Hello!
How's things? Today I'm here to give you a recap all about Saturday, which was, in fact, "A Great Day." It started out with getting out of bed at the bumcrack of dawn, which does not always indicate greatness for me! But E was off to play some golf, and I was heading out to run my first solo race, the Beltline Southwest 5k. It's part of the Beltline Running Series, intended to promote health and wellness, in addition to sparking interest about the Atlanta Beltline project. Having just failed to meet a big running goal the week prior, I was determined to set a personal record for a 5k race.
Pre-race Vendors
On your mark... Get set...
Now, I think I probably earned myself some bad running karma. When E and I run together, it is understood that when the finish line comes into sight, you "turn on the jets" and finish that bad boy like a champ. Running by myself made it more difficult to establish this expectation, because it is hard to breathe, etc. So, without a plan, in the last 100 yards I turned to the woman next to me and said, "Want to race?" To be fair, she did say yes, before I took off and heard her yell, "You're going to win!" My inner feminist tells me not to feel bad about this, so I'll just go ahead and push the guilt down deep and volatile. And it is with great pride that I tell you, I did set a PR!
15th in my age group... That's like 5 x Podium finish!
So, how does a day like this get better? I'll tell you how! It is with an Atlanta tradition dating back to at least 1969, most celebrated by donning your oldest swimsuit and gearing up with tubes, beer, and sandwiches. It was time to shoot the 'hooch! You can learn more about the history of the Annual Great Chattahoochee River Raft Race in this article from Atlanta Magazine. At least take a look at the pictures!
Anyway, E and I packed up and headed to the Powers Island Recreation area, after first dropping off one car and towels at Paces Mill, which is the end of our float. If you own tubes, 2 cars are a necessity. Or, if you'd like to rent, you can pick up a tube at Powers Island and ride the complimentary shuttle back up for your car when you've finished.
Rentals!
Or, you can do the really redneck thing that I like to do... bring an air mattress pump and your own tubes, and use an outlet on the lawn to inflate those bad boys!
Make sure you've paid for parking, and then it's just a quick walk to the Chattahoochee put in point. And soon you are floating! Pardon the quality of the following pictures... another of my favorite redneck tricks is to put my phone in a ziploc bag, so that I can still take pictures but keep from splashing it.
There are a few beach pull-off points on the way, so that you can stop and take pictures...
Or eat...
(A must on the river... the cooler tube!)
Or, re-inflate your tube if you notice there's a problem...
People on the river were very nice about our one tube deflating situation. They kept saying things like "Dude, I think you have a leak" and "Sandwiches! Great idea!" and "Do you happen to have any double A batteries?" In case you are curious, we didn't even have two rafts that floated, so no, we didn't have batteries, either. But look at that ingenious PFD reinforcement! It worked!
And you guys, the people watching around the jumping rock and the rope swing rock is pretty great. Look at this crowd!
The jumping rock
E watches the rope swing
If you've never floated on the 'hooch, I'd encourage you to try it. It is not the clearest water, so probably best to avoid if pregnant or nursing. This time, the water was SUPER COLD, which was a welcome break from the oppressive Atlanta heat and humidity. There are tiny rapids along the way, and people do flip sometimes, but mostly if they aren't paying attention. E picked up a handy stick that helped us navigate the rapids with ease. Bring rope, and you can tie up to your friends. Un-tie before rapids and you will have a better chance of not tipping. You must have a PFD for each person on the river, though you are not required to wear it. But do wear sunscreen! Friends and family, E and I are happy to be your acting River Ambassadors if this sounds like fun but you would like guides.
After our float this time, we completed the River Rat Day o' Fun with a nice dinner at Ray's on the River.
The river walk between Ray's and the Chattahoochee
Seasonal tomato salad and my "Skinny Jeans" cocktail... yum!
A Great Day! Yay!
And that's about it! Stay cool, readers!
Until Next Time,
K