Volunteer Information

On this page you will find basic information about volunteering at any Aravaipa Running event.  Please let us know if you have a question about something not covered on this page.

Arrival
Volunteers do not pay an entrance fee to the park. When you arrive, present your entry gate ticket to the front entry station.  They will take half the ticket and ask you to place the other half in your windshield. If by chance, there’s any problem please go ahead and pay the fee and let us know (keep you receipt). We’ll pay you back. Any miscommunication about who is a volunteer would be our fault and shouldn’t be taken out on park officials.  The entry gate ticket will be emailed to you one week before your scheduled race.  If you do not receive this ticket, please email us at jamil@aravaiparunning.com.  After passing the entry station, proceed to the race start line to check in with the race director or volunteer coordinator for final instructions before heading to your aid station position.

Detailed directions to the start of each race and to your specific aid station are show below.  You may want to print a course map off of the appropriate race web page prior to your arrival.  Race courses are marked for participants, but not for volunteers, so you may need to make several route finding turns en route to your station. Please select the race that you are volunteering at for specifics:

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Aid Station Information
You’ll want to familiarize yourself with the format of the race you are volunteering at before you arrive.  Runners often will ask you questions like “How far is it to the next aid station?”, “Which way do I go for the 50K?”, or “Is there a big climb on the next section of trail?”.  While we don’t expect you to know all these answers, being informed can really help make a runner’s race go smoothly.  We have a large amount of information on our web page for each event, so please take a few minutes to review the specifics.  We will have large maps, aid station distances, and other information at each aid station for reference.  Here are a few things to keep an eye out for:

• Which race distances are offered
• Where each race course goes in relation to your aid station
• What the time cutoffs are for your aid station
• What the elevation profile look like for the courses

On race day, have fun! Runners appreciate positive energy from the aid stations. When you first arrive to your aid station, familiarize yourself with all of the foods available and where backup supplies are located. We’ve had frantic calls for more supplies in the past and come to find out they were already at the aid station, hidden away in a box! Each aid station has a first aid kit.

For those who have not worked an aid station before, the front runners will need minimal help. They want to get in and out quickly. Offer them help filling their bottles, but also be ready to just stay out of their way and let them move through quickly if that’s what they choose. After the front runners come through, things will relax and runners will enjoy the personalized attention. Stand out in front of the aid station, offer to take their bottles and fill them while they are getting food. We’ve found the largest bottleneck to be filling water bottles and hydration bladders. We encourage you to use the supplied water pitchers to quickly refill bottles during peak times of business.

It’s OK to snack on aid station food during your shift. Water and soda at the outlying aid stations can be a precious commodity for the runners, but please keep yourself hydrated using race supplies. There is more substantial food available at the start/finish line throughout the race. If you are going to an outlying aid station, feel free to grab some before or after your shift. If there’s something particular you really want to eat or drink during your shift, you’ll want to bring it along. (Remember the park rule about no glass bottles.)

Keep an eye out on the weather forecast.  We have a link to the forecast at each race at the very top of each web page on our website.  Keep in mind that you will be spending the day or night outdoors subject to the elements (exposed sun in the day, cold temperatures at night, and possible rain)  Please be prepared for the unexpected by packing some extra clothing, sunscreen, hat, extra water and food.  If you are out at an aid station late at night, you may even want to bring a small tent and sleeping bag for a quick rest. Please bring layers, a good jacket, gloves, beanie and flashlight for a night shift to keep warm and pack rain gear if the weather looks questionable.

Water at most events will be stored in 5-6 gallon plastic water jugs that will be used to refill our 5 gallon water coolers (used to dispense water or Gatorade to runners).

Food related tasks include mixing energy drinks, cutting fruit, making PB & J sandwiches, making bean burritos, pouring soda, keeping the table stocked with goodies, and keeping water and energy drink jugs full. Each aid station will receive one to three GU Energy cardboard trash containers. It is a good idea position these containers 50 yards on each side of the aid station for runners to drop trash into (if you have a large aid station) as they often carry a cup or wrapper with them. Bags should be changed out when they are ¾ full. Even organic waste like banana and orange peels need to be thrown away.

Other than those things, just help the runners in any way you can. Fill their bottles, offer them food and drinks, help them with any equipment issues, help tape up blisters (if you’re comfortable with that), help them find their drop bags, and always offer them positive, encouraging words. Think of the positive things you’ve experienced at aid stations when you’ve run races and pass them on to our runners.

