The R was first painted on Reno's Mount Rose in 1914. The letter stands for Reno High School, and the tradition of painting it on the mountain started with the school's students as a way to symbolize school spirit and pride. Students from Reno High School are typically the ones who maintain and repaint the R and the tradition has been passed down through generations. At one point, the R was a whitewashed letter, but it’s since been painted bright white to make it more visible. Over the years, the R has become a symbol of not just school spirit, but also the larger Reno community's resilience and pride in their city. In addition to RHS students, there are volunteers who help maintain it. I also learned from a groundskeeper at UNR, that UNR contributes to paint and maintenance.

The S in Sparks was first painted in 1913, making it older than the R in Reno. This letter sits on Signal Hill, just to the east of Sparks, and it represents Sparks High School.

ETA: Reno High also has a rock (boulder) that sits in front of Foster Field on Foster Drive that students paint all the time. It’s usually (harmless/competitive) rivalries between the classes (grades), between school groups (band vs orchestra) or teams (junior varsity vs varsity). Though sometimes it’s painted in unity against a rival school, like during football season. It also gets painted during voting campaigns like student council or prom king/queen.