Joe McGinness Runner of the Year Competition

The Joe McGinness Runner of the Year (ROY) contest is an annual competition designed to promote running and fitness among Chattanooga Track Club (CTC) members and to recognize our most competitive runners overall and by age group.

Awards and Recognition for All Runner of the Year Recipients are given at the club's Annual Banquet in January.  In addition, First Place Overall Female and Male and First Place Female and Male Age Group Runner of the Year names will appear on CTC's ROY plaques.

Latest scores / standings:  2025 Roy Race Results - Pending Scoring of First Race - Wauhatchie Trail Run Feb 1

2025 Runner of the Year Calendar:  View Here

ROY RULES

• CTC Membership:  Participants MUST be a CURRENT CTC member at the start of the ROY event.
  
  
• Minimum Events Required to Qualify for ROY awards:
  • 3 ROY events for Youths and Juniors
  • 5 ROY events for Young Adults, Adults, Masters, Grand Masters, Seniors and Grand Seniors
    
    
• Volunteer Events: Adult competitors must volunteer for at least 2 CTC race events during the ROY year.
  • Volunteering for a CTC race event earns 5 ROY points per event day.
    
    
• Award Category Scoring:
  • Overall Awards: The highest honors, Overall Male and Female, are awarded based on the maximum points accumulated from the best 8 out of all eligible ROY events. Once these winners are determined, they are excluded from their age groups to allow for advancement in ranking within those categories.
    
    
  • Age Group Awards: Runners in each age group compete for the top 3 spots, calculated from their best 10 ROY event scores. This ensures consistent competition throughout the year and allows runners multiple opportunities to improve their standings.
    
    
  • Points Calculation:
    • Main Events: The top 10 finishers earn points on a scale from 100 to 10.  All competitors in a Main event will receive a minimum of 10 points, regardless of place.
    • Shorter Events: These events award points at half the rate of main events, ranging from 50 to 5.  All competitors in a shorter event will receive a minimum of 5 points, regardless of place.
    • The Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon: Points are doubled for the marathon, ranging from 200 for first place down to 20 for tenth place.   All competitors in the marathon will receive a minimum of 20 points, regardless of place.
  • Resolution of Ties: If competitors are tied on total points at year-end, the tie is broken by comparing the number of head-to-head wins. If still unresolved, tied competitors will share the award.
    
    
• Points for Non-ROY Events:
  • Up to fifty (50) Non-ROY event bonus points may be earned for participating in any Non-ROY event within 50 miles of Chattanooga and up to one destination race outside of the 50-mile radius.
    
    
• Points for Volunteering at CTC Races:
  • ROY competitors who volunteer for CTC race events will earn 5 ROY points for each event day they volunteer.
    
    
• ROY Age Calculation:
  • Each competitor’s ROY Age Group for the current year is based on their age on June 30 of that year.

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ADDITIONAL DETAILS

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AWARD CATEGORIES

• Top Overall Male and Female who have earned the most points out of their best 8 ROY events vs. the entire field of ROY competitors during the year. Top overall Male and Female award recipients are pulled out of their respective age groups and the remaining competitors in that age group each roll up in position.
  
  
• Top 3 Male and Female runners in each age group who have earned the most points out of their best 10 ROY events vs. the field of ROY competitors in their age group during the year (excluding the Overall Male and Female award winners). 

RUNNER OF THE YEAR PLAQUES

In addition to the awards presented at the CTC annual banquet, the names of the First Place Overall Female and Male Runners of the Year and the First Place Winners in each ROY Age Group will added to the CTC Runner of the Year Plaques for the year.

ROY AWARD AGE GROUPS

How Old Am I? - Your ROY AGE for Age Group Scoring:  Your ROY Age Group for the current year is based on the age you are on June 30 of that year

Youth Vs. Adult Events For Scoring:  For most ROY events, youths and adults will score points in the same event.  On certain dual event days, however, youths can only score points in the ROY events specified as Youth ROY for that day and adults, likewise, can only score points in the adult ROY event for that day.  Those events are noted with an asterisk in the ROY Series Calendar

POINT SYSTEM AND REPORTING  Points are awarded to the first ten ROY eligible finishers in each ROY category (Overall and Age Group) as follows. You must be a CTC member at the start of the race in order to collect ROY finishing points.

Please note that the Chickamauga Battlefield Half Marathon scores full normal points for adult competitors. The CBM Full, by contrast, scores 2x Normal ROY points for all full marathon competitors.  Please see 2024 ROY Event Calendar for youth and adult point values per event.

Bonus Points for Non-ROY Event Participation

Local Events:  Earn up to fifty (50) Non-ROY event bonus points throughout the year for participating in any Non-ROY event within 50 miles of Chattanooga.  Each non-ROY event earns 10 points.

Destination Events:  Earn 10 Bonus Points for ONE destination race outside of the 50-mile radius. Some form of proof of official event participation via results must be provided to the ROY points keeper in order to be eligible.  Submissions by email are preferred.  Links to race results, images of results from the race site, PDFs of same, etc. are all acceptable. 

The maximum number of points for Non-Roy events is fifty (50).

Submit Bonus Points Earned requests and info to: royAdmin@chattanoogatrackclub.org

ROY STANDINGS, REPORTING/AVOIDING ISSUES  Runners can check the current ROY standings by visiting the ROY points page on the Chattanooga Track Club web site. Please note, ROY standings are updated as finishing results are made available and as the ROY points keeper is able to calculate the earned ROY points from those results.

Whenever any discrepancy is noted on the ROY results page, it should be reported to the ROY points keeper as soon as possible so that they may work to resolve the issue and ensure the posted results are correct for all competitors.

Ways to help ensure accurate points capture and recording:

• Make sure your CTC membership is current
• Make sure your birthdate is accurate in your CTC member record
• Use the same first and last name and/or nickname and last name that is on your CTC member record.  If you are unsure, log into your account and confirm or update your information as needed.
• Print your name clearly.  When you mail in an application or sign up for a race on race day, print your name clearly so the data entry volunteer is more likely to enter it correctly.   Points are scored based on names matching, so the more often your name is correctly / consistently entered, the fewer issues with points.
• Make sure you include your correct birthdate and age on race day on all printed applications, whether mailed in on filled out on race day.
• Make sure your gender is correct on same.

For any / all ROY-related questions and/or suggestions, please email:  royAdmin@chattanoogatrackclub.org