While I been marginally aware of its existence and role in organizing local runs (the foremost--to me, anyway--being the winter season Freezeroo series), it wasn't until this past March that I actually joined, as part of signing up for a series track sessions at a local private college, Nazareth College. In joining GRTC, I was proud to become part of a larger community of local athletes all from a diverse cross-section of ages, backgrounds, and ability. In fact, it is very satisfying to read the local newspapers and notice updates in the "Sports" and "Local" sections about folks who a participated (most not for the very first time) in the clinic, who continue to do great things with their running...
The "benchmark awards" which I eluded to earlier in this post are the GRTC MILEstone Patches. Beginning in 2002, GRTC started a program to recognize the racing accomplishments of its membership, with a focus which seems to me, consistent with its purpose: not to just acknowledge the considerable accomplishments of those who "place" well in a run, but to similarly recognize the accomplishments of those who strive to simply compete. Dependent on one's cumulative annual mileage, an individual earns a patch reflective of that accumulated mileage; for Gold (200+ miles), Silver (100-199 miles), and, lastly, Bronze (50-99 miles). The only requirement, other than club membership, is that you submit documentation of your miles. I did so using a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet on which I noted dates, races, miles, and times.
My personal total mileage for this year was 171.1. race miles, with competitive distances ranging from 5k to marathon. Proudly, the mileage also translates into my qualifying for a GRTC Silver Patch! As I told the gentleman who organizes this activity for the club, these types of incentives certainly do motivate one to register for more races... or at least allows for the sense of personal achievement without having to outright win a race!
Embrassez votre été invincible!
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