LBNL RUNAROUND COMMITTEE INSTRUCTIONS:
STARTING AREA SOUND
One month before the Runaround:
Reserve the public address system from LBNL Audio/Video services. The p.a.
system consists of a wireless microphone, an adjustable microphone stand,
and two Anchor speaker stands connected by a cable. The master stand has
a receiver for the wireless microphone, a battery-operated amplifier, and
a speaker. The slave stand only has a speaker.
Reserve the p.a. system by filling in the reservation form at A/V's website,
av@lbl.gov. Fill in that A/V will bring the p.a. to the starting line, set
it up, take it down, and take it back to the A/V office. If you don't yet
know which project ID number to use, tell them that by late September you
will let them know which project ID number will pay for the rental. Include
the following information:
"This is an order for the p.a. system for the starting line at the
annual LBNL Runaround. We need the two-speaker, battery-operated system
with a handheld (not lapel) wireless microphone with a mike stand, and the
battery needs to be fully charged. Bring sandbags to anchor the speaker
stands, which may be on sloping ground. Bring a long speaker cable (at least
100 feet long). The mike needs an adjustable-height mike stand. Bring a
mike stand with a mike clip that allows the wireless mike to be removed
from the mike stand. I will meet you at the Firehouse and show you where
to place the two speakers and the mike stand. We have reserved a parking
place for the A/V van in Parking Lot X, near the starting line. Your crew
should arrive by 11:15 a.m. to allow time for setting up the system, testing
it and adjusting the angle of the speaker stands so the big crowd (approximately
800 people) can clearly hear the announcements. The runners start running
at 12:00, and the last participant leaves the starting line around 12:15,
so that's when the crew can break down the p.a. system. However, the Lab
roads are closed for the Runaround until 1:00, so the A/V truck can't return
to Building 90 until then."
On the A/V reservation website, select the checkbox for "Handheld"
mike, not "Wireless" mike. The Setup Time field means the time
the crew has to start setting up, not the time by which they have to finish
setting up.
If the Lab switches from a battery-operated p.a. system to a plug-in system,
the best electrical outlet is in the Firehouse in the first floor hallway,
near the back door to Parking Lot X. It's low on the wall opposite room
198 and opposite the water cooler. It's a normal-looking, two-socket outlet
with grounded sockets.
Reserve a parking place for the A/V van near the starting line. Go to the
Site Access website and fill in the appropriate online form. Request a barricade
sign in Parking Lot X. There is a cost for this service, approximately $30-$40.
Late September:
Ask the Course Coordinator for the project ID number to pay for the
p.a. rental. E-mail that number to A/V.
One week before the Runaround:
Ask the Course Coordinator if there are any further details you need
to know. For example, will the starting line be at the same spot as the
previous year, or will it be further uphill or downhill? The location of
the starting line determines the location of the two speaker stands.
Two days before the Runaround:
Call A/V and check that the equipment is still reserved and that the
crew will arrive at the requested time.
Call Site Access and check that the parking place is still reserved and
that they will set up the barricade sign.
Runaround day:
Meet the A/V crew by the time they arrive, or the Runaround will be
charged extra.
Basically, you show the A/V crew the starting line and the mike stand area
and tell them that there will be approximately 800 participants, so they
can determine the best location and angle of the two speaker stands. Tell
them where the speakers were placed and pointed the previous year and how
well that worked. The master speaker is directed toward the people at the
starting line, and the slave speaker is directed toward the people further
back and uphill. The master speaker has to be in the line of sight of the
cordless mike, like an FM radio.
For the 2003 Runaround, the crew devised a precision setup that allowed
all the participants to hear the announcements loud and clear. They placed
the starting line master speaker stand in front of the tree near the end
of the retaining wall and next to the lower dumpster. (The tree may be a
tree stump in 2004, because it had a yellow spray mark on it in 2003.) This
speaker stand was thus 15 feet from the traffic mirror on a post. The speaker
was pointed at the yellow "MW259527" tag on the guardrail across
the road. The crew placed the uphill slave speaker stand at the corner of
the landscaping by the Parking Lot X sign. It was pointed further uphill
at a 45-degree angle.
The microphone stand is placed near the starting line, east of the dumpsters,
up on the dirt hill held by the small wood retaining wall. This area functions
well as a small stage. Show up before the A/V crew to clear off the area
for the mike stand. It will be covered with a year's worth of fallen tree
branches, rocks and slippery leaves. This debris must be cleared away so
people climbing up to the microphone don't fall down. Bring an old binder
to sweep away the brush.
The A/V crew needs someone to talk continuously into the microphone while
they adjust the speaker controls and the angle of the speakers. You are
that person, and this can be fun.
Even if the sound crew has tested the system to make sure it works, do a
sound check to make sure everyone in the crowd can hear clearly. If not,
have the crew move the speaker stands and/or angle them differently.
Bike-Around at 11:30. Make sure the Bike-Around riders take the right route.
They tend to go up the left fork toward the shops (wrong), instead of down
the right fork toward the Trombone (right).
Instructing the talkers. Show the talkers that the mike stand has a clip
that allows the mike to be removed from the stand. Show them the on-off
button on the mike. Tell them not to change the volume setting on the mike;
if the volume needs to be increased, the A/V crew will turn up the volume
on the speakers.
Tell the talkers that the sound crew has turned up the volume on the speakers,
so the talkers can speak at a normal voice level. It is not necessary to
speak loudly straight into the mike; in fact, this will be annoyingly loud
to the participants. The talker should hold the mike below the chin, not
in front of the mouth, and thus speak over the top of the mike. If you talk
loudly with the mike in front of your mouth, the sound gets fuzzy and distorted.
A microphone is not a megaphone! BUT: If the crowd is talking, not quiet,
you either have to talk a bit louder than usual (but not LOUD) or ask the
A/V crew to turn up the volume on the speakers. Also tell the talkers to
make sure to keep the mike aligned with the front of their face when they
turn their head, or else they won't be talking into the mike.
After the Runaround:
Send an e-mail to A/V (av@lbl.gov), thanking them for their help in
making the Runaround a success.
Revise these instructions if necessary (e.g., if the Lab has bought a different
p.a. system).
(Bob Smith, 11/26/2003)