Club info

• $25/year for membership
• opportunity to participate in the Grand Prix series ($5 fee).
• for an additional fee, the SBAA will subsidize the coached workouts below by $25/month.
• discounts to the running stores - Santa Barbara Running Co, Outfooters. Montecito Sports - plus more.
• discounts into the SBAA races.
• opportunity to get your name in the club records

Online registration for SBAA/Grand Prix/Coached Workout Discount.

• Grand Prix
• Coached Workouts
• Join!
• Discounts
• History
• Board
  • Minutes, Board meeting, January 2007
  • Minutes, Board meeting, March 2007
  • Minutes, Board meeting, January 2008

Grand Prix

Every year Outfooter's sponsors, and the SBAA organizes, a series of races we call the Grand Prix. We use a complicated process to distill results from many races into one number, and by comparing these numbers we determine a winner -- overall and by age-group. At the end of the year in December we have a big party to fete the winners.

• The Grand Prix starts anew every year with the New Year's day 5K (Occasionally the New Year's day run is held on New Year's Eve (because of city restrictions on when we can race). In this case we pretend that New Year's Eve is actually part of the next year).
• Not all local races are part of the Grand Prix, those which are will be indicated as such on the calendar.
• To enter the Grand Prix you must be an SBAA member and pay an additional $5 for the Grand Prix itself.
• If you run a Grand Prix race before you join the Grand Prix it will not be part of your score.
• Your age-group for the Grand Prix will be determined by the first race you run once enrolled in the GP. So if you sign up for the GP on New Year's and are 49 for that race but are 50 by Semana Nautica then for GP purposes you will be classed in the 45-49 age-group for the entire year. So, it may be to your advantage not to race (or not to join the GP) until after your birthday.
• More about the GP
• GP Rules and Scoring
• 2009 GP Standings

Coached workouts

Santa Barbara Running and Racing

• Tuesday "interval" track workout, either morning or evening.
• Saturday morning: longer run with "tempo" pacing.
• Two levels of coaching are available: Personalized and General
• General coaching gives you access to the workouts and the coaches
• Personalized coaching means the coaches will write a schedule
          appropriate for your needs, in addition to access to the workouts.
• Rusty Snow and Mike Swan are the coaches.
• Coaching is avaliable to all, but can be discounted for SBAA members
• SBAA members can get a $25/month discount, but only if they pay the club
          a certain amount up-front.
• The fee to enter the discount program is $30 for 3 months or $100 for a year
          (paid to the club).
          Since the monthly discount is $25 this is a big win.
• Personalized rate: $125/month, discounted to $100/month
          (paid to SBRR).
• General rate: $60/month, discounted to $35/month
          (paid to SBRR).

Other sponsored workouts

Thursdays 6-7:30PM at SBCC, Feb. 4 - April 29. We'll split up into different speed groups averaging 2.5 to 3 miles of 400m to 1200m intervals with a lap (walk/jog/walk) recovery. Some weeks we'll vary the distance (400-800-1200-1200-800-400) and other weeks we may repeat a distance (say 5-6 X 800m). Either way, you are guaranteed a great workout in the company of friends and fellow runner athletes striving to improve. Nothing kicks your butt into shape better than track intervals. We need to raise just $15 each week from all participants to pay for the track (moving the barriers, sharing the track). Come share the love and the pain Thursdays at SBCC Feb thru April. Call Coach 'K', Kevin Young at 564-3400 or kyoung@sbre.com No reservations required, just show up. See you there!

Join the SBAA

Online registration for SBAA/Grand Prix/Coached Workout discount.

SBAA also allows several people at the same address to register as members together. One member is designated the primary member (this is the person who gets free SBAA teeshirts -- the others don't), additional members cost an extra $5 each. (so if there are two of you that's $30, three $35, etc.)
Online registration for a family (or other collection of people).

