Southern Odyssey

A few weeks ago, my hubby and 11 friends ran in the inaugural Southern Odyssey relay race across north GA. This had been much anticipated among the dozen runners and involved a great deal of preparation for the 200 mile/24 hour event. Each runner was required to run three different legs for a total of 10-20 miles each; meanwhile, the remaining team members were encouraging and cheering on the active runner.









Part of the entry requirement involved volunteering 2 individuals per team to man an exchange station where runners would "pass the baton" to the next runner. Lindsay, Katie, Laura & I were located at Exchange 14 in Cleveland, GA (along with Officer Steve) and we did our best to make it fun and exciting for the runners and their teams.











One of the best parts for us girls/wives, was getting to see the boys the following morning (yes, they ran through the night!) They were on their last 4 legs and were running on adrenaline after a night of little sleep, lots of running and team bonding. Most said later that this event was one of their favorite running experiences or team events due to the camaraderie and encouragement.



Scotty exchanges with Tim, the final runner!





















And just as fate would have it, Thad, a valued team member encountered an injury and had to drop out of the race. His brother finished his current leg and Zach stepped up to complete Thad's remaining leg. As if that wasn't enough excitement...this team of boys went on to win the race. :) It was a really neat experience to witness as these guys truly captured the essence of competition and camaraderie. Congrats Team Zatopek on the inaugural Southern Odyssey victory!