Thank YOU for your participation in the 2014 ASICS LA Marathon!
This year was incredibly challenging with the unexpected rise in temperature. Still, I hope you had a good day, especially our new recruits. I am almost feeling back to normal after a very full day of activity, and expect to spend at least a couple more days recovering. Perhaps the years are starting to catch up with me. I hope you are getting back to normal, whatever that is for you.
Before you forget the events of the day, please take a few moments and send your comments and observations, good or bad. I do reserve the right to edit for duplication or as needed to prevent anyone from being personally identified, unless of course it's glowing praise, which there often is.
This year I decided to change my race day location to address a request from the marathon office. I working with Paul, Dean and Troy as they relayed information from the course to the appropriate agency in the command center. We had a very busy day like many others on the route. Last year I made note of a few items that I mentioned in my wrap up email. If you were in the email distribution you received the following: To get the ball rolling, let me share just a few items from my viewpoint.
1. Early on in the day we had a couple of "stuck" mikes. 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.
3. A couple reports failed to include the exact location, instead reporting the mile designation, again needing a repeat call.
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.
You all collectively, and individually did a great job. I would really like to get your feedback by the end of this week if possible, while it's still fresh. Also, if you took pictures that you would like to share, I'll post them to our unofficial Marathon Ham web site.
Last but not least, I want to thank Ted for his service over the years and the help he provided me and the group. I wish him well in the future.
Please send all communication to me at kd6ais@hotmail.com. Thank you for your contribution to the Marathon effort! I hope to see you again next year.