Huntsville Mayor Scott Aitchison announced today (January 11) that the Town has terminated its three-year licensing deal with Ironman Canada and will not be hosting any further full Ironman events.
Reeling from an almost $100,000 deficit from the 2015 event, Town councillors were looking for ways to stop the bleeding. It appears the feeling may have been mutual.
There was a legitimate fear around the building that there was a real potential of losing another $100,000 a year for the next two years. I met with representatives from Ironman Canada in Toronto and they weren’t particularly thrilled with the results either. They like to have about 2000 people at these events and they only got 1500. And so we discussed a little bit about why they thought that was and they felt in part that a full Ironman on these hills is maybe a little bit too difficult. The ones that sell out are the ones that are flat. Arizona has no problem. Miami has no problem.
Huntsville Mayor Scott Aichison
As a result, the Town and Ironman Canada have amicably severed ties without penalty to the Town. Deerhurst has also agreed to cancel their contract with Ironman with no cancellations fees or penalties and will fully refund guests who have already registered for the 2016 event.
Reaction to the news wasn’t all positive. Taking to Facebook people expressed their disappointment. Comments such as, “Always getting rid of things that are great for our town”; “very disappointing”; “why????”; and “wtf!!??” were prolific.
Veteran Ironman participant Bruce Schouten had this to say. “All in all, I would say that Ironman Muskoka was at the tougher end of the spectrum of the five races I have done so far, BUT with the right training program it was manageable. Ironman races aren’t supposed to be easy!”
Three years of negotiating and planning by countless volunteers to get Ironman to come to Huntsville for 3 years. No public consultation and a private meeting to have the agreement torn up. Something sounds fishy……………One year does not make this event………Three was the number!
It does indeed, Elizabeth, thank you very much. As always there are facts that aren’t necessarily known, and this helps me to understand better. It would be interesting to see how much spin-off income was generated in the town businesses for sure, but $100,000 is a lot to swallow no doubt. Yikes! If the Ironman organization gets 100,000 dollars up front, PLUS all of the entry fees and so forth as you described, it seems like all win for Ironman and no win for Huntsville except through grants and sponsorships. That’s tough…. thanks again for clarifying.
Thanks for those facts. I recall reading that the town ate $5000 in unpaid bills from Ironman. I had NO idea it was in the neighborhood of 100K. Business and money is business and money. A no-brainer here. Public money needs to break even and better. Invest in something better.
Thanks for you comments Michael. There seems to be some confusion around who is responsible for what and who gets what revenue. Ironman Canada basically puts on the event and in return they receive all the entry fees, licensing fees, broadcast fees, merchandise fees. The Town of Huntsville had to pay Ironman Canada $100,000/year for the privilege of hosting the event. They also decided to hire a General Manager at a cost of $55,000. When it became apparent that grant money wasn’t going to materialize they pared the rest of the budget back and spent an additional $50,000 on things like local signage, garbage collection and volunteer shuttles. For easy math purposes, the Ironman cost the Town close to $200,000 in 2015. That amount was offset by the $100,000 raised in sponsorships and grants leaving a $100,000 deficit. Hope that helps.
Of course I have not seen the budget, but I cannot help but feel that a $100,000 loss is excessive. So much is done by volunteers; are the franchise fees, advertising costs, paid duty police constables, permits, consumables like food and drink, and so on THAT expensive that the entry fee does not defray the costs? The Ironman brand is world renowned, and Muskoka is also world renowned (witness Muskoka’s National Geographic’s Top-10 designation a few years ago). If the feedback from participants is that the course too challenging, build that into a new route if possible… I just can’t imagine that there want a way to move forward. The economic spin-off effects of having 1500 competitors, plus their family members, have to be considered here – let alone the overall promotion of our home as a top destination.
Did you know that the provincial road race and time trial (cycling) championships were held in Hunstville last year on (more or less) the same course, without any town sponsorship dollars whatsoever? My understanding is that it more or less broke even on no $ other than entry fees from participants (far from 100k loss that’s for sure). The hard working race organizers for bike races in ontario are almost always volunteers – they do it purely out of love for the sport in contrast for the incorporated, for profit Ironman trademark/brand. Do the bike racing community a favour and throw your support towards continuing to host the provincial championships in your area – we really love the course (esp. the hills!), and always love to see more spectators out there cheering/heckling :-). Cheers!
