Racing vs Crewing

I was crewing at the WA 3/6/12 Hr Track Challenge yesterday. Made me want to compare racing to crewing to see what's better:

Crewing:
-run 400 x 8 mtr sprint sessions over 12 hrs. Hmmm....I've never read 8 mtr intervals recommended by Mona, Lydiard, and co.

Racing:
-run steady, burning megadoses of calories all day

Crewing:
-get sunburnt in blotches like behind the knees and the 1 inch line between where my shorts end and my shirt rides up my back while bending over to find the racer's sunscreen in his bag

Racing:
-have someone apply and reapply sunscreen to me at 3 hr intervals (i.e., my crew) according to a detailed written schedule

Crewing:
-starve for 3 hrs then cram an entire pizza slice into my mouth in one bite, while trying to pour Perpetuem into a hand-held for my runner

Racing:
-have someone feed me at regular 15 minute intervals (i.e., crew) according to a detailed written schedule

Crewing:
-overtax my working memory, trying to hold in mind two racers' needs and instructions ("Can you get me my water bottle and a yoghurt in 3 laps?" "How many kms is that?" "I'll change my shirt in two laps, when I come in at the same time as you're trying to mix Perpetuem and apply sunscreen to the other guy")

Racing:
-maintain a blissful mindlessness while having people hand me things whenever the urge strikes me to request something

Crewing:
-finish the event, then help the race director clean up

Racing:
-finish the event, then continue to space out while everyone else cleans up

No maths necessary. Racing is definitely easier than crewing.

Naturally, I'm being a bit tongue-in-cheek, because I had two of the most easy going racers to attend to, despite the fact that they both went through some real low patches over 12 hours in the heat. I saw another racer yell at his crew and throw his bottle across the track.

So, would I change a thing about yesterday? No way. The two guys I crewed both did PBs over last year. One by 8 kms (which means a lot when you're at the pointy end) and one by a massive 14k, breaking the 100k barrier nicely.

My medal's invisible, but I know it's on my mantle and it's one of my most precious.


These photos were from the 3 hr turnaround - first Nathan the RD demonstrated how to be a bollard and then I took a turn, taking the opportunity to do my one legged glute squats at the same time.