"When will the vaccinations requirement for the receipt of a multi-seasonal bibset be eliminated?"
When both SARS-CoV-2 and influenza are eradicated.
"But that will never happen!"
Correct.
"I don't normally get the flu shot. Does that mean I can't participate?"
Since it is a requirement to participate, if you do not meet this requirement (or any other requirement), then you can't participate.
"Please don't tell me that the above was an actual inquiry that you received?"
Sorry, but that is a direct quote from an email.
"[...] neither you nor I know the requirements for the 22/23 season [...]"
I do indeed know the requirements for the 2022-23 season: exactly the same as the 2021-22 season. (And now all of you also know.)
"Okay, this time you have to be kidding: did someone really assert that you, in your capacity as the race director for NE Rando, somehow do not know the NE Rando requirements for the upcoming season?"
That excerpt is yet again a direct quote from another email that I received from a would-be racer.
"Even once I have received my multi-seasonal bibset, should I get a covid booster and an annual flu shot each fall?"
Yes! But tracking all this is stretching the limited capacity of the NE Rando Database Management Department, so once you have received your multi-seasonal bibset, you're all set for as long as you can stretch out those six bibs.
"I have proof of a covid shot, but not approved by the U.S. FDA, since I received it while in another country, with regulatory approval from that country."
Yes, that's fine. (And welcome to -- or back to -- the United States!)
"I have proof of covid antibodies from a prior infection, and I received the first shot of one of the mRNA vaccines, but I have not received the second shot."
Although the available evidence supports receiving a second mRNA shot even if you have already been infected (glad to hear you recovered well!), for our purposes here, that combination will suffice (i.e., proof of covid antibodies test + proof of first mRNA shot, more reading on that HERE).
"For my covid vax proof, I of course have my CDC card. But for flu, what is required?"
I'm flexible, just email me whatever documentation, indication, and/or explanation you can provide.
"I have a medical exemption."
Provide a letter from an M.D. or D.O, individually addressed to the NE Rando race director, by name (i.e., not "To Whom It May Concern"). All information will be treated with HIPAA confidentiality, but will be reviewed by outside medical advisers, including -- but not necessarily limited to -- the medical director of a regional covid surge unit during spring '20, the medical director of three nursing homes during spring '20, and a neurologist who treated covid patients in the neuro-ICU of a major Manhattan hospital during spring '20. The letter author must also be available to discuss -- via telephone and/or on-line meeting -- any concerns that arise during this review. If the exemption is granted, then the racer must wear a respirator-grade mask (i.e., N95, KN95, or KF94, spec details HERE) whenever at the start area before the race and at the finish area after the race, and must also submit a negative covid PCR test before the race start from a sample taken no earlier than 48 hours before the start time plus a negative rapid test from a sample taken the morning of the race.
"I have a religious exemption."
Your religious exemption application is hereby denied: no matter what religious practices we might observe (or not observe), as skiers we all praise Ullr, who sez, get the jab! (Especially since otherwise Ullr might use his bow to unleash a torrent of freezing rain upon us.)
"What is the reason for the requirement that all racers be vaccinated for both COVID-19 and seasonal influenza?
Just like the old line regarding various luxury consumer goods about how if you have to ask how much it costs then you can't afford it ... so, if you have to ask this question now, then the answer can't be explained to you.
"No, seriously, I want to know."
Fielding vax requirement inquiries was kinda fun initially this past season yet got old quickly. Therefore, going forward, as this entails quantitative analysis of public policy issues, any such inquires will be forwarded by the Customer Relations Department of Northeast Ski Mountaineering (i.e., the formal business entity for the NE Rando Race Series) to our partner business JShefftz Consulting. Standard per-hour consulting fees will apply (bargain for expert witness testimony on financial economic factors in federal district court litigation!), with a nonrefundable retainer.
"Aren't you just hopping on the mandate bandwagon?"
No: during the 2020-21 season, the flu vax was required for all racers, and the covid vax was required for all Greylock patrollers, as we became eligible in Jan '21 under the state first responder rollout. Combined with the requirement during the 2020-21 season for a respirator-grade mask at the start and finish, perhaps the new race series slogan can be, "NE Rando: come for the skimo competition, stay for the cutting-edge public health initiatives! (Or just go away if you don't like any of this...)"
"I'm concerned about the computer chip implanted in the vaccine."
Other way around: this is yet another of the benefits! No longer do you have to lug around a heavy GPS watch or smartphone, remember to recharge a battery, mess with syncing, etc., as all of your athletic activities will automatically be uploaded to Strava without the need for any additional electronics. (Bummer though if you need a new car now, as the worldwide chip shortage is of course no coincidence.) Plus this way we don't have to manually record any finish times -- Bill Gates will email them to us afterwards!
"That previous answer wasn't serious, was it?"
No, but amazingly enough, apparently some people are serious about the question.
"A reasonable question to ask, however, is why just Covid/flu? If you were to be consistent, you would also ask for chicken pox, MMR vaccines and the rest. Lowly chicken pox kills approx. 7,000 people annually so clearly it's still a threat despite vaccine efforts."
These other vaccines have already been required for prior school attendance. By contrast, flu is a yearly vaccination, and the covid vax is obviously new. Plus chicken pox actually kills only about ten people in the U.S. each year, as compared to tens of thousands for seasonal influenza, and for covid, well, unfortunately the pandemic death toll is rising so rapidly that you'll just have to look up the latest tally HERE.
"That previous question wasn't serious, was it? (I mean, come on, the part about chicken pox?!?)"
All of that is a direct quote from an email I received from a self-professed skimo racer (i.e., exactly one NE Rando start in his entire career).
"Doesn't all of this constitute shaming?"
Okay, sure, we can go with that, although I'm aiming more toward condescension, mockery, ostracization, and outright hostility toward antivaxxers.
"I had been holding out by citing the Emergency Use Authorization status as a rationale for my antivaxxerism, but then full FDA approval was granted -- can you help me out here?"
Yes, top picks include: "I’m waiting to see which one the FDA approves of the most."; "I don’t want the FDA just to approve of it; I want the FDA to delight in it."; and, "Out of an abundance of caution I am going to attend medical school, become a doctor, and then see whether I agree with what the FDA says."
"How can you possibly prepare this webpage without including even a single link to a Brent Terhune video?"
Okay, fine, here's FDA approval, evidence-based medicine, HIPAA privacy protections, real reason behind vaccination, medical diagnosis (not qualifying for vaccine exemption), further exposition on preceding subject, body integrity, and missing events b/c of covid-related mandates.