If you prefer you may still use the US postal system. Please send your name, address, phone, date of birth, today's date, and (preferably) e-mail address, along with $25 (or $5 if you are under 18). If you wish to add additional family members then provide that information for all of them and add an extra $5 for each additional member. For your convenience, you can download this entry form; or, you can just write it all out. The address is on the entry form; and it's also here:

SBAA
3463 State Street #431
Santa Barbara, CA 93105

If you also want to join the Grand Prix, that's an extra $5. (You have to be a Club member to join the Grand Prix.) Please note that your membership runs for twelve months from whatever date you join, but the Grand Prix runs from January 1st to December 31st. If you're joining the club in the second half of the year, there might not be enough Grand Prix races left for you to complete eight races (or, if you're older, the required number for your age.) You can check that on the Calendar page.

If you also want to join the coached workout discount program that's $30 for 3 months or $100 for a year. Again you must be a club member to join the discount program.

Discounts

• Dr. Jim Cochran, chiropractor specializing in foot, knee, hip & back problems. Free exam. 683-1476.
• Justin Kojima, Real Estate Appraiser, 964-0646.
• Outfooters--15% off shoes & apparel.
• Hourglass--$1 off per group
• Kevin Young, RE/MAX - 687-2600
• Fred Romano, Massage Therapist, Acupuncturist, 568-5340--10% off.
• Goleta Sports Center--10% off shoes & apparel.
• --10% off.
• Santa Barbara Running (inside Hazard's)--10% off.
• Healing Circle Massage--$60/hr,$5 off first visit, Kathy Gruver, 805-680-1984
• Running Injury Products Return2fitness.net - specialist sports medical and rehabilitation products including insoles, supports and braces, balance boards and more.

History -- in 2003

Des O'Neill

Contrary to rumor, the Association was not founded by the Chumash, nor even by the original Spanish and Mexican settlers. After all, why run, if horses can do the work? There was a Santa Barbara Athletic Club established in this community, dating back to the 1890's, an era when similar organizations, such as the New York Athletic Club, Los Angeles Athletic Club, and San Francisco Olympic Club and such were formed, an era before big-time collegiate sports and, of course, professional teams, although to be sure professional runners were among the earliest of long-distance athletes (Pheidippides was one, and professional runners abounded in 18th and 19th century England, competing for prizes, and with legalized betting as well.A That still goes on in Australia and South Africa, by the way, but I digress...).A Anyway, the Santa Barbara Athletic Club in its original incarnation had a clubhouse on Chapala Street, a boathouse on East Beach, and supported rowing, rugby, baseball and polo competition, although there is no record of running or track.A The rugby teams in particular were noted for their genial brutality and cavalier disregard for the rules, and posted victories in the 20's over leading collegiate and club teams.A So far as the records reflect, this Santa Barbara Athletic Club (version 1) dissolved sometime in the early 30's, probably a victim of the Depression.A So much for that organization.

In approximately 1948 Marshall Booher reformed the Santa Barbara Athletic Club to provide summer competition and activity for the youth of the community, and over the course of time put on track meets, mostly during the summer, some in conjunction with the Santa Barbara City Parks & Recreation Departments.A The Club, under Marshall's genial sponsorship, also supported college athletes out-of-season, paying travel expenses to national and regional meets.A Some of its athletes seem to have competed in road races in the Southern California/Los Angeles area in the early 60's, and the Club (yes, still Club) had a major lucky find in 1962, when John Brennand arrived in town.A A runner already, he was steered to the Santa Barbara Athletic Club by an L.A. runner, who was the first to tell John that the Club even existed.A Contacting Marshall Booher, John gave up his treasured 'unattached' status and began running for the Club.A Since his training runs from General Research frequently brought him to UCSB, he became acquainted with runners there, including Mike Maron, Bill Anderson, Mike Kimball, Jose Dones and others (I'm probably leaving some out, and I apologize).A This nucleus, together with Jim Van Manen and Larry Pontinen from Ventura, was quite successful in team competition, winning several national team championships and many Southern California AAU team championships, and had some remarkable runners, including Mike Kimball, who made several U.S. national teams and at one time held the national one-hour record.A The Club also took over sponsorship of the annual July 4 15K, a race run in conjunction with Semana Nautica, began the original Santa Barbara Marathon and its descendent, the Santa Barbara Half- Marathon, and participated in cross-country and track, never really fielding a full team in track, although it had some notable athletes in non-distance events.A We also began the Winter Runs, subsequently the Chardonnay and now the Santa Barbara Winery 10-miler.