If you are looking for a certain utensil, duct tape, scissors, additional food, extra lantern mantles, matches or anything else you can think of, we probably have sent it out to the aid station. Utensils and most supplies will be located in the bright yellow/red containers.

Javelina Jundred Notes

Parking & Shuttles – We will be implementing a new mandatory shuttle for all pacers, spectators and runners not camping this year.  Volunteers are exempt from the shuttle and able to drive directly up to the Pemberton Trailhead.  Please have your park entry pass printed and available to show to the Parking Attendant when you enter the Pemberton Trailhead.

Water at our remote aid stations will be stored in 55 gallon plastic water drums. Please use the supplied hand pumps to siphon water from these large drums into the smaller 5 gallon water containers. If you hold the end of the hose up in the air and pump the water until it reaches the end, then lower the hose into the 5 gallon cooler, it should draw the water out continuously at a rate of 7 gallons per minute. If you need further instruction on how to use the pumps, please speak with the race director.

There will be propane heaters at all of the outlying aid stations that can be fired up in the evening / overnight for the runners and volunteers. The remote aid stations (Coyote Camp, Jackass Junction and Rattlesnake Ranch) will also have propane lanterns, but please bring a flashlight for backup (and to hike to/from your station).

There will be Coleman stoves at the remote aid stations to heat water for soups and coffee, so some minimal cooking skills are needed for the evening / overnight shifts.

Communications

Many of our events take place within the regional park system and have cell phone coverage.  If you need to contact either race director, you may call Jamil at 602-361-7440 or Nick at 602-828-6629.  There will be an amateur radio communications team at each aid station at some of our events (Javelina Jundred & Mesquite Canyon). If a serious issue or question arises, please contact the race directors immediately.

Drinks Offered
Here is a list of the drinks we have available:

• Water
• Lemon Lime Gatorade
• Succeed ULTRA (Orange) – 1 bag per 5 gallon cooler  or HEED (Javelina Jundred only)
• Coca-Cola
• Mountain Dew
• Ginger Ale
• Coffee (Races > 50K only)
• Tea (Races > 50K only)
• Hot Chocolate (Races > 50K only)
• We will also have S! Caps at each aid station.

The water, Gatorade, and Succeed ULTRA should be mixed in supplied 5 gallon coolers. You can pre-fill cups of each type of drink.

We will also be sending out ice at most events. You may use this ice to fill runner’s water bottles, cool the drinks in the coolers, and any other need the runners may have. We ask that you use gloves when filling hand bottles with ice and keep runners from placing their hands in the coolers.

A note on bees: Bees have been a huge problem in the past due to the sugary drinks we offer. We will be including several bee traps this year along with each aid station. They will be an empty 2 liter bottle with an inverted lid. Fill the bottom of the trap with sugar and water (or your favorite sugary beverage from the list above) and watch the trap go to work!

Food Offered 

We are trying to simplify the preparation of food at the remote aid stations and the amount of trash we produce at these stations. We still will have a large variety of foods to offer the runners. Here is a partial list of what we will offer:

• Potato chips
• Pretzels
• Boiled potatoes w/salt
• Oranges
• Bananas
• Watermelon
• Other seasonal fruits
• Peanut butter jelly sandwiches
• Cookies
• Gummy bears or worms
• Trail mix
• M&M’s
• Gels (limited supply)
• Bean rollups (Races > 50K only)
• Turkey cheese rollups(Races > 50K only)
• Pumpkin pie (Races > 50K only)

Course Marking
All Aravaipa Running courses will be marked with unique orange flagging tape with black polka dots.  Wrong way trails will be marked with blue/white checkerboard flagging tape.

All trail junctions will be signed this year with laminated trail signs attached to wooden stakes or existing park trail signs. All non-race trails will be signed “Wrong Way”. Those volunteers helping with course marking will be asked to either tie flagging or to place stakes around the course.

For races extending into the night, glow sticks will be placed every 1/4 of a mile on the course and at all trail  junctions.

Volunteer Perks

Here is a list of perks for volunteers at Aravaipa Running events:

• Free entry into park on race day
• Aravaipa Running logo shirt or race specific shirt (gender specific)
• Race entry fee discount good for any future Aravaipa Running Event ($10-$20 depending on shift length)
• Volunteer experience working at a special event
• Snacks and food while you help
• Experience first hand helping athletes achieve their goals
• Camaraderie amongst health and outdoor minded people

Let us know if you have any questions or if we missed something.  Most of all, thank you for volunteering! We welcome feedback on your experience.

Thanks!

Jamil Coury
Aravaipa Running
602-361-7440