volunteer Information
Volunteering is crucial to ensuring a safe and enjoyable ski racing experience for our competitors. It also supports a well-run and timely race. This year, the Bristol Mountain Race Club (BMRC) is hosting multiple race days, which is excellent news for our competitors and families. However, this also means that we require a sufficient number of volunteers to staff these events.
When registering as a member with BMRC, a $300 Volunteer Deposit is required. This deposit will be refunded in the Spring if the volunteer requirement—participation in 3 race events—is met.
Volunteer Sign-Up
Coordinating volunteers is a significant task, so we ask for prompt cooperation from BMRC parents. Please review the volunteer spreadsheet below to see available races, positions, and your current sign-ups.
- Parents should volunteer for at least 3 positions.
- Orange-colored positions require certification.
- Do not delete your name without notifying Jeff Smith to avoid any lapses in coverage.
Volunteer Forms and Requirements
USSA Volunteer Registration: All race workers who are not members of USSA must fill out the USSA Volunteer Competition Worker Registration form. Please print and complete this form in advance if possible.
Position Descriptions
Food – AM pick up/set up/cleanup: Pick up the bagels/muffins/fruit/water from Wegmans Canandaigua Store at 7 am at the customer service desk. Set up food in the yurt, and stand by to ensure volunteers and officials are fed. Clean up any remaining food that can be collected and made available for lunch.
Food – Lunch pick up/set up/clean up: Pick up subs and salad from Wegmans Canandaigua Store at 10:30 am at the catering department. Set up in the yurt. Ensure volunteers and officials are fed. Clean up once all volunteers and officials have had lunch and returned to the hill.
Coach and Volunteer Registration: Be in the yurt at 7 am. Sign-in all Volunteers (Volunteers that are on the hill sign USSA waiver), sign in all Coaches – ensure they are on the accredited list, have them sign in with USSA number, provide ‘Coach’ lift ticket for non-BMRC coaches, provide ‘Official’ lift ticket for Technical Delegate (TD) and any other non-BMRC Officials.
Competitor Registration-: Be in the yurt at 7 am. Check-in all competitors – collect money if balance due, provide bib. Provide lift tickets to non-BMRC competitors ONLY (note on bib-order print-out). For walk-ins, have them fill out a registration form, check USSA and NYSSRA status (Race administrator Krista Jackson will help), and collect the race fee.
Announcer: Be in the Timing Booth 20 minutes before the start of the race. Sit up in the timing booth and announce racers as they start, are on course, and have unofficial finish times (very helpful to be familiar with the competitor’s names ahead of time). At breaks, thank our sponsors (Bristol Mountain and Wegmans).
Score Keepers: Please arrive at the yurt at 8:45 AM on race day. RA provides a bib-order list – during registration record competitor’s names on the scoreboard sheets, and post sheets on the board outside near Timing Booth. As finish times are announced, write them down on the scoreboard for the first race, second race, and combined time (for SG race there is only (1) one run).
Starter: Be in position 20 minutes before the start of the race. Starts the competitors with a simple direct command; “Ready” followed a few seconds later by “Go”. Once the command is given, the competitor has about 10 seconds to advance through the wand and proceed on course.
Assistant Starter: Be in position 20 minutes before the start of the race. Line the competitors up in preparation for the start (bib order for 1st run; second run may be reverse bib order for U10/U12/U14, or based on the finish time of the first run for U16/U19). Be aware of what competitor is in the start, what competitor is ready, what competitor is looking for his/her equipment, and what competitors have failed to appear. Competitors must be familiar with the rules governing the start and must report for their start on time.
Start Referee (Official): Takes (5) unassigned bibs to the start area and remains at the start from the beginning of the official inspection time until the end of the training/event. The Start Referee must make sure that the Manual Timekeepers (hand timekeepers) are able to perform their duties without distraction and must make sure that the regulations for the start and the organization of the start are observed. In other words, the Start Referee is responsible for assuring that each competitor receives a fair start.
