Volunteering for the Superhero Adventure Race

I was first introduced to adventure racing this July.  A group of friends participated in a race and my roommate and I went out to watch them finish.  Despite the fact that they looked nearly dead I was really excited by the idea of competing in one.  I'd heard of adventure racing before and I've had friends who did it, but I hadn't ever seen the sport in action.

Yesterday, my roommate Heidi and I volunteered to help at the Superhero Adventure Race in Apopka.  I volunteered because I wanted to get a better idea of how a race works before I jumped in head first.  The race was put on by Pangea Adventure Racing.  They put on about one race a month in different locations around central Florida.  If you are unfamiliar with adventure racing wikipedia knows everything. 

There were quite a few volunteers there.  I think I counted around 11.  Most had the same intentions I did, to learn the ropes before trying it themselves.  As a volunteer I exchanged punch cards between legs of the race for the teams and wrote their times on them.  I also emptied a few garbage cans and did a few quick miscellaneous jobs.  Not only did I get to learn about adventure racing, but I also earned $10 per hour I volunteered toward my next race!

I was surprised to see that there is a wide variety of skill levels in the competition.  Some racers were in top physical condition while others were there just for fun.  Some teams were parent with their kids, others were young adults, and the ages ranged up to people in their 60s.

Some useful things I learned about adventure racing were...

• Bring your own kayak paddle.  Canoe paddles are provided, but they only have a blade on one end.  A kayak paddle is much more efficient.
• Bring extra shoes.  The teams looked soaked after the boat portion.  I wouldn't want to run around in wet shoes for the rest of the race.
• Don't lose your punch card.   You are highly penalized for a lost punch card.  Keep it in a place where you can't possibly lose it.
• For some reason no one wants to bike last.  I haven't figured out why that is yet, but there must be a reason.  The order was boat-trek-bike.  If you had to trek first you would trek-bike-boat.
• Arrive early.  Parking is ridiculous and you greatly increase your chance of getting the right sized shirt if you are early.
• Never complete the race after the race finish time.  You get points deducted for being late.

 I learned a lot about adventure racing by volunteering.  Now that I have a better idea of what is required, I'm even more excited about trying it myself.  I would recommend volunteering to anyone who wants to learn about the sport.  It is a nice way to learn and make a couple bucks toward your registration fee.  Now I just need to start training!