Volunteer Opportunity Descriptions

Hospitality
Place and remove signs, sell t-shirts, welcome riders, shake hands, distribute information, and share your Dutch hospitality! We’ll need volunteers from mid-morning through evening on the day of RAGBRAI and again the day after cheering on riders as they leave Orange City.

Information Center
This is the primary resource for riders as they seek information. Distribute maps, answer questions, provide directions, refer to services. We’ll need help setting up the Information Center the evening before, we’ll staff the booth all day and into the evening on the day of RAGBRAI and the morning after for a short time.

Beverage Garden
Sell tickets, serve beverages, and check identification for age-restricted areas. We’ll need help with setting up on Thursday, staffing the beverage garden on Friday, and clean up on Saturday morning. Volunteers working in the beverage garden are required to attend a TIPS training to learn how to check I.D.’s and identify warning signs of over indulgence of alcohol.

Campgrounds
Stake sites, direct riders and drivers in setting up, patrol campground boundaries, and transfer luggage. After riders leave, remove stakes and signage and do a general clean up of anything left in the campground areas.

Ride Right
Will distribute posters throughout our community on bicycle safety during the months of May – July, will travel the route in advance of the event (4-5 days in advance) to distribute flyers and note of any roadway concerns, and will travel the route to the next overnight town on Sunday to pick up route markers and any other signage. Would like 6 volunteers in pairs of 2 that can help with this committee. Times will be scheduled with the chair and can be flexible.

Shuttle Service
Answer questions, provide route maps, refer to activities in Orange City. Volunteers are stationed at bus stops and on the Orange City buses.

General Set Up and Tear Down
Participate in setting up RAGBRAI Central the day before and tearing down and cleaning up the day after the event.

Sanitation
Set up and empty trash receptacles throughout the day, replace as necessary. Monitor fresh water availability for food vendors and grey water disposal from food vendor booths.

Housing
Over 15,000 riders will stay overnight in town. More than 1,500 are looking for private camping or home locations. Anyone in Orange City area can help! You can offer parking for a motor home, yard area for tents, floor space, or beds. Hosts are not required to transport or feed riders and are not allowed to charge for accommodations. This is a terrific opportunity to meet people from across the United States. Your contact information will be forwarded to the Hospitality Chair to make arrangements for your overnight guests.

Showers
Coordinates available shower locatons for riders throughout Orange City with various organizations.

Publicity
Coordinates publicity for Orange City as the starting town prior to the event and works with media prior to and during the event. Four sub-groups work under the Publicity Committee: Signs, Marketing/Media, Maps and the Speakers Bureau. The Publicity Committee coordinates release of information to the media to generate local interest in hosting RAGBRAI. The committee also selects a theme and logo and produces the town t-shirts with the logo. Writes the mission statement. Oversees printing a tabloid as a hand out to riders(if needed). Works closely with the Hospitality and the Web & Social Media Committee.

Web & Social Media
Manages RAGBRAI Orange City website and social media content. Must have knowledge of setting up a Web site.
Should be very creative. Be able to constantly update the town’s web site and social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Works very closely with the Publicity Committee.

Volunteer Coordination
Coordinates volunteers to assist in various area both prior to and during the event. Arranges for total community involvement, from kindergartners to people in nursing homes. Works with the volunteers from the start and keeps them involved through the day RAGBRAI arrives.
Probably will need more than one person on this committee to help with recruiting. It would be helpful if the people on this committee know many people  residing in and around the area.

Food & Vendors
Coordinates all aspects of bringing in food and vendors and works with contracts, etc. Coordinates all food vendors for serving approximately 15,000 evening meals and 2,000 breakfasts the next morning. Extremely important perhaps Co-chairpersons. Fields requests from individuals and organizations that want to sell products and services. This includes the distribution and sale of ice to the vendors, Beverage Garden and possible RAGBRAI participants. Works with RAGBRAI and local authorities to keep renegade vendors outside the community.

Entertainment & Special Events
Coordinates entertainment and special events to take place in Orange City when riders arrive. Coordinates all entertainment, from special rider involvement contests to bands during the RAGBRAI visit as well as any special events.

Communications
Coordinates all communication during RAGBRAI. Will work closely with all committees, but especially Shuttle Service, Information Center and Public Safety Committees.

Transportation
Arranges transportation from campgrounds to entertainment, food service and showers. Arranges
vehicles including golf carts and gators. Sets up route schedules and recruits drivers, hosts and hostesses. Secures parking areas. Works closely with Public Safety and Law Enforcement Committee.