Berkeley Omnium volunteer roles

Course setup

Put the course in place before the first field rolls out: cones, signs, course equipment and the areas racers check in at.

When

Race morning

Days

Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Physical

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Depends on your race

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• At the road race, set out signs and cones at the junctions and park entrances around the 18.76-mile Three Bears loop. The 2024 set-up plan used Caution Bike Race and Flagman Ahead signs, barricades and a lot of cones.
• At the criterium, help get the four-corner course beside Ohlone Park ready, from the start/finish on Hearst Avenue to the corners.
• Put up the registration and results areas: tables, canopies and whatever else needs carrying.

Who it suits

Early risers · People who like hands-on work · Racers with a later start

Why it matters

The first race can't start until the course is ready. A setup crew that's on time keeps the whole day on schedule.

What to expect

An early start and a lot of carrying. The course comes together fast once everyone's moving, and by the time racers roll up it looks like it was always there.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Criterium fields started from 7:30 a.m. to 5:05 p.m. in the most recent edition, so a morning setup shift can fit before a later race. Road race fields all stage between 8:00 a.m. and 8:30 a.m., so setup on Saturday suits people racing only on Sunday.

Course marshal

Stand at an assigned spot where the course meets everyone else, watch for the race and help keep people out of its way.

When

During racing

Days

Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Depends on your race

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Go to your assigned spot: a junction, a driveway, a park entrance or a pedestrian crossing.
• Watch for the race and let drivers, people walking and spectators nearby know it's coming.
• Keep spectators off the road at the road race and behind the barriers at the criterium.
• At the criterium, help people cross the course only at the marked crossings, when it's clear.
• Report anything that could put riders at risk, like a crash, debris or a car on course, the way your instructions tell you to.

Who it suits

Anyone who wants to watch the race up close · People who stay alert for a few hours outdoors · Teams that can cover a stretch of course

Why it matters

The club put it simply after 2026: course marshals keep riders safe at critical turns. Racers commit to a corner at full speed trusting that someone is watching it.

What to expect

You'll know your spot and what to do there before racing starts, and you stay there while the races run. Marshals aren't police; at the road race, the 2024 plan put California Highway Patrol officers at the main junctions. And you'll see the race. At the criterium the field comes past your corner every couple of minutes.

What you get

Your marshal spot and instructions for it.

Racing too? Racing only Sunday? Marshal Saturday's road race. At the criterium, ask for a marshal spot during the races before or after yours.

Registration

Check racers in, get them their numbers and point them to wherever they need to be next.

When

Race morning, During racing

Days

Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Lots of people

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Check racers in at the registration table.
• Hand racers their numbers.
• Help racers entering on the day get through the paperwork.
• Answer the questions every racer asks: where's staging, where are the toilets, when does my field go.
• Keep the line moving when every field shows up at once.

Who it suits

Friendly, organized people · Anyone who'd rather not lift things · Racers volunteering outside their own race window

Why it matters

Every racer passes your table before they race. After 2026 the club singled out registration teams for getting hundreds of racers checked in smoothly.

What to expect

Anyone who has raced knows the scene. Everyone shows up at once, someone can't find their license, someone doesn't know where staging is, and someone has five minutes until their start. At the road race, registration opened at 7:00 a.m. at Orinda BART in the most recent edition, and the rush is short and intense. At the criterium, check-in opened at 6:50 a.m. and stays busy all day.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Criterium check-in stays open through the day, closing 15 minutes before each race, so you can work a shift that ends well before your start or begins after your race.

Results and timing

Help the results team keep track of every racer and get results out, working alongside the race officials.

When

During racing, After racing

Days

Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium, After racing

Experience

Experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Depends on your race

Teams and groups

Better solo

First-time volunteers

Better with experience

What you'll do

• Help enter and check racer information in the results system.
• Support timing and results while races are running.
• Send racers with results questions to the right person.

Who it suits

People who understand how bike races are scored · Detail people · Anyone who likes working behind the scenes

Why it matters

Racers want to know where they finished, and Omnium standings add up results from both days. The club credits its results teams with handling hundreds of racer entries while managing results and timing.

