BUSSELTON FESTIVAL OF TRIATHLON ON THE INSIDE
EVENTS CAPITAL
Volunteers are the lifeblood of Australian sport. From the Mum’s and Dad’s manning the canteen at an U9’s game, to the 45,000 who ensured the Sydney Olympics went off without a hitch, volunteers are the glue that binds sporting clubs, associations and events together – as is the case with the Busselton Festival of Triathlon. In this special feature, SportXchange gained some insight into the increasing importance of the ‘Busso Half’ to the region before tracking down a few of the volunteers that play such a vital role in making the event one of the best in the state for competitors and spectators alike.
Now on his second stint as a Busselton local, shire events manager Shane Walsh has seen the town evolve from a quiet small town to the thriving events capital of the region. “The city two years ago had a vision of being the events capital of regional WA, so that’s the tag, that’s the focus,” he said. The council have put their money where their mouth is, with a 2% increase in commercial rates instituted to supplement the funding needed to build the cities brand. That creates an extra $800,000 per annum that Shane says goes straight back into promoting and sponsoring existing events, as well as striving to attract new events to the surrounding regions. While the Half-Ironman and Ironman are still the flagship events of the area, the council has been working hard to expand its portfolio. “The focus has been to attract more cultural events because we have got a good stable of sporting events and also more events out at Dunsborough, Yallingup and the broader Capes region,” he said. “This initiative has led to a 20% increase in our total expenditure.”
“IF YOU PUT AN ADVERTISEMENT ON GWN, ON WIN IN PARTICULAR, THEN WORKERS SEE IT IN THEIR DONGAS UP NORTH AND THINK: ‘OKAY THAT’S ON NEXT WEEKEND, WHEN I’M HOME I’LL TAKE THE KIDS.’”
MARKETING The town and surrounding district relies heavily on tourism, and one of the key strategies has been attempting to provide events all year round to help fill the town’s 13,000 beds with visitors. “The event strategy was to fill the shoulder period during winter (May through to August), but we’re filling every month now,” he said. “We’ve gone from 44 to 77 yearly events. We’ve still got a five week gap halfway through June to the end of July but we’re working with two or three organisers for winter events like off-road cycling.” Shane Walsh said the region now has a 60-40 split between arts or cultural events and sport. Concerts have been an increasing focus, with the Festival of Busselton attracting big-name acts like Darryl Braithwaite and Mental As Anything. The Cinefest Oz film festival is also a rapidly growing event, with sales jumping from 11,000 to 15,000 in the last year. But the big sporting festivals are still the hallmark events of the calendar, providing a massive boost to the region’s economy. “The 70.3 Ironman figures demonstrated a $10.9 million economic impact, which is probably slightly above the Ironman,” he said.
Signature events like the Busselton Festival of Triathlon require a comprehensive marketing plan, with the council having developed a multifaceted strategy. Sponsorship money is preferably invested in media advertising, including local TV stations GWN and WIN. The council offers a discounted rate for events to maintain a signage presence on the big events board located on the road leading into town. Shane also liaises closely with the two local papers, ensuring constant column inches for events. “I will call the papers and get them to alternate,” he said. “We work with them to go do a shoot and talk to the next event organiser. Every week there’s about two articles on events in the papers on the Wednesday and Friday.” The town also collaborates with Margaret River and Bunbury on mutually beneficial projects to boost tourism in the region. Busselton is developing a new website in partnership with the tourist associations of Augusta/Margaret River and Geographe Bay which will be a boon to event marketing in the region.
As expected technology such as this has unique advantages over more traditional techniques, and with the rapidly growing event calendar subject to regular changes the website will enable organisers to keep information up-to-date on a daily basis. “We create an annual printed calendar that comes out in November but within a week it’s outdated because we’ve got a new event. Going forward we’ll have a new event tourism website where everyone will be able to go to the one place,” he said. Generating tourism is just one benefit of events, as they also directly impact on the local community. Shane Walsh said one of the objectives of TV advertising was to reach-out to the 600 FIFO families from the region. “If you put an advertisement on GWN, on WIN in particular, then workers see it in their dongas up north and think: ‘Okay that’s on next weekend, when I’m home I’ll take the kids,’” he said.
“WITH ALL THESE NEW RUNNING EVENTS ON THE CALENDAR WE NEED A HUNDRED MORE VOLUNTEERS. IT’S REALLY IMPORTANT TO MAKE THEM FEEL SPECIAL, AND TO REWARD AND RECOGNIZE THEM ACCORDINGLY.”
