Equipped with whistles and flags, more than 100 paddlers arrive before sunrise to find their place among the buoys. They are there to support the swimmers along Chattanooga Ironman’s 2.4-mile open-water course – aid that is often critical.
“Triathletes are often bikers and runners. Not swimmers,” says Buck Meyer, who has coordinated the volunteer efforts since Chattanooga’s inaugural Ironman event in 2014. “A lot of athletes just want to survive the swim so they can move on to the rest of the race.”
While biking or running, fatigued athletes can stop and sit down if needed. “But on the water, your kayak is the only ‘curb’ they have,” Meyer says. “They may just need to catch their breath or fix their goggles.”
He remembers once helping turn around a disoriented swimmer who was going the wrong direction. Another time, he helped a swimmer work out a foot cramp after the man flung his leg into Meyer’s cockpit. “I was pulling on his toes, trying to help him straighten his foot,” says Meyer. “He finished the race that day.”
But more critical support may be needed.