The spin-offs for business in and around Huntsville may have have been good for some but definitely NOT for some businesses in outlying areas like Baysville whose business was decimated the days of the Ironman races this summer. The streets were blocked and regular customers who would normally come to shop stayed away because of the races. If we are going to do this again in the future, do it in the off season, not in prime time.
Tom good comments… I would like to add we worked hard over the last 10-15 years to build up sports tourism.. We were the leader in Muskoka in the field.
Cancelling a major event like this will not help when we compete against other towns and cities around the world for similar opportunities.
Bracebridge and Gravenhurst are no longer sitting on the sidelines and unless Huntsville continues to be pro active and willing to take some chances and invest money we will lose our edge … and not just in Muskoka but in the province.
Other towns and cities get it and will jump in…
So hopefully this is a one time decision of this kind… Town council needs to support this and other Chamber initiatives to create jobs and stimulate our local economy…
i’m really disappointed that it was cancelled so quickly because the race was so new
difficult; yes – i only did the 70.3 in Muskoka and it was a challenging course…(i’ve participated in 2 full distance Ironaman previously)
But isn’t it was Ironman is all about – to test limits – put yourself out for maximum effort…
i think that athletes needed time to prepare and train – and most of us have planned our races at least 1 year in advance – so maybe they needed to cycle the 3 year contract to reach their numbers.
Last but not least … we need Canadian events in spectacular locations … and Muskoka is all that and more!!
Huntville is a great spot for athletes to spend their holiday with their families – Great Host City!!!!
and last point for real – spending Canadian dollars… training and participating in Ironman events is already so expensive…
If you are looking for a flat Canadian Ironman location – how about Saskatchewan….. Saskatoon is lovely 🙂
I guess that something had to go to defray the cost of the Hunter-Rutland fiasco. I freely admit to not having examined the budget in any great detail, but I doubt that a volunteer-run event would be my first choice.
Too tough??? Have you seen the courses in BC and Hawaii!!!!
Tom, your comments are right on. As a former Councillor we worked hard with the supporters to encourage Sport tourism in Huntsville. I also heard very positive comments as a volunteer.
Also a huge spin off factor to businesses and accommodations in and around Huntsville.
It is with great disappointment and frustration that I read of yet another event that has failed and is now leaving our district. The Ironman is a very prestigious event to be awarded in the first place and to have it last only for one year of a three year commitment is nothing short of totally deflating. After all, Ironman Canada, The Town of Huntsville and 1,500 athletes thought it was a very good thing, at least at the beginning. Speaking of the 1,500 participants falling short of an expected 2,000, one must remember that it was the first year of the competition here in Muskoka and great success is not built in a day but comes with time if it is build on a solid foundation.
Not one of the dozen or so athletes that visited us at Sugarbush Hill Maple Farm had anything but total praise for the organization of the event and for the physical aspect of the course. This challenging course I was told was the toughest that they had experienced but that made it interesting, a real test of ones endurance and strength. Muskoka is different and so was this course. Some place has to have the toughest course out there so why not us, here in Muskoka, and then proudly hang our hat on that fact.
So where did the event go wrong, I’m sure Arizona and Miami didn’t sell out in their first year either. These athletes and their families paid thousands and thousands of dollars in travelling cost, hotel accommodations and entry fees so how come a $100,000 loss.
I don’t know, so no finger pointing from me but the truth will find its way to the surface someday just as cream rises to the top.
I know that our community needs leaders and organizers that have a vision for more than just one year, that don’t care who gets the credit and who can financially manage an event without bankrupting it in such a short time.
Kudos for those of you who first obtained this classic event and shame on you for those that have let it slip away in such quick order.
I am in awe of those who competed in this grueling event, especially having endured the added difficulty of our hills. Unfortunately, too many athletes had decided it was too tough, and with a 25% drop in participation, it wasn’t profitable for Ironman Canada to hold the competition here. We can’t blame the Town for not hosting the event when it was a mutual decision between Ironman, Huntsville and many of the athletes.
And we’ll still be hosting the 70.3 in July!