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Cheers for the water boys
Making the claim that a water boy deserves all the credit in the world draws from varying degrees of accuracy.
Anyone will tell you that hydration is key but, for the most part, the sports world tends to overlook these purveyors of thirst-quenching duties. And many will even draw crushing parallels between a water boy and a towel boy. No sir.
Whether being the subject of bench-warming fodder that may take the form of holding cups, riding the pine, or shagging basketballs, one thing is for certain: water boys don’t get the respect they deserve. And I’m dedicating this blog to the water boys everywhere, because behind every athlete is a water-pouring specialist who wants you to finish strong and stay hydrated.
In particular, the generous and light-footed staff at Run-Tex. We salute those water-cooler-filling champions because without them we’d be really thirsty.
The Run-Tex water boys have one job and that’s to instill a Forest Gump-like mentality in you when it comes to running — oh, and they want to make sure you are satisfied to the very last drop, too. So to that end, there’s free cold water and sometimes Gatorade from countless 10-gallon barrels at two locations on the hike-and-bike trail. Both thirst-quenching stations foster a communal spirit among trail users, acting as a sort of outdoor equivalent to the office cooler.
After recently completing a run around the trail, I made my way to the water coolers and postulated about how awesome it would be to actually meet my maker, well, water maker anyways. So I dropped in at Run-Tex and asked for the water boys.
I met Richard Martinez and Bernard Maniratiba. They both have a penchant for cold water, and certainly aren’t lukewarm when it comes to their job.
“I just love seeing everyone smile when I bring the water,” Maniratiba said.
Upon further review, I asked myself what does it take to be a water boy? I wondered if I could get a Run-Tex water boy T-shirt made because I would totally rock one with pride.
“You look like you could use a new pair of shoes,” Martinez said to me after I asked what he thought about my shoes. “I’ve been doing this forever,” he added. He managed to take one glance at my shoes and tell me everything there is to know about my feet. I felt like asking him if he wanted to do my taxes though I felt that might have been inappropriate. You could tell both he and Maniratiba were artisans of their craft.
I’m not quite sure if the Run-Tex water boys have quite reached legend status yet, but they certainly have redefined delivering water. It’s not far fetched to say that without their water-filling duties in the sweltering heat, I would never make it beyond the shade when considering a run around the lake.
Thanks Run-Tex water boys for keeping Austin hydrated.
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