Control for all events happening within the next eight weeks to not be held, we are heartbroken to announce that the 2020 Wisconsin Marathon will not be taking place on May 2nd.
At this point, the decision has been made to defer all entries to the 2021. Please see below for all details.
Tracy and Jonathan
Why aren't you postponing the race?
There are many factors that go into these decisions when race details have to change. In addition to availability of streets and construction projects, we know that a rescheduled date would not be ideal for all our runners. When factoring in the costs, combined with the probability of reduced participation because of the date change, it would not be economically feasible due to the hard costs associated with putting on a marathon.
So what are my next steps?
Your current entry will automatically defer to the 2021 event on Saturday, May 1st. At this time, no additional steps are required on your end.
What about refunds?
Since we are deferring everyone's registration to 2021, most of the fees- what has not already been spent- associated with this year's event will be transferred over to next year. By offering everyone a deferral to next year, we are able to better absorb the pre-event costs associated with putting on event without creating a substantial financial burden to our small business. Yes, we are a small business, as this is the only event we produce during the year. With this in mind and looking at additional options, moving everyone forward a year was the smartest course of action.
If you will be experiencing any financial hardships due to the Coronavirus outbreak, you are welcome to email us at a later time to see if we can come up with an individual solution for you.
What if I made a donation to charity?
Any money that was donated to our Official Charity Groups during registration will still be donated to those groups, as planned.
What if I signed up for the Mittens Challenge/ Half & Half Challenge?
At this time, the Kalamazoo Marathon has not announced their plans going forward. They are their own event and may have different contingency plans than us. We will be in communication with these runners as soon as we can.
What are you going to do with all of your extra medals and shirts?
Over the next few weeks, we plan on donating all our medals for this year to local schools and children's groups, to help promote the sport of running. Due to shipping delays, we have not yet received our shirts and are able to use the blanks for next year. Due to shipping costs, at this time, we are not able to mail these items out. (And do you really want a medal and shirt for a race you didn't do?)
I know I can't run next year. Can I transfer my bib to someone else?
Yes. If you would like to transfer your registration to another runner, we will allow that for anyone to do before September 1st, which is just before we will open up general registration for 2021. There is no additional fee to transfer your registration to another person.
In order to transfer your registration, log into your
Runsignup
account (it was created when you registered) and click on your profile. Click "upcoming events" then "manage registration" and finally "transfer to another runner." Follow the instructions and fill in your new runner's information as asked.
Please note, this will only be an option for those signed up for the 2020 event and will not be available for new registrants for 2021.
What if I wanted to change my distance for next year or any of my other information?
In the coming weeks, we will be working with the registration company on how to make this happen. Please be patient during this time and we will relay instructions on how to do so before general registration opens for next year's race.
