April 2007

President’s Column – April 2007  Spring has finally arrived… and with it, some eclectic and important news items about your club. Joe George, In Memoriam GRTC Hall of Fame member Joe George died March 8th.  He was 73.  The Democrat & Chronicle had a brief obit in the Sports section on the 9th.  Joe was inducted into the Hall in 1987.  In his running career, he completed more than 24 marathons, including 5 Boston Marathons, and was a two-time finisher of the Western States Endurance Run.  In 1986, at age 55, Joe ran the 100 trail miles across the Sierra Nevada from Squaw Valley to Auburn, CA in 23:51 and got the coveted Western States belt buckle reserved for finishers under 24 hours.  Perhaps Joe’s greatest contribution to Rochester running was to organize a 1982 Run Across America.  Joe assembled a relay team of 16 local runners, all over age 50.  The team ran 2 or 3-mile legs all the way from the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco to Coney Island.  Fund raising and pledges for the run netted over $30,000 for Strong Children’s Hospital.  Joe was also judo and jogging instructor at Finger Lakes Community College, starting when the college opened in 1967. Web Designer Needed The Board has agreed that the GRTC website is overdue for a major update to add new features, better organize the content and implement a consistent visual design.  The job is a big one, well beyond what Roger Howe can do as a volunteer Webmaster.  Check out the “Request for Proposal” posted on the GRTC website.  If you have web design experience, please consider submitting a proposal for the work.  Deadline for proposals is May 1st. Freezeroo Wrapup The 2006-2007 Freezeroo Series was blessed.  Laurie Smith and Anne Procopio did a wonderful job as Series Directors.  The weather for the early races was unseasonably mild.  The change to professional timing both made the series easier to put on and improved the experience for the runners.  Preferred Care generously provided cash prizes for the top 3 men and women overall and the top 3 in each 5-year age group.  Series participation hit yet another record this year… 1417 total finishes, up 11% from 2006 and a whopping 82% growth from 2003, the first year Laurie Smith directed the series. Membership is Up With 88 new members and renewals from the Freezeroo participants, club membership is now over 500. RROY Series is Underway The March 17th Johnny’s Runnin’ of the Green kicked off the 2007 Rochester Runner of the Year Series.  The remaining eight races include some exciting additions… new are a one-mile track race and a three-mile cross-country event and it was decided to recognize the 35th running of the Webster Turkey Trot by making it the series finale.  The rules have changed significantly… all races are scored the same (no double points), age for the series is your age at the time of your first race (no more aging up midway through the series), the top 10 in each age group score and series awards go to the top 5 (up from 3 places).  Also, the geographical eligibility region has been reduced from the USATF Niagara Region to the Section V boundaries to better focus the series on the Rochester area.  See the GRTC website for the race line-up and especially for full 2007 race rules.  See my Eclectic Runner column for some tips on maximizing your RROY Series experience. Coming Soon:  Spring Track Workouts The GRTC Spring Clinics and Track Workouts will start soon.  Check out the website for details and application form.  The seven-week program is an amazing value… professional instruction and coaching, the joys of speed work on the track (nothing makes you feel more like a “real runner”), and the opportunity to make new running friends. Plan to Volunteer 1 – Medved Lilac 10K and Family 5K The Lilac 10K on May 20th is the best known Rochester-area race (and probably over the years the best known race in Upstate New York).  This large, urban race takes a multitude of volunteers to make it safe and successful for the runners.  Wilt Alston, Hillary Cardin and Deb Wyspianski are coordinating the GRTC volunteers.  If you won’t be racing the event, please join me in volunteering. Plan to Volunteer 2 – JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge With more than 9,000 participants, this is the biggest running and walking event in the area.  That’s a lot of cups to fill, hand them off to the runners and then rake up the discarded cups.  It’s also a lot of fun and you will get wet.   Mitzi and Dick Lewandowski are organizing the GRTC water stop at Mile 1.  If you won’t be racing on your company team, please plan to volunteer. Tom Perry April 2007