I doubt I could accurately count the number of races I’ve run. However, I can easily count the number of races where I have volunteered on the support side of the event. One, and it was this past Sunday.
Part of my role as a Runners Roost Race Team member is to put in volunteer hours. These can happen in a variety of ways. You can pace races, or you can work at packet pick-up for events, there are other ad hoc opportunities, or you can volunteer at a race. I figured that it would be interesting to see a race from the volunteer side so at 5:20 a.m. on Sunday, I got into my car and headed for the Rogers Grove Half Marathon and 10K in Longmont, CO.
I knew that setting up for a race would involve a lot of work and this was reinforced when I arrived at 5:45. Some of the folks from the company putting on the race, Endurance Race Series (ERS), had been there at least since 4:30 and while the start/finish area and other tents were progressing well, it was clear we had a fair amount to do prior to the 7:00 half-marathon start. From assembling flags to tying up race banners to icing down a tub full of beverages to getting runners registered and handing out packets to the preregistered racers, everyone stayed busy up until the moment of the start of the race. But that was just the beginning, so to speak.
Following setup, I was stationed in the food tent and while the first runners were not due back until a little after 8:00, we fired the grill up long before that to start stocking the tables with brats, hot dogs, and breakfast sausages. To make it easy on the athletes when they arrived for their post-race snacks, I would put all of these meats on their respective buns, wrap them in foil, and put them in a warming pan on the table. People could simply grab what they wanted and go. While I thought I did a fair amount of folding every week since I handle the laundry at my house, the foil folding I did early Sunday was equivalent to several weeks of laundry.
One contrast between running and volunteering was the different view on the race, which is to say that I had no real view at all on Sunday. When I’m getting ready to race, I’m looking around the start area, figuring out if I know anyone, trying to gauge the competition, etc. Once I’m in-race, I obviously have a fairly clear view of how things are going among the runners. On Sunday, it was busy enough that I was basically aware that the race was happening. I heard one winner announced and beyond that, I only knew what the runners told me when I asked how their race had gone.
In another difference, when you’re racing there are different crests of energy, nerves, and excitement prior to the start, during the race, and when you’re finished. When you’re volunteering, it’s steady hands-on work. Just keep the athletes happy through your designated task and keep on folding sandwiches up, handing out packets, etc.
Did I enjoy the morning? I did. ERS had a very efficient operation so the emphasis was on keeping the various processes moving and helping out the athletes. (Also, as a heads-up to runners out there who enjoy a hearty post-race meal, they’re very generous with their food and beverages.) And, while I’ve always appreciated the volunteers at races, it’s also valuable to have their perspective.
On to the food review of the week. Not brats, hot dogs, or breakfast sausages, but since I did something new with running this week, I’ll write up a non-traditional running food review.
Running food review of the week: (note–gels, bars, chews, and other items affect everyone differently. Try them on a short run before using them for a key training run or race): Barbecue chicken legs. This may seem like a no-brainer but one day we had leftover bbq chicken legs and I decided to see how they would fuel me. Honestly, not well. While they more than fulfilled my criteria for the taste and didn’t create any GI issues, I was sluggish. Going forward, I’ll remember to enjoy them post-run only.
Running anecdotes, running food reviews, some race coverage, and more