Airdrie, Alta. turns down the 2016 Tour of Alberta, but the race will go on, officials say

With the 2016 Tour of Alberta coming up in September, there are a few organizational hiccups in arranging the essentials, namely the route’s host cities. Earlier this week, the city council of Airdrie, Alta. voted unanimously against participating in the 2016 Tour, the Calgary Herald reported.

The news follows earlier reports that Okotoks, Alta.—the Alberta community that would have served as as the start of a 77km Okotoks-Airdrie leg—similarly declined involvement this year.

Like Okotoks, Airdrie’s rationale came down to the bottom line, as well as the timing of the Tour’s request for the town to participate. “The challenge for us was time,” Airdrie mayor Peter Brown told the Herald. “They came to the table too late as our budget was already set.” Like Airdrie, Okotoks, which was a Tour of Alberta host city in 2013, turned down the event’s request because of the high cost and a tight organizational turnaround.

Still, such hiccups, Tour officials said, aren’t uncommon. Lethbridge has already confirmed its participation in the 2016 Tour, and the province is full alternatives.

“We’re working on other options,” said Tour of Alberta CEO Duane Vienneau, speaking with the Herald. Though disappointed that Airdrie and Okotoks both turned down involvement, this isn’t the first time, he noted. “Both Okotoks and Airdrie turned us down in 2014 and there was a Tour that year. This is no different.”

The details of this year’s Tour of Alberta, the longest stage race on the national road calendar, will be announced on March 17. Unlike the 2015 event which was centered mainly in northern Alberta, this year will be considerably more of a mixed bag. Rather than focusing on one region, 2016’s riders, reports say, will race a variety of legs throughout the province. With over 80 percent of those legs’ host cities signed up and ready, the show will go on in any case, Vienneau said. Although he can see how the economy has Canadian communities wary.

“Because of the economy this year, people are wondering, ‘Oh no, is there not going to be a tour?'” Vienneau said. “But that’s not the case. Yes, it’s challenging out there but we are going to have a Tour.”