Hundreds of volunteers are still needed for Happy Valley’s Ironman race. How to help
Planning for Happy Valley’s first Ironman is well underway, but hundreds of volunteers for the major event are still needed.
A 70.3-mile triathlon that consists of a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike ride and 13.1-mile run will kick off July 2. It will be the only such race in Pennsylvania, and Happy Valley will host it for the next three years, with the possibility of extending it even longer, organizers and other officials announced in September.
The triathlon, which will allow for about 3,000 participants, will start with a 1.2-mile swim in the Foster Joseph Sayers Reservoir at Bald Eagle State Park. From there, athletes will bike 56 miles through the rolling hills of Centre and Clinton counties. The race will then culminate with a 13.1-mile run on the Penn State campus that will finish at the 50-yard line in Beaver Stadium.
As one can expect, a successful event will require a whole community effort. More than a thousand volunteers will be needed on race day and prior to the race. They have about 550 of the 1,200 volunteers needed, Josh Cone, director of the Ironman Pennsylvania - Happy Valley 70.3 race, said.
People interested in volunteering are invited to a volunteer night Boal City Brewing from 6-8 p.m. Tuesday. Potential volunteers will have an opportunity to learn about available openings and ask questions of race organizers, according to a press release. Computers will be available for people to view the available volunteer shifts and to sign up. Plus, those who sign up to volunteer will get a ticket for a free beer.
There’s also an opportunity for nonprofits to participate for grant funding. Eric Nartatez, volunteer director, said they have $15,000 to disperse to nonprofits that hold 501(c)(3) status. There is an application, but it is simple, he said.
“They just have to write a letter as to what they’re going to do with the grant money that they receive, and obviously it can’t go to something that would make money for them. It has to go toward something that helps their program grow,” Nartatez said. “I’m expecting probably around 15 to 20 groups to take advantage of that.”
There are many different shifts and locations that volunteers can sign up for, including athlete bus loading, athlete food, registration, bike and gear check-in and check-out, bike course marshal, crowd control, environmental crew, information booth, run course pointers, life guards, transition support, volunteer tent and more.
Those who sign up for captain roles — people who oversee certain positions — will work with race directors to send out communications to other volunteers.
Locations are around the race course, including Bald Eagle State Park and Beaver Stadium.
Volunteering to help at the triathlon could be a good opportunity for high sports teams, boy scouts, church groups or other organized groups to build camaraderie during the off season, Cone said.
“This big group of people are going to descend on State College and Clinton County, Bald Eagle State Park, and it’s going to be just a really good time, I think, for teams in the off season … to kind of get together and be around other athletic people, young and old, … and just getting to experience this fantastic event that a lot of times you see on TV. These people are going to be in our backyard,” Cone said.
Why should people volunteer? For one, everyone who signs up to volunteer will get an official Ironman T-shirt. But this is an event people won’t want to miss, Nartatez said. He said it’ll be like a “lower scale Penn State game,” with 6,000 spectators coming to watch and cheer the athletes on. They’re working to create a tailgate atmosphere at Beaver Stadium with a family-friendly tailgate zone outside the stadium.
Cone recalled his time racing in the Boston Marathon a few years ago. During the last stretch of the marathon, someone near him began cramping. It was already a loud environment, he said, but people “just went crazy” cheering on the person who was stretching out the cramp in his leg.
“It sounded like coming out of the tunnel on a game day Saturday. The crowd just went nuts,” he said. “The energy from the crowd, I swear, pushed him through to the finish line. So that is what I want to create here at Beaver Stadium. That’s why I think volunteers and athletes should come to this event. … It’s going to be a special day.”
The volunteer night will be from 6-8 p.m. Tuesday at Boal City Brewing, 281 Old Boalsburg Road, Boalsburg. For more information about the triathlon or to register to volunteer online, visit www.ironman.com/im703-pennsylvania or email penn70.3@ironman.com.
