Gold Cup

Printable Single Page Gold Cup Schedule

The Gold Cup Series consists of a set of officially designated road and cross country races. To receive an award at the the season-ending Gold Cup Banquet, participants age 18 and under must complete 5 races and participants 19 and older must complete 10 races.

The Gold Cup Series provides runners and walkers awards for the following competitions (click on each for category specific rules):

The Gold Cup Series also includes the Elite Series, a subset of races for our most competitive adult runners that rewards speed at various distances.

The Gold Cup Series is only open to current Strider members. Gold Cup Series registration is not included in your membership fee and must be completed separately. For a race to be included in your scoring, you must join the series no later than the day of your first race.

All Gold Cup Series participants will receive the following:

  • Race discounts of $1 or more when you pre-register* for any of the Gold Cup Series races

  • A participation award (as long as you complete the required number of races)

  • A complimentary dinner at the awards banquet, which takes place the following January

*To qualify for the early registration discount, you must meet each race director’s deadline for early registration as stated on their application. Gold Cup discounts are generally not available after the early registration deadline.

When a Gold Cup event consists of more than one race, please check the scoring requirements for your Gold Cup competition age (your age on July 1) to ensure that you are running the correct race. If you are competing in the Clydesdale or Athena Age Groups, you MUST run in those divisions if offered in a specific race in order to receive Gold Cup points. Check your Gold Cup Standings here.

Gold Cup Series Rules

The following general rules apply to all Gold Cup Competitions:

You must be a registered Gold Cup participant at the time you run any Gold Cup Series race to qualify for points in that race.

Competition Age: Competition age is determined by your age on JULY 1. You will compete in that group for the entire Gold Cup Series year. Each member is expected to be truthful about their date of birth. To ensure that members compete within the appropriate age division, proof of age may be requested by the club at any time during the Gold Cup year. Members who provide an incorrect birth date on their membership or Gold Cup application may be banned from the Calumet Region Striders and Gold Cup Series participation for life, at the discretion of the Board of Directors.

Minimum races required: Participants age 19 years and older will be required to complete 10 races. Participants age 18 years and younger are required to complete 5 races. There is no penalty if you do not complete the required number of races, other than the forfeit of the participation award.

Tie-breaking: In a tie for a given position in Gold Cup standings, the following criteria are examined in the order listed until a winner is determined:

  1. Most wins in head-to-head competition

  2. Total distance of scored races (longer is winner)

  3. Wins in longer races

Walkers: Walkers may compete in the Gold Cup Series, but must compete in the same category as runners. For a race to count, walkers must register as a runner and compete in the Gold Cup Series event, not a shorter or separate walk.

Disputed results: All participants should check the posted Gold Cup Race Results to ensure that your finish place is recorded. You are responsible for contacting the club Statistician within 15 days (7 days for races after November 15) of the completion of an individual race to resolve missing or incorrect results.

Awards: A single award is given within all the Gold Cup competitions. The top 3 men and the top 3 women competitors in the Elite Series Overall competition will receive awards and will be removed from all other competitions. The top man and woman competitors in the Elite Series Masters competition will receive awards and will be removed from all other competitions. The top 3 men and the top 3 women competitors in the Overall competition will receive awards and will be removed from all other competitions. The top man and top woman competitors in the Masters competition will receive awards and will be removed from all other competitions. The top man and woman competitors in the Age-Graded competition will receive awards and will be removed from all other competitions. The top boy and the top girl competitor in the Junior Striders Overall competition will receive awards and will be removed from all other competitions. Athena and Clydesdale participants will receive awards and will be removed from all other competitions.

 

Competition Scoring & Requirements

You must be a Gold Cup member at the time you run any Gold Cup Series race to qualify for points in that race.

Age Group

If you are the fastest Gold Cup finisher in your age group (determined by your age on July 1), you will receive 100 points for that race. Second place receives 99, etc. Your best 10 (5 for 18 and under) finishes (any distance) will be scored for total points.

Current age groups: 8 and under; 9-10; 11-12; 13-14; 15-18; 19-24; 25-29; 30-34; 35-39; 40-44; 45-49; 50-54; 55-59; 60-64; 65-69; 70-74; 75-79; 80 and over.

All age groups are divided into male and female divisions.

Weight-Based

The Gold Cup Series includes two weight-based categories:

  • Athena for women weighing 170 lbs and over

  • Clydesdale for men weighing 210 lb and over

When a race offers separate competition groups for Clydesdale and Athena, if you are in the Clydesdale or the Athena group for Gold Cup, you MUST compete in those groups to receive Gold Cup points. Conversely, if you are not in the Clydesdale or Athena Gold Cup groups, you MAY NOT compete in those groups and receive Gold Cup points. Clydesdale and Athena divisions must weigh-in three (3) times per year (March-April, June-July, September-October) or otherwise forfeit all scored races within that class. In the event a Clydesdale or Athena forfeits his/her class due to weight disqualification, they will be allowed to enter their individual age division at that time, but not allowed to carry over any points from prior races. At this point, it would be like starting the series over from the beginning, but with no additional cost to the participant.

If you are the fastest Gold Cup finisher in either Athena or Clydesdale (determined by your age on July 1), you will receive 100 points for that race. Second place receives 99, etc. Your best 10 (5 for 18 and under) finishes (any distance) will be scored for total points.

