Not yet reviewed for 2019..
When you have decided on your role, please fill in the volunteer form.
(Team leaders are required for Clean Up and Trailer Parking)
Saturday set up: Often post-morning training but on site, at Dorney Lake. Jobs include:
- Marking off verges so no cars can park there (hammering in metal poles and wrapping rope around them).
- Setting up ‘No Cycling’ notices along 2k stretch of race course (one side only)
- Setting up directions for two way cycling along 2k stretch of race course (one side only).
- Marking out trade-stand and gazebo plots.
- Setting up barriers for car parking area.
- Setting up of tables and chairs in marquees
- set up loudhailers and set out tech kit in the Finish Tower
- Setting up of networks in 500m huts 8. Anything else that needs doing!
Saturday food shopping/sandwich making: 6-7 hours (one person or less time if more people) of making sandwiches for volunteers on Race Day. All ingredients will be provided – you just need to provide the kitchen/work space to make them.
Saturday Trailer Parking: We need a small team of people at Dorney on Saturday from about 3pm until xxx guiding trailers into trailer park, helping them to align and park correctly. Ensuring towing vehicles are moved out of trailer park promptly. Monitoring litter, providing trailers/clubs with bin liners where appropriate. Hi-vis vests will be provided.
On the Day Trailer Parking: From 6am onwards. Guiding trailers into trailer park, helping them to align and park correctly. Ensuring towing vehicles are moved out of trailer park promptly. Monitoring litter, providing trailers/clubs with bin liners where appropriate. Hi-vis vests will be provided.
Car Parking: From 6am onwards. Please sign up for this role if you’re happy to stand your ground when required! Can require a firm but polite approach with drivers wishing to enter areas that are out-of-bounds to them. Hi-vis vests will be provided. A team is required to direct traffic accordingly throughout the whole day (cars one way, trailers and cars with correct passes another way) and man the entrance road and take payment from those without pre-registered parking. A cheery smile is necessary throughout!
Finish Rafts: From approx 7.30am onwards. This role is mainly offered to juniors. Volunteers are required to help crews boat in time for their race, holding the boat whilst they get in and then helping them to push off the raft. Collecting their blades as they join the rafts will also assist in the smooth running of boating. When crews return from races, some may need guidance to ‘land’ safely, particularly if there is a strong wind. Volunteers should also help move blades from the boating area.
Timing: From approx 7.00am onwards. Teams of 3 volunteers are required in each of the timing huts (located at each 500m mark along the course) to note the order in which crews go past and their times. Use the radio to brief the commentators, and enter the times into a laptop. Not for the faint hearted. Good eyesight is important and/or binoculars along with a calm approach! Experienced ‘timers’ welcome, particularly in 500m hut. Not suitable for juniors.
Finish: From approx 7.30am onwards and located in the Finish Tower. A dedicated team of volunteers required to run the Finish Line. Roles include using a video camera for each race to support Finish Judges in case of a photo finish result, calling out the order of the crews as they finish, timing the crews as they cross the line, entering the times into the IT systems and assisting in passing on results to the Regatta Control team. A cool and calm approach is required; not for the faint hearted!
ICT Support:
Communications: one person is needed at 06.30-07.30 to help to dish out comms kit to Umpires at the Finish Tower ground floor and then again at 19.15-20.30 to help with packing up at the Finish Tower.
Filming: 4 x People to operate video cameras, 2 hours on/off, so 2 to start at 07.00, 2 take over at 09.00 and swap over for the rest of the day. Filming ends at 19.15. One will be at the 1000m hut and one on Finish Tower roof.
Technical knowledge is not required, as I’ll cover all that, but for the camera ops it will be a long day following the crews down a zoom lens, so keen & tenacious characters!
Regatta Control: From approx 7am onwards. A working knowledge of ICT is required. Located in the Finish Tower, and working with Andrew Breen and his team, to assist with the technical running of the day. Help with set-up and take down of the IT equipment also needed.
Registration: From approx 6.30am onwards. A dedicated team that can cope with sudden, mad rushes of rowers coming to register crews, declare crew changes, collect lane numbers, ask the same questions about where the toilets are etc. Coxes are also required to be weighed in by the registration team. Located next to reception, sheltered from the elements! A small number of keen and fit volunteers are required to run, collect and return lane numbers from boats as they come in to the landing stages.
Commentary: From approx 7.30am onwards and located in the Finish Tower. A team of willing and competent volunteers are required to commentate on races throughout the day. Various pieces of ‘interesting’ crew information will be passed on to the team to further support comments/ observations during races.
Medical Officer: Whilst St. John Ambulance (or similar) will be on hand to offer First Aid if required, a Medical Officer is required throughout the day to offer advice as and when needed. The Medical Officer is normally located near to Registration or on Rafts. To do this job you need to have formal medical training (be a doctor, paramedic or nurse).
Bank Marshals: From approx 7.00am onwards. A team of volunteers are required to guide crews through the warm up lake and hurry along latecomers. Bank marshalling nearer to the start also requires crews to be kept with their respective opposition and moved along in groups. Crews will also be advised by Marshals when to get kit sorted ‘ready to race’ as well as told when to make their way onto the start. A kind but sometimes firm instruction can be required with some crews.
Start Rafts: From approx 7.00am onwards, this is a role mainly offered to Juniors (J15s & 16s). Volunteers are required to lie on the stake boats and hold crews before they race. Guidance is needed for some crews in helping them back down correctly so that they will be correctly aligned. Volunteers must remain quiet and professional at all times so as not to distract crews about to race. Start Marshals also need to listen out for instructions from the aligning umpire before the start of each race. Lifejackets must be worn at all times; these will be provided. Start marshals may need to work in pairs when holding onto larger and stronger boats (Eights). Owing to the nature of this job we will allocated shifts around race times and a maximum of 4 hours for juniors. We also require one adult to support the team leader throughout the day.
Supplies: One or two people to assist in jobs around the site during the day, eg. delivering lunches to Team Leaders. Volunteers also need to be ‘on call’ to assist other Team Leaders where needed (delivering items from boathouse to start-line/around the course). Vitally around midday you will need to top up the fuel of the two club launches.
Minibus Driver: One person with a driving licence (25yrs+) required to drive umpires to and from the start, and assist with moving supplies around the site. This will be a 9 seater minibus.
Launches: Two very experienced launch drivers are required to drive two of the WRC launches on the lake.
Sunday pm clean up: A team is required to help clear litter at the end of the day. The more people help out at the end of the day, the quicker this gets done, and no one will be left cleaning up alone at 10pm! Please also consider helping out with this after a shift elsewhere during the day.
When you have decided on your role, please fill in the volunteer form.