RRTC Statement of Purpose RRTC Works to Establish and Maintain a Credible Technical Basis

RRTC Statement of Purpose RRTC works to establish and maintain a credible technical basis for the sport of road running. Our primary function is to oversee course measurement by having a network of Certifiers overseeing the work submitted by measurers. Further information can be found on our web site at: and there is a direct link from the USATF Web’s site.

Statement of Philosophy: The RRTC falls under the LDR Division.Our decisions and Membership in RRTC is conferred by work. RRTC is dedicated to the idea that all races are equal. We do not give special preference to “important" races in the validations process. All are treated equally, as specified by the USATF rules.Our only goal is to help as much as we can to give the customer what he wants, not what someone else thinks he ought to want. By doing this we build friendly bridges for USATF.By helping out all race directors, and getting them on the path to cooperation with USATF, a certain proportion will go on to grow into important events. We help race directors obtain an accurately measured race course that is at least the advertised length.

The "important" end of the sport is only a tiny - albeit visible - fraction of the sport as a whole. RRTC believes that unless the whole is served, the sport will decline. We are unbiased because we do not need to answer to commercial interests.

We want to stay free of obligation to any special interests. If we cannot, we cannot do our jobs properly.

Make-up: The Council shall consist of a Chairperson named by the President of USATF and at least twenty percent (20%) of the members shall be active athletes selected by the Athletes Advisory Chair. The positions of Vice Chair(s), Validation Chair, Database Accuracy Officer, Bookkeeper, Bulletin Board Monitor, Education & Training Chair(s), Secretary and Web Master are appointed by the Chairman of the RRTC. In addition the Chairperson appoints Regional Certifier on a needs basis for a particular region of the United States. Each of these position and their Roles are defined on the RRTC web site.

USATF membership: In order to participate as a USATF Council member, an individual must be a member of USATF in current standing. Regional Certifiers and Final Signatories must also be USATF members in current standing.

Term of members: The term for members of the RRTC shall be four (4) years and shall commence at the conclusion of the annual meeting in each year of the Summer Olympic Games. Note: The Chair is appointed by the President of USATF. This person must have been a National Certifier and have measured/certified many courses over the years. The Chair then appoints the other positions on the council (see below under Chairs duties).

General Provisions: Per Regulation 11.A.6, the Council shall hold its annual meeting in conjunction with the USATF annual meeting. The Council may hold special meetings if called by the chair, at his or her own initiative, or by twenty percent (20%) of the Council’s membership, upon thirty (30) days written notice. There will be a published agenda available at least 24 hours prior to the committee’s first scheduled session. Additional items added to the agenda shall not include any item where action of the committee is necessary, unless seventy-five percent (75%) of the members of the group then present agree. All meetings of the Council and its Executive Council, board, or task group shall be open to all USATF individual members. No part of any meeting shall be closed unless seventy-five percent (75%) of the members of the group then present agree to close the session. A quorum for any committee meeting shall consist of twenty-five percent (25%) of its members.

Operating Procedures:

The council shall: i. Manage a national program of accurate road course measurement and certification;

ii. Establish and maintain a national list of certified courses;

iii. Select, train, and supervise road course certifiers;

iv. Provide technical information and advice to assure that rules relating to course measurement and certification can realistically be enforced;

v. Provide a pool of qualified expert measurers for special situations as determined by the council;

vi. Assist the Records Committee by providing current information as to race certification status;

vii. Assist the Records Committee by providing validation/verification measurers as necessary for record purposes; and

viii. Maintain communications with all interested parties nationally and with technical counterparts in foreign federations.

Chair’s Duties

1. Makes appointments on a needs basis of all Certifiers.
2. Appoints the following positions on the RRTC: Vice Chairs, Education & Training Chair(s), Secretary, Webmaster, Data Accuracy Officer, Validation Chair, Bookkeeper and Bulletin Board Monitor.
   Note: Each position is awarded by the RRTC Chairman, based upon recommendations of others, or upon his own observations. No position is granted for-life. After discussion amongst the Technical Council, the RRTC Chairman has final say in removal of someone from their position. Any person may be removed from the above positions in A and B for the following reasons:
3. Doesn’t properly fulfill their responsibilities.
4. Their conduct has been determined to be detrimental to the measuring community or running community.
5. Encourages individuals to measure and provides information upon request.
6. Builds friendly bridges for USATF by assisting race directors and getting them on the path to cooperation with USATF.
7. Sees that the game is played with fairness and guides the RRTC to stay free of obligation to any special interests.
8. Is responsible for all expenses submitted to USATF.
9. Is the first contact with USATF for all Issues.
10. The Chair will comply with Regulation 11.B.1 of the USATF By Laws.

