With spring in full swing and summer on the horizon, numerous road races are planned all across Northeast Georgia — here's what to look for and how to prep for upcoming events.
The highest foot race in Georgia jumped the starting line in the 1980s and still attracts a crowd every year. At 2,800 feet in elevation and 230 feet of elevation change over just one mile of the 10k course, the race requires preparation and grit from those involved.
This year’s Run Above the Clouds race took off on April 22 for the 23rd consecutive time. While the earlier years of the race only saw the event intermittently, a strong team of sponsors, directors and attendees now run the show annually in mid-spring.
“We're a nonprofit, all proceeds go to scholarships for Woody Gap graduates,” Race Director Christina Disser said. “So Woody Gap School is the smallest public school in the southeastern United States. This year, there are 62 kids enrolled in kindergarten through 12th grade. So yeah, it's small, it's cool. We provide scholarships to those graduates.”
The Run Above the Clouds is hosted in Suches, Georgia, and follows a theme common among many public 5k and 10k races — raising money for various nonprofit causes. 100 percent of the sponsorship money from the Suches race goes directly into scholarship funding. While the price of race registration helps cover the cost of throwing the event, all leftovers are put into scholarships as well, according to Disser. Most events similar to the Run Above the Clouds are completely operated by a volunteer effort.
“It's such a unique community and such a small community, and a lot of people move into the area who are retirement age,” Disser said. “So there's a lot of different small organizations that need volunteers. I'm also a firefighter with the county. So it's just one of those things in a unique, small community like this, wherever you can lend a hand makes a big difference.”
The event in Suches is one of many races put on every year in Northeast Georgia. On Saturday, Flowery Branch hosted its 13th annual Spring 5k Fun Run and Walk. On the same day, hundreds of Buford residents gathered for the opportunity to participate in the 35th annual RUN the RAILS 10k and 5k road race in support of the Buford Athletic Club.
As with anything physically strenuous, preparation for road races is crucial. Before race day arrives, it’s important to nail down a goal that will help motivate a training routine. Lanier Running Club Board Member Matt Douglas said running goals are usually not a one-size-fits-all.
“That can be a very individual situation because every runner might have never done a 5k and just want to try to do their first 5k, or it might be somebody trying to get a PR (personal record) on a 5k,” Douglas said. “So all those are often treated on an individual basis.”
The running club took on the Dawsonville Forest Area 51 race Saturday. Some members did the longer hauls like the 10k, half, or full marathon, while others enjoyed the 5k distance. Many races offer this flexibility in distance, giving runners a choice for what suits their goals.
Paired with cardiovascular conditioning in preparation for race running is strength training. Douglas noted that oftentimes, strength training is overlooked as a beneficial aspect of endurance preparation. While he noted that some people run incredibly long distances and forego strength training altogether, building muscle in the core, glutes, quads and hip abductors can greatly improve your endurance and help prevent injury.
Gainesville-based personal trainer Terra Jeffery agrees that strength training greatly improves a runner’s ability to stay in the game.
“Runners often get injured due to muscular imbalances, I was just talking to an old client of mine the other day and she said that she couldn't get back to the gym for probably about a year because she tore a labrum,” Jeffery said. “Muscular imbalances can lead to overuse of certain muscles which can lead to injury, the strength training is so important for that in that aspect.”
Important in preparing for a race is also a healthy diet. While this can look different on an individual level, Jeffery is a strong supporter of plant-based dieting, citing several award-winning athletes and their success stories, such as Tom Brady, Cam Newton and Kyrie Irving.
“Fiona Oakes is a world record marathon runner,” Jeffery said. “I think she's 53, but she is a British long-distance runner and she holds a world record, and she's plant-based and has been for a long time.”
Getting injured can throw a wrench in an existing routine and greatly hamper a newly formed endurance exercise habit, which is why Jeffery and Douglas emphasized diet and strength training as major forms of prevention. That said, injuries can still happen.
“I also see some knee issues, people will tell me, ‘Oh, no, I can't squat because my knees hurt when I squat,’” Jeffery said. “Sometimes it might actually be a knee issue, but I would say at least 80 percent of the time, it's really just because their mobility is not there. They don't move enough.”
As much as 30 percent of female runners and 25 percent of male runners experience what is nicknamed “runners knee”. This is the result of irritation in the knees caused by several limiting factors, including cartilage inflammation, weak or tight thigh muscles, poor foot support and misaligned kneecaps. Treatment can include icing, elevating the leg, compression wraps, stretching and using arch supports, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.
Setting up a training plan can go a long way in preparing for race day. Many training plans contain three core principles: starting with a goal, utilizing different types of runs throughout training and increasing the workload over time. If the goal is to complete a 5k race without stopping, an example training plan may look like this:
- Day 1: Run 5 minutes, walk 1 minute, repeat 3 times
- Day 2: Rest or strength train
- Day 3: Run 6 minutes, walk 1 minute, repeat 3 times
- Day 4: Rest
- Day 5: Run 7 minutes, walk 1 minute, repeat 3 times
- Day 6: Rest or strength train
- Day 7: Rest
This plan can be followed each week with increases of one to two minutes of running on days one, three and five, as well as minor adjustments to include more or less repeats. Building an aerobic base through practice will allow a runner to train longer and more effectively for their stated goal.
Odds are on any given weekend throughout the spring and summer, a road race is happening somewhere in Northeast Georgia. Some race highlights coming up include:
- Memorial Day 5k, 10k and 15k race in Marietta on May 27
- Chapelwood Chase 5k Run and Walk in Athens on May 27
- Run the Ranch 5k and Fun Run in Flowery Branch on June 3
- D-Day 10k Run and Memorial Walk at Camp Toccoa on June 3
- Miles for Mimosas 5k race in Sugar Hill on June 8
- Freedom 5k run in Jefferson on June 24
- Syfan Supports Rally 5k and Fun Run in Gainesville on July 21
- Braselton Police Foundation 5k Run and Walk in Braselton on July 29
