To think when an event is organised by volunteers..

[EWLT]

..you just say thank you and appreciate their efforts, even if it's not perfect, unless you're prepared to take it on yourself?

I was at a cross country running completion at the weekend. Probably 1000 runners in age groups from under 13s to vets.

In the Under 13s one child wasn't placed where her parents thought she should have been. These are provisional results, I expect the parents are right and the result will be corrected before the final results are issued.

The event has a FB page and both parents have made long heated posts "disgusted" with the way the child has been treated. Another neutral poster has tried to point out that the event is run by volunteers, who were at the event from 7am to 5pm Saturday and then spent Sunday collating results and dealing with queries and that these are provisional results that will be corrected. She has suggested thanks are due to the volunteers and patience required re the final results. That did not go down well, with both parents posting again about how rude everyone's being and how terrible it is for their child

I could understand their upset if the final results were wrong, but they won't be. For people who don't know XC running, it's not like a track race, there's a mass start with 100+ runners in one race and team coaches are responsible for handing their team's results sheets to the organisers. There is usually some confusion to be resolved, but it always is.

I'm not involved, just a runner who has been looking at the page, interested in the results. I'm not going to get involved but AIBU to want to tell them to get over themselves, teach their DC to deal with the initial disappointment, as we all know it will be corrected and respect the huge commitment of the volunteers. Unless they're prepared to organise the next one themselves and show us all how it should be done.

YANBU - People are twats.

ddefinitley pot a link to the volunteer sign up page

Yanbu

1. I can't stand parents who get worked up about these things, rightly or wrongly.

1. Volunteers work extremely hard with no thanks, snd usually on top of working full time and having a family life themselves. They don't ask much, just to be treated with a smidgen of respect by the people who benefit from their efforts.

IF there was a genuine error with the results, and IF it isn't corrected in the final results, they should politely raise it through whatever is the usual means in the sport (if that's even possible, in my sport it isn't at all).

I do think people honestly think volunteers are paid. Whether at events like this or regularly eg Scouts/Guides. I sometimes have to stop myself listing what parents actually pay for to show that I am nowhere on that list! And I have a good bunch who would never act like this.

Yanbu how disappointing for the volunteers. You see examples on here a lot. People whinging but not doing it themselves.

My dh is not a violent man but wanted to punch some of the parents at the summer school BBQ he was manning who complained about the length of queue.

The volunteers doing all they could in face of big crowds and rubbish equipment. Dh and the other volunteer both work full time and have big stressful jobs being moaned at by ungrateful gits. Dh concluded he is definitely not saintly enough to be a volunteer.

I volunteer as a scout leader- it's astonishing how much whinging parents do about what you are doing. We put out an appeal for help once or twice a term- selling uniform, sorting out craft supplies- no takers at all.

However, if parents have to wait for you to deal with someone else before them ("I need to get home y'know") all hell breaks lose.

I had to laugh when one parent told me it was too hard for her to help, because her husband works full time. Hmmmmm...perhaps it's too hard for me, as I work full time. Better close down the group I guess...

Been a volunteer at many outdoor events. Been shouted or sworn at pretty much every time. People just turn into twats as soon as they think someone else might be getting something better/quicker/closer than they will.

Why not get involved? You posting in support of the volunteers might make all the difference in whether some of them volunteer again or not.

Oh yes OP.

dh volunteered to run a sports activity for our local club for many summer -he was treated like the hired help by many parents, and also yelled at for imagined faults against their children. the volunteer part was lost on them as was the bit where he used to pay himself for ice cream for all the children to encourage them to go out and compete at weekends. Eventually he felt he had done his bit and resigned. now there is no ice cream, way fewer children get to compete because no one cares enough to figure out the logistics for them and dh - and I - are happier.