pinnacle

We are travelling to Hawaii in October this year, and will be on the BI during the Ironman. We would like to volunteer at it, and before we fill out the volunteer application, I am interested in hearing anyone's experiences with volunteering - what they did, and lots of details. Also, if anyone has been at the Ironman without volunteering, I would appreciate hearing about that as well.

emd

Well, that is very eerie and strange- as you were writing your post, I was composing one on the exact same thing. My husband was a trialthlete until he had to have back surgery last year. I have been thinking of sending him to Hawaii to volunteer for the Ironman in Oct. (it is our 19th anniv. so am thinking of combining it) so I am very interested in experience w/this also.

emd

Pinnacle, have you tried the triathlete chat sites for chat on Ironman volunteering experiences? My husband still has those on his computer "favorites" list and if we don't get help here, I will see if I can sneak on his computer and get to the sites and see what I can find for us...

pinnacle

emd, that is pretty spooky that you were composing a similar message. No, I haven't tried any chat sites other than Konaweb. I got a little bit of help there. I don't know how to find such sites.

Queenie

My husband and I volunteered at the Ironman in Zurich last July.

We worked about 8 hours. I directed traffic in and out of a parking area between runners (we were in the Marathon portion).

My husband directed people from one side of the street to the other - across the race route.

BTW, we both got "staff" shirts, and we were both paid 50 Swiss francs, which was a pleasant surprise.

beachkomer

I have been to the last three Ironman Championship races in Kona, To Watch! I didn't volunteer. I am "itching" to go this year, but need to conserve $...

There are too many details to go into online. If you have specific questions, I will be happy to answer them!
[email protected]

MelissaHI

So, pinnacle, what did you end up doing? My friends and I signed up to volunteer at www.ironmanlive.com. We tried to volunteer for various shifts in the middle of the day, but we still got assigned to work 4:30 - 10 a.m.

If you or anyone on fodors needs lots of details, here is what we did: We were assigned to be Lost & Found. We thought we'd be working in a booth, but basically we were runners--once the participants started the race, we went up & down the bike rows collecting items and marking them with the athlete number, then taking them to their pre-swim bags. We did the same during the swim/bike transition.

Most of the other volunteers were assigned to help the athletes pump their tires prior to the swim and/or hold flashlights for them. Then DURING the swim, they would have to go to their assigned rows and check the tires (especially just before the transition). This was important because many people are not familiar with Kona's brutal and quickly-changing climate. Quite a few tires popped during the hour or so that they were swimming--some had put too much air in, and the temperature rose almost 30 degrees in that time! Well, maybe 20 degrees.

Then once the swimmers came in, the volunteers had to help them get their bikes in their assigned rows.

As Lost & Found, we did that PLUS all the stuff the other volunteers did, which I was happy to help with but did not like getting yelled at if I wasn't helping check the tires or something. Our 'supervisor' understood this and was gentle about it but the guys running around yelling at the volunteers didn't care. So that was a down side to it. Also, it's very very hot in Kona. So during the swim/bike transition, you'll be standing there waiting for the athletes under no shade, with sweat gushing down your back constantly. Other than that, though, being able to be up close & personal with the top athletes was quite exhilarating. We had pretty good vantage points for watching them, especially during the exciting transition.

After that we went to a friend's house right near the 5 mile mark along the marathon route, and played spectator. All I can say is, if you can stay out as long as possible along the marathon route (especially anywhere after 10 miles), you should do it. The runners really need your moral support and cheering to keep their spirits up after a gruelling day. We had cowbells and were screaming encouragement to the runners in different languages (if we could tell what country they were from) and they really seemed to appreciate that extra boost to keep them running.

beachkomer

Pinnacle, thanks for the update! It IS exciting isn't it?! I can remember cheering on marathoners climbing the hill on Palani, that long climb before going out on the Queen K, and I really tried to encourage them...many times, the athlete would smile and nod a "thanks" because they couldn't speak. It is quite motivating to be at the finish line and watch these amazing people come across. What
an event!
Will you go back to Kona again for the race and volunteer? Maybe a different position!

pinnacle

My husband and I volunteered from 5 am until 6 pm, with only one short break for breakfast. It was the highlight of our trip. We did the pre-swim bag check-in, which was not our favourite job. That particular job was one of the most disorganized disasters ever. We didn't have enough room to put all the bags, and the organizers didn't seem to know how to handle the situation. That job had its upside though. We were able to be on the pier and saw the start of the race, and because of our location, we also were able to see the athletes leave the swim and take off on their bikes.

Our next job was as catcher for the bikes. That was very very exciting, but very hot. There didn't seem to be enough volunteers at the peak time and we worked our butts off.

The last thing we did was as catcher at the finish line. This was our favourite job of all - very emotional to see these athletes come across the finish line - some crying, some collapsing. Wow!

We felt that Ironman treated their volunteers great. There was plenty of food to snack on, we received thank you emails, we also received thank you certificates in the mail.