Overall

All Gold Cup eligibility rules apply. Unlike the traditional Gold Cup Age Group Scoring, here EVERY runner, regardless of age, competes against each other for the Overall title. The Gold Cup Overall competition is scored on a cumulative point system. Simply put, every RACE counts. Every PLACE counts.

The objective of the Gold Cup OVERALL Competition is to identify the top three (3) men and the top three (3) women Gold Cup racers regardless of age. This will be determined by awarding points to the first ten men and first ten women in each Gold Cup race.

Each Gold Cup race offers 67 points for runners in the overall scoring, divided as follows:

Position Points
1 15
2 12
3 10
4 8
5 7
6 5
7 4
8 3
9 2
10 1

The beauty of this scoring system is that it gives an incentive not only for speed, but for consistency and tenacity. A runner who shows up at the Gold Cup minimum of 10 races, but wins them all, will score 150 points. A runner who may not be quite as fast, averaging a 5th place finish, but who runs 25 Gold Cup races, will score 175 points.

Awards: The top three Overall men and the top three Overall women will be recognized at the annual Gold Cup banquet with unique awards to reflect the tremendous accomplishment achieved and will be removed from the Gold Cup Masters, Age Graded, Age Group, and Weight-Based competitions.

Masters

All Gold Cup eligibility rules apply. Unlike the traditional Gold Cup Age Group Scoring, here EVERY runner age 40 and over on July 1 competes against each other for the Masters title. The Gold Cup Masters competition is scored on a cumulative point system. Simply put, every RACE counts. Every PLACE counts.

The objective of the Gold Cup Masters Competition is to identify the top man and the top woman Gold Cup racers age 40 and over on July 1. This will be determined by awarding points to the first ten men age 40 and over and first ten women age 40 and over in each Gold Cup race.

Each Gold Cup race offers 67 points for runners in the Masters scoring, divided as follows:

Position Points
1 15
2 12
3 10
4 8
5 7
6 5
7 4
8 3
9 2
10 1

The beauty of this scoring system is that it gives an incentive not only for speed, but for consistency and tenacity. A runner who shows up at the Gold Cup minimum of 10 races, but wins them all, will score 150 points. A runner who may not be quite as fast, averaging a 5th place finish, but who runs 25 Gold Cup races, will score 175 points.

Awards: The top Masters man and the top Masters woman will be recognized at the annual Gold Cup banquet with unique awards to reflect the tremendous accomplishment achieved and will be removed from the Gold Cup Age Graded, Age Group and Weight-based competitions.

Age-Graded

All Gold Cup eligibility rules apply. Unlike the traditional Gold Cup Age Group Scoring, here EVERY runner, competes against each other for an age-graded title based of comparison of performance to world age group records. The Gold Cup Age Graded Competition is scored on a cumulative point system based on the age graded percent achieved based on gender, age (on July 1), finish time, and distance.

The objective of the Gold Cup AGE GRADED Competition is to identify the top man and the top woman Gold Cup racers based on a determination of performance compared to world age group records (See Howard Grubb’s Web Site). This will be determined by awarding points to the first ten men and first ten women in each Gold Cup race.

Each Gold Cup race offers 67 points for runners in the Age-Graded scoring as follows:

Position Points
1 15
2 12
3 10
4 8
5 7
6 5
7 4
8 3
9 2
10 1

The beauty of this scoring system is that it gives an incentive not only for speed, but for consistency and tenacity. A runner who shows up at the Gold Cup minimum of 10 races, but wins them all, will score 150 points. A runner who may not be quite as fast, averaging a 5th place finish, but who runs 25 Gold Cup races, will score 175 points.

Awards: The top Age-Graded man and the top Age-Graded woman will be recognized at the annual Gold Cup banquet with unique awards to reflect the tremendous accomplishment achieved and will be removed from the Gold Cup Age Group and Weight-Based competitions.

Junior Strider Overall

All Gold Cup eligibility rules apply. Unlike the traditional Gold Cup Age Group Scoring, here EVERY runner age 14 and under on July 1 competes against each other for the Junior Striders Overall title. The Gold Cup Junior Striders Overall competition is scored on a cumulative point system. Simply put, every RACE counts. Every PLACE counts.

The objective of the Gold Cup Junior Striders Overall Competition is to identify the top boy and the top girl Gold Cup racers age 14 and under on July 1. This will be determined by awarding points to the first ten boys age 14 and under and first ten girls age 14 and under in each Gold Cup race. When there is a Junior Strider specific race, Junior Striders will only receive points from that race for the Junior Striders Overall competition.

Each Gold Cup race offers 67 points for runners in the Junior Striders Overall scoring, divided as follows:

Position Points
1 15
2 12
3 10
4 8
5 7
6 5
7 4
8 3
9 2
10 1

The beauty of this scoring system is that it gives an incentive not only for speed, but for consistency and tenacity. A runner who shows up at the Gold Cup minimum of 5 races, but wins them all, will score 75 points. A runner who may not be quite as fast, averaging a 5th place finish, but who runs 12 Gold Cup races, will score 84 points.

Awards: The top Junior Striders Overall boy and the top Junior Striders Overall girl will be recognized at the annual Gold Cup banquet with unique awards to reflect the tremendous accomplishment achieved and will be removed from the Gold Cup Age-Graded, Age Group, and Weight-Based competitions.

If a Junior Strider places in the Gold Cup Overall competition, they will be removed from the Junior Strider Overall competition, as well as the Gold Cup Age-Graded, Age Group and Weight-Based competitions.

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