I think you should follow up with the contact at Lifetime. They are a sponsor of the event and can likely put pressure on the RD to improve communication...which makes the race better for everyone and hopefully another racer will not have to experience what you did. It's not about placing blame but about trying to come up with solutions and fixing the problem. Your experience and input is a critical piece of making that happen.
Just my 2 cents, at any rate I'm glad you are okay and sounds like you'll get your bike repaired/replaced.