In about 1968 the Club became the Association that we know and love today, as a result of a Whoops! - a fictitious business name statement was filed with the County, reserving the club name, by a gentleman who proposed to open a bar under that name here in Santa Barbara, and since the Club had never protected its right to the name, that was lost.A The bar never opened, and later on the naming rights were picked up by the present fitness enterprise down on Castillo Street.A Pausing only to buy new jerseys, the SBAA soldiered on through the 70's, as the Running Boom attracted more and more members, and the Association put on, or assisted in, more and more races.A For a while, it seemed as though every charitable organization in the tri-counties was trying to raise money for various purposes through running events, and our dance card got very full.A John Brennand and various stalwart club members, including Cally Brennand, Ethel Byers, Patsy Dorsey ... put in countless hours either putting on these races or helping out.A The Association grew also, as running became popular and new members joined the ranks.A We had some notable Junior teams in the late 1970's, including the Aguirre brothers, George and Richard, and fine women runners, including Elaine Campo,A Anne Hayden (a California State Junior college champion at two miles), Dianna Hall, Mary Ryzner and Megan Riker (now Rheinschild) (if your name isn't listed, don't be hurt; we can't mention everybody, and you are appreciated).

In addition to the competitive successes, large numbers of recreational and fun-runners joined, presumably drawn by the friendships, group runs, races, and the Newsletter, which has over the years been edited by John Brennand, Des O'Neill, Dick Bartek, Shirley Sanders, Jim Robertson, Kevin Young, Jim Kornell, Jim Knox, and now Bill Rupp.A Although we have a few members living out of town, and even out of state, our primary interest is in the local running community, encouraging local races and activities, and now the very successful interval track workouts at City College Tuesday evenings, and the Grand Prix series of races throughout the year.

This is, we hope, a never-ending Story, to be continued into the future.A We have lots of members, lots of races, and have hopefully created an organization which, in a mostly invertebrate and undemanding way, seems to meet the needs of the local running community, and has outlasted and outlived many other running clubs without going bankrupt, becoming superannuated, or simply disbanding through lack of interest.A Much of this history has been the work of John Brennand, of course, and this history is intended, in some small way, to acknowledge his great career as a runner, organizer, and go-to guy.

The SBAA Board

The Board... well, there's John [Brennand], myself [Des O'Neill], Elaine [Campo], Wally [Marantette], Joe [Howell], Kevin [Young], Patsy [Dorsey]....seems to me there may be more, but I'll check that out. We've never really paid attention to our own by-laws about elections and terms of office; most people are smart enough to get outta the way when we ask 'em to join the Board, so those who do agree to serve just get co-opted onto the Board, without any vote, and stay there until they get tired and drift away, or actually resign or retire. It seems to work, although I can't explain or justify it. I've made suggestions from time to time to bring on new members, and we have done so when we see somebody who's a likely candidate or expresses an interest.

We're not clinging to office like aging Politburo members, believe me. For the most part it doesn't amount to a lot of work, mind you - most of my work for the SBAA has nothing to do with being President. I wouldn't miss it, and I have from time to time recruited new Board members, occasionally successfully, as has John. If anyone wants to be on the Board, we'll be happy to consider him/her.

Duties? Well, I preside at meetings, when we have any, and sometimes sign letters, appear at Athletic Round Table lunches when we give out money, rule on protests in the conduct of races, occasionally go to Board of Supervisors' meetings or City Council when we need some public support for a race.

John does pretty well everything else as Secretary/Treasurer, except that I usually write the minutes (he's terrible at that). You [jk] run the website, and Bill [Rupp] does the newsletter, with a lot of help from John and Kevin and Joe.

History between 2003 and 2008

The website (this website) was created in 2003 by Jim Kornell. The newsletter continued until March 2005 but was deemed unnecessary since the website provided many of the same functions. The board has changed slightly over the years, but John still does most everything.

Board members:
John Brennand
Elaine Campo
Patsy Dorsey
Joe Howell
Wally Marantette
Des O'Neill
Rob Olson
William Rupp
Jim Sloan
Rusty Snow
Kevin Young
Jill Zachary