Well I finally did it. In my seventh year of running I finally did something I’ve been wanting to do for awhile but never have. I finally volunteered my time to help with the 44th annual Sue Crowe Memorial Arts Fest Races.
I don’t know why it took me so long to volunteer at a race. I guess it was due to a lack of free time in my family’s schedule and my own running addiction… err… habit. But for the Arts Fest Races, I blocked out the weekend to help wherever help was needed. I valued my experience of volunteering and had my eyes opened to the complexity of what all needs to be done to organize a race.
I want to first say how incredible Dave Eggler has been as race director. The amount of time it takes to get all of the proper approvals for the courses was new to me. Many of these permits have to be completed months in advance. And if the race happens in multiple municipalities, you need to complete permits for each of them.
Many others in the Nittany Valley Running Club helped out as well. When I had asked about the need for volunteering on Saturday, plenty of members had already agreed to help. I then planned to help out on Sunday morning with race registration and to be at the halfway turnaround for the 10k race.
Race registration seemed like a pretty easy process. A runner would give you their name, you’d look them up on the preregistration list, and hand them that bib. Simple right? Well, not exactly when it got busy closer to race time. I also found the importance of double checking race bibs when handing them out to a group. I had a father and son pick up their bibs at the same time. Their bib numbers were right next to each other. I almost handed the father both bibs, but then I stopped, double checked the list and handed the father his bib and the son his. Why did I do that? Because the finish times and age group awards are based on getting the bibs on the right person. If the son has a really good race while wearing his dad’s bib, that could lead to his dad erroneously getting an age group award. This actually happened this year when a husband and wife had their bibs flipped. It might seem trivial but those ceramic mugs are nice, not to mention the Meyer Dairy gift cards!
Shortly before the race began, I headed out to the Toftrees trail below the Highwoods Apartments for the halfway point for the 10k race. If you haven’t run, walked, or biked the Toftrees trail, you are missing a hidden treasure of State College. It features nice crushed gravel from Alpha Lane to where the turnaround is. The trail then turns into a nice, fairly smooth, unpaved trail until you cross Toftrees Avenue.
I waited there a few minutes until a gentleman was walking down the trail. He assured me he wasn’t the first runner, since he was wearing church clothes. He said he was there to give his son Gatorade at the turnaround point. I assumed his son was younger, maybe a teenager not used to running more than 10 km, as high school cross country races are only 5 km. It turns out he was 36. Whatever works for you I guess.
It wasn’t too much longer until the first runner came through. As the first few runners came through it didn’t look like they were going that fast. But the top finishers ended up finishing around 34 minutes which is a 5:30 per mile pace. That’s one of the things I appreciate about running. It doesn’t matter how fast or slow you look or how fast or slow your time is, you’re still putting in more miles than those who don’t get out and move.
I had a good time cheering on runners as they approached and left the turnaround. I tried to come up with somewhat motivational phrases – nice job, looking strong, hallway there, how about this nice shade. One thing I started to say was “Go get that banana!” A banana is standard post-race food to help runners recover by helping with electrolytes and muscle recovery. About halfway through the runners coming through the turnaround something dawned on me. When I was helping with the registration, I didn’t notice any food at the Ag Arena. Maybe the food was hidden. Surely, there would at least be bananas and maybe some bagels for the runners after the race. I texted my friend Chris to ask about the status of the post race bananas. Yep, there was no food. Really? Oh well. Next year, I’ll see about getting a sponsor or two to get some food for runners.
Many of the runners thanked me for helping out as they were approaching the turnaround. But all I did was stand there, cheered them on, and acted like a politician by making false promises of bananas. It was from these experiences that I will make sure to thank volunteers and spectators in my future races. I usually do this anyway. I always thank the volunteers for water, Gatorade, or food. If there’s a kid offering a free high five, I always make sure I get those. It’s those small little gestures that put you in a positive mindset even when your legs are struggling. Might as well have fun running races, since you paid for it.
