Thank YOU for your participation in the 30th Edition of the ASICS LA Marathon!
I hope you had a good experience in spite of the elevated temperatures. There was only one person that did not show up to their assignment which Im sure Ill hear more about later. Everyone else that reported to their assignment helped avoid what could have been (and was expected to be) a very, very busy, long day. Surprisingly we made it through the day in similar fashion to past events. Maybe even better due to the measures taken as part of the hot weather plans.
I hope you had a good experience in spite of the elevated temperatures. There was only one person that did not show up to their assignment which Im sure Ill hear more about later. Everyone else that reported to their assignment helped avoid what could have been (and was expected to be) a very, very busy, long day. Surprisingly we made it through the day in similar fashion to past events. Maybe even better due to the measures taken as part of the hot weather plans.
To get the ball rolling, let me share just a few items from my viewpoint.
1. I think we only had two "stuck" mikes all day. It is very important to check your mike and make sure you are not sitting on or leaning against it.
2. There were several instances of reports that did not include bib numbers and the information had to be asked for and repeated. Also some participants did not have numbers on their bib but names instead. I thought that it would be obvious that a name should be reported if that was on the bib. My fault for not making that clear.
3. It sounded like the heat made a few folks a bit cranky. In the end mostly coolEheads prevailed.
Unfortunately, these same issues persisted yesterday. For the most part they were transparent to the marathon, but we need to work on improving our operation for next year. Improvement will make us better operators by helping keep the flow of information moving. I plan to start working on a training plan well in advance of next year's event and will communicate it to you as soon as I can. At this point all I can tell you is that attendance at one of the orientation meetings will likely be mandatory for anyone volunteering with our group.
Some of these are more critical issues than others, and Im sure you have some of your own, but with some practice they are easy to improve on. Improvement will make us better operators by helping keep the flow of information moving efficiently.
You all collectively did a great job. I would really like to get your feedback by the end of this coming week if possible, while it's still fresh. If you took pictures that you would like to share, I'll post them to our unofficial Marathon Ham web site for everyone to enjoy.
Thank you for your contribution to the 2015 ASICS LA Marathon effort! I hope to see you again next year.