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:  Click Here

ROY RULES  (Click here for PDF Version)

• 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.

ADDITIONAL DETAILS

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

*The ROY age for all competitors is based on their age on June 30th of the current year.

ROY POINT SCORING
ROY points are scored for all current CTC members competing in any ROY event.

The following table shows the points that will be earned for each event, depending on event distance.  Main events on race day will earn full points while shorter events will earn half points.  Competitors in the Battlefield Marathon will earn double full points.

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

Bonus Points for CTC Race Volunteers

5 ROY points may be earned for each event day where a ROY competitor volunteers.

While a minimum of 10 volunteer points must be earned to qualify for ROY awards at the end of the year, there is no maximum number of volunteer points that can be earned.

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.

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:  royAdmin@chattanoogatrackclub.org

Ways to help ensure accurate points capture and recording:

• Ensure your CTC membership does not expire during the year
• Ensure your membership details are correct, especially:
  • Your first and last name and your nickname
  • Your birthdate
  • Your sex
  • Your email address
• When you register for any CTC race, ensure the same key details are correct:
  • Your first and last name and your nickname
  • Your birthdate
  • Your sex
  • Your email address

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