Today I volunteered for the LifeTime Fitness Triathlon, and it was a fabulous experience. I had never been to a triathlon before, all I know about triathlons is what I read in your blogs. I checked in at 6:30 a.m. and Chef Vincent came over and said hi. I wished him luck, but I didn't see him again. Unfortunately, I didn't think to take his picture until he was already gone.
Mention you live in Minnesota and people invariably talk about how cold it is here. Well, it is, but we do have four seasons and we are full-steam into summer now. Today's temperature was in the high 90s, making for dangerous racing conditions. The water temperature was 82 degrees, but amazingly, a few people still wore their wet suits. They wanted the buoyancy, but I hope they didn't overheat on the other legs.
My job was to help at the start of the swim. I brought my camera, not the CrapCam but a better one. Although I charged my battery yesterday to prepare for today, it died after the first couple of pictures. Arrrgh! One of the pro's was at the starting area to warm up and she graciously allowed me to take her picture. It was one of the few I was able to take.
While the pro's were warming up, waiting for the start, one of them kissed his wife, then bent over and kissed her pregnant belly. His mother-in-law was standing near me and I told her I wished I got that picture! I asked if he lived here, but she said he lives in Colorado and trains at the Olympic center there. I asked his name and it was Hunter Kemper. He came in first!
Before the athletes showed up, I raked the beach. Then I was told to keep people off it to keep it clean and free of debris that could hurt the athletes feet. We tied off the area and for the most part, people complied. Then a woman went through and I asked her if she would please keep off the sand. As I was explaining that we were trying to keep the sand clear, she flashed her all-access pass at me. I know, I said, but... Then she told me she was the race director. Well, alrighty then!
My next job was to help line up the athletes by their respective wave. Someone would hold up a sign displaying the next wave and I walked around with a megaphone announcing which group would be next. At first I was shy of the bull horn, but then a woman borrowed it to make an announcement. She moved with authority, so I just emulated her. It's all about attitude, people!
First were the Pro Women, then Pro Men. There was an equalizer formula that gave prize money to the fastest triathlete, regardless of sex. Three years ago a woman won it, then the changed the formula and a man won the past two times. Next came the Elite amateurs, then by age group. This was all for the Olympic course: Swim 1.5K; Bike 40K, Run 10K. After that was done, we repeated it all again for the short course: Swim .4 mile, Bike 15 miles, Run 3 miles.
Because of the heat, the Olympic course was shortened for certain divisions, which changed the starting times for some groups. Although it was announced over the loudspeaker, there was competition from the news helicopters and airplanes flying into the nearby airport, so not everyone heard the announcement. That meant some people missed their wave. But we assured those that were late that it was chip timed and not to worry.
It helped that I've raced before, because I could empathize with the nervousness of some of the competitors. One young woman was about to cry when she learned she missed her wave, but I tried to distract the tears by telling her to hurry to the front of the line and inform the officials what happened. Another girl (she was 14; I can't call her a woman) wanted to go out with a different wave but I told her she had to go out with her wave. She said her Dad was waiting for her at the start of the bike leg. Unfortunately, her wave was the very last (male and female 12-15, short course). I tried to console her by telling her she just needed to worry about herself, her Dad would be OK. I asked her name, then later looked it up in the results. I was happy to see that she finished.
Being at the start let me see people I knew. AmyBee said hi and asked me to hold her extra swim cap. I gave her a hug and wished her luck. Then Emdee and Nee walked up to me. I barely recognized them. They were in the short course and by that time I was slightly delirious. It was late, I was hot, and it was difficult to drink and hold the bull horn at the same time. But I wished them luck too. And I saw Elle, the young woman that I ran with once at Team Salubrious. I knew she was a marathoner, but I didn't know she was a triathlete. I think she said this was her second LTF Triathlon.
Another treat was watching the "60 and over" triathletes line up. My husband is 60, so I don't think of 60 as old. I didn't think it was fair to lump everyone over 60 together, but looking at the results, the age group awards were still every five years. I guess there were so few athletes, that they just started them together in one wave. For the short course, an 88-year-old woman named Mary Stroebe was in the group. Apparently she's done this race before, because the other's in the group knew her and made a point of saying hi. This woman looked like a frail old lady, but she did it! If you read the article, you'll see there's nothing frail about her. It was her 12th triathlon--she started in her early 70s!
Walk around with a bull horn and people think you're important. The mayor of Minneapolis, R.T. Rybak, was competing in the short course, and he was concerned about missing his wave because he had to do an interview a few minutes before the wave began. I told him not to worry, we would just get him to the front of the line of the next wave. He kept checking in with me (!), the last time to let me know he was in time for his wave and would just line up. Okey dokey.
After the last wave went out, I helped pick up a little bit then went to find some food. Somehow I got into the hospitality tent, which required a pass that I didn't have, and got some orange juice and a brownie. I wasn't very hungry but felt I should have something. Then I went to the finish chute to watch the runners come in. Some were running strong, some looked whipped, so I don't know if it was the mid-pack or back of the pack. But I just cheered and tried to give encouragement. I didn't know if my friends had already finished or were still cycling. I'm not even sure what time it was, but I think it was around noon.
The woman standing next to me said she was looking for her friend, Mary. She was referring to Mary Stroebe, whom she said inspired her to start running. This woman was nearer my age than Mary's. She told me that her son rides with her and gets penalties because he drafts behind her on the bike to keep others from running into her! She told me that Mary had broken her leg in February and didn't know how long it would take for her to come in.
Then AmyBee ran past! If you've read her blog you know she was nervous about the long course, so I was so proud of her for finishing. She looked strong. I ran over to the food chute and saw her and gave her a hug. She came out and we chatted. I realized I had the CrapCam, so I took her picture before she went to hook up with her husband. Then I left to see if I could find Emdee or Nee. I never did see them run in, but I did see Elle as she was approaching the finish line. I yelled out and waved to her, then saw her again as I was leaving. We chatted for a few minutes, then she left to find her boyfriend and I dragged myself to the car.
It was exciting to be around professional athletes, but honestly, I think everyone who finished, regardless of their time, is a champion.
8 comments:
Very cool!! I feel inspired just reading your story, and I wasn't even there! Funny, I read about Mary Stroebe earlier this week. I had no idea she was participating in 'your' tri.
That was a great recap on the event! People have suggested to me that I do a tri because I can sorta swim, bike and run, but I've never put the three together and that's a whole other story... Glad to know that you volunteered. I need to do that sometimes... I liked your header "Runners With A Blogging Problem." LOL... Thanks for adding me to your list. :)
Sounds like an exhausting but fun day. I like watching tris but have no desire to do one. Are you interested in doing one now?
THANK YOU for volunteering, Dori! You were the master of that bull horn and doing a great job when I saw you before my wave.
You deserve extra kudos for working in that heat.
It was great seeing you. So - now are you ready to sign up for a tri?
The variety of events is soooo much fun - and I can say that even with the 99 degree heat!
Dorine your Awesome! Thanks again so much for volunteering your time at the triathlon! It was my first time volunteering at a big race like the LTF Tri and without volunteers like you I would have looked like a big goof. If I hadn't known, I would have thought you had worked races before. Thanks for sending me the link to your blog and if you are thinking of doing a triathlon now, make sure it isn't Lifetime's because we need you back helping the athletes make their waves next year! Hats off to you!
First time to your blog. We are the same age, so that caught my interest. Triathlons are fun, and watching/volunteering is a good way to get inspired. Glad you had fun. Maybe someday you will do one too.
How cool that you volunteered!!!! Thank for the great chronicle of the triathalon experience, very neat!
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