Nicknamed the “Alien Half” thanks to its nighttime running and the glow-in-the-dark gear organizers plan to hand out before the start, Roswell’s Area 13.1 Half Marathon is set to make its 11th annual running during an early-evening run with plenty of shade, through one of the metro Atlanta area’s most popular parks. The race is set to take runners through portions of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area and Morgan Falls Reservoir, along a combination of park trails and roadways that run alongside the Chattahoochee, which flows into and through nearby Atlanta from this smaller suburb that’s home to some 88,000 residents of its own. Organized by the locally-based running store chain Big Peach Running Company, the race is scheduled just as the sun is going down and the possibilities for an “alien invasion” are on the rise.
Area 13.1 Half Marathon 10k & 5k
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Runners will start the out-and-back course for the race at Roswell’s Riverside Park, which lies just off Riverside Road and South Atlanta Street, near the Georgia 400 exit. From there, runners head first east along the trails that parallel the river, and then join Riverside Road (which becomes Riverside Drive) all the way down to the first turnaround point, which lies between the mile 3 and mile 4 markers. After the turn, the course then heads back up the river along the route runners just covered, back in the direction of Riverside Park. This stretch of the race takes runners through the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, which is part of the National Park System and is made up of a series of smaller parks along the river throughout the metro Atlanta area, stretching from just north of Buckhead all the way up nearly all the way to Lake Lanier.
Overview
Course Description
Runners will start the out-and-back course for the race at Roswell’s Riverside Park, which lies just off Riverside Road and South Atlanta Street, near the Georgia 400 exit. From there, runners head first east along the trails that parallel the river, and then join Riverside Road (which becomes Riverside Drive) all the way down to the first turnaround point, which lies between the mile 3 and mile 4 markers. After the turn, the course then heads back up the river along the route runners just covered, back in the direction of Riverside Park. This stretch of the race takes runners through the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, which is part of the National Park System and is made up of a series of smaller parks along the river throughout the metro Atlanta area, stretching from just north of Buckhead all the way up nearly all the way to Lake Lanier.
