2020 Wetzin’kwa Loppet and Dessert Night Cancelled
Thursday March 12, 2020
We regret to inform you that the Bulkley Valley Cross Country Ski Club has decided to cancel both the pre-loppet potluck & dessert fundraiser as well as the loppet. This wasn’t an easy decision to make—we are doing it out of an abundance of caution around the spread of the COVID-19 virus. We understand that there are no confirmed cases of infection around the Bulkley Valley, but given today’s recommendation by the provincial health officer to cancel any gatherings of more than 250 people we came to the conclusion that we should cancel these events [1].
I have read that for us to limit the spread of COVID-19 and avoid the problems seen in some other countries around the world we need to take steps that may seem like an overreaction. I know that cancelling our events feels like an overreaction, but it is the most prudent thing to do given the information and direction we have from the experts.
We are not alone in cancelling events today. Nordiq Canada cancelled the national championships scheduled to start in Vernon on March 25th [2]. The Alberta World Cup scheduled to take place in Canmore March 20-22 was also cancelled [3].
Since many dessert night auction baked goods have already been made, we will hold an online auction to raise funds for next year’s nationals which are being held in Mont-Sainte-Anne Quebec. We will post more information on how this will happen on the facebook event page and via email soon.
The trails are in prime conditions, get out and enjoy them at your leisure.
Refunds
As this is an extraordinary event cancellation we will be refunding 100% of the race fees. Unfortunately we cannot refund the zone4 processing fees. We will contact you at the email address you provided when registering with details on how the refund will happen.
Apologies for the late change of plans, and thank you very much for your understanding. If you have any comments or questions please email me at ben.forsyth@bvnordic.ca
Sincerely,
Ben Forsyth
President, Bulkley Valley Cross Country Ski Club
References
1: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/b-c-recommends-against-all-non-essential-travel-outside-canada-as-7-new-cases-of-covid-19-confirmed-1.5495811
2: https://nordiqcanada.ca/news-item/nordiq-canada-cancels-2020-canadian-ski-championships-at-sovereign-lake-nordic-ski-club-in-vernon-b-c/
3: https://nordiqcanada.ca/news-item/2020-coop-fis-cross-country-world-cup-races-in-canmore-cancelled/
