Perennial regatta press gang
Updated 20 January, with gratitude
Flying High: Spike at speed in one of the many sack races, Mahurangi Regatta 2006, Scotts Landing. photographer Max Cumming
In truth, most who toil at the Mahurangi Regatta are regulars in the spirit of Clive Dunn’s Dad’s Army character: ‘I should like to be the one that volunteers, Suh!’
But the difference between it being a breeze or a bother, for those who do volunteer, is down to the legwork that regatta director Michael Gordon puts in to ensure we are not too few in number.
The volunteers, of course, invariably have much more fun, and a great deal more satisfaction than the hoi polloi. So in asking folk for their assistance, the regatta organisers should feel they are distributing largesse.
The reality: it is something of an imposition because we all have busy lives and other responsibilities. And the families of the stalwarts do tend to take a back seat—family regatta picnics where the absence of said stalwart can wear thin, year after year.
Because, while it is ‘just one day’, it is Mahurangi’s big day, and serving prolonged watch on a hot and sandy finishing line, or in ‘Catering Corps’, can leave bruises, and a certain reticence to emulate the irrepressible Lance Corporal Jones, next year.
Venerable roll of volunteer roles
The morning before
Friday 25 January, Scotts Landing
- 1
- Gatekeeper 10.00 a.m.(this role is ongoing, comes with prime accommodation, and can be shared)
- 2
- Homesteaders (if the gatekeeper role is prime, then this is sublime and includes overnight accommodation) [one to hand]
The afternoon before
Friday 25 January, Scotts Landing
- 1
- Electrician [filled]
The afternoon before
Friday 25 January, Sullivans Bay
- 4
- Small marquee erectors 3.00 p.m. [one to hand]
- 2
- Buoy-Layers [filled]
The morning of
Saturday 26 January, Sullivans Bay
- 1
- Information & Publications, dispensing of, from the comfort of the small marqee)
- 1
- Tractor Ground Crew
- 1
- Announcer [filled]
- 2
- Starters [filled]
- 4
- Finishers
- 2
- Dispatch Runners
- 1
- Master of the Mahurangi, entries for, measuring) [filled]
The afternoon of
Saturday 26 January, Sullivans Bay
- 1
- Information & Publications [filled]
- 1
- Announcer [filled]
- 2
- Starters [filled]
- 4
- Finishers
- 5
- Sandcastle Supervisors [filled]
- 2
- Sandcastle Judge [filled]
- 2
- Dispatch Runners
- 1
- Master of the Mahurangi Boatswain [filled]
- 1
- Tug of War Boatswain [filled]
The evening of
Saturday 26 January, Scotts Landing
- 1
- Minibus Driver
- 6
- Bar Tenders [five to hand]
- 2
- Bottle Scouts, can be small and fleet of foot
- 8
- Cooks & Galley Hands [seven to hand]
- 1
- Janitor
The morning after
Sunday 27 January, Scotts Landing
- 8
- Cleanup [three to hand]