It didn’t take too long until the final few runners came to the turnaround point. They were kind enough to let me know they were the last runners. I was super impressed by these runners. Most of them had smiles on their faces even though they were last. I’ve gained a lot of perspective about runners near last place from my friend Mirna Valerio. She is a multiple-time marathon and ultramarathon finisher. She typically comes in last – or as she says – DFL (I’ll let you figure out what the acronym stands for). It doesn’t matter if she’s first or last – she’s still a finisher and that’s all that matters. It’s like I tell my students: it doesn’t matter what your class rank is when you finish high school, you are still going to be a high school graduate. The same goes for college, trade school, med school, law school — whatever you do, make sure you finish what you start.
After the last runners were on their way back from the turnaround point, I headed back to the Ag Arena to meet up with friends who ran the race, and to apologize for promising bananas which we didn’t have. After the awards were handed out, I stuck around a little bit to help clean up and pack up the extra race shirts. Even though it took a few hours out of my Sunday morning, I enjoyed my first volunteering experience and I look forward to doing a few things differently next year, if the course stays the same. I will have some music going and make some race signs to help the runners have a little more fun. Most importantly, I’ll be sure to check with the race directors on what the post-race food options will be. I don’t want to make more promises I can’t keep!
Race Calendar
8/3 – 8 a.m. – Canoe Creek Triathlon and Races – Canoe Creek State Park
This is another race in the well organized Blair Regional YMCA Community Wellness Challenge. Participants can opt for the triathlon (which features a half mile open lake swim, a 13 mile bike ride, and finishes with a 5k run) or the duathlon (2 mile run, 13 mile bike ride, 5k run). There is also an option for a team triathlon relay. The event also includes a 5K run and a 2 mile walk.
8/10 – 9 a.m. – 3rd Annual Race to Neverland 5k run and 1 mile walk – Tudek Park
Pixie Dust Wishes is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that grants Disney wishes to children and individuals with special needs/disabilities throughout Pennsylvania. They are similar to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, but are focused on the disability community. There is a Disney themed costume contest if you choose to do so; come dressed as your favorite Disney character.
8/17 – 7:30 a.m. – Grange Fair 5k Run/Walk – Grange Fairgrounds
Join Encompass Health and Left Right Repeat for a family friendly fun run around the fairgrounds. The Grange Fair 5k is open to all ages, so grab your running shoes for this warm weather run. Stay after and enjoy the Grange Fair activities. All registrations include free parking and admission to the Grange Fair for the rest of the day.
8/17 – 8:30 am – 13th Annual Herbie’s Home “Town Loop” – Talleyrand Park
Herbie’s Home “Town Loop” is a 4-mile run/walk and 10-mile run held in honor of Jeremy Herbstritt, a Bellefonte local and Penn State alum killed in the Virginia Tech school shootings in 2007. Funds raised from this year’s race will benefit the Bellefonte Area School District’s renovations at Rogers Stadium and, specifically, will be earmarked for the track portion of this project. I ran this race a few years ago and enjoyed the four miler. The water station competition was on point with Santa handing out icees and Girl Scouts handing out Thin Mints. I highly recommend this one. A note of warning: Bellefonte has some “fun” hills.
8/18 – 9 a.m. – Retro Run 5k – CrossFit Nittany on Hawbaker Drive
The Retro Run 5k hosted by CrossFit Nittany on Hawbaker Drive in State College promises to be a rad ’80s running experience! Race day registration begins at 8 a.m., 5k kicks off at 9 a.m. Participants will receive a Retro Run 5k race t-shirt and some sweet wristbands to catch your sweat!
8/31 – 8:00am – Tussey mOUnTainNBACK Discovery Series – Leg 1 – Tussey Mountain Ski Lodge
The popular Tussey mOUnTaiNBACK Discovery Series will be held on Saturday mornings from Aug. 31 until race day on Sunday, Oct. 27. The first installment is Leg 1 of the Mountainback – a 4.2 mile out and back (8.4 miles total) along Bear Meadows Road. All Discovery Series runs are free.
