My first time volunteering for this race!
When I got my post, I knew that the actual work I'd have to do was minimal, and that my main job as volunteer was to bring four years' experience in the Scream Tunnel to the course. I approached my race duties as seriously as any race, set my alarm early, dressed in running gear, filled my water bottle, and did my whole pre-run routine, right down to the thing that all runners do before a long run but isn't polite to talk about. Ahem.
I arrived early, and got the most awesome parking spot - just two cars over from the entry/exit road. There is only one way in and one way out, and thousands of cars, so this kind of parking spot can literally save an hour when trying to leave. Added bonus, I got to sip my coffee and jam to my ipod while watching the parking volunteers do their thing, including one exceptionally enthusiastic and downright scary Coach Mark. The parking volunteers are given the instruction to NEVER, EVER let a car stop, and Coach Mark is the one giving the instruction, so you can imagine the fanaticism at play here. Clearly, if you're looking to burn off a few calories, parking volunteer is the way to go. Lots of jumping, running, gesticulating, and screaming.
However, I knew that my job would mostly involve standing around, so I warmed up with an easy 15 minutes of jogging (and a few minutes of chatting as I ran into friends) before sprinting to my post, another quarter mile down the road.
Sure enough, shortly after arriving at my assigned intersection, three other volunteers and a police officer showed up. I was supposed to be stopping traffic on Free Union Rd from turning on to Garth while there were runners on the course. When the cop arrived, he parked his car across that lane of traffic. Problem solved. Nevertheless, it was a fantastic vantage point for the race, so I stayed put.
I was right at the start, which meant that I'd get 4 chances to see everyone! One as they were lining up at the start, one as they were crossing the start, one going from left to right, and one going right to left. I saw so many friends, and it gave me great joy to scream and wave and cheer for them.
As I was on the "outbound" side of the road, my best chance for seeing people I knew was as they were headed toward the turnaround. This would be pretty close to the halfway point. At that point, the crowd has thinned a bit, so you finally have room to move, but you've still got the biggest hill and half the course to go. Some well-timed cheering here can help push a runner up the hill - convenient parking isn't the only reason the Pink Ladies pick this as their designated cheering spot.
I saw and cheered for almost everyone I was expecting to see, and lots of people I wasn't. I think I had the most fun cheering for Jen of Jen on the Edge. Ever since I saw this blog post, I have been waiting for the perfect moment to scream "knock knock, motherfucker." And as Jen, looking rad in purple!! came into sight, and I knew, I just knew, that she's one of a handful of people who would actually like someone to yell the M F word at them mid-race. And boy, what fun. I publicly apologize to anyone I might have offended. (But in my heart of hearts I am not at all sorry.) Apparently, it was exactly what she needed, because she PR'ed by six minutes! That chicken will CUT YOU!
I cheered for people coming back inbound, which at that point is about a quarter mile from the finish and nearly all downhill. Yippee! I bailed from my post at 9:30, even though the last racer wasn't in, because at that point, the police officer was still there, and the road had opened to traffic. I felt terrifically guilty eating a bagel, and not at all guilty about zipping out of the gate in no time flat, thanks to my awesome parking spot.
Overall, this was a great experience. I'm exhausted, dehydrated, and hoarse. Spectating for 2+ hours and cheering 3000+ runners and walkers is hard work. I managed to squeeze in another couple of miles of running downtown after the race, before picking up the kids from Grammy's house. By that time it was hot, and my feet and knees were thrashed from all the standing around. I ran about the distance of the race altogether, which seemed fitting.
Congratulations, W4M finishers! You rock!!
