USATF membership

When I first started measuring I wasn't a USATF member. In North Carolina USATF doesn't really amount to much outside of the triangle, and until recently was virtually non-existant outside of track. The local club was, but quite honestly every year the question "why are we in USATF exactly" came up. I learned about measuring from Pete at an RRCA conference, not USATF. There really wasn't anything outside of getting an occasional sanction that the club needed USATF for. The only reason people joined was they were forced to when they ran some marathons.

When I joined USATF it was in the PA Association, not NC, and I've maintained that historical affiliation for nearly 15 years. That's a long story that involves beer, so I won't recount it here.

In the last 4-5 years USATF in NC has made a bit of a comeback, but it still may be a hard sell for a new measurer in this area. I think it's a good idea for measurers to be USATF members, but if we're going to require it we need a better selling point than "they back us" because frankly I don't believe that. RRTC doesn't exist because USATF backs it, it exists because there are dedicated people that feel it's necessary.

Keith, I disagree that USATF does nothing for us. They host the Website that all of our info is on. We have the RRTC.net site, but that just points to the USATF site. Web hosting is a huge benefit.

Also, if a measurer uses the USATF logo on their maps, that shows that part of our selling point for measuring is based on our USATF affiliation.

I could go on, but I believe any measurer saying the measure for USATF certification should be a member of USATF. It is not expensive, and we make money from using the affiliation.

Daune is correct. Without USATF the Course Certification process would not exist. Could RRTC go it on their own? No is the simple answer. The world measuring community would not acknowledge us. We are part of a big picture that includes the IAAF, AIMES and the RRCA.

I'm not one in saying a measurer should belong, however a certifier should belong. The certifiers are part of USATF as they are listed on the web page.

There is value in belonging, but it's beyond that as we must uphold the standards of the USATF.

I agree. USATF supports the running community (perhaps not to the degree that some might like), so anything we do to support it is a good thing.

As a runner and measurer and 35 plus year USATF member, but not a certifier I do not think requiring measurers to be USATF members is a good idea. If the one of the features of the certification program is that anyone can measure for certification, requiring USATF membership is one more a hurdle beginner would have to overcome. If the measurer is not a runner, there is no advantage, that I can think of for USATF membership. I realize measurer membership was not the question.

Certifiers are another story. Certifiers actually represent USATF. They get their position (authority) from USATF, they should be members.

As for tangible benefits for certifiers, I don't see that there are many. The listing of courses on a website benefits the course certification program, and therefore USATF far more than it benefits a certifier.

By the way does anyone think I have received benefits comensurate with the 35
plus years of USATF dues I've paid, especially if I've never participated in a track meet or won anything for running? No bitterness, I think USATF is a good organization. I'm really looking for some tangible evidence for USATF membership benefit that I can use to convince others.

Guido, I think the tangible benefit is that we, as measurers, make money from our USATF affiliation. If USATF didn't have the certification program, we would not have our hobby-job.

USATF membership may be likened to an older couple (I can say that, I are one!) paying property taxes on their home, some of which goes to schools. They have no one in the school system, but they indirectly benefit from the education of others' kids.

Sure not saying measurers must, but we benefit from the existence of USATF. I think that should be seen as a "professional membership", to put it in IRS parlance.

Duane, I'll give you that USATF maintaining the course certification program is a benefit. However, I seriously doubt that a measurer has ever been denied a measuring job based on USATF membership.
As far as "making money" from measuring goes, I don't look at measuring as an income stream, more like a hobby that pays a little. The hourly rate realized by measurers may actually qualify as a disadvantage of USATF maintaining the certification program. I don't think the majority of measurers do it solely for the income. Maybe you could say that tangible benefit of USATF maintaining the certification program is that it provides me a hobby that costs way less than golf. All this is reaching and would never alone convince someone to join USATF.

I'm not saying that any one reason is enough reason to join USATF. What I am saying is, when looking at all the little reasons (not all can be construed as "benefits") as a whole, I don't feel at all bad contributing $30 per year to the USATF.

Besides what I do for, and receive benefit from, USATF, there are many athletes out there that benefit from the USATF programs. That is like my taxes that go to schools.

I thought I was a tight-wad!

I guess the benefits depend much on the association. I had membership (and coaching certificate) when my club was active...save for Tallahassee there is (almost) nothing outside of road racing in the FL panhandle; most of the state association's activities focus on the Atlantic coast and/or south of Interstate 4 (Tampa-Orlando-Daytona). In fact, any communication from the association often arrived too late to act upon anything of import.

It's only the relationship between RRCA & USATF that would make USATF (professional?) affiliation worth it.