West Texas Running Club

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The West Texas Running Club (WTRC), founded in 1972 by Gene Adams and James Morris, has grown into the foremost running organization in West Texas, with over 300 members. WTRC conducts 13 events each year.

West Texas Region in Texas, United States

West Texas is a loosely defined part of the U.S. state of Texas, generally encompassing the arid and semiarid lands west of a line drawn between the cities of Wichita Falls, Abilene, and Del Rio.

Contents

History

The WTRC started in Brownfield. In 1972 Gene Adams moved to Brownfield from Tulsa and learned there was not a local running club. He still wished to continue running and began at the Brownfield High School track. This is where he came in contact with James Morris the Brownfield High School track coach. They became friends and decided to start a running club in the area. Because Brownfield was a small community they decided to make their running club appeal to runners throughout the West Texas region. During the Summer of 1972 at the Brownfield Firecracker Race Gene and James convinced a few other runners to join their club. The WTRC organized its first race shortly thereafter. Today the Majority of WTRC members are from Lubbock but races are still held in Brownfield. [1]

Brownfield, Texas City in Texas, United States

Brownfield is a city in Terry County, Texas, United States. The population was 9,657 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Terry County 39 miles southwest of Lubbock.

Tulsa, Oklahoma City in Oklahoma, United States

Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 45th-most populous city in the United States. As of July 2018, the population was 403,035, an increase of 11,129 since the 2010 Census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 991,005 residents in the MSA and 1,251,172 in the CSA. The city serves as the county seat of Tulsa County, the most densely populated county in Oklahoma, with urban development extending into Osage, Rogers, and Wagoner counties.

Lubbock, Texas City in Texas, United States

Lubbock is the 11th-most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Lubbock County. With a population of 255,885 in 2018, the city is also the 81st-most populous in the United States. The city is in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically and geographically as the Llano Estacado, and ecologically is part of the southern end of the High Plains, lying at the economic center of the Lubbock metropolitan area, which has a projected 2020 population of 327,424.

Races

Races are held at least once a month and include:

Road running distance running sport on roads

Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road.

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Challenge Series

The WTRC Challenge Series [2] is a 12 month series of 13 races culminating in year-end awards and recognition for performance, endurance and participation by club members in monthly club races.

66 Mile Club

All members completing 66 miles in qualifying events will receive an award denoting that achievement.

Mileage Award

Presented to the male and female members who accumulate the most miles for the year in qualifying events.

Participation Award

Presented to the female and male members who participate in the greatest number of qualifying events.

Volunteer Of The Year

Up to three awards are given to those Non runners who help the most at club sanctioned events.

Victor's Rankings

Points are earned at each qualifying event in different age and sex classes. Awards are presented to a minimum of 3 and up to 5 of the top point scorers in each division at the end of the year.

Red Raider Road Race Scholarships

The WTRC awards stipends of up to $500 per semester to Texas Tech University Students. They are awarded based on the following criteria: participation in extracurricular activities, participation in school activities, leadership positions held, academic record and financial need. Special consideration is given to candidates who participate in activities that are consistent with the goals of the club.

Texas Tech University Public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States

Texas Tech University is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on February 10, 1923, and called until 1969 Texas Technological College, it is the main institution of the four-institution Texas Tech University System. The university's student enrollment is the seventh-largest in Texas as of the Fall 2017 semester.

An extracurricular activity (ECA) or extra academic activity (EAA) is an activity, performed by students, that falls outside the realm of the normal curriculum of school, college or university education. Such activities are generally voluntary, social, philanthropic, and often involve others of the same age. Students and staff direct these activities under faculty sponsorship, although student-led initiatives, such as independent newspapers, are very common.

Organization

The WTRC is headed by the current President, Jonathan Botros.

Membership

WTRC membership include a monthly newsletter that contains injury and training tips, club news, and race results. It also includes membership in the Road Runners Club of America (RRCA).

Founded in 1958, the Road Runners Club of America (RRCA) is the oldest and largest distance running organization in the United States with over 1500 running club and event members representing 200,000 individual runners active in their running communities. The mission of the RRCA is to promote the development and growth of running clubs, running events, and supporting the common interests of runners throughout the country at all stages in life. The RRCA provides a national infrastructure for the development of adult and youth running clubs and events that have boomed into a robust sporting activity. The RRCA actively promotes running as a healthy lifestyle and positive social activity and strives to provide quality programming that can be replicated throughout the country, such as the highly successful Start a Running Club program has been the cornerstone of our organization for over fifty years.

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