Volunteer Spotlight – The Brew Crew

GWTC cannot survive without the efforts of hundreds of volunteers.  In a new feature the webmonster plans to shine a little light on some of those volunteers in hopes that it will convince you to be an active volunteer!

Tim Brewton, February 15, 2007

The “Brew Crew” recently celebrated its third season at Water Stop #1 at the Tallahassee Marathon, and by now you would have trouble stopping us from being there.  It is a group that knows how to have fun while doing its part to make the Tallahassee Marathon a success.  How do I explain that getting up early and standing in the cold is a richly rewarding experience?  I’m not referring to some old tired, rehashed propagandist cliché about civic duty–I’m talking about feeling guilty from doing so little and getting so much in return.  We get to see the runners as their best – early on as they all still have smiles on their faces – and near the end – when the bear is mauling them and the only escape is through that “wall.”  I especially get a kick out of watching my friends in the Brew Crew improvise in response to all the little things that don’t go according to plan, for example:

Volunteer: “Cytomax!”
Runner A: “What’s that?” 

Volunteer: “Gatorade!”
Runner B: “This isn’t Gatorade!” 

Volunteer: “Electrolytes!”

After our shift, we had a very animated conversation about how so many runners thanked us, how so many runners were smiling and enjoying the race (regardless of their position), and we spoke of a thousand other things that you might not observe if you were
participating.  And of course we talked about what we could do next year to make it better (for us and the runners).

I don’t believe that volunteering should be mandatory, but I wish there was a way to get everyone to give it a try. The day after the race I received a call from one of the crew, thanking me for asking them to help out.  What more can I say? 

Note from the Webmonster – Water stop 1 means you are the first and the last on the course.  Coordinating enough water for the marathon is a really big job – just ask Philip Munoz who did just that and, thanks to groups like the Brew Crew did it well. If you want to do something, pick out a race director and email him or her or send a note to david@radeylaw.com and we will find a place for you.