What to expect

Focused table work, usually under a canopy, while the races run. Placings are the race officials' decision: you help the results team handle the information, and the officials make the calls.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Results work keeps you busy while races run, so it fits best on the day you aren't racing.

Prizes and podiums

Sort the prizes, keep track of which places get what and help get them to the right racers.

When

During racing, After racing

Days

Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium, After racing

Experience

Helps to understand racing

Physical

Light

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Better solo

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Sort sponsor prizes by race and place before the podiums start.
• Keep the list of which prizes go to which places in which fields.
• Help podiums run on time by having the right racers and prizes ready.

Who it suits

Organized people · Anyone who likes a checklist · Racers who stay for podiums

Why it matters

In 2026 the Pro/1/2 fields raced for $10,000 in cash, and the other prizes were sponsor merchandise. That's a lot of product to match to the right racers across both days.

What to expect

Boxes, lists and a podium that needs the right people standing on it. At the road race, that's the podium Expert Tree Service built.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Podiums happen after racing. If you're staying for yours anyway, this fits.

Volunteer food

Plan the food and water for the volunteer crews, then get it to them on race day.

When

Before race weekend, Race morning, During racing

Days

Before race weekend, Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Moderate

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Depends on your race

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Help work out how much food and water the volunteer crews need, and when.
• Pick up the food and set it out for volunteers.
• Take food and water to volunteers who can't leave their spots, like marshals and the feed zone crew.

Who it suits

Organized people who like looking after others · Anyone with a car and a free race day · Friends and family of racers

Why it matters

Marshals and the feed zone crew stay at their spots while the races run, and at the road race they're spread around a 18.76-mile loop. Food and water at the right moment keep a long day going.

What to expect

Some planning before race weekend, then a lot of moving around on race day. Every volunteer you reach is glad to see you.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Deliveries happen while races run, so this fits the day you aren't racing, or the hours around your start at the criterium.

Food vendor coordination

Line up the food trucks and vendors that feed racers and spectators, and help them get set up on race day.

When

Weeks before, Race morning

Days

Before race weekend, Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Better solo

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Find and confirm food trucks or vendors for each race.
• Send vendors what they need to know ahead of time: when to arrive, where to set up and when racing runs.
• Meet vendors on race morning and show them their spot.
• Be the person a vendor calls if something comes up.

Who it suits

People who know the local food scene · Organized planners · Anyone who likes working the phone

Why it matters

Racers arrive early and hungry, and families stay for hours. In the most recent edition the road race had a food truck at Race HQ from 9:00 a.m., selling burritos, tacos and drinks.

What to expect

Calls and emails in the weeks before race weekend, then an early start on race morning getting vendors in place before the crowds arrive.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Most of the work happens before race weekend, so it rarely clashes with your race.

Photographer

Photograph race weekend: the racing, and the people and work that make it happen.

When

Race morning, During racing, After racing

Days

Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium, After racing

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Moderate

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Depends on your race

Teams and groups

Better solo

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Shoot the racing, from the climbs at the road race to the corners at the criterium.
• Get the pictures nobody else takes: a first-time racer pinning on a number, a junior warming up, a marshal at an intersection, kids at the skills clinic, volunteers loading the truck, teams hanging around after racing.
• Cover the podiums, sponsors and the crowd.

Who it suits

Photographers of any level who can handle moving subjects · People who notice the small moments

Why it matters

Photos of the P/1/2 attacks are great. The ones that show the whole weekend, from first-timers and juniors to the people running it, are how most people see what the Berkeley Omnium is.

What to expect

You pick your spots, but you follow the same rules as everyone else: off the road at the road race, behind the barriers at the criterium. Ask us before photographing kids at the clinic and kids race, and about how to send photos and how they'll be used.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Racing one day? Shoot the other.

Videographer

Film race weekend for short videos and reels: the racing, and the people and work around it.

When

Race morning, During racing, After racing

Days

Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium, After racing

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Moderate

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Depends on your race

Teams and groups

Better solo

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Film the racing: attacks on the climbs at the road race, corners and sprints at the criterium.
• Get the clips that tell the rest of the story: registration on race morning, a marshal's view, the kids race, the truck getting loaded.
• Grab short reactions from racers and volunteers who are happy to talk.
• Share your footage for race recaps and social posts.

Who it suits

Anyone who shoots video, on a phone or a proper camera · People who like editing short clips

Why it matters

Short videos are how a lot of people first see the Berkeley Omnium, like the 2026 reels from the kids clinic and kids race.

What to expect

You pick your spots, but you follow the same rules as everyone else: off the road at the road race, behind the barriers at the criterium. Ask us before filming kids at the clinic and kids race, and about how to send footage and how it'll be used.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Racing one day? Film the other.

Course teardown

Take the course back down after the last race and get everything back in the truck.

When

After racing

Days

Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium, After racing

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Physical

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Collect the signs and cones from around the course.
• Take down the start/finish, registration and results areas, from tables to canopies.
• At the criterium, help clear the course so the streets can reopen.
• Load everything back into the truck.

Who it suits

Racers who've finished for the day · Teams · Anyone happy to lift and carry

Why it matters

The race isn't finished for the organizers until the course is gone. Signs come down, streets reopen and every piece of equipment goes back in the truck before anyone heads home.

What to expect

Physical work at the end of a long day. It goes fastest with a lot of hands, which is why teams are so useful here.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Finished your race and hanging around for podiums anyway? Teardown is one of the easiest ways to give us a hand.

Course cleanup

Pick up what a race leaves behind so the course and venue look the way we found them.

When

After racing

Days

Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium, After racing

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Moderate

People

Mostly on your own

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Walk the course and venue picking up trash, dropped bottles, gel wrappers, zip ties and tape.
• Check the registration, finish and feed areas once they're packed up.
• Get it all bagged and into the right bins.

Who it suits

Anyone who can walk the course · Families · Teams

Why it matters

We race on public roads in Orinda and on Berkeley city streets. Racing there depends on a good relationship with the city and the neighbors, and leaving the place clean is part of that.

What to expect

Mostly walking and picking up, at your own pace. This is course cleanup. "The sweep" on race day means something else: the race sweep that follows the last riders.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? A good cool-down walk after your race.

Race sweep

Come through behind the last riders so the race knows the course behind them is clear.

When

During racing

Days

Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium

Experience

Experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Mostly on your own

Good for racers

Depends on your race

Teams and groups

Better solo

First-time volunteers

Better with experience

What you'll do

• Follow behind the last riders on course.
• Note riders who have stopped and pass that on the way you're instructed to.
• Let the race know when the course behind you is clear.

Who it suits

Experienced race volunteers · Patient, steady people

Why it matters

Before the course behind a race can be treated as clear, someone has to see the last riders through. At the road race those riders are spread over miles of roads that stay open to traffic.

What to expect

Steady, patient work at the back of the race with your attention on the course. This is the race sweep. Picking up litter after racing is course cleanup, a different job.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? The sweep stays with a race until its last rider is through, so pick a day or a race you aren't in.

Ask us exactly what the sweep does at each race before you sign up.

Course prep days

Help on the course prep days in the lead-up to race weekend, getting the courses ready before anyone races them.

When

Weeks before

Days

Before race weekend

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Moderate

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Join a prep day before race weekend.
• Work on whatever the courses need that year, alongside the organizers who plan them.

Who it suits

People who can't make race weekend · Teams · Anyone who likes outdoor work

Why it matters

The club counts course prep days among the work most racers never see, along with logistics, permits and safety planning.

What to expect

Outdoor work on a day before race weekend. What a prep day involves changes with what the courses need.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Prep days happen before race weekend, so they never clash with your race.

Ask us what the next prep day involves and when it is.

Loading the truck

Before race weekend, everything the races need goes into the truck. You help put it there.

When

Before race weekend

Days

Before race weekend

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Physical

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Carry and load course equipment: cones, signs and barricades.
• Load the tables, canopies and supplies that registration and results run on.
• Pack it so the setup crews can find things on race morning.

