January 2026 President’s Letter PDF
Dear Members and GRRC Supporters:
Now that we’re at the end of the first month in January, we’re moving full steam ahead on all kinds of things. This letter contains the December/January club recap, upcoming events, and some club highlights, including election information.
December/January Club Recap
- The board of directors celebrated the year’s work with a dinner in lieu of a meeting. We recapped the year’s accomplishments with an eye toward the future. Since then, Immediate Past President VP Martha Doody tendered her resignation as she focuses on her new role as an elected official and formally withdrew her ultras, 9 Hours for 9 Lives and Bound from the Hounds from the club so she can manage all aspects without the need for club approvals. Speaking of approvals, we approved the $1,100 raised for charities associated with those races and sponsoring Try-a-Tri for $300. Two important actions occurred behind the scenes: we actively recruited potential board candidates and we committed to a financial/budget task group focused on bringing our financial processes in line with customary best practices for non-profits.
- December is the kickoff month for the Freezeroo Series. While numbers are down, we still have a robust level of participation and we’ve enabled donations on the page as the series is our main fundraiser. Now that we’ve had four races, we’re starting to see where people are really close to placing in the overall and age group categories. You can see the results at https://www.hourglassworks.com/results/20260124_FREEZEROO_Series.pdf. You only need to do four races to be eligible for standings and we have two more races coming up. Your top four scores count!
- December saw the close of the MILEStone Challenge with folks squeaking in at just over 50 miles and some obliterating the 300-mile minimum for the platinum patch, the highest we go. The 2026 program is live.
- Rochester Runner of the Year Series work is well underway and the RROY Committee is nearly done securing the lineup for 2026. What is known right now is Runnin’ of the Green is still our kickoff race, we have a trail 5K entering the mix, and they’ve decided to swap out the first West of the River Series race for the last one, giving the series a marathon, Barbecue Bash Quarters, at the end of the year. Stay tuned for additional developments!
Coming Events (See Club RSU page for any unlinked events)
February
14 – Freezeroo #5, Valentine’s Race in Memory of Tom Brannon: An eight-mile course through the north part of Greece with a long, scenic trek along Edgemere between several ponds and Lake Ontario. If it’s cold enough, you’ll likely see folks ice fishing in the distance. Register at https://runsignup.com/Race/NY/Rochester/FreezerooSeriesIndividualRace.
21 – Freezeroo #6, White House Challenge: The final race in the series, this one is our only looped course, taking us 2.2 miles around a block twice, starting with a sweet downhill and finishing relatively flat. We won’t talk about the middle. Let’s talk about the end! It’s the grand finale traditionally with pizza and cider while we’re giving out awards. Plan to stay a bit to enjoy the festive feel. Also at https://runsignup.com/Race/NY/Rochester/FreezerooSeriesIndividualRace.
32 – RIT Try-a-Tri: This isn’t one of ours and there’s not a club discount. However, we are one of their sponsors! As such, we encourage folks to participate as volunteers or racers. It’s a tiny tri with 15 minutes of swimming indoors, 15 minutes of cycling on a spin bike, and 15 minutes of giving it your all on a 200-meter indoor track. Register at https://campusgroups.rit.edu/RMC/rsvp_boot?id=2314684.
March
7 – Annual GRRC Banquet: This year we’re doing a brunch! Late enough the snow plows will have come through and early enough that you get home in the light. Raffles, RROY awards & announcements, MILEStone patches and awards, club highlights, and inducting Mark Andrews and Bill Murphy into the GRRC Hall of Fame! Space is limited. Register now at https://runsignup.com/Race/NY/Rochester/GRTCAnnualAwardsBanquet.
14 – Runnn’ of the Green: This is the kickoff Rochester Runner of the Year Series race! Live music, festive atmosphere, and an easy-to-follow out-and-back course featuring the Genessee River Trail. Register at https://runsignup.com/Race/NY/Rochester/RunninoftheGreenpresentedbytheYMCA and get a club discount!
MILEStone Patch Challenge
Register now at https://runsignup.com/Race/NY/Rochester/GreaterRochesterRunningClubMILEStonePatchChallenge to start tracking your mileage. Even if you’re not sure how to do the data entry, if you want to be in the MILEStone Challenge, free registration is required. If needed, we’ll help you out with the data entry. Questions? Just email us at milestone@grtconline.org.
Patches from 2025 will be available at the banquet on 3/7/2026. Folks attending the banquet are eligible for Highlight Awards designated by MILEStone Challenge Chair Tina Ruhland. Any remaining patches will be mailed afterwards.
Discounts
See member discounts at https://runsignup.com/GreaterRochesterRunningClub. They are updated as race directors extend the discount to our members.
Board of Directors Election and Service
I sent out a separate message only to members earlier in the week. Voting for board members ends today, January 29. If you are not a member and want to vote, please register to become a member at https://runsignup.com/GreaterRochesterRunningClub. There are six open seats and five candidates. Members can show their support of any or all of the five candidates as well as write in a candidate. Any write-ins are subject to vetting before being offered a seat. Because there is a write-in option, voting still matters even though there are fewer candidates than open seats. Members are asked to vote at https://forms.gle/jHKUhVpKcpadCGdM6. Any non-member votes will be disqualified.
We thank those whose terms end 1/31/2026 for their service: Immediate Past President, Nominating Committee Chair, Freezeroo Series Chair, and Spring Track Clinic Coordinator, Doug Jones (more than a decade on the board and about a decade as president); Immediate Past Vice President and Ultra RD Martha Doody, Membership Orientation Manager Rachael Della Pietra, and RROY Committee Members and Don Curran 5K RD, Greg Brooks.
Volunteerism
GRRC – Want to help and don’t know how? Contact me at president@grtconline.org and let’s talk!
Thank you for being a member or being interested enough to follow us in email and social media. Members can renew before their membership lapses and followers can become members by registering at https://runsignup.com/GreaterRochesterRunningClub.
See you out there!
Vickey Beaver