New 2010 Spring Relay in Georgia Announced

It’s a bit like Christmas for me today.

This morning, I received an announcement about a brand new relay – the Southern Blue – being managed by the same group that organizes the highly regarded Blue Ridge Relay in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia and North Carolina.  I don’t know why this makes me so happy, but it does.

From the little information they provided me, I can tell that it’s going to be a gorgeously scenic race.  The course starts at the breathtaking Amicalola Falls, the tallest cascading waterfall east of the Mississippi River (729 feet) and then primarily follows mountain roads through the wild and scenic Chattahoochee National Forest and along the Chattahoochee River.  The race finishes in the foothills of Georgia’s Blue Ridge Mountains at the 38,000 acre Lake Sidney Lanier.

North Georgia's Blue Ridge Mountains will be a spectacular backdrop

From the announcement:

The vision for Southern Blue and inspiration for its course is a joint effort between the directors of the Blue Ridge Relay and their brother/brother-in-law, who resides, works, and trains for marathons in North Georgia’s Blue Ridge Mountains. The course was designed from a runner’s perspective; to minimize road traffic and avoid the “beaten path”, and to showcase the breathtaking beauty and deep history of Georgia’s Southern Blue Ridge Mountains. In addition to the Start at Amicalola Falls State Park, which is a short hike (8.5 miles) to the Southern trailhead of the Appalachian Trail, Southern Blue courses around Dahlonega, Georgia’s Gateway to the Appalachian Mountains and site of America’s first gold rush, Brasstown Bald (4,784 ft), Georgia’s highest point, Tallulah Falls State Park, one of the most spectacular canyons (1,000 ft deep) in the Eastern United States, to its eventual finish on the shores of Lake Sidney Lanier.

Sound interesting?  The inaugural race will be held April 23-24, 2010, and registration will open November 30th.  But there are very limited spots for this scenic race – just 100 teams will be accepted.  This would be an excellent race to use to keep up training motivation during the tough winter months.

Now if I can just figure out a way to get myself to Georgia…