We found the organization around picking up volunteer packets to be less than ideal. They wanted us to pick things up on the Wednesday andTthursday before the event, but we didn't know that until a few weeks before. We weren't flying in until the Friday from another island.

Would we do it again - yes - in a heartbeat.

I am not sure if you can access a person's email on Fodors, but if you are able to, and have more questions, I would be happy to answer them. Now that our trip is over, I do not go on Fodors very often.

beachkomer

Thanks for your reply! Sounds great,
tiring, hot, wonderful.
The first time that I was there, I was on Palani, and the course wasn't marked very well right there at the top of the hill. Athletes were running up and back in the same lane. This race organizer yelled at me, (I was not in a volunteer shirt) to direct the runners! I didn't because I was thinking, 'what if I tell someone wrong, and they lose time?' What if I get sued??

Last year, my husband and I were out on the Queen K waiting for the bikes to fly by. It was a long, hot wait, and we passed time talking to a volunteer. He had a radio and seemed "official". He told us that the new bike course coordinator didn't know where the lead racers were. It was kind of chaotic. I have always been surprised that the races is sort of still run by the seat of it's collective bike shorts. Ha.
But, I really missed going this year and we might go next year.
It is good to hear about someone's volunteer experiences.

Aloha!

pinnacle

We kind of felt the same way about the organization in the morning for the pre-swim check in. It looked to us like it was the first time they had ever done it. At one point, we were all so frustrated that one of the volunteers took over the job of organizing the bags while the coordinator just kind of hung around.
The rest of our positions were well organized.
All in all, despite the heat, and the early morning glitches, it was an amazing experience. I would not want to go and just watch. Being part of it was super!

MelissaHI

Hmm! Not that I expected it, but my friends & I never got a thank you email or certificate. We did, however, each get a bottle of water.

Did you see Ryan Sutter, the guy from The Bachelor?

pinnacle

Melissa - all you got was a bottle of water? Did they feed you? Where we were, there was a food station just for the volunteers. There was so much food -fresh fruit all sliced and diced, huge trays of trail mix, every thirst-quenching beverage galore, muffins, bagels! When we were bike catching, it was very very hot, and we were hoofing it. There were coolers full of gatorade and water for us, and we were more or less forced to drink it. It was only during the peak time with a lot of bikers coming in all at once that it got so crazy.

We also got every position and time that we asked for. However, we had volunteered online months before.

I didn't watch The Bachelor so I wouldn't have known Ryan Sutter if I tripped over him.

MelissaHI

No, they didn't really tell us where the food was, but at the end of our shift they made sure we knew where to get a bottle of water. They did give us cups of Gatorade when we were working the swim-to-bike transition, but we had to ask for it.

I just found out my friends did get a certificate. Just not me! Oh well.

MelissaHI

p.s. Funny story: When I was doing the swim-to-bike transition, I got partnered with a guy from Germany. He kept yelling & directing people in German, and they had no idea what he was saying!

beachkomer

Ok, my favorite since 1999 has been Normanna Stadler, this year's winner!
Hello, isn't he a cutie? So, in 2001, I parked myself at "Bike Checkin" Everyone has to go there! I had my camera, and got pics of all the pros. At one point, Normann came up and stood beside me and just stared at Peter Reid's bike...It was in position 1. I was like a high school freshman, and snaped a few pictures...then, this blonde German pro is in line, and this cute California girl bumps into me to position herself for a looky look at the German god....then he recognizes her, and he comes over and hugs her, I of course snap pictures...he checks in and leaves. She stands there in this daze and turns to me and says, "Isn't he 'dreamy'?" She had been coming to the races for years and they seemed "pretty familiar"....wink...

OK..I admit, the men are amazing...Athletes.

MelissaHI

Actually, there were 6 of us girls at the marathon's 5 mile mark. In addition to yelling out support & encouragement, one of the things we were shouting was, "She's available! She's available!" Many of the men (esp. Italians) would blow enthusiastic kisses at us going out & coming back around that loop.

I was at that spot snapping pictures, too!.....Checking out all the top 100. They're all hotties. Dave Scott is not super hot but I was still trying to get close enough to touch him!

OK, before my post gets pulled: How does this relate to travel? Well, for one thing, I'd go to Canada or Germany to watch these guys, and it would certainly be a good experience to be an Ironman volunteer in another country.

Kal

Mels,
Yah just gotta love them Italians, yah?

You runnin' Dec 12th?

MelissaHI

Hi Kal, I sure am!! I am one of several out-of-shape marathoners coming out on Sunday. Everyone I know who is as out of shape as I am says the same thing: We're just going to make it to the 16/17 mile mark and see how we do from there.

You & the missus should come do Honolulu soon!!

beachkomer

the Men..I always have wondered why the world hasn't caught on...Sports Illustrated has their swimsuit issue, I think that Cosmo needs to have a "Men of Ironman" issue....Ha.

...OR, it could be our little "secret".

Have a good race! Keep your eye on the road!