On Sunday, the streets of Utica will be filled with wheelchair racers, runners and spectators for the big Boilermaker Road Race.

Among the thousands will also be the folks who help make the events possible — the volunteers.

What You Need To Know

  • From beginning to end, behind the scenes, year-round, volunteers are helping put together Utica’s biggest annual event, the Boilermaker

  • The Boilermaker is in its 47th year

  • Those interested in volunteering are invited to sign up on the Boilermaker’s website

From beginning to end, behind the scenes, year-round, volunteers are helping put together Utica’s biggest annual event — the Boilermaker.

One of those hardworking volunteers is Gary Roback. He’s the director of the Boilermaker’s Wheelchair Division and has volunteered since the mid-1990s.

“First time I ran the race in the 1980-84, there was a few wheelchairs and I saw them and were just so intrigued by their passion, motivation and drive that it just stuck with me," Roback said. "And so, when the opportunity came late 90s through to start and join the wheelchair committee, I jumped at it."

Roback said one of the most rewarding moments comes from the Sitrin Wheelchair Challenge.

The program provides a racing wheelchair to the participant who completes the 15K in two hours and 15 minutes or less.

Caroline Wiegand has been volunteering with the Boilermaker for 25 years.

“I worked for Mary Theresa Balutis, who was in charge of goodie bags at that time," she said. "She was the goodie bag coordinator. So my husband and I and our children started volunteering when they were quite small. And we just carried it on."

Wiegand said she was given the baton as goodie bag coordinator when the race resumed after COVID-19.

Goodie bags are handed out to race participants when they register. Thousands of bags are made up and handed out.

The work Wiegand and Roback do takes months of preparation before Boilermaker weekend. But with the traditions, friendships, and the positive spirit it brings, they say it’s worth it.

“I've made certainly hundreds and hundreds of friends throughout the world that are wheelchair racers and I kind of like to continue their friendship, to invite them back, to visit with them when they're here to help them through their race endeavors," said Wiegand.

“I would definitely encourage people to volunteer," Roback said. "The Boilermaker is in its 47th year, so it's been around a long time. There's a lot of people that are involved in it. There is great reward and payoff."

Those interested in volunteering are invited to sign up on the Boilermaker’s website.