Nittany Valley Running Club Race Series

The Nittany Valley Running Club Race Series

After a multi-year hiatus, the Nittany Valley Running Club is resurrecting the NVRC Race Series Cup in 2008. Old-timers may recall that in the 1980s the Club had a race series where points were given for race participation and performance. The main difference between the old and the new Series is that we will also be giving points to all participants in Club activities, from runners to race volunteers officers to committee members. So it will be possible for anyone to get points just by getting more involved in the Club. The 2008 NVRC Race Series will begin with the 2008 First Night Resolution Run 5K on December 31, 2007. Race points and volunteer points will be tracked and awards for Race Series Cup winner and Volunteer of the Year for 2008 will be given at the regular club meeting in February 2009.

This coming year's Race Series was put together quickly after the December meeting so we could announce it in time for the First Night Race, the first race in the Series. We'd like your comments on what we've put together and will incorporate suggestions into coming years' Series. This page may change a bit before the Series really gets rolling, so keep checking back. Send your suggestions to NVRCRaceSeries@gmail.com. If you notice any errors in this page, contact Marty Mazur.

Please note that all decisions by the club officers are final. This might include, but is not limited to, race selection, scoring, and fair-play.

Here's a guide to the Series:

How To Participate
Eligibility and Reporting
Scoring
The Race Series
Awards
Series Tallies To Date.

1. How To Participate. There will be two awards in the Series. The Race Series Cup will go to the person who amasses the most points by competing in eligible races. The Volunteer of the Year Awards will go to the person who contributes the most to the NVRC through volunteer efforts. Volunteers will earn points on a schedule similar to racers in the series. More on the points schedule below.

2. Eligibility and Reporting. All members of the Nittany Valley Running Club are eligible to compete for the Series Cup and for Volunteer of the Year. If you're not a member yet, or if you've let your membership lapse, it's easy to join. From now until the end of the Indoor Mile Series (February1), we'll "reinstate" points you would have earned this year to date in events before you joined. To earn points, you must submit your results/volunteering contributions to NVRCRaceSeries@gmail.com, preferably within one week of the event. Please also send any questions about the Race Series, the scoring, or the races to this address. Regular points updates and results will be published here.

Once the scores are posted for a particular race, we'll give about two weeks for people to report discrepancies. Then we'll publish a final update for that race and close off any changes. So check your results and report errors to NVRCRaceSeries@gmail.com!

Please note that all scoring is based in large part on the honor system (subject to random verification - abusers of the honor system will be disqualified). We will scan through Series Race results for Club members, but will rely on you to report things like volunteer points. Family Members may have to alert us to race results from kids or spouses for whom we don't currently have a membership record. Like anything else we do, the Series is for fun, though friendly competition will probably result. But this should not be seen as a competitive event; the club is just trying to promote racing and volunteering in the State College area.

The email reporting your points should be simple. Mention the race, how you did (if you ran), or what you did (if you helped). Here's an example:

"My name is Jenna Tague. I just ran in the First Night Race and finished third in the 20-24 age group. I also volunteered at the registration table on race day. By the way, I have a Family Membership. Our whole family ran. They all were finishers. My husband's name is Roger Yoritt. Our kids are Dakota and Denali Tague-Yoritt"

3. Scoring. Runners earn points toward the Series Cup by running and doing well in designated Series races. Volunteers earn points toward Volunteer of the Year by volunteering in designated Series races. Of course, you can earn both racing and volunteering points in the same race if you are a pre-race helper. Here's the scoring system:

    Series Cup

    Racing Points:

1st Overall Men's/Women's - 11 points
2nd Overall Men's/Women's - 10 points
3rd Overall Men's/Women's - 9 points
1st Other category (e.g. age group, Clydesdale, team award) - 8 points
2nd Other category - 7 points
3rd Other category - 6 points
Race finisher - 5 points
Participant but did not finish (DNF) - 4 points

Bonuses:

NVRC race (see Series races for NVRC designation) - add 2 points
Runs longer than 26.1 miles - add 5 points (this also applies to the total miles covered in Tussey legs)
Runs between 6.1 and 26.1 miles - add 3 points (this also applies to the total miles covered in Tussey legs)

Race Scoring Notes:

- Racing points are awarded in one category per race per person. So, for example, the overall race winner cannot also get points as an age group winner or finisher.
- Participation points only are awarded for the Summer All-Comers Meets. Participants earn 4 points for each meet they take part in.
- There are only three overall awards given at the Beidleheimer Sidewinder. There are no sex or age group awards, since the race is age and sex graded.
- Points are awarded for the overall men's and women's and masters men's and women's winners of the Indoor Mile Series. The Indoor Mile Series winners are decided based on the sum of a runner's two best times over all the meets, so a runner must run at least two Indoor Miles to qualify. Runners who only run one Indoor Mile get participant (DNF) points.
- Points are awarded for the overall men's and women's and masters men's and women's winners on the 3000 meter races that takes place as part of the Indoor Mile Series. This year there will be two 3000 meter races. The overall winner is the runner with the best time between the two races.
- Members of the NVRC Boston Boston Marathon teams raising money for CVIM do not earn racing points but can earn points toward Volunteer of the Year. See below.