Finish Referee (Official): Remain at the finish from the beginning of the official inspection time until the end of the event. The Finish Referee receives course reports from Forerunners and delivers the reports to the Jury. The Finish Referee is responsible for safety and crowd control in the finish, makes sure that Manual/Hand Timekeepers are able to perform their duties without distraction, and makes sure that each competitor has an opportunity to finish in a fair manner.
Chief of Timing and Calculations (Official): Responsible for coordinating officials at the start and finish, synchronizing the timing and the accuracy of the results. This official is responsible for documenting and enforcing the quality control of actual timing and results.
In order to provide manual backup in case of failure of the electronic timing system, USSA requires manual/hand times that are completely separate and independent of the electronic timing to be recorded for the individual competitors both when they leave the start and when they arrive at the finish. These positions are named ‘Hand Timing Start’ and ‘Hand Timing Finish’.
Hand Timing Start: There are two volunteers in this position, one performing timing and one recording times. Be in position 20 minutes before the start of the race. When a competitor’s lower leg crosses the start line, the Start Hand Timekeeper pushes the appropriate button on a time-of-day manual timekeeping device, which freezes the running display. The Start Hand Timekeeper Recorder records that time on a recording form along with the competitor’s bib number.
Hand Timing Finish: There are two volunteers in this position, one performing timing and one recording times. Be in position 20 minutes before the start of the race. When any part of the competitor crosses the finish line, the Finish Hand Timekeeper pushes the button on another time-of-day manual timekeeping device that is synchronized to the manual timekeeping device at the start. The Finish Hand Timekeeper Recorder records that time on a recording form along with the competitor’s bib number.
Course Crew: Be registered, have the Course Crew armband on, and be ready to go on the first lift at 7:30 am (8:00 am for weekday races). Must be a strong skier – carry drills, extra batteries in backpacks, shovels, and rakes to the top; help set safety netting prior to the race (instructions will come from Chief of Course Justin Lloyd), slipping the course throughout to keep the track smooth, then helping to remove the fence and ropes at the end of the race.
Bib Collect: Arrive at the race finish to collect bibs from racers at the end of their final race. Stay until the end of the race and all bibs have been returned. Note any missing bibs and report that to the Race Administrator. This position is combined with the registration position in the morning.
Gate Keeper (Gate Judge): Be in position 20 minutes before the start of the race and stay until the Chief Gate Keeper releases; responsible for the supervision of a series of gates. During the race, determine and record whether or not a competitor’s passage through the gates – both skis and both tips – was correct or incorrect (DSQ), documenting interference for review by the Jury, communicating to Course Crew required gate maintenance (pole straightening and/or panel replacement), and helping clear gear if a competitor loses a pole or does not finish (DNF).
In the case of an error or a fall, if the competitor did not lose a ski, the competitor is permitted to ask the Gate Judge if a fault was committed. The Gate Judge, if asked, must inform the competitor if he has committed a fault that would lead to disqualification. The accepted procedure in USSA is that a Gate Judge instructs a competitor with one of only two responses: “Go!” or “Back!”
Chief Gate Keeper (Gate Judge): Be registered by 8 am and ready to pass out gatekeeper bibs, control cards, pencils, and clipboards, designates assignments of physical location for each gatekeeper, and distribute the start list to all gatekeepers. Review the gatekeeper job description with volunteers, determine if any gatekeepers are not skiing, and assign them to the gates at the lower part of the mountain. 20 minutes before the race, meet gatekeepers at the top of the race course and assign gates by number and description. Check-in with gatekeepers from time to time to make sure they do not have questions or issues to discuss. At the end of the race, quickly ski down to where each gatekeeper is stationed to relieve them of their duties until the next run. Collect the control cards (with Gatekeeper cell phones noted) and promptly deliver them to the Referee.
Contact Info
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