Running the Wilkes-Barre Triathlon, in a different sense

Aug. 10--The grunt work required to stage the Wilkes-Barre Triathlon is completed well before race day. One week from today, hundreds of athletes will dart into Harveys Lake for a swim just after daybreak, with hilly bike and run sections to follow.

The preparation for this year's race began shortly after last year's ended. Permits, insurance, course inspections and sponsorships are a fraction of the issues that need to be resolved.

Once race day hits, hundreds of volunteers, from medical assistants to high schoolers handing out water cups, will be on the scene.

Race director Joanne Gensel said about 870 people volunteered for last year's race. Counting relay teams, Olympic distance, sprint distance and aquabike competitors, it was roughly two volunteers per competitor.

The race will begin at 7:30 a.m., and by 4 p.m. the Penn State Wilkes-Barre campus will be cleared. The equipment, packed into a moving truck, will be transported to a nearby storage facility.

It is a yearlong undertaking by the race committee, many of whom have been volunteering since the inaugural Wilkes-Barre Triathlon in 1982.

Staff writer Evan Korn spoke with members of the committee, who shared their expertise and the challenges of organizing the race.

Keeping busy waters calm

Harveys Lake is rarely, if ever, busier than the morning of the triathlon.

Swim coordinator Jeni Knickman oversees 25 kayaks, two jet skis, a pontoon boat and 35 volunteer lifeguards.

The swimmers begin in waves, with the elite athletes entering the lake first and the sprint course participants following the final Olympic course wave. The kayaks are spaced out, and as the swim progresses, the kayaks stationed near the start drift toward the end to assist the final swimmers.

"What happens is when the last swimmer passes the first buoy, they just sort of all get in line and follow them around," said Knickman, who is also the swim director at the Wyoming Valley CYC in Wilkes-Barre. "By the time it ends, everybody is all together."

Knickman said her favorite part of the swim is encouraging the end-of-the-pack swimmers, many of whom are fighting to beat the cutoff time and move on to the bike portion of the race.

The challenges often come in the first few-hundred meters when a novice triathlete, perhaps not properly trained, cannot deal with the open water. Knickman said a few people fail to complete the swim every year, and most of the time, they are picked up before the first buoy.

"There are people who think since they can bike and run, then they'll muddle through the swim," Knickman said. "And that can be very challenging for the athlete, me and the lifeguards."

The non-finishers are outliers. Most of the triathletes complete the 1.5-kilometer swim, or .75 for the sprint course. That's when Knickman and her band of lifeguards can finally relax.

"We're there for the athletes," she said. "To watch them succeed at what they're doing is pretty cool."

Ensuring safety on the course

The bike course is a Back Mountain sprawl, 40 kilometers for the Olympic riders and 26 for the sprint racers. There are 97 intersections along the courses, according to bike coordinator Vince Bulzoni.

"We have to control traffic on the course, and the main part is safety and organization," he said. "We work with the local police chiefs and we've come up with this grading system."

The grading system is as follows.

Grade 1 intersections are high-traffic areas and must be manned by law enforcement officials.

Grade 2 intersections are moderately trafficked and patrolled by race volunteers.

Grade 3 intersections do not require a volunteer.

"I make sure that the corners are clear and we have no issues with oncoming vehicles," traffic coordinator Chris Hayes said.

Hayes, a 30-year-old Dallas native, drives the bike course on race day to ensure all Grade 1 and 2 intersections are covered.

Hayes said he's never seen a collision, although there have been plenty of overzealous drivers who have nudged the nose of their cars into an intersection.

"Your heart drops a little bit and you go over and yell at the person," Hayes said.

The Olympic and sprint courses merge at Lakeside Drive and Kunkle Alderson Road in Harveys Lake, which Bulzoni said is among the course's more hectic patches. When hundreds of bikers are traversing hilly terrain, there are no stress-free moments.

"When everyone is off the course and safe and at the transition at Penn State, that's the best moment of the day," Bulzoni said.

