Volunteers keep race rolling

The Highland Rim Cycling Classic is one of the premier events in Warren County every year, bringing in considerable revenues, generating regional attention and increasing tourism, all of which are important to our community.

But while the racers on their fleet machines are the most visible aspect of the competition, it?s the volunteers behind the scenes who make it all happen. Race organizers are understandably proud of the number of racers who arrive each year, usually around 400, but most people probably aren?t aware that volunteers number in the hundreds as well.

?We have over 300 volunteers here today,? said interim Chamber of Commerce president Susan Barrett. ?They come from all over, Tullahoma, Van Buren and Sequatchie counties, and of course right here in Warren County. And they come from a variety of local services, Emergency Management Services, the ambulance service, the city of McMinnville and Warren County government. We have the motorcyclists who follow and monitor the racers, the trucks that haul the spare tires, the volunteers who handle registration, the race officials, they all have their jobs to do and they do them well.?

Barrett says many of these individuals have been amazingly faithful volunteers.

?A lot of them have been here all 16 years,? Barrett said. ?We really appreciate them and the work they have done over the years to make the Highland Rim Cycling Classic a success. They are the ones who really make this happen. We couldn?t do it without them.?