It was 4 o’clock in the morning when I climbed into the back of a truck in the HMF parking lot. The city was still dark. In a few hours, hundreds of runners would line up for the UConn Health Half Marathon in Simsbury — and it was my job to make sure they had a safe lane to run in.
The plan was simple enough: as John drove slowly down Iron Horse Boulevard, I would lean over the tailgate and drop an orange traffic cone every 8 feet for roughly 2 miles, dividing the road between runners and vehicles. Simple in theory. In practice, crouching over the tailgate of a moving truck at 4am, in the dark, placing cones at consistent intervals requires focus, physical steadiness, and zero margin for error. A gap in the line or an inconsistent spacing wasn’t just a visual problem — it was a safety issue.
I didn’t hesitate. I stayed low, stayed steady, and worked the entire stretch without breaking rhythm. 440 cones. 2 miles. Before sunrise.
That morning taught me something no classroom had. Professionalism isn’t about the conditions being right. It’s about delivering when the conditions are exactly wrong — when it’s dark, when it’s early, when nobody is watching, and when the work still matters because people are counting on it.
Later that day, I managed Water Station 4. When the last runner cleared my section, I coordinated with local police via walkie-talkie, confirmed the course was clear, broke down the station, collected every cone I’d placed that morning, and reopened the road. From 4am to early afternoon, without a single break in focus.
That is the skill I bring. Not just knowing how events work — but being the person who shows up before anyone else and makes sure they do.