Diamond Cup Aftermath

From the comments on Huckleberries and the Scott Maben story in the Spokesman-Review, it appears that more things went right than wrong. I was pleased that the perception was a good job well done. Considering this was a first try, I actually didn't think it would go that well. I suppose that springs from being on the inside where one sees all of the warts.

The area I worked on pretty much exclusively during the week leading up to the race was community relations, primarily with those homeowners and guests living on Lakeshore Drive or roads leading up the hill from it. I know there was a great anxiety from some of these folks as to the potential disruption it would cause them. We haven't heard from them yet, so I will still hold my breath as I was responsible for limiting their discomfort. A great deal of effort went into the attempt to see that residents and their guests were not inconvenienced any more than necessary.

If I have one recommendation for next year it would be to schedule the race the week prior to Labor Day, as their were much more group activities in the private home area than was anticipated. Hopefully, everyone got to where they were going without too much stress.

Also, our typical weather patterns have abrupt changes just before, just after or during the Labor Day weekend. This year, we missed a week filled with thunder storms and rain by one day. This year we needed all the time we could get. Next year it will luck not good planning.

From log boom reports it appears that people were willing to walk long distances to get where they wanted to sit. That also was a concern of mine, but with only one lane of traffic and that flagged as one-way, it was deemed to difficult to take the large buses into the course without  a decent turnaround place to get back out.

I regret that I wasn't there to witness the fruits of my and other's labor in the months preceding the race. Most of the confusion could not be helped. The period between financing being assured and the race was too short. Next year that shouldn't be an issue. I was ill most of the week-end, most likely from stress.