Braving the Elements while Volunteering at the Nitro Trail Half Marathon, 10k and 5k, Richmond, CA. June 4, 2011

I decided to volunteer for Brazen Racing's Nitro Trail Half Marathon, 10k and 5k event, since I was free that day and wanted to help others enjoy their running event.

Point Pinole was the scene of the Nitro Trail events.

Point Pinole was once the site of the Giant Powder Company, an explosives company who went out of business a long time ago.  The site is currently a registered California landmark.

Going in, I knew the weather was going to be wet and rainy, but I didn't expect things to be also incredibly windy.

I was assigned to Aid Station #1.

I knew things were going bad when:

1. Empty cups on the table would not stay on the table for us to fill them with water and sports drinks.  They were blown off the table.
2. The flow of water/sports drinks I was pouring was blown towards the outside of the cup, spilling the fluid onto the ground.
3. Small cups of dry snacks, including pretzels, M&M's and Skittles, were blown off the table.

The worst part was the wind took out our aid station's canopy.

We were literally left out in the wind and rain for quite some time because our canopy broke.

My snowboarding jacket and rain paints seem to hold up for the length of time we were out there, but my nose kept running.  Had it been much longer, I don't think my jacket would have held up.

I really felt bad for 2 of my aid station colleagues.  They had jeans on for pants.

It felt like an eternity out there, but eventually, the course sweeper came thru.

We then packed up everything into a truck and headed back to the Start/Finish area, where I warmed up with 2 cups of coffee.


Despite the rough experience at this event, I will still volunteer at running events because without volunteers, running events just would not be possible.  I'll just make sure if I volunteer at this location to put on an extra layer of clothing.