Course Measurement and Certification Information:

One of the components of a successful event is a properly measured race course. While USATF’s course certification program began as a way to insure that road racing records were meaningful, today race directors choose to have their courses certified because race participants report better experiences when courses are measured in accordance with USATF’s course measurement and certification procedures.

HOW are courses measured? The vast majority of race courses in the USA are measured by the Calibrated Bicycle Method. This involves measuring a straight course of known distance (called a “calibration course”) with a steel measuring tape and using it to calibrate the front wheel of a bicycle equipped with a device that records the number of times the front wheel revolves. The bicycle is then ridden over the course using the shortest possible route the runners could cover without cutting the course. The course is measured a second time to insure errors weren’t made on the first measurement. It is then returned to the calibration course and recalibrated to determine what, if any conditions have changed since it was originally calibrated. The measurer completes a set of USATF forms documenting the measurement and draws a map of the course. The documentation is sent to the Regional Certifier for review. If everything is in order, the Certifier issues a Measurement Certificate, and the course is considered certified.

WHO can measure a course for certification? Anybody can measure a course for certification in the USA. The complete USATF Course Measurement Procedures manual, including all of the application forms, is available to all on the Internet at the USATF web site through the following link:

WHAT is required to measure a course? The Course Measurement Procedures manual lists items you will probably need, but the only ones you probably won’t find in your garage or basement are a Jones Counter and a steel measuring tape. The measuring tape, usually 30 meters (100 feet if you prefer) or longer in length, is used to lay out the calibration course and measure the distances from important points on the course to nearby landmarks. The Jones Counter mounts to the front hub of the bicycle and measures partial revolutions of the front wheel. In the measurement process you will develop a constant that will equate a count of the counter with a distance on the ground. A certain number of those counts will be the length of your course.

WHEN should you measure a course? USATF requires only that the documentation be postmarked before the race date. On a more practical note, however, it makes sense to measure the course a month or more before the race date to allow time for the certifier’s review and any corrections to be made.

RRTC works to establish and maintain a credible technical basis for the sport of road running. This work falls into eight categories:

1. Course Certification: This is our principal point of contact with the road running community. RRTC supervises the measurement and certification of all road racing courses in the United States (There are also USATF-certified courses in thirteen foreign countries). USATF certification is the runner’s assurance that the course was measured accurately by uniform standards. Using our network of certifiers in every state, at the present time we certify over 250 new courses every month.
2. Course List Maintenance: RRTC maintains the list of all USATF-certified courses (currently about 43,000 courses). Updates are issued every day and posted on the USATF web site. Athletes often use this list when deciding where to race.
3. Communications: This is currently accomplished largely through the RRTC Course Measurement Bulletin Board. Previously, RRTC published a newsletter called Measurement News, many issues of which are still available online. We also maintain frequent and constant communication with foreign measurers and organizations. This has resulted in worldwide adoption of RRTC’s measurement standards as described in our Online Measurement Procedures manual.
4. Education and Technical Support: RRTC sends representatives to various conferences and races, where we put on measurement seminars and educate groups of people about course certification procedures. We also meet with USATF, AIMS and IAAF officials, and respond to the needs of the runners. Several years ago, the RRTC Chairperson traveled to Brazil and Japan, leading IAAF measurement seminars with the local Federations in both of those countries.
5. Validation/Verification Program: When an athlete sets a pending record in a road race, we check the course and timing. This is overseen by RRTC’s Validations Chair, who interfaces with the USATF Road Running Information Center and our national network of measurers. When RRIC informs the Validation Chair of a potential record he contacts an expert measurer and the race director to arrange a verification. In addition to domestic verifications, RRTC has helped determine whether records set on foreign courses were valid.
6. Finish Lines: RRTC’s book Road Race and Finish Line Management has considerably improved the operation of finish lines at road races.
7. Special Projects: RRTC has conducted many international seminars on course measurement and race timing. In 1996, our big project was measurement of the Olympic Marathon and Race Walk courses in Atlanta. This was a cooperative effort by 28 measurers from six countries. Every Olympic Trials course in the US since 1996 has been verified by the RRTC.Most recently in 2011, we had a team of five IAAF/AIMS “A” measurers verify the Men’s and Women’s Olympic Trials in Houston. Another of our projects was to put our Measurement Procedures manual online, which is likely to have a large impact on course measurement.
8. Miscellaneous Problem-Solving: We try to promote USATF/RRTC as a helping hand to road runners. As a result, people come to us with questions about USATF. We get these calls, emails and letters all the time, and try to point people in the proper direction.