AUBURN - While much of the action of the Great Race is obviously on the road and in the water, over the years the event has taken on a life all its own, becoming a combination of a community gathering, a class reunion and just a good day out in the sun.

“It really has turned into a community event,” Jim Hanley, of the race committee, said. “People plan their vacations to be here for this, kids get together before they go off to college. You see people you don't usually see the rest of the time. And it is just a good time for people to get together and enjoy themselves.”

As the race has grown so have the families of those that come to compete.

Hanley said that in recent years, more and more children have been at the race and with this in mind the race committee decided to try to do a little more to make the race a family-friendly environment.

A big draw for a lot of younger kids the last few years have been the inflatable moon-rooms and games provided by Auburn Party Rental. This year was no exception.

“I think it is pretty cool they do all this,” Jacob Leader, 14, said. “It is a good day to come up here and it is pretty cool they have all these games and stuff and there is a lot of fun stuff to do. You don't need any money or anything, just come up and have fun.”

Each year more and more young people are drawn to the race, whether just to hang out or to take an active role.

For the past four years, Stephen Giannotta, 11, and his brother Greg, 14, have been among the younger people lending a hand as race volunteers.

“We help direct traffic,” Greg said. “We do it as a community service, but really we just like to do it and we like to be able to help, it is just a lot of fun.”

Younger people are also making their presence known in the race itself.

Teams like the T.H.U.G. Muffins, comprised of Luke Netti, 14, as the runner, Nick Bolak, 13, in the canoe, Bill Kick, 15, in the canoe and Bob Kick, cyclist, are becoming more common to the race every year.

The team took second place in their division with a 77th-place overall finish in the short course.

“Two years ago we were volunteers,” Netti said. “We liked helping out. Last year we decided to put a team together and get out and race.”

The team put in some extra time, working out and getting ready for the race.

“We didn't expect to do as good as we did,” Netti said. “I think our second year having that experience helped us out. And we'll definitely be back next year.”

With food by Daut's and music, this year provided by Prime Time, there was a lot for the adults in the crowd as well.

“It's a good day for it,” said Jesse Tyrell of Genoa. “We just came up on the boat and decided to stop and check it out. Warm day, lots of a people - it is a pretty good time.”

As the race has grown into a larger community event, Hanley said that the race committee has made efforts to make it as enjoyable and as safe as possible.

“We have the band play and everyone is here to have a good time and enjoy themselves and that's good,” Hanley said. “But we also want everyone to be safe. Last year we started a new alcohol policy, we want people to enjoy responsibly and we've had a lot of help from the park security and the sheriff's department and NYSCOBA to help us enforce the six pack person rule and make sure people do enjoy this and are safe about it.”

Year after year the race has the help of many volunteers from the community, people who direct traffic, make sandwiches and pass out drinks. The people behind the scenes are, in many ways, the unsung heroes of the race.

“We simply couldn't do this race without their help and support,” Hanley said. “These are people that do this for a T-shirt and just because they want to be here and to help out.”

The Big John Connors Volunteer Award is one of many special awards handed out after the race. The Connors award pays tribute to not only a team but the memory of the person for which they stand.

Connors was a volunteer for the race for many years before he passed away 16 years ago.

This year Dick Timian and Bob and Sue Gage, who have all been volunteers for 20 years, were recognized with the award.

“We really appreciate this,” Timian said. “My neighbor got me involved years ago and we've all really enjoyed being a part of this and we truly appreciate this award.”

Other awards include the Harriet Tubman Award given to the first female team to finish the short course and the Jules Verdi Award, which is presented to the first-place team overall in the traditional course.