March 11 Triathlon – Volunteer responsibilities

Anirban Mukherji

Volunteers Pre race briefing – March 10th – 10 AM – Balewadi Pool

Swimming Volunteers

  1. Team leader – Prasad Dhume- (+91 96047 90179)
  2. Reporting time – 5:15 AM – Balewadi Swimming Pool
  3.  Set up a table
  4. Make sure mike works
  5. Athletes attendance – There would be a sheet. Make sure you sign them in. Give them their Bib numbers with stuff to stick it on.  Yes we are not having a separate day for Bibs.
  6. Give them instructions on putting the bib on their bikes.
  7. Mark their number on their shoulders or hand so its clearly visible.
  8. Get lap counting sheets in place.
  9. Make sure two bells are in place that will be rung when athletes have one more round to go.
  10. Take your place near the lanes and wait for event start.
  11. When event starts your lap counting sheet will have bib numbers, names, and a number of columns where 1 to 15 rounds are marked. Every time a swimmer touches the wall near you, mark the column. When its 14 rounds, ring the bell. 
  12. Make sure the athletes are going and touching the wall at the far end also!
  13. The athletes are supposed to swim close to the right most part of the lane. Warn them with a yellow flag if they are not.
  14. If they repeat this, then we can give them a one minute penalty when they are out of Swimming pool. You can make them stand for a minute before letting them go to the bike transition area.
  15. Swimming cutoff is 1 hour. 
  16. Anyone still in the pool at 50 minutes, tell them that 10 minutes are remaining.
  17. At 7:30 AM, make everyone come out of the pool.
  18. They can continue with the rest of the event. Note down what distance they completed in the sheet, submit to Anirban and you are done at the pool 
  19. Please proceed to the run area for Volunteering for the run section.

Cycling Volunteers

  1. Team Leader – Rajkumar Charzal (+91 99750 78553)
  2. Reporting time – 5:15 AM – Balewadi Swimming pool
  3. Attire – Make sure you wear something that glows in dark. Since you are going to be standing on the highway.
  4. Safety – Please make sure you are safe at all times. Be aware of traffic heading your way. 
  5. The first batch of cyclists will not ask for any help except for direction. 
  6. Guide them out of Balewadi gates and left.
  7. Then left from VITS hotel on to highway towards old mumbai pune highway.
  8. Hinjewadi junction is a scary spot for volunteers as well as cyclists. Please make sure you slow down the traffic cars when you see a bike. Gesture with your hands to slow them down.
  9. Expressway junction, the bikers are supposed to take the tunnel so make them go left and not up the bridge.
  10. Left turn on the T point at Old highway junction. This is the 15 km mark. 
  11. Onto the toll – Make them take leftmost lane which is free.
  12. Next junction make them take a U turn. This is 19.75 km mark which is ok because while returning they will be doing 0.5 extra. to make it exact 40 kms.
  13. Bike Cutoff is one hour 40 minutes. 
  14. The leaders should be at the 20k U turn by 7:35 AM approx. Please be there much before this. 
  15. Old High way Junction  – If it is 8:20 am and there a cyclist who is crossing Old high way junction (which is the 15th km mark) then make him do a U turn from there only. Tell him he is exceeding cut off. 
  16. Slow cyclists are the ones who are going to need help with directions and nutrition both. – Please help them with it. Carry water, enerzal, bananas etc with you. Very few will actually need it. We are making them fill in their bottles before they swim.
  17. Help with punctures  – We have already stated that we are not providing help with punctures. However if you see anyone in trouble, especially if there are women, please help them out. Its the highway and we want to conduct a safe event.
  18. The map that you see here is the cycling route.
    1. Point no. 1 is 5 km mark – approx Hinjewadi bridge
    2. Point no. 2 is 10 km mark. 11 or 12 kms is the Expressway junction where the cyclists have to go under the tunnel. and not over the bridge. 
    3. Point no. 3 is the 15 km mark and also the T junction to Old mumbai pune highway.
    4. Point no. 4 is the U turn point or the 20 km mark. Right after the toll plaza the first intersection.
  21. These are the points where volunteers should be stationed. The one point not marked here is the Expressway junction. Its important to make sure we have people there so that bikers go from below the bridge and not above. Its safer that way.

Running Volunteers

  1. Running Team Leader – Sharada Kulkarni (+91 88065 15515)
  2. Reporting time  – 5:15 AM – Balewadi pool – The first athlete might show up for running at 8:05-8:10 AM. So please be there much before then.
  3. Attire  – Run is completely inside Balewadi. Very safe. Sun might come out so wear a hat.
  4. There will be only one hydration point. Right outside the pool. Make sure its setup with plenty of enerzal, water, banana and oranges.
  5. The most important thing here is enerzal. Sun might come out and it might be getting hotter.
  6. This is the route for running. 
  7. It is 1.25 km going and then a U turn and coming back. For a total of 2.5 kms.
  8. Do this 4 times and you get to 10 kms!
  9. Two people should be at 1.25 kms  mark with green bands. Everyone who passes, signal to them to extend their arm, make them wear a green band without wasting their time or making them slow down. 
  10. Two poeple should be at the 0 km mark or the start, and do the same as above with red bands. 
  11. Any runner who has 4 green bands and 3 red bands is done! Note their time. on a sheet. hand it over to Sharda.
  12. Slower triathletes need the maximum help. This is the toughest part for everyone. 
  13. Please clap, encourage them and run with them a bit if its ok to cheer them up.
  14. Running cutoff is 80 minutes. Everyone should be done by 10:30 AM. 
  15. However we do NOT have to be draconian in implementing this. If someone is close to finishing, let them finish. Its a big deal completing an olympic distance triathlon.

Transition volunteers

  1. Team Leader  – Sharada Kulkarni (+91 88065 15515)
  2. Reporting time – 5:15 AM
  3. First thing is to make sure every athlete reports to the attendance table, collects their bib, puts it on the bike and gets his shoulder marked with the same bib number.
  4. Let them mount their bikes on the bike mount.
  5. Most probably we will get boxes and then can put their transition stuff in there.
  6. Bike and Gear safety – Super important 
    1. No one except for athletes should get near the bikes
    2. Athletes should not be touching any one else’s gear but their own
    3. Bikes can be taken only after 11 AM. DO NOT ALLOW FASTER ATHLETES TO TAKE THEIR BIKES WHEN THE EVENT IS ON. 
    4. Match the bib number to the number written on the shoulder before letting them take the bike and their gear. 
  7. After coming out of the pool, they should mount the bikes at mount point. Thats where they should dismount as well after completing the biking route.
  8. There will be a bit of a run between the bike stands and mount/dismount point.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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