New school racers take a fresh look at each aspect of the modern adventure race and build from the ground up.

The Atomic Adventure Race presented by Fuji Bikes is a two day adventure race in the Amicalola Falls area of Dawsonville, Georgia. 

May 15th, unsupported teams of two to three will travel 40-60 miles biking on roads, gravel, and single track, 15-25 miles paddling on moving and flat water and 15-30 miles trekking on roads, gravel, single track, and in mountain forests. 

We spoke with Race Director Josh Forester regarding this year’s Atomic AR and this is what he had to say:

Breathe Mag: What makes it atomic?

Forester: The Atomic Adventure Race presented by Fuji Bikes takes racers through the Area 51 of the east coast--Dawson Forest.  The forest used to be host to a Cold War underground Air Force Base whose goal was to develop a nuclear-powered aircraft.  Additionally, they did all kinds of funky stuff in studying the effects of radiation, such as releasing radiation bursts into the surrounding woods just to see what would happen to the surrounding ecosystem.  Pretty scary stuff.  Now that the half-life has burned out and the woods and water are back to normal, the forest is a testament to nature's ability to replenish itself even after such devastation.  Nevertheless, we encourage racers to pick up their pace around some of the "hot cells".

Breathe Mag: How is the Atomic AR unique?

Forester: We are not.  As such, I contribute the success of our approach--our adventure racing team manages the event as a team.  As racers, we decided what we do and don't like from races in which we've competed.  So we include aspects we like in the Atomic and throw out what we don't.  Since we race 8-10 times a year, we've got a fair share of experience backing up our decisions.  

One of our primary differentiators is our technology.  The team is full of computer nerds, and we show it off with our live coverage of the race..  We've even developed live internet race coverage software for other race directors like ourselves (www.RDBoard.com) and will be debuting it at the Atomic this year.

Breathe Mag: What is the most enjoyable part about setting up this event?

Forester: Course vetting.  We love to pre-run the various iterations of the course Jack and Jordan come up with.  Secondly is talking with racers and sponsors.  It's so encouraging to hear the feedback and excitement about the event.

Breathe Mag: How long has it taken (will it take) to set up this event? What are some of the challenges that you have faced?

Forester: We put on one race a year, and this is it.  So we'll have 8 months of planning and implementation come May 15th.  Most of our scares have been around getting permits.  Most of our challenges come with gluing all the moving parts together--30+ volunteers, media team, paramedics, 150-200 racers, etc.  Take that and overlay safety plans, media coverage, logistics of moving bikes/canoes/race headquarters around, permitting, and other administrative aspects of the race, and you have a huge set of dependencies and constraints in the design of the course, whose final version is subject to timing estimates based on multiple vetting sessions.  It's a huge challenge to make it all work together, and at the same time extremely rewarding when it comes together.

 

Breathe Mag: What is the appeal to participating in the Atomic AR?

Forester: It's not just a race, it's an event.  It's really the summation of the parts that creates the appeal.  We are proud to say that last year we had 40 teams during one of adventure racing's (and the country's) worst years.  Due to the success of last year's race, we had 40 teams register during the early bird period this year.  We were eyes wide open.  It was extremely flattering.

 

Breathe Mag: Many people get involved in ARs not only for the challenge but also to experience the race location in a way that normally they wouldn’t/couldn’t – what are some of the location highlights?

Forester: The waterfalls.  The course this year will bring competitors to 8 waterfalls.  Racers get up close and personal with Amicalola Falls, the tallest (729-feet) cascading waterfall east of the Mississippi River.  There is, of course, another super-secret course feature that we won't disclose until the day before the race.  The host location carries some weight as well, since it is the southern starting point for most looking to complete the full Appalachian Trail hike.

 

Breathe Mag: What is the toughest part about participating in this event?

Forester: The mind game. Especially for those in the front, the media coverage that we provide is huge.  If they aren't used to being shadowed by folks with helmet cams, interviewed before, after, and during the race, and put under a microscope, they may find themselves breaking under the added pressure. For those in the middle, knowing that the course will be cleared by 30-50% of the field will be very hard..  If you are a team in that 30-50%, every bad decision, no matter how small, will weigh heavily on your team's morale. And for those in the back of the pack, just completing the race will be a huge undertaking.  After having vetted the first half of the race thrice, I can say that this year's race is really difficult mentally.

 

Breathe Mag: How do you want this event to be viewed, after the event, a year from the event, etc…?

Forester: Just that--an event.  We don't just host a race, we put together a destination event--folks are driving long distances and flying in to the race based on last year's reputation; we aim to go beyond it this year.  And because we are racers, it's our hope that other race directors model their approach after the Atomic Adventure Race, so that all the various styles, formats, and flavors of adventure racing can have flagship events representing them.  

 

Breathe Mag: What team(s) will be in contention to win?

Forester: Well, last year's podium finishers Lab Rats, Layer 3, and Paradofobia would be smart picks.  But I'm pretty sure they've got their work cut out for them, as teams Vignette, Green Paw Adventure Sports, Checkpoint Zero, WEDALI, and Team SOG are joining the ranks for the podium shot.  Personally, I believe the competition for the podium has gotten so stiff it's scaring off other top teams looking to race.

 

Breathe Mag: Is there something that you want to share with the adventurers that will be reading this that we might not have covered?

Forester: In whatever way--small or large--support adventure racing.  Volunteer for races, host training sessions, introduce others to it, start a team, buy from sponsors of the sport, buy used from racers within the sport, subscribