Behind the Scenes
Hundreds of people find the "behind the scene" aspects of the Tour de Sol the most interesting. Here teams share information. Volunteers look under the hoods of the entrants. But as important or even more so, it is here that volunteers, entrants, and exhibitors have cultivated and made friendships. Information is shared in an informal setting that is exciting and inspirational - you can just feel the electricity in the air! Volunteers come back year after year, giving up vacation time, so they can be with their friends and be part of the excitement of getting off oil and making the world a better place to live.
Follow this link to find out how you can join this exciting group of people.
Behind the scenes of the 2004 Tour de Sol
For many, preparation for the Tour de Sol began one and even two years ago. For others, the Tour de Sol began on Thursday, May 20, as they drove down to the City of Burlington.
Friday morning many arrived at our beautiful site on the Delaware River at dawn, with the hope of being filmed by Fox News, who had committed to broadcast news live from the Tour de Sol. Due to a bad accident on Route 95, their satellite truck never made it to the event but muffins carried us forward to the first Team Briefing; one of seven to be held behind the scenes.
After registering with Anissa Sanborn, past Tour de Sol Event Coordinator and Angela DiPerri, past NESEA staff member, teams readied for technical testing.
For many, technical testing is the highlight of the event - and many people volunteer for just these two days.
Technical testing involves numerous activities such as electrical and construction safety inspections, as well as dynamic tests such as acceleration, braking, and handling.
Other systems such as fuel measuring are inspected, tried out, and adjusted as needed. The charging crew checked plug types, extension cords, and AC watt hour meters.
For the first time ever, a local oil dealer delivered biodiesel (B100). It was fun to see their truck delivering renewable fuel with a coal-fired power plant in the background. In addition to fueling the vehicles using biodiesel, Taylor Oil provided fuel to New England Coalition's van, which runs on biodiesel. It also supplied solar electricity for our sound system. Spencer Quong, Technical Consultant and fuel measuring guru, was often seen with his cell phone glued to his ear.
The timing crew, which had been working on the cone test, shifted gears and set up at the start/finish line to time the vehicles. Morgan readies to drive the Pace Car for this scenic 56 mile drive.
On Sunday, our first ever electric scooter and bike event got off to a great start.
Here Josh Kerson of RunAbout Cycles and Mark Kohler of Valence Technology keep score for their range event with Lexi, our youngest volunteer helping out, as a RunAbout Cycle sets out for another loop.
It was really awesome to have Lexi with us in 2004! He was a big help. Not only did he help out wherever he was needed but it was a lot of fun for us to watch him zoom around on our electric scooter!
During the range event, some teachers and others took advantage of the opportunity to talk about NYSERDA's Energy in Schools Conference held November 18-19, 2004 that included sessions on how to use the building of an advanced vehicle as an educational project for high school and college students.
Matthew Sirum and Philippe Rigollaud were presented with NESEA's volunteer of the year award.
In Trenton, we were too busy putting up and taking down the festival for many behind the scenes photos, but we do have one of several event staff having lunch under a great sycamore tree.
After the public festival, the Southern New Jersey Sports Car Club of America set up an autocross event in the Sovereign Bank Arena parking lot. In spite of the over 100 degree weather, we not only had cars run, but several volunteers chose to complete the course at a dead run!
And still others got a kick out of putting an electric tractor through the paces!
For our grand finale event at New York City's South Street Seaport, staff had to start setting up the night before. This made for a VERY LONG day!
The need to come up with final scoring reports came all too soon. Above, Rob Wills and Ken Bardall look on as a team member checks the computer, and Barbara Gillett and Ken Bardell post results as a team member strains to check out the latest posted results.
Dr. Michael Skelly, NESEA Board Treasurer, had an opportunity to be interviewed by one of the entrants.
Rob Wills and Drew Gillett awarded one of our Japanese volunteers with a route arrow as a way of thanking him for coming all the way from Japan and for his assistance in posting the route.
David Knowles, past Tour de Sol Logistics Coordinator, shares a hug with one of our Japanese volunteers.
Gail Burrington, Parking Chief, and Angela DiPerri, past NESEA staff member, relax for a moment.
We all gather for a final group photo before the final dismantling, good-byes, and the long drive home to unpacking and readying NESEA's basement for next year's event.
To find out more about volunteering click here.
nesea@nesea.org
Northeast Sustainable Energy Association
50 Miles Street
Greenfield, MA 01301
413-774-6051
Copyright © 2001 by NESEA. All rights reserved.
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