Hi,
I marshalled the 13 colonies ride last year, still weighing my options for this year. It was pretty easy, fun and rewarding. I wouldn’t sweat the field repairs too much – since the route is entirely in the core of the city, if something comes up that you can’t fix, you’re not too far from a local bike shop, or a metro station. Last year, one person in my group got a bad flat that ruined the tire, so he just limped to the Bike & Roll station at Union Station. Mostly you’re navigating, keeping everyone together, and I tried to keep a little running commentary going on the history, development projects, and random trivia of the areas we were riding through. Remind people to drink if it’s really hot, bring extra snacks and offer them to your group. And you get to do the ride for free, free tee shirt, a free beer, and a Chipotle burrito. I’d say the most challenging part of the experience was rounding everyone up after the lunch pitstop. We lost a few riders who joined other groups, and gained a few riders who were separated from theirs. Good luck, you won’t regret it!
