Volunteerism

After having completed two major races in my life now, and several smaller ones I feel the pressing need to come back to a subject that has always been very personal to me. Volunteers. A volunteer is one who gives to the event for the sake of being there. Sure some are there for the t-shirt and others are there to support a loved one. In supporting friends one is bound to help others and that is noble, and besides you get a free t-shirt.

I volunteered my first race in March of 2006 at the Ironman California in Oceanside, CA, the same race that I did this past weekend. It was a different place to be. You get up just as early as an athlete, some earlier than others, and go out on to the course. But your mission is different. The lines are in the same places, but your job is to keep the machine of the event on track. Keep it moving so that others, your brethren or not, can do what they came out to do, whether that be hammering the course in to submission or surviving the day with a finish.

Hand to hand volunteers pass out water, Gatorade, bananas, cold sponges, and ice to competitors facing down the day. Hands of volunteers point the way down blocked off city streets and around dirt trails. Hands of volunteers catch finishers who have crossed the finish line and who have left everything, sometimes more than they should have, out on the course and direct them to medical to assist in their recovery. There are times when volunteers are the only voices we hear cheering us on, offering the little encouragement we need to keep moving. Volunteers are everywhere on the course, their hands, their voices are invaluable.

No event in this sport can exist without the work of volunteers. Endurance sports are endeavors of a personal nature. For most, the journey is long, and victory is in the finishing. There’s no money in it, even for professionals really. It’s not like basketball or golf where there’s television time or huge sponsors beyond those that fuel us (Gatorade, Powerbar, etc.), and they already have us.

Events have staff some paid, but most not. Volunteers are the cogs in the machine. A race director or sponsorship director might arrange to have eight thousand gallons of Gatorade delivered to the race site but volunteers are the ones who are passing it out to the athletes. The course may be laid out on paper, but a volunteer will walk the road, rechalking where the lines get fuzzy.

When you cover the course on your day, take a moment on your way to your PR and thank a volunteer. They made your day possible.

Just a few of my thoughts, take ‘em or leave ‘em. -dean