Who it suits

People comfortable with physical work · Teams and groups · Racers who want to help before race day

Why it matters

Races need a surprising amount of equipment. A well-packed truck makes race morning faster for every crew that comes after you.

What to expect

Lifting and stacking before race weekend. It goes quickly with a group, and it's a good job for a team.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? It happens before race weekend, so it doesn't touch your race.

Flyers and posters

Get the word out in the weeks before race weekend, in places where cyclists and Berkeley neighbors will see it.

When

Weeks before

Days

Before race weekend

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Drop flyers or posters at bike shops, cafés and other local businesses that say yes.
• Bring flyers to club rides and cycling events.
• Post on community boards that are meant for it.

Who it suits

People who can't make race weekend · Anyone who rides past a lot of bike shops and cafés

Why it matters

Plenty of cyclists and Berkeley residents never see the club's social media. A poster at the shop where they buy tubes may be how they hear about the race.

What to expect

It happens in the weeks before race weekend, around your own riding and work. Ask before you leave anything at a business, and never post on poles, cars or anywhere posting isn't allowed.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Bring a stack to your group ride.

Marketing and club outreach

Help racers, volunteers, sponsors and neighbors hear about the Berkeley Omnium in the weeks and months before it happens.

When

Weeks before

Days

Before race weekend

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Better solo

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Write, design or schedule social posts and race-week updates.
• Reach out to cycling clubs and teams about racing and volunteering.
• Promote the race's sponsors in posts and race-week updates.
• Make content: short videos, photos, race previews.

Who it suits

Writers, designers and social media people · Anyone with connections in local clubs or businesses · People who can't make race weekend

Why it matters

Fields fill, volunteer jobs get covered and sponsors come back when people hear about the race early and often.

What to expect

Much of it can happen from a laptop, weeks or months before the race, with deadlines that tighten as race weekend gets closer.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Racers know what makes other racers sign up. Use that.

Sponsor outreach

Help find and look after the businesses that back the races, from Berkeley shops to cycling brands.

When

Weeks before

Days

Before race weekend

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Lots of people

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Better solo

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Introduce the Berkeley Omnium to businesses you know, from Berkeley shops and cafés to cycling brands.
• Help follow up on sponsorship conversations with the organizing committee.
• Line up product for prizes, the feed zone or the kids race.
• Help make sure sponsors get what was agreed on race weekend.

Who it suits

People who know local business owners or people at cycling brands · Anyone comfortable asking for support · Professionals in sales, partnerships or marketing

Why it matters

Sponsors put up the prize money and much of what racers get on the day. In 2026 Expert Tree Service and KaiVelo co-funded the $10,000 Pro/1/2 purse, Stay True Cycles sponsored the feed zone bottles and Mr. Dewies brought ice cream for the kids.

What to expect

Emails, calls and coffee meetings in the months before race weekend. The organizing committee agrees every partnership, so you open doors and they settle the details. The sponsor pages on this site lay out what a sponsor can support.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? If your team has sponsors, they might want in. A racer is a good introduction.

Race planning and projects

Take on a piece of the race to plan or improve, at any time of year.

When

Weeks before

Days

Before race weekend

Experience

Helps to understand racing

Physical

Light

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Better solo

First-time volunteers

Better with experience

What you'll do

• Work out what needs to happen for part of race weekend, and when.
• Improve a process, like volunteer scheduling, check-in or race-morning communication.
• Coordinate a project with the organizing committee and other volunteers.
• Spot what went wrong last time and help turn ideas into changes on race weekend.

Who it suits

Project managers, operations people and product people · Anyone who likes turning a messy problem into a plan

Why it matters

Race weekend sits on top of months of logistics, permits, safety planning and, in the club's words, hours spent organizing details so things run smoothly.

What to expect

A project with a goal and people to work with, on your schedule through the year. This is where professional skills help more than muscle.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? You know what frustrated you as a racer. Help fix it.

Extra hands

Tell us when you're free and help wherever race weekend needs someone.

