Hydro volunteers honored

COEUR d'ALENE - Ask Lee Proctor how many volunteers turned out to help with the races and she'll tell you "not enough."

Proctor organized the volunteer efforts at the Coeur d'Alene Diamond Cup Race. She got started a little more than two months ago.

"We will need more for sure," she said, Thursday. "If you count everyone involved - really we are all volunteers - we had about 300, or somewhere between 250 and 300."

Not all of them showed up, but things went well anyway, she said.

Organizers of the Coeur d'Alene Diamond Cup held an appreciation party Thursday night for all the volunteers who turned out to make the race a success.

The event was held at the Diamond Cup's Riverstone office, and about 100 people showed up to talk about the race and what should be done next year.

"One thing is for sure," Proctor said. "We are going to start a lot earlier next year."

Herb Huseland, who was voted Volunteer of the Year, said the event was stressful but it got him up and active this summer.

"I was really the big winner," he said. "I just kind of came down here every day and stayed until I wasn't needed anymore."

He had no title and no job description. His job just developed itself.

"People would come into the office with questions and they would say just go see Herb," he said. "I would just kind of fall into things."

Huseland said he eventually became stressed out and frustrated by certain actions. He resigned the day before the event.

"I learned that I wasn't going to be the PA announcer," he said. "And unbeknownst to me I was reassigned."

After a little rest, he said he is over it now, and will most likely return next year as a volunteer.

"Considering the little time we had, I think everything came off well," Huseland said.

Dave Moseley oversaw the water patrol volunteers. He said things went pretty smooth except for the people who encroached on the restricted areas of the water.

"Most people were pretty good about it," he said. "We explained that it was a safety issue, and most were OK with that, but there were a few who just went ahead and did what they wanted to do."

By Sunday, Moseley said most people understood what was expected and the event went pretty smooth.

"With a first pass, there is bound to be a lot of gaps," he said, adding that organizers, volunteers and the public had a learning curve. "There wasn't enough advanced notice of what the expectations were."

Moseley, who volunteered as a pit boy when the races were held back in the 1960s, said he will definitely be back if the races are held again next year.

Darren Prouty, owner of Precision Propeller, is a member of the board, but also volunteered to help set up the course.

As a rescue diver, Prouty said he helped set up buoys underwater and provide support for the race teams on the water. He said it was a big job, but he had the right people to help him out.

"The most important thing is to surround yourself with the right people," he said.

Aside from starting earlier next year, Proctor said she plans to create an organizational structure next year that will make things much easier.

"Now, we know what we need," she said. "We know what jobs are needed, so we can define those now."