PREPARATION AND VOLUNTEERS
Shane Walsh
Inevitably hosting large-scale events leads to a lot of bureaucratic red tape, but Shane Walsh says the council are constantly endeavouring to keep the paperwork to an absolute minimum. “We’ve tried to streamline the process wherever we can,” he said. “Organizers can tick the boxes on the initial application form and from that we know what else needs to be sent out. The next task is to link everything to our website so it can be done online, while at the same time reducing the total number of forms that go out to make life easier for organisers.” Once the applications are in the hard work behind the scenes begins, something that few notice but is integral to ensuring an event goes off without a hitch. With the paperwork out of the way the build-up for an event like the 70.3 can begin in earnest both to beautify the city as well as making the stage safe for competitors. Roads need to be maintained and cleared of any storm damage, forest paths cleared and seaweed removed from beaches. Public bins and toilets need to be attended to, and considerable planning is put in place to safely cater for the expected crowds. “There are about eight or nine areas throughout the city that are involved in the event so we have monthly meetings to make sure we’ve got it all covered,” Shane said.
“We’ve got to showcase the town as well, you want people to stay a few extra days - if they’ve come over for the event from the east or overseas, you want them to tour the area, see the wineries and the jetty.” This build-up work falls largely to a few dozen personnel from various departments, but there is also a large community involvement from volunteers, particularly during the actual event. The 70.3 has over 600 people volunteering and Shane said they were an important part of the regions events culture. “When that one hour TV special came out afterwards, there were a lot of comments on the volunteers and how friendly they are, how helpful and how they really help promote the town.” “With all these new running events on the calendar we need a hundred more volunteers. It’s really important to make them feel special, and to reward and recognize them accordingly.” Volunteers are actively sourced locally in an effort to ensure residents are kept involved and to give them a sense of ownership in the events. Shane said the area already had a very strong volunteer culture, but that the council was at pains to ensure organisers didn’t take them for granted. “We are encouraging event organisers to really look after their volunteers by providing better communication
in some areas. Locals often put their hand up to work four hours and then they rock up at registration and are told ‘oh we’ve got you down for eight.’” “The Ironman last year celebrated its 10th anniversary, so everyone who’s worked 10 straight received a 10 year pin and an invitation to a function – to make it a special one for the volunteers.” An often overlooked benefit of community involvement with events like the 70.3 was the spreading of the healthy lifestyle message. Shane said young kids were often inspired to start training around the 13-14 year age group and were able to compete in the half marathon by the time they were 18-21. Even for non-competitors there was a flow-on effect encouraging the population to take up running or jogging. “It makes it vibrant,” he said. “It makes it a healthier town.”
We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give. WINSTON CHURCHILL
“YOU COME HOME ON A HIGH HAVING SPENT THE DAY WITH THEM - LOOKING AT THEM AT THE START AND THEN HOW HAPPY THEY ARE AT THE END TO HAVE COMPLETED IT.”
KELLIE HAUNOLD Kellie Haunold has volunteered during the Ironman for each of the four years she has lived in Busselton, and for the last three in the 70.3. “When the first Ironman came around that I was in town for, they were calling for volunteers - I had nothing better to do and it morphed from there,” she said. At last year’s 70.3 she had the role of volunteer coordinator, which meant being on call to assist with the event wherever needed. “I manned the volunteer tent for a while, which is the central point for people who have any queries. I also helped out in the transition tent and the cross-over barrier position. From there I covered lunch relief for a few of the bike marshals by pointing people in the right direction and then did the transition between the bike and run legs.” It’s a long day for volunteers like Kellie, arriving onsite at 4.30am with no guarantee when the day will end. “It finishes when it finishes,” she laughed. “The 70.3 is an earlier finish day, so I think I snuck off at around 4.30pm. They are long days… but fun days.”
Kellie said the inspiration she received from competitors was the secret behind her motivation for volunteering. “You come home on a high having spent the day with them - looking at them at the start and then how happy they are at the end to have completed it,” she said. “One day I aspire to do something like that but I couldn’t tell you the last time I even exercised, so I think that’s a pipe dream. But they’re inspirational people to be able to do that.” The thanks and gratitude from competitors stumbling across the line was a great source of pleasure to a volunteer like her, she revealed. “It’s probably a bit dumb, because I own and run a business as well, and have my own kids and stuff, but I don’t know… it’s addictive.” The nature of her business dictates that she doesn’t receive much of a boost from events like the 70.3 or Ironman, although Kellie is very much in step with the council in endorsing the benefits the event bring to the area.
