Meet Mason Ansari

Mason is one of our youngest members of the team. Like many young people, he has tried a variety of hobbies and job before discovering ham radio during COVID. About the same time, he developed an interest in medical transport and started school to be an EMT. Working at public service events in Tinley Park that Jerry Watts, K9LOT, pulled him into and opened a whole new world of public service events and future opportunities. At EMT school, his professor “keeps telling me he wants me to be a firefighter/paramedic. And I'm like, man, I can't stand heat. I don't like the heat. I'm in the car (now). The AC (air conditioning) is like, it's, it's like full AC right now. It's not all the way up, but it's like as cold as it can get. Yeah and I'm like, you want me to be in a thousand degree building with a winter jacket on? It's not gonna happen!”

For Mason, the call to be a medical responder still beaconed. He worked as a non-emergency driver for a medical transport company because it suited his desire to help and not be tied to a 9-5 routine job.

“I like that it's something new, like all the time. I mean, it's not as hectic as paramedics might get or like the 911 guys. Still, I have a list of patients that I take to and from their appointments and I must keep up with their medical conditions.”

Mason has served the Bank of America Chicago Marathon and the new Bank of America Chicago 13.1 Half Marathon. For the Marathon, he has been working alongside the medical teams who focus on the last mile of the course. This can be a very chaotic scene, but he loves the energy and runners.

“I mean, it's loud, it's noisy, it's busy, it's distracting. Yeah, because it's right at that last mile. The crowd is trying to keep the energy up for all the runners. There's a big cheering section. So, yeah, it's crazy. But that’s what is like to be in the crowd, be in the moment like that at the marathon. I don't even know how to describe it. It just feels kind of crazy. It's like you're in the middle of it all, almost. I've seen the runners help each other out, just, like, straight up from, like, different countries, you know? And they're like, ‘Come on, let's go, let's go, come on! We gotta finish this, you know?’ So it's like electric almost. It's really cool.”

Ham radio operators work alongside medical teams in this last section of a course. They work in teams patrolling a short section prepared to step in if something were to happen. The radio people need to keep their wits about them because if a situation escalates, they must call it in to get more support. Mason ran into an incident at the 13.1 Half Marathon last year but his quick response and effective communications helped provide vital assistance for runner nearing the finish line:

“But when you're like 300 meters from the finish, it's generally quiet because it's just a downhill from there. So, this guy that had a heart attack, I was looking the other direction and heard him go down. He was probably 50 feet 25 feet from me. So, I looked over and there's a man on the ground and then I called it in from there. The good thing about calling it in quickly is that other people heard my report, and then I think everybody kind of rushed over.”

The medical team response was almost instantaneous. Another team with an AED heard the radio call and they rushed forward from their position. The ambulance team also heard the call and they dispatched an mobile unit as well. The man was saved because he was surrounded by medical and communication professionals. Not every event is that dramatic or eventful but it is good to know runners have this kind of support when they need it.

We thank Mason and many others from the medical and radio teams for volunteering skills for events like this.