Peachtree Road Race

Peachtree Road Race
File:Peachtree road race.jpg
Location	Atlanta,Georgia
Distance	10 kilometers (6.2 mi)

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race 10K, or more commonly called the Peachtree Road Race, is a 10 kilometer road race held annually in Atlanta, Georgia on July 4, Independence Day. The Peachtree Road Race was until recently the world's largest 10 kilometer race (an estimated 55,000 participants in 2007), a title it has held since the late 1970s. The Race's registration of 55,000 was surpassed in April 2008 by the Vancouver Sun Run which had over 59,000 registrants (although the Sun Run is two races, a 10k and a 2.5k; the Peachtree has just one). The race has become a city-wide tradition in which over 60,000 amateur and professional runners try to register for one of the limited 55,000 spots. The event also includes a wheelchair race which precedes the footrace. In recent years the race also has a special divisions for soldiers stationed in the Middle East.

Children can participate in Peachtree Junior, held in late May or early June.

History

2007 Peachtree Road Race

The Peachtree Road Race was started in 1970 by the Atlanta Track Club. The first year approximately 110 runners ran from the old Sears building at the corner of Peachtree Road and Roswell Road to Central City Park (now Woodruff Park). The race was sponsored by Carling Brewery. The next year the race increased to 198 runners. Organizers used the sponsorship money to purchase T-shirts but underestimated the number of participants. T-shirts were given out to the first finishers until they ran out. In 1972 the organizers only ordered 250 T-shirts but 330 runners ran the race. In 1974 the event grew to 765 runners, 1975 there were over 1000 runners.

In 1976 Carling Brewery dropped its sponsorship of the race and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution began sponsoring the race, bringing added coverage and popularity to the race. That year over 2300 runners competed. In 1977 over 6500 runners competed overwhelming the capacity of Central City Park. As a result, in 1978 the course was moved to starting at Lenox Square and finishing at the Piedmont Park. In 1979 the race attracted over 20,000 runners. In 1980 the number of participants was limited to 25,000 runners, which continued until 1990. In 1982 the wheelchair division was formed for the race.

The race became so popular that by 1989 the race reached capacity in only 9 days and the Atlanta Track Club increased the limit to 40,000 in 1990. In 1992 it expanded to 45,000 runners; in 1995 it expanded to 50,000 runners; and in 1998 it was expanded to 55,000 runners, which remains the current limit.

2006 Peachtree Road Race participants wearing US-patriotic costumes

The Peachtree Road Race has become an event important in Atlanta culture. In addition to the 55,000 participants there are approximately 150,000 observers who line both sides of the entire course to cheer and support the runners. Atlantan Clark Howard also participates in the race by running in the last starting group. Atlanta mayor Shirley Franklin also participates in the event. Some runners deliberately wear costumes, many of which are patriotic (due to the event occurring on Independence Day). The entire race is also televised on WAGA-TV.

The race hosted the USA Men's 10 km Championship in 2007.

Course description

The Peachtree Road Race is a 6.2 mile (10,000 m) road race. The race starts on Peachtree Road at Lenox Square Mall (just south of Lenox Road). The race continues down Peachtree Road. Mile 4 (near Piedmont Hospital) is mostly uphill and has received the nickname "Cardiac Hill".. After mile 5, the race turns east onto 10th Street with the finish line next to Piedmont Park.

In 2008, because of severe drought conditions, the race was unable to end in Piedmont Park, and runners turned east onto 10th street before heading to Juniper Street, ending at the intersection of Ponce de Leon and Juniper St, where racers finished by going uphill instead of the older downhill stretch of 10th St. Runners then walked a short distance to the Atlanta Civic Center for finish line festivities. This unpopular course lasted one year, after which the course returned to the traditional pattern.

As typical of other road races, the roads used are completely closed to vehicular traffic and observers watch from the sidewalks. Water is provided at each mile; approximately 500,000 cups and 120,000 gallons of water are used. Approximately 3,000 volunteers are needed to work the race.

Many runners utilize MARTA to travel to the start site and back from the finish line due to the large crowds, limited parking and road closures.

Race registration and starting group placement

Until 2008, applications for registration in the Peachtree Road Race were published in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on the third Sunday in March. The first 45,000 applications received were automatically entered into the race; an additional 10,000 applications are randomly selected from remaining applications post-marked by March 31. The race is currently limited to 55,000 entries. The 2009 registration fee is $33. The Atlanta Track Club requires runners to be at least 10 years of age on the day of the race.

The race is comprised of 9 starting groups. The first group is divided into top-seeded runners, sub-seeded runners (sub 42 minutes), timegroup 1A (42 to 50 minutes), timegroup 1B (50 minutes to 55 minutes). A documented 10K time is required for placement into these groups. In recent years, the Atlanta Track Club has recommended all runners who have run a USATF certified 10k within the past two years to submit their times to race authorities in order to be placed in appropriate groups, so that faster runners will not be put in the slower groups. This reserves timegroup 2 to be for runners between 55 and 75 minutes. The remaining starting groups (3-9) are for undocumented times and casual runners/walkers. The starting groups are so large that it takes approximately 1 hour from the first group starting until the last group starts, as the groups are started in five-minute intervals. Official times are only recorded for runners in the first time group.

