Las Cruces Running Club was founded in 2012 by the late Lawrence Joy and Cliff Cole. The club was established after Mesilla Valley Track Club ceased producing races after several decades, and no local entity was sponsoring races except for Las Cruces Parks & Recreation.

LCRC’s first race was the 2012 Whole Enchilada 5k, held in conjunction with the fiesta of the same name. Shortly thereafter, the club began hosting the Official Las Cruces Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot and the Super Sunday (later renamed Super 5 Sunday) runs. When the Whole Enchilada Fiesta was discontinued, LCRC began producing the Electric 5k, held immediately before the July 3 Electric Light Parade. Those three races have been held annually for more than a decade (except for one year because of the COVID pandemic). All the races include mile and 5k runs, and the Turkey Trot has a 10K run and the Super 5 Sunday a 5 mile run. The races have grown from 100-200 runners to almost 1200 runners for the Turkey Trot and 250-400 for the other two races. We believe the Turkey Trot is the largest race ever held in southern New Mexico. 

After its first year, the LCRC board decided that it needed to encourage young runners, so it established a Summer Youth Running Program.  Initially, the program only included summer training for high school runners. The board then changed its focus to younger runners and established a series of four to six races for youths 14 and under. All the races are free, and after the final race the club provides a free breakfast and prizes for runners and their families.  Participants receive a t-shirt, plus snacks and swag after each race. Approximately 150-200 youths participate each summer.  Additionally, LCRC has permitted runners 14 and under to run in any of its races for free.

For the last two years, LCRC has donated a total of  $5500 annually to all county high school cross-country teams. The club anticipates increasing the annual donation to $8,250 in 2026.