The Aging of MHRRC

By Steve Perks

The MHRRC was founded in 1979. At the time I was 33 years old. Almost 30 years later, I’m still running and the club is going strong. Maybe. It’s informative to look at the ages of many of the most active club members. At the same time that U.S. running is seeing a resurgence of young, world class distance runners, as evidenced by the recent Olympic Trials Marathon, the running community in general is getting older. The MHRRC is no exception. Two of our four club officers are over 65, five of our races have directors in their 70s and three more have directors in their 60s. The member who handles most of our finish lines (when he is not directing his own races) is in his 70s. One of our main computer race scorers is over 65. The two members who direct the ten water stops for the Classic, handling all the water jugs and tables, are in their 60s. One of the club’s most ubiquitous volunteers, still arriving at races on his motorcycle, is in his 70s. This is not all of our “senior” active members, there are many more.  All of these core members do a lot more than just direct or help at a couple of races. They participate in all that goes on, they are the heart and soul of the MHRRC.

What is the point of all of this? I’m not sure. All of these people are still dynamic, energetic, dedicated club members. On the other hand it does raise some questions. Will the resurgence of young American distance runners be restricted to national and world-class runners or will it fuel an increase in younger runners at the local level? Will the running boom, which seems to be experiencing a new surge, fade away as the older runners who make up a huge part of the running community get too old to run?

Closer to home – is the MHRRC in danger of becoming smaller and less dynamic as our core group of older, active volunteers become less involved? Is there a way to get more young runners to start playing an active part in the club? Is it possible that the age of many of the active club members causes younger runners to shy away from what they may perceive as a “good ol’ boys club”.

I don’t know the answers, yet the questions, especially the last three, certainly feel like they need to be asked.