Due to the limited number of spaces available in the race, as well as the 3 and a half month advance registration requirement, some people have attempted to sell their number on ebay and craigslist, although this practice is prohibited by the Atlanta Track Club. Runners who are assigned a number for the race, and subsequently cannot run, are able to return their number to the Atlanta Track Club in exchange for a card guaranteeing placement in next year's race. (Registration fees, however, are not refunded.)

On July 4th 2007, three men were caught sneaking into the Peachtree Road Race. In addition to a $1,000 fine, each was banned from the Peachtree Road Race for life.^{Citation Needed}

2009 Changes

Starting in 2009, registration applications began to be implemented online on the Active.com site, in association with the Atlanta Track Club starting on the third Sunday in March. The registration fee is $33. Controversy ruled over the 2009 registration, as over 800 complaints were filed because of server failures by the outsourced registration. The 45,000 applications sold out within hours.

The next Sunday, applications for the 10,000 slot lottery are published in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution These slots are randomly selected from remaining applications post-marked by March 31.

The Atlanta Track Club experimented in November 2008 at The Weather Channel Atlanta Marathon and Half Marathon with implementation of the ChronoTrack D-Tag transponder system, a disposable tag system. Following its success, the organisation announced starting with the 2009 Peachtree, all runners -- not just the Elite and Time Group 1 runners -- will be timed. This will help with positioning runners for future Peachtree events.

T-Shirts

File:Peachtree Road Race Tshirt.JPG

2007 Peachtree Road Race T-shirt

The official race t-shirt is perhaps the most popular aspect of the Peachtree Road Race, perhaps due to the limited numbers of t-shirts available in the early race years. Each year a different design is chosen through a contest sponsored by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution newspaper and a limited number of shirts are made. T-shirts are only available to runners who finish the race, and thus have become a status-symbol among Atlanta culture.

2008 Course

With the entire north Georgia region facing historic drought conditions, water conservation measures have been enacted prohibiting outdoor watering of plants and lawns. As a result of the watering ban, the City of Atlanta decided to prohibit large festivals (over 50,000 people) from using Piedmont Park in 2008 in order to protect the grass lawns which cannot be watered. Displaced events included the Atlanta Pride, Jazz, and Dogwood Festivals as well as the Peachtree Road Race which traditionally used Piedmont Park for the finish line of the race and distribution of T-shirts. The Peachtree Road Race considered moving the finish area to Georgia Tech, but Georgia Tech refused, citing safety concerns. On February 19th it was announced that the race finish line will be at the intersection of Juniper Street and Ponce de Leon Avenue in Midtown. Runners then walked three more blocks to the Atlanta Civic Center parking area where the awards stage, family meeting area and sponsor village were located. The race returned to its previous course in 2009.

Race financials

It is estimated that the Peachtree Road Race costs over $1,000,000, if in-kind contributions are included. The race must pay between $25,000 and $30,000 to government agencies for their costs of supporting the race. T-shirts for runners and volunteers are estimated to cost over $200,000. The race also pays $25,000 for its timing system and $100,000 for contract labor. The Peachtree Road Race was estimated in 2003 to have an economic impact over $10,000,000. Profits from the race entry fees and sponsorships are used to fund the Atlanta Track Club.

Overseas races

2007 running of the Peachtree Road Race in Iraq

Since 2004, satellite Peachtree Races have been held for US soldiers stationed overseas. The first race was held in Iraq. In 2007 five separate races were held on July 4 (one in Kuwait, three in Iraq, and one in Afganistan) with a combined total of 3000 participants. The Atlanta Track Club sends race supplies, including T-shirts, to the runners.

Peachtree Junior

The Peachtree Junior is 3 kilometer (1.9 mi) race open to children ages 7 to 12, and is designed to be a shorter and safer version of the longer Peachtree Road Race. The event is held in late May or early June. The entire course is within the confines of Piedmont Park. The race is limited to 2,500 participants. T-shirts are given to all race finishers. The event has been held over 20 years.

Past winners

The fastest men's time in the Peachtree Road Race is 27:04 (Joseph Kimani, 1996). The fastest women's time is 30:32 (Lornah Kiplagat, 2002). Gayle Barron is the winningest athlete in the history of the Peachtree Road Race. She won in the women's division 5 separate times (1970-71, 1973-75). The record for the wheelchair division of the Peachtree Road Race is 19:05 (Saul Mendoza). The women's division record is 23:13 (Jean Driscoll).

• 1970 - Men: Jeff Galloway; Women: Gayle Barron
• 1991 - Men: Ed Eyestone;
• 2004 - Men: Martin Lel; Women: Susan Chepkemei
• 2005 - Men: Gilbert Okari; Women: Lornah Kiplagat
• 2006 - Men: Martin Lel; Women: Lornah Kiplagat
• 2007 - Men: Martin Mathathi; Women: Wude Ayalew Yimer
• 2009 - Men: Sammy Kitwara; Women: Lineth Chepkurui

External links

• Sponsor of The Peachtree Road Race - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
• Official Peachtree Road Race Site
• Peachtree road race results 2009
• Runpeachtree.com - for runners of the Peachtree Road Race
• Peachtree Road Race winners
• Current and Past Peachtree 10K Race Info from the Official PTRR Sponsor, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution