[harveymushman]

Calling all experienced riders and fellow athletes. We are still looking for volunteers with bikes to assist during the Cdn Ironman in Whistler August 24-25th. The event is the first time in Whistler and it is a pretty big deal with up to 4000 athletes in attendance. Volleys get a lot of perqs including the final volley party on Sunday night. It is a very inspirational event overall with the athletes at the centre. If you have ever seen the people struggling coming in the last 4-5 hours who have been on the course for 12+ hours it is an exceptional thing to witness. Also this is the best of the volly positions from what I can see, get to ride around and along the course seeing the event up close and in the middle of it. Gas is paid for as well. Super cool experience.

We need another 10 ideally, comfy two up types, no harleys please, the parts falling off damage the tires of the cyclists....just kidding. Riders need to be comfortable with a pillion on board. So volly up we need your help. Please contact me
[email protected] if interested or go online to http://www.ironman.com/triathlon/events/americas/ironman/canada.aspx#axzz2agkK8r6x
Click on "Volunteer". If you can't do it yourself but might know someone who might, please let them know.
Thanks for the consideration.

 

[bill]

Hi Jason,

I know how difficult it has been for you to try and get a full compliment of riders and I don't want to unreasonably damper the enthusiasm of the folks here on BCSB is not my intention however before anyone volunteers to help they need to understand the risks that they may be exposing themselves to.

Hopefully by this point in time the Ironman has put together a list of question with answers so the volunteers can be clear what their risks are before they volunteer.

I ride a fair bit of moto escort for events and bailed on this event because it seems like the risk is just too great.After I rode part of the course and talked to some athletes who had flown in to pre ride the course I realized i didn't want the liabilitir

here are questions riders who are thinking about volunteering need to ask themselves

What happens if you get hurt, hurt your passenger, injure a spectator or ruin the career of a pro athlete? what type of liability coverage do they have to protect you?

What kind of insurance are you going to be provided with or if you mess up are you going to be relying on your insurance.

How much experience do you have riding moto escort before this event.

How much of your costs are being covered.Fuel, accommodation,meals

Is there a riding proficiency test ?


What communication system do they have to keep the bikes in contact.

Do they have a training manual you can read.

How much experience do the organizers have who are managing the riders have in this type of event.

Is your motorcycle insured if you are working in this event,

Where are the riders being put up to sleep, the moto officers certainly won't be paying and riding up from whistler is too much for many riders in the dark especially with a day of clutch throttle

BCSB members it is very satisfying helping out with to an event, just be certain you are comfortable with the risk you are assuming

 

[silverD]

All good questions.

I PM'd harrveymushman a few months back, when he first called for volunteers, with some questions on accommodation but never received an answer back.

 

[Danke]

Calling all experienced riders and fellow athletes. We are still looking for volunteers with bikes to assist during the Cdn Ironman in Whistler August 24-25th.

So; after action report?

 

[kerberos]

I'm interested as well to hear how it went from a volllies point of view. I also signed up to volunteer but had to bail a few weeks out due to a work schedule change.

 

[FASTn50]

So; after action report?

I had a great time! Hauled around a course official for the bike portion of the race catching cheats in the pro group and giving warnings in the non pro group or penalties if they persisted! The official was waaaay easier on the riders than I would have been! Lol

With my "Course Marshal" sticker on the bike I had RCMP stepping aside as we made our way from "peloton" to "peloton" (drafting is illegal - 12 metre spacing or you have to pass!) What's this 40+ impound you speak of! :devillook

 

[kerberos]

I had a great time! Hauled around a course official for the bike portion of the race catching cheats in the pro group and giving warnings in the non pro group or penalties if they persisted! The official was waaaay easier on the riders than I would have been! Lol

With my "Course Marshal" sticker on the bike I had RCMP stepping aside as we made our way from "peloton" to "peloton" (drafting is illegal - 12 metre spacing or you have to pass!) What's this 40+ impound you speak of! :devillook

How did it work with accommodation, meals etc. I got the impression that you were on your own in this regard, they only provided a gas card.

 

[FASTn50]

How did it work with accommodation, meals etc. I got the impression that you were on your own in this regard, they only provided a gas card.

You are on your own. At least this year (it's their first time in Whistler) and I presume you will be on your own in the future. They do have a free snack area (pizza pretzels, fruit, cookies, beverages etc) as well as whatever is at the aid stations. The gas card gets you about $20 worth which is about what I burned. You get a volunteer t shirt that gets you access where the public cant go and they have a windup party for all the volunteers.
I have accommodation up there and in fact the 2nd place Pro Female (Lisa Ribes) billeted with us! Trés cool!

One volunteers for this kind of thing to experience the atmosphere and help the athletes. If you're doing it to gain in a financial sense, you will be disappointed. Watching the thrill of victory, the struggle to persevere and the agony of defeat is truly inspiring and an honour to be part of.
Not for all I'm sure but very rewarding for me.

 

[kerberos]

If you're doing it to gain in a financial sense, you will be disappointed. Watching the thrill of victory, the struggle to persevere and the agony of defeat is truly inspiring and an honour to be part of.
Not for all I'm sure but very rewarding for me.

I'm definitely not in it for financial gain, but its still a consideration. 2-3 days off, paying for your own meals and accommodation, especially in a place like Whistler, its not an insignificant amount. I'd not have a problem with it as long as the personal budget allows. Just means for next year, I need to start putting some pennies away.

 

[Danke]

Events like this are put on by a promoter. It's not a high school track meet. The promoter hauls in the bread and uses it to buy nice things for themselves. Those entry fees aren't going to the local charity.

Volunteers are a boon to the promoter, they save a ton of cash. Sometimes it's a good deal for the volunteer to gain backdoor access to an event they couldn't get any other way. More often though it's a spouse of a racer taking one for the team. Or some other local person using their time to help the community.

For specialized tasks like the medical staff or others like the riders it's a bit dicier; on those the promoter may just need to fork out some of their cash depending on how shallow the pool is and how remote the event is. If they had enough bikes this year then I can't see them doing anything different. If they came up short though then for the next race they may have to cut a deal with the resort (also making large coin on the event) to work a deal for room and board to get enough of a turnout.

 

[FASTn50]

The Ironman brand is a for profit corporation.
Athletes pay a big chunk of money to participate.
Venues and costs are high.
They wouldn't happen without volunteers.
No one is taking advantage of me.

It's like Supermoto racing, Mission motorcycle racing or almost any other sport & activity, for profit or not for profit: they likely wouldn't happen without volunteers.

I don't see it as the greedy promotor fleecing me of my fair share. He takes a ton of risk (ask your local Supermoto group) and provides a structured venue for athletes to challenge themselves and others.

I get a cool day helping them out.

Ted is hosting a bike night tonight and do you realize the person on the BBQ is working for free? Is Mr Ted Moneybags a greedy promoter?

Yada, yada....

 

[Danke]

I guess it would all hinge on what the BBQ operator gains from the event. Maybe they just know they'll get a burger that's not burnt or raw and that's enough. IF the BBQ monkey had to come out 3 hours early, do the shopping and then wash dishes after and sleep in a dumpster I'd say the guy putting on the event went to far.

I know a few promoters. Some will bank their year's wages from one event. There's no right or wrong to it; but if you aggressively solicit volunteers you will open yourself up to scrutiny. I have volunteered at tons of cycling events marshaling, doing tech support, and as a motorcycle sweep.

None of the people putting on those gigs were as large as this event so I didn't expect a red carpet. When I worked world cups I got the event pass and that was rockstar treatment.

It's all checks and balances.