Some examples:

- Mary is the 2nd overall female in the Egg Hill run. She gets 10 points for 2nd place, 2 points for running an NVRC race, and 3 points for the distance (10 miles), for a total of 15 points.
- Steve finishes in the middle of the pack at Kinesiology. He gets 5 points for finishing.
- Jane is on the third place team at Tussey, where she ran 2 legs for a total of 8 miles. She gets 9 points for the team result, 2 points for being an NVRC race, and 3 points for the distance, for a total of 14 points.

Volunteer of the Year Award

Race Volunteering Points:

Race Director - 10 points
Race committee - 6 points
Other multi-day race volunteer - 6 points
Race/single day volunteer - 3 points
Donation to the Boston Marathon - CVIM team - 2 points

Club Volunteering Points:

Club officer - 8 points
Club committee member - 6 points
Other Club role (e.g. new web site developer, Club Timer, NVRC Series Data Cruncher) - 6 points

Bonuses:

NVRC race (see Series races for NVRC designation) - add 2 points

Volunteering Notes:

- Race Volunteering points are awarded in one category per race per person. So, for example, the the Race Director does not also get points as a race day volunteer.
- Boston-CVIM Team Director earns Race Director points (8). Boston-CVIM Team Members earn Race Committee points (6).
- Indoor Mile Series coordinator earns Multi-day Race Volunteer points (6).
- Club Timer is a semi-official Club role. Timer earns points just for putting up with all the timing requests. He/she also earns race day volunteer points (3) for each Series race that he/she manually times.

Example:

- Jenna finishes third in the 20-24 age group at First Night. She also volunteers at the registration table before the race. She gets 6 points for 3rd place in her age group and 2 points for running an NVRC race for a total of 8 racing points. She also gets 3 points for race day volunteering and 2 points for volunteering at an NVRC race for 5 volunteering points.

4. The Race Series.

Here is a list of the races in the NVRC Race Series. You can earn points by running or volunteering in any event in the series. You can also earn Bonus Points by participating in Club races, designated "NVRC". Please note that this list is subject to change. More information on all of these races can be found at on the NVRC Calendar.

First Night (NVRC)
Indoor Mile Series and 3000 Meter Race (NVRC)*
Faith Centre 5K
Egg Hill 10 Miler and Relay (NVRC)
Coaches vs. Cancer 5K
Kinesiology Challenge 5K
NVRC Boston Marathon Teams for CVIM (NVRC - Volunteer points only)**
Jeremy Herbstritt Races (There may be two again this year)
Linden Loop 5 Mile Run, Walk or Bike for the Rock Hill School
Beidleheimer Sidewinder 10K (NVRC)*
Moshannon Valley YMCA Black Moshannon 10K/5K
Boalsburg Memorial Day Run
Speed-To-Read 5K
Crack-O-Dawn 5K
4th Fest 4K
All Comers Track and Field Meets*
Sue Crowe Memorial Arts Festival 10K and 5K (NVRC)
Last Cruise 5K
Tussey mOUnTaiNBACK 50 Mile Relay and Ultramarathon (NVRC)
Knights of Columbus State College Adventure 5K (NVRC)
Steps-to-Safety 5K
Moxie-Thon 5K
THON 5K
Jingle Bell Run 5K
Nittany Valley Half Marathon (NVRC)

* See "Race Scoring Notes" under Scoring above.
** See "Volunteer Scoring Notes" under Scoring above.

5. Awards. There will be awards for the top scoring racers and volunteers. Whether we give multiple place awards is TBD and depends on level of interest from Club members and whether we can scrounge up some good prizes. We may also have some surprise award categories. Awards will be given at the February 2009 meeting.

6. Series Tallies To Date. Here's where to find up to date Series tallies. Check your results. Report any questions or discrepancies to NVRCRaceSeries@gmail.com.

Created 12/19/07
Updated 01/22/08

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