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Road Runners Club of America records, 1958-2011

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Road Runners Club of America
Title
Road Runners Club of America records
Dates
1958-2011 (inclusive)
Quantity
10.25 linear feet, (21 boxes)
Collection Number
UUS_ORA 019
Summary
This collection contains the organizational records from the Road Runners Club of America, including publications and VHS resources.
Repository
Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library, Special Collections and Archives Division
Special Collections & Archives
Merrill-Cazier Library
Utah State University
Logan, UT
84322-3000
Telephone: 4357978248
Fax: 4357972880
scweb@usu.edu
Access Restrictions

No restrictions on access, except: not available through interlibrary loan.

Languages
English
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Content Description

This collection is composed of Road Runners Club of America papers and records, providing a sampling of administrative records and resources for runners. The materials in this collection represent the club's efforts to foster the growth of local chapters of running clubs, as well as programs specifically focused on children and women. Business records include a constitution, by-laws, correspondence, annual reports, meeting minutes, and newsletters. Also included are brief biographical entries regarding runners nominated for awards, such as the RRCA Runner Hall of Fame. Other items include race reports, marketing and publicity materials, news articles, photographs, and other published resources designed to educate and support running communities all over the United States. Footnotes, the club's main quarterly publication, has been separated to its own collection.

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Historical Note

Founded in 1958, the Road Runners Club of America (RRCA) is the oldest and largest distance running organization in the United States, with over 1,500 running club and event members representing 200,000 individual runners active in their running communities. The RRCA has promoted programs for women's running, including lobbying for a Women's Olympic marathon, hosting women-only races, and advocating equal prize structures for men and women runners. The RRCA member clubs conduct thousands of races each year and provide training programs for runners in every state. Many RRCA clubs award college scholarships to local runners. The RRCA parent organization awards $5,000 annual Road Scholar stipends to promising post-collegiate athletes. The ultimate policy making power is vested in the member clubs who vote at the annual meeting or special meetings, where the voting power of each club is proportional to its size. The membership elects a 9-member Board of Directors, with four directors responsible for four regions of the nation. They in turn select State Representatives to coordinate RRCA efforts in each state. Although individuals can join the RRCA, the RRCA encourages runners to join a local member running club where one is available; all members of each member running club receive the full benefits of RRCA membership. Other programs include: liability insurance covering running clubs and events; runner's safety, education, and advocacy; coaching certification (to accredit coaches who specialize in training long distance runners); national, regional and state championship event series; national RUN@WORK day; Kids Run the Nation program (10-week youth running program curriculum and small grant fund for starting and/or maintaining youth running programs); runner friendly community program; and a volunteer recognition program.

Source: The Road Runners Club of America website

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.

Permission to publish material from the Road Runners Club of America records must be obtained from the Outdoor Recreation Archive curator and/or the Special Collections Section Head.

Preferred Citation

Initial Citation: Road Runners Club of America records USU_ORA 019. Special Collections and Archives. Utah State University Merrill-Cazier Library. Logan, Utah.

Following Citations:USU_ORA 019, USUSCA.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

These materials are organized into two series: I. Business records; II. Runner resources and programs. Within each series, materials are grouped by material type into sub-series, then in general chronological order.

Acquisition Information

Donated to USU Special Collections and Archives by Jean Knaack in 2022 and 2023

Related Materials

Road Runners Club of America Footnotes quarterly magazine, currently being processed

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Detailed Description of the Collection

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Subject Terms

Finding aid created by Isabelle Berke, Heather Housley, and Clint Pumphrey
2024

CC Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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