1,800 runners from 33 states take part in Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon
You’ve heard of all the big marathons — Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles. The North Georgia area has been home to a marathon for a long time, too — one that keeps expanding to include more and more people.
On Nov. 10, more than 1,800 competitors from 33 states gathered on Barnhardt Circle in Fort Oglethorpe to await the signal, the boom of a cannon, to begin running — not one, but four races. The Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon, Half Marathon, Junior Marathon and Fort Oglethorpe 5K caters to everyone from highly experienced runners to children.
The event is facilitated by the Chattanooga Track Club (CTC), which puts on more than 100 marathons and running events throughout the year and works with schools and others to promote running and physical fitness.
The Chickamauga Battlefield race is sponsored by the Fort Oglethorpe Tourism Association, but that hasn’t always been the case. At one time, says Fort Oglethorpe Tourism secretary Chris Mckeever, the race started with registration at the Chattanooga Convention Center (CTC), then participants had to come to North Georgia to actually run.
Once Fort Oglethorpe Tourism became the race’s sponsor, the association worked with CTC to move all the functions of the race to North Georgia. The race route, which used to cross a dangerous highway, now begins and ends on Barnhardt Circle, the historic heart of Fort Oglethorpe, and runs through the Chickamauga Battlefield.
The big race of the day is the full 26.2-mile marathon. The half marathon is great for those who feel they can’t run a full marathon and for those wishing to work their way up to a full marathon. The 5K race, just 3.1 miles, is a challenge but also manageable for many more people.
Children who run (walking is also permitted) the Junior Marathon log all but the last mile of their 26.2 miles before actual marathon day. The Chattanooga Track Club has a special chart on its website for children to keep track of their miles. The youngsters are encouraged to try for about a mile at a time until they reach 25.2. On race day, they run their last mile at the event and receive a medal and a T-shirt.
The 5K is the newest addition to the event and is run on back streets within the city of Fort Oglethorpe. Five dollars from every entry fee for the 5K is donated to the Sixth Cavalry Museum on Barnhardt Circle.
This year, competitors in the full marathon ranged in age from 17 to 77. Awards are given for overall winners and for winners within age categories. The event is also open to runners with physical challenges. One runner this year was blind. Wheelchairs are allowed and other physical challenges can be accommodated.
If ever it took a village to do a thing, the Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon is a prime example. Sarah Barnes, CTC race director and board member, says the list of people involved in making the event a success is long indeed. “It’s a big team. You have CTC, Chickamauga Battlefield, Fort Oglethorpe Tourism, local governments, law enforcement, emergency services, businesses and over 200 volunteers from local schools, churches, the community and other groups. It’s a very community-centered event.”
Official partners of the event are Chattanooga Track Club as producer and the Fort Oglethorpe Tourism Association as presenter; Center for Sports Medicine and Orthopaedics, Chattanooga Sports Committee, and Powerade as corporate partners; Barefoot Nellie, Fast Break, Food City, Front Runner Athletics, the National Park Service, Walmart Neighborhood Market, and the U.S. Army JROTC as associate partners; and FOX Chattanooga, WDEF, and the Chattanooga Times Free Press as media partners.
As a community event, there are many homey touches. Racers can share a pasta dinner together the evening before the event, and are provided food afterward. Winners of the 5K are served a meal at a replica USO Canteen by hostesses dressed in WWII attire. The menu includes pumpkin, blueberry, banana and cinnamon crunch quick breads made by Mckeever who, in addition to working with the Fort Oglethorpe Tourism Association, is director of the Sixth Cavalry Museum.
Along the route, racers will encounter volunteers offering encouragement and drinks and watching for potential problems. 5K racers see signs on the lawns of local residents cheering them on with messages of “Good Luck” and “Be Safe.” Some residents on Barnhardt Circle decorate their homes with festive bunting for the occasion. Fort Oglethorpe Councilwoman Paula Stinnett leads the 5K race at its start riding her motorcycle.
Winners also walk away with medals engraved with a picture of a monument in Chickamauga Battlefield. This year’s medal depicts the 2nd Minnesota monument.
“Chattanooga Track Club goes out of their way to make this a great event,” says Mckeever. “We have a beautiful place for it and it’s always a wonderful experience for racers. People comment afterward on how much they love it here and plan to come back.”
Mckeever points out that the event brings thousands of people to the area who stay in hotels and motels, eat at local restaurants and learn what we have to offer tourists.
“We don’t have a stadium for sports like soccer or football,” says Mckeever, “but we have the perfect place for a marathon.”
It’s already time to be thinking about next year’s races, says CTC’S Barnes. Chattanooga Track Club offers training throughout the year for those who desire it. Entry fees range from $10 to $100. Discounts are available for early signup and for members of the military, law enforcement and emergency responders. Children can sign up for the Junior Marathon for just $10 and start logging their miles immediately. Volunteers can start signing up, too. People are needed to help with everything from putting together information packets to manning tables on race day, serving meals and acting as sentries along the race route to make sure runners stay on course.
For more information, to sign up, volunteer or see a list of this year’s winners, visit battlefieldmarathon.com. To see more pictures of the marathon, visit facebook. com/battlefieldmarathon.