Meet Jim Balcome, Director of the Manchester Road Race

When I contacted Jim Basone and asked him for an interview, I got the sense that he was very a busy guy this time of the year.

"Meet me at he corner of Charter Oak Street and Main Street at 3 p.m. Friday," he said. When I arrived he was there on his cell phone, and two race volunteers were there waiting to talk to Jim.

While I was waiting as Jim trained the volunteers that would be handling the water for the runners at the end of the race, I overheard his instructions to make sure that water was available for all runners. Jim told them "In my view of the world, the first runner is as important as the last runner."

I interviewed Jim while sitting in his car, since he had another appointment at 4 p.m. that day. 

Timothy Becker: Jim, how did you first get involved with the Manchester Road Race Committee?

Jim Balcome: Thirty-five years ago I was approached by the committee to be the race director. They needed a person to handle organizing the race. At the time, I was a track and cross country coach at Rockville High School.

Timothy Becker: What is the most difficult part of your job as race director?

Jim Balcome: The most dangerous part of the job is marking Main Street with orange dots. The dots mark where we place the stanchions for the 75-foot chute system. We do that on Saturday morning at 6:30 a.m. when traffic is the lightest. I'm in the middle of Main Street and cars fly by me.

Timothy Becker: Do you work on the Manchester Road Race year round?

Jim Balcome: The race has become so big that it is non-stop. It is a 13 month job. I have a terrific group of support people to help me out. Without the 615 volunteers we couldn't put the race on.

Tim Becker: Jim, are a you a runner?

Jim Balcome: I was a marathon runner. I have run the Boston Marathon and many others. I had a running injury and my doctor advised me not to run any longer. I miss it immensely. I still exercise and play golf and tennis.

Tim Becker: What other work are you involved in?

Jim Balcome: I retired from Rockville High School and now I am an Adjunct Professor at Manchester Community College. I teach coaching and I manage the Carl Perkins grant for the College.

Tim Becker: Are you a Manchester native?

Jim Balcome: I was born in Willimantic and I came to Manchester in 1967. The day that I moved here I knew it was the place to be. It is truly the City of Village Charm.

Tim Becker: What time do you arrive on Main Street on Thanksgiving Day and when do you get to go home and have dinner with your family?

Jim Balcome: I arrive at 6 a.m. Many people arrive at 4:30 a.m. and I don't want to slow them down. I get home between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. Members of the Manchester High School Track team walk the race course and pick up after the race. I want the course to be better than the way we found it. On the following day we hold a blood drive at the Full Gospel Interdenominational Church. It is one of the most successful in the state.

Tim Becker: Was the your idea?

Jim Balcome: Yes, we tried it for the first time last year. We expected about 150 youngsters and more than 500 showed up. It was chaotic. This year we had online sign up and we capped participants at 500, and it was well organized. I wanted to suprise the kids, so I arranged for parachute jumpers to land right before the first race.

Tim Becker: Tell me about the fly over that is planned for Thanksgiving morning.

Jim Balcome: This is the 75th year and we wanted to do something special. I made arrangements with Tim Chopp who is the President of the Berlin Air Lift Foundation to pilot a C-54 cargo plane with Pratt & Whitney engines over the race course. He will do a fly over starting at 9:51 a.m. right after the National Anthem.

Tim Becker: What motivates you to do all of this?

Jim Balcome: The Manchester Road Race is a passion. It's in my blood system.