Leading the pack

Dave Daris is one of those original Wilkes-Barre Triathlon volunteers, a consistent presence at the race committee meetings. He's quick to crack a joke or offer a suggestion.

"I was on the group that started it and I've just stuck with it ever since," Daris said.

And with seniority comes privilege. Daris drives the lead car for the race, a plum ride donated by a local car dealership.

It's a crucial job. Daris cruises in front of the lead bicycle riders and makes sure to stay at least 100 yards ahead.

There were years when a Luzerne County Sheriff's Office car paced Daris, flashing its lights when approaching an intersection so Daris would not have to slow down.

On occasion, the sheriff drove too slow for Daris, who'd proceed to bump the back of his car.

After years of escorting the leaders, he has it down pat. He soaks in the scenery, content in what he helped build.

"There are literally thousands of people out there sitting on their lawns to see the first biker go by," Daris said. "And I don't know how long they stay after that, but shortly after that, I'm at Iron Skillet for breakfast."

Daris recalled a particularly hairy turn of events a few decades back while giving a pair of sheriffs a tour of the course.

"First time I showed them the course, we were going out Route 29 coming in the back side of Noxen," Daris said. "There's a big junkyard there along the side of the road, and people in the junkyard were throwing beer bottles at the sheriff's car."

Route inspections are critical

Run coordinator Chris Mochin inspects the course, and then he does it again. And again.

Two months before the race, Mochin drives the 11-kilometer route and repeats the process once a week.

"I have to make sure there are no significant areas of danger for the athletes," said Mochin, who is also the race's website and social media coordinator.

As prepared as Mochin is, Mother Nature sometimes intervenes. A few years ago, a storm hit on the day of the race and a fallen tree wreaked temporary havoc.

"We had to reroute runners around the tree through a hay field to get them back on the course," Mochin said. "It was interesting."

Three months before the race, Mochin contacts his volunteers from the previous year. It is the dedication of the volunteers that keeps him returning every year. The Lake-Lehman field hockey team has handed out water every year since Mochin started volunteering 19 years ago.

"We could not do this without the volunteers, especially the ones who come back," Mochin said. "They know the drill, they know what's expected, they know what they need to do and they're enthusiastic about it."

Mochin puts the finishing touches to the course at around 7 a.m. on race day. While the triathletes are standing nervously around Harveys Lake, Mochin drives the course one last time, supplying the aid stations with water and Gatorade and putting down mile markers.

It is a labor of love for the Swoyersville resident. The athletes, in turn, show their gratitude.

"It's a lot of man hours, it's a lot of money and there are a lot of people who come up to us and say, "Great job, we appreciate everything that you do,'" Mochin said. "That makes it all worthwhile."

At the end of the road

Nancy and Bob Kline are the smiling faces triathletes will see when they cross the finish line. As finish line coordinators, the Klines are there to do more than spread good cheer.

They hand out water, medals and cold towels and help athletes to the medical tent if needed.

Nancy began volunteering with the Wilkes-Barre Triathlon in 1982. Bob joined her a few years later.

Nancy, a registered nurse, was in charge of the medical tent for a spell. Bob used to coordinate the early-morning buses from the campus to Harveys Lake, and he'd show up for race-day duty bleary-eyed at 4 a.m. After that, he would assist Nancy at the medical tent.

The finish-line gig comes with its advantages, most notably an 8:30 a.m. call time.

"You're busy for an hour and then you stand around and wait for everybody to come through," Bob Kline said.

This will be Bob and Nancy's third year manning the finish line. They have talked about stepping down from the race committee, but the camaraderie amongst the volunteers and the graciousness of the athletes keep them coming back for more.

"The triathletes are so grateful that we are there for them," Nancy Kline said. "They're so polite. They say the course is great and just appreciate everything we do for them."

___

(c)2014 The Citizens' Voice (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.)

Visit The Citizens' Voice (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.) at citizensvoice.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services