“I think it’s very important for the town - the accommodation providers, the small shops, the tourist providers - it has a huge impact,” she said. Business commitments mean she is unable to volunteer for many events on top of the 70.3 and Ironman, but she said she believed locals should endeavour to help out wherever possible. “I think more people should, and it’s really disappointing that we have so many people in this town who don’t. At most it’s a day of your time.” She said the gratitude from competitors towards the volunteers facilitating the events made any sacrifices worthwhile. “Last year at the 70.3 registration there was bad weather and a crash on the freeway heading south towards Busselton. Check-in was scheduled to close at 7pm but a lot of people hadn’t checked in with some volunteers complaining because they aren’t getting paid and they had to stay longer. But then you look at the people that are still in line and see how grateful they are that you’ve stayed around for them so they can actually register and do the race.”
VICKY DAWSON Vicky Dawson’s involvement with the 70.3 dates back to her days as an advertising executive at the Busselton Dunsborough Times, when she handled the print media sponsorship for the event. Now with her own social media company, she runs the Busselton and Triathlon WA sites Facebook and Instagram pages. This makes her the go-to person locally for social media around the event. Vicky said running the Tri WA social media was a big job. “I do two posts a day, seven days a week. During the world champs in London last year, I was doing three or four posts whenever updates come through. It’s a huge commitment.” She said one of her aims for the 70.3 was to expand the amount of volunteers and get more local organisations involved. “I really want to build the number of volunteers by getting more community groups involved, you know like a footy team getting a group of volunteers together, and expand it out that little bit more instead of it just being about the same individuals.” “The locals love it being here because it brings in the tourists, but I think the community could do more to get greater benefit from the event.”
“THAT’S WHAT I WANT OTHER PEOPLE TO GET THE FEELING OF. NOT THAT IT’S A DRAIN TO BE ON BOARD BUT THAT IT’S A REALLY GOOD THING, ALMOST A PRIVILEGE YOU KNOW, TO BE A PART OF A PREMIER EVENT DOWN HERE.”
Vicky said the 70.3 being held in May meant it faced more challenges than the Ironman whose December date better aligned with the already busy tourist period, and that the more that could be done to promote it as an all-encompassing festival the better. She said the 70.3 provided an important role attracting people to the sport, particularly the next generation of kids, due to the more achievable distances for those just starting out. “If people like the Ironman that’s great, but the half is that perfect stepping stone to get them there,” she said. The team aspect was ripe for promotion she said, and the rise of social media meant they could encourage crowd involvement in the future. “That’s something I really want to look at, just making sure those teams have got support. Like the cheer squads that we have - putting that focus on the people that come out dressed to support.” “Social media is great for the little things and we proved that last year. Ash (Ashleigh Davis) from Tri (Triathlon) WA put together a pack with a DVD, a bag, a hat and a drink bottle and we posted a photo on Facebook for a 24-hour competition blitz with the last comment winning. Within seven hours, we had 383 comments, and 3,000 people who had seen the post
because they just wanted to fight to win the goodie bag. Every couple of months that’s the kind of thing you’ve got to do to draw people back again and again.” Vicky said her involvement was inspired by the desire to show her kids all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes of sporting clubs and events such as the Busselton Festival of Triathlon. “My little nine year old has done it for four years now - she was five when she did her first one,” she said. “My older girls are both soccer players and everything revolves around the game, so I just wanted to show them that it takes so much for them to get to where they are - whether it be someone else in the backroom doing all their registrations and stuff… to pitches getting set up… “So I wanted to show them that they needed to give something back. And they love it. They love both events.” For people who had never been involved before, she stressed that volunteering was far from a chore, instead it was something she felt lucky to be part of. “That’s what I want other people to get the feeling of. Not that it’s a drain to be on board but that it’s a really good thing, almost a privilege you know, to be a part of a premier event down here.” Vicky Dawson
”I HAVE BEEN ON THE RECEIVING END OF VOLUNTEER ASSISTANCE IN EVENTS THAT I HAVE PARTICIPATED IN AND THEREFORE I AM MORE THAN HAPPY TO GIVE BACK IN THIS WAY TO MY COMMUNITY.”
