Giving Back: Why Emma Swapped Her Race Plate for a Volunteer Vest

Most people know Emma Cooper as a competitor and a Rotorua local.

She's the one standing on the start line, chasing her own finish line and appreciating every cheer from the sidelines. Last year, though, she saw Whaka100 from a completely different perspective. Instead of pinning on a race number, she put on a Holland Beckett​ volunteer vest. "This was actually my first time volunteering," Emma says.

"Usually I'm a competitor at events, but when I saw the call for volunteers, I thought it would be a fun way to give something back."

For Emma, the decision was easy. Having raced enough events herself, she already knew how important volunteers are. "I know first hand that events are only as good as the volunteers."

"They're the people who give you that little boost to keep going. They remind you how well you're doing when you're starting to doubt yourself. They're invaluable."

​She wanted to be one of those people, to keep the smiles going, to experience the event from the crew's perspective, to meet like-minded people, and maybe, just maybe, become part of something she'd return to again.

Looking After the Riders... and Being Looked After
Emma volunteered as a TEC rider, riding almost 48 kilometres across the Shimano Whaka100 course, supporting participants and helping wherever she was needed.

Ironically, it was Emma who needed a little help along the way. During her first section she pinched her tyre, leaving herself stranded with a flat. Within moments she was picked up and taken back to event headquarters, where the team at Stan's quickly repaired her wheel and got her back out on course. "It felt so nice to know that people were willing to go the extra mile for the volunteers to keep us going."

Later in the day, after plenty of kilometres in the legs, she found herself grinding up Moerangi Hill Road.

"My legs were pretty cooked." The sweeper riding behind noticed and handed her a packet of caffeine gummies. A few minutes later, an event ute pulled alongside. "I asked if they could drive slowly." The two young crew members looked slightly confused until Emma rested her hand on the passenger window, one hand on the ute, one hand on the handlebars for a gentle tow up the hill. "The passenger put his hand on my back and off we went," she laughs. "I rode the last 500 metres into Timewarp on slightly fresher legs."

The Moments That Matter
Ask Emma about her favourite memory from the weekend, though, and it isn't about bikes or flat tyres; it's about people watching a young boy cross the finish line with his dad before proudly placing his 5km finisher's medal around his father's neck. "It was such a special moment." Those are the memories volunteers get to witness, the ones riders often don't even realise are happening around them.

​Giving Back
The Whaka100 relies on hundreds of Holland Beckkett volunteers every year, with some marshalling intersections, some handing out nutrition, some riding the course, and others welcoming riders at registration, all coming together to create the atmosphere that so many participants remember long after race weekend; for Emma, volunteering wasn't about giving something up, it was about giving something back, and after experiencing Whaka100 from the other side of the barriers, it's safe to say it won't be her last time wearing the volunteer vest.

Learn more about volunteering at the Whaka100 here.

About Holland Beckett
Our mountain bike mates at Holland Beckett didn’t have to be asked twice to come on board as the official Whaka 100 Community Partner. A full-service law firm based in the Bay of Plenty and established in 1937, Holland Beckett is a familiar local name with a reputation for being dynamic and innovative. Their support of the Whaka 100 volunteers is a natural fit for a firm so deeply connected to the community. Visit them at hobec.co.nz