so i finally got activated for a real event last weekend, been doing the monthly nets and training exercises for about 8 months now and this was the first time i got called up for an actual served agency thing. it was for a half marathon the county runs every spring and our EC assigned me to a water station about 4 miles out from the start line.

honestly i wasnt sure what to do with myself for the first hour. i had my HT, the assigned simplex frequency on the event repeater, my ICS form stuff, my go bag, but like... nobody was really calling me. i kept checking in on the net but mostly it was quiet. then around mile 3 a runner went down with what looked like heat exhaustion and i had to relay info to the medical coordinator and that was when it actually clicked why we do all this. got the info passed clean, EMS was staged nearby and it went smooth.

i guess my question is, is that pretty typical for ARES events? a lot of waiting with small bursts of actual activity? also wondering if anyone has tips for staying sharp when nothing is happening for long stretches. i found myself zoning out a bit and felt bad about it afterward even though everything turned out fine.

yeah that's basically exactly what most activations are like, 95% boredom and 5% suddenly you really matter. the waiting is part of the job honestly. i've worked everything from marathons to county EOC activations during flooding and it's almost always hurry-up-and-wait until it isn't. the runner situation you described is a textbook reason why trained operators beat untrained volunteers every time — you kept your head and passed clean traffic under a little pressure, that's the whole point.

for staying sharp i usually bring a small notebook and just log everything even when nothing is happening. timestamp every check-in, note the weather, note runner counts if they're being relayed, whatever. it keeps your brain in the radio mindset instead of drifting off. some guys bring a book but i find that makes me slower to respond when something does happen. your EC might also have tips specific to your group, worth asking after a debrief.

congrats on the first activation, that runner situation sounds like it went exactly right. i remember my first one was a bike race and i stood in a field for 6 hours and literally nothing happened but i was completely exhausted afterward just from the mental alertness of waiting, which surprised me. the logging tip above is good, i do the same thing now. also making sure your battery situation is solid before a long event helps a lot, nothing worse than watching your HT drain and not having a spare when youre 4 miles from anyone.