KATHY ATKINSON Kathy Atkinson has been involved in the Ironman and 70.3 for nearly a decade, both as a sponsor and as a volunteer. “It has a great atmosphere and a real sense of community. Everyone is excited, especially the athletes once they have crossed the finish line. In the past I have assisted at the finish line handing out the medals, but now I am involved in manning the recovery tent and I enjoy that just as much. It means you can be with other like minded volunteers and it is a fun day for us as well as the athletes. It has a relaxed feel about it.” Kathy said. “One perk of manning the recovery tent is that the volunteers only have to start at about 10am to ensure everything is ready for when the competitors finish. We have a rotation of about 20 volunteers and we stock the station with muffins, fruit and soft drink to make sure there is something that will satisfy the athletes once they have crossed the finish line”. Kathy said, “Because the half probably has more of a contingent of first time triathletes, it tends to be a little more relaxed than the full ironman event. You probably get a chance to have more of a chat with the athletes after they have had a moment to catch their breath and have a snack and a drink. They are keen to share their experience and we are more than happy to
applaud their efforts. As someone who has participated in like minded events in the past, I know how much work and effort is involved in putting these events together. I have been on the receiving end of volunteer assistance in events that I have participated in and therefore I am more than happy to give back in this way to my community. Apart from ensuring the athlete’s day out is a success, myself and the other recovery tent volunteers have a great day ourselves. It’s fun! We even have a group of us now that have helped out at successive events – we have nominated ourselves as the muffin bitches! I think we definitely have more fun than some of the participants themselves.”
“THE ATHLETES ARE DOING THIS RIDICULOUS THING TO THEIR BODIES AND THEY ARE THANKING US! THE KIDS LOVES THE FEEDBACK AS WELL”
TREVOR FELLOWS AND JO COMFORT Jo has worked on the drink stations the last four or five years with her daughters, and was another who got involved in volunteering for the benefits it could provide her children. “I wanted them to do something community based,” she said. Trevor joined them for the first time last year after being coerced into it. “He didn’t really have a choice,” Jo smiles. The drink stations are a focal point of interaction between volunteers and competitors with Trevor tasked with preparing the watermelon slices, ice, water and any other supplies the competitors may need to provide them with the energy on the go they need. Being in the thick of the action is a whole different ball game to the more relaxed atmosphere in the recovery tents after the race. “At the point that we see the elite athletes, they’re under real pressure,” Trevor said. “If they’re running they don’t want to slow down, so you’ve got to go with them so you don’t miss them.” “Its all a bit fraught and you’ve got to get things right
which is fine. You know that three seconds down the track they’ve forgotten it,” Trevor said. Volunteers at the drink stations quickly learn the tricks of the trade for the elite competitors in particular - holding the cups a certain way, running alongside and not letting your pace drop until the handover is complete. “If you slow down they quickly let you know,” Jo said. Once the frontrunners have passed through things get more relaxed for the rest of the day. “Then you get the real people,” Jo said. “They’re the fun ones.” Manning the drink stations is by no means a thankless task, and Trevor echoes reports from other volunteers of the gratitude shown by competitors. “They’re very grateful to us, which is a bit bizarre,” Jo said. “They’re going this ridiculous thing and then at the end of it they’re like ‘oh thank you so much’. The kids really like that as well.” Despite the high-pressure environment early on both agree volunteering provides a worthwhile experience
for the children. The positive affirmations and constant thanks from competitors provide great reinforcement for the kids, according to Trevor. “And it also shows them what people can do as well, how they push themselves, what they will do for their sport,” he said. No better illustrated by an incident where a competitor was forced to squat and answer the call to nature right in front of bemused onlookers, before racing off in an attempt to avoid losing too much time. “It gave the kids an idea of what people will do for their passion,” Trevor laughed. Being involved for the first time last year, Trevor said it was staggering the amount of behind the scenes work involved, testifying to the important role the volunteers play. “It is an eye opener,” he admitted. “Not just with the athlete side of things, but also for the logistics of how it all comes together. There’s just so much organisation, that kind of blew me away a little bit, that everything was so well organised, and if it wasn’t it would’ve been a whole different experience.”
www.triwa.org.au www.busseltonfestivaloftriathlon.com.au
www.sportxchange.com.au On the Inside is published by the SportXchange Project in association with Triathlon WA. Written by Stu Williams, Luke Everitt and Jordan Slight. All images, Imagexchange. (April 2014)