When

Race morning, During racing, After racing

Days

Saturday: road race, Sunday: criterium, After racing

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Moderate

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Depends on your race

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Fill gaps on the day: another marshal, another pair of hands at registration, a supply run.
• Find the missing table. Find the zip ties.

Who it suits

Friends and family of racers · Anyone who isn't sure which job to pick

Why it matters

Something always comes up on race day. After 2026 the club thanked the friends, family and supporters who stepped in wherever they were needed.

What to expect

Variety. You might start the morning at registration and finish it carrying canopies.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Tell us which hours you have free around your race.

Unloading the truck

The day after the criterium, unload the race equipment and put it away so it's ready for next year.

When

The day after

Days

The day after

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Physical

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Unload the equipment from the truck.
• Put it back in storage, organized so it's easy to find next time.
• Check items back in and note anything damaged or missing.

Who it suits

Club members and teams · People who couldn't volunteer during the races · Anyone with a few hours after race weekend

Why it matters

Nobody cheers when the last cone goes back into storage, but it's the job that actually finishes the Berkeley Omnium.

What to expect

Lifting and sorting, with race weekend stories still fresh.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Your legs might be tired, but you're done racing.

Parking

Help racers arriving at Orinda BART park and find registration and staging.

When

Race morning

Days

Saturday: road race

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Lots of people

Good for racers

Depends on your race

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Point arriving racers toward the parking areas at Orinda BART.
• Help keep the registration and staging area clear of parked cars.
• Answer the first questions of the morning: where's registration, where are the toilets, where do we stage.

Who it suits

Early risers · Friendly people who like giving directions · Sunday-only racers

Why it matters

Before anyone can race, they have to get themselves, their bike, their gear and their car sorted. With registration opening at 7:00 a.m. and every field staging by 8:30 a.m., the lot fills fast.

What to expect

An early start in the Orinda BART lot, on your feet and talking with a lot of racers in a busy window before the first fields roll out.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Every road race field stages between 8:00 a.m. and 8:30 a.m., so this one suits people racing only on Sunday.

Feed zone

Hand up neutral bottles to racers and help keep the road race feed zone organized and safe.

When

During racing

Days

Saturday: road race

Experience

Helps to understand racing

Physical

Moderate

People

Some interaction

Good for racers

Depends on your race

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Better with experience

What you'll do

• Hand up neutral bottles to racers who want one, while supplies last.
• Help keep feeders organized. Teammates, friends and family can hand bottles to their own racers here.
• Keep spectators who aren't feeding out of the way.
• Collect dropped and tossed bottles once a group has gone through.

Who it suits

People who know how a feed works · Teams who are feeding their own racers anyway · Anyone who wants to be close to the race

Why it matters

The longest road race in the most recent edition was 90 miles, and the Three Bears loop has no running water. The feed zone near the bottom of Papa Bear is where racers get a bottle without stopping.

What to expect

At road race speed a feed zone gets hectic. Riders come through in groups looking for bottles, people call out names, and bottles get dropped. Hold the bottle out steady and let the rider take it. Parking at the feed zone has been limited, so plan how you'll get there.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Racing only Sunday? The feed zone is one of the best places to watch Saturday's race, and racers already know what a good hand-up looks like.

Follow car driver

Drive in the race caravan behind a group of racers on the Three Bears loop.

When

During racing

Days

Saturday: road race

Experience

Experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Mostly on your own

Good for racers

Usually no

Teams and groups

Better solo

First-time volunteers

Better with experience

What you'll do

• Drive your assigned position in the caravan behind a group of racers.
• Follow the race officials' and organizers' instructions for the whole drive.
• Keep your full attention on the road, the riders and those instructions.

Who it suits

Experienced caravan drivers · Racers and former racers who know how a field moves

Why it matters

The club credits follow cars and moto support with keeping the race flowing. The road race runs on roads that stay open to traffic, and the vehicles around each field are part of how it runs.

