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Universal NO HEADPHONES Icon Unveiled

Posted Friday, 8 February, 2008

Arlington, VA - As race directors struggle with the RRCA guideline against the use of headphones in RRCA insured events along with the USATF ban on headphones at sanctioned events, the RRCA is encouraging race directors to adopt the new universal NO HEADPHONES symbol on race entry forms and race materials. Created by veteran race director, Jim Gerweck, the goal of this universal symbol is to send the message that event directors are serious about the headphone ban at the events they manage.

“Race officials don’t ban headphones to be mean to runners — it’s for their own safety and that of everyone else in the race,” says Gerweck, a member of the USATF Long Distance Running sub-committee studying enforcement of the ban. “It’s an education effort more than an enforcement issue, as events such as Grandma’s and Twin Cities Marathons have successfully proven. This logo is a simple way to send runners the message that headphones aren’t permitted in sanctioned events.”

The RRCA has promoted a guideline against the use of headphones in running events that dates back to the mid-1980’s and this guideline has been re-affirmed several times by the RRCA membership since then.

“Banning headphones or advising participants to leave them at home or in the car is part of the risk management responsibility of a race director. Many participants do not understand or respect the awesome responsibility a race director shoulders to ensure the safety of every single participant in an event,” explains Jean Knaack, RRCA executive director. “Respecting an event director’s choice to ban headphones is the shared responsibility of every participant to ensure the safety of all runners and the future success of the event and the sport as a whole.”

Join in on the discussion, see No iPod Enforcement

Olympian glad to join NA race

BY JANETTE SEARS SUN CHRONICLE STAFF
Sunday, August 19, 2007 1:56 AM EDT
NORTH ATTLEBORO - When the fifth annual Runaways Runaround 5 Miler gets under way at 9 a.m. today at the Community School in downtown North Attleboro, it will do so with support from the cream of the crop.

World-class runner and two-time Olympian Amy Rudolph will be there to support it all the way.

Proceeds from the race benefit the Community VNA Hospice, and that’s a good enough reason for Rudolph to take time out to support it.

Rudolph, who lives in Providence with her husband, Mark Carroll, also a professional runner, says she initially agreed to support the event based on an e-mail request from race committee member Bill Beardsworth.

“Bill just sent me a great e-mail, and gave me information about what it was for, and I just was really drawn to it, so that’s actually why I’m doing it,” Rudolph said.

In addition, she says she is always looking for ways to give back to the community, and can relate through a college work experience to the people who need support, much in the way that hospice provides support.

“My major in college was health policy management, and I actually did my internship at a nursing home,” she said.

“I know it’s a little bit different, the hospice, but it’s along the same lines, so my heart always goes out to people who don’t have the support, and they just need to know that someone is out there and caring about them - someone that they can lean on when they need to.”

While at the race, Rudolph will truly be there only to support it, as she says due to a stress fracture for which she has taken the past six weeks off from running, she will not be there to try to win the race.

“I had told Bill I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to run because of this injury, but I’ve been able to get some runs in, and I think I should be fine,” Rudolph said.

“I won’t be able to race it as hard as I would normally race because I’m only just coming back from injury. I’m just really excited to be a part of it, and hopefully I can help in the future.”

Organizers of the race will be only too happy to have Rudolph participate in whatever manner she is able to, according to Karole Nicholson, marketing manager for Community VNA.

“This is my fourth year being associated with this spirit-filled race, and having a runner the caliber of Amy Rudolph participating has surely brought the energy level up a notch,” Nicholson said.

The course is a USATF-NE certified five-mile course that is slightly rolling and runs along a loop through North Attleboro after starting in front of the school.

Prizes will go to the first male, female and walker overall winners, as well as to the first three male and female runners in several age divisions.

Registration is available online at runawaysclub.org/rtm.html. Entry fee is $20. Race-day registration will begin at 7:30 a.m., and the race will be held rain or shine.

Janette Sears can be reached by phone or fax at 508-222-2442 or by e-mail at janette@janettesears.com.

Everybody hates spam e-mail. Because of the huge increase in spam and other un-requested e-mail that litter everyone’s mail box we are asking our members to sign into our new Constant Contact mail management system. The input box labeled “Join Our Mailing List” is located on the Runaways club home web page (http://www.runawaysclub.org).All other e-mail systems used to contact you will be deleted in the next two weeks in favor of the new system. Runawaysclub@msn.com will remain in use to contact the club administration.

The software is an Internet-based solution for club and association management. They’re a little newer than some of the other options out there, so we benefit from newer technologies and a better understanding of how to leverage those technologies to create the most powerful and easiest solution for associations from 25 to 2500 members.

The program provides associations with an Internet platform to manage both front-office and back-office operations. It combines the association web site with the membership database, secure online member signup, renewals and expirations, credit-card processing, membership directory, discussion forums, event calendar and online registration, committees, documents, interests and other modules based on what clubs and associations do. The platform includes a full suite of administration tools to run the organization. There is no programming or HTML experience required; everything is controlled by menus and dialog boxes, and all changes are immediately live. They use state-of-the-art security, there’s no advertising and associations own their data at all times.