What to expect

You'll see a bike race from inside the caravan, which few people ever do. It's a working drive, with riders all around the car, so your attention stays on the job. The club lists this as a role that needs experience; the organizers decide who drives and tell you what's required.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? You'll be driving while the road race runs, so this is for a day you aren't racing. Racers make good caravan drivers because they know how a field moves.

Full-race follow car

A follow-car assignment that stays in the caravan for the full race distance.

When

During racing

Days

Saturday: road race

Experience

Experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Mostly on your own

Good for racers

Usually no

Teams and groups

Better solo

First-time volunteers

Better with experience

What you'll do

• Everything a follow car driver does, for the full race.
• Stay focused through a long drive with riders around the car.

Who it suits

Experienced caravan drivers · People who know road racing well

Why it matters

Racers on the Three Bears loop are on open roads for the whole race, and the caravan goes with them.

What to expect

This is for people who already know road racing and caravan driving.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? A full-race assignment takes up the road race, so it's for a day you aren't racing.

Ask us about the time commitment and whether there's a passenger seat before you sign up.

Announcer

Call the criterium on the mic: who's off the front, the primes, the chase and the final sprint.

When

During racing

Days

Sunday: criterium

Experience

Helps to understand racing

Physical

Light

People

Lots of people

Good for racers

Depends on your race

Teams and groups

Better solo

First-time volunteers

Better with experience

What you'll do

• Call the racing for spectators: breakaways, chases, primes and the sprint.
• Announce primes and thank the sponsors putting them up.
• Tell the crowd what's racing now and what's up next.
• Help with announcements around the kids race.

Who it suits

People who know racing and like a microphone · Racers and former racers who can read a crit · Clear, confident talkers

Why it matters

The field comes past every couple of minutes, and a good announcer turns that into a race people can follow. Spectators learn who's in the break, sponsors hear their primes called, and the kids race gets a proper start.

What to expect

Long stretches on the mic with racing all around you. You don't need to know every racer's name, but you do need to know what you're watching. If you'd rather not hold the mic, ask about helping the announcer with race numbers, primes and sponsor notes.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? Racing Sunday? Ask about taking the mic for the races before or after yours.

Kids race helper

Help kids line up, ride and finish their own race on the Berkeley Streets course, and cheer like it's the final sprint.

When

During racing

Days

Sunday: criterium

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Lots of people

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Help families find kids race check-in at registration.
• Help get kids lined up at the start.
• Stand along the course while they ride.
• Cheer. Loudly.

Who it suits

Parents · Anyone who's good with kids · Loud cheerers

Why it matters

This isn't the P/1/2 field. For a lot of these kids it's their first race, and the club's description of 2026 says it well: "Full effort, big smiles, proud parents on the sidelines."

What to expect

Fast, loud and over quickly. In the most recent edition the kids race was free and started at 11:45 a.m., with check-in at registration before 11:30 a.m.. Every rider needs a helmet, and a parent or guardian signs the waivers.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? The kids race runs late morning, between the early and afternoon fields.

Kids skills clinic helper

Help the clinic leaders run a free skills session for young riders, from setting up to cheering them on.

When

During racing

Days

Sunday: criterium

Experience

No cycling experience needed

Physical

Light

People

Lots of people

Good for racers

Yes

Teams and groups

Yes

First-time volunteers

Yes

What you'll do

• Help set up the clinic area before it starts.
• Point families to the clinic and help kids get ready to ride.
• Make sure every rider has a helmet on.
• Help the clinic leaders keep things moving, and encourage the kids.
• Pack up afterward.

Who it suits

Parents · Patient people who like kids · Riders who remember learning

Why it matters

The club's description of the 2026 clinic: "No pressure. No expectations. Just learning, riding, and building confidence."

What to expect

The clinic is aimed at kids about 5 to 10 and started at 11:00 a.m. in the most recent edition, just before the kids race. It's led by its host (Trek hosted in 2026); helpers support the leaders and don't run the instruction. Trek Berkeley brought a limited number of demo bikes.

What you get

Your assignment and instructions for it.

Racing too? The clinic started at 11:00 a.m. in the most recent edition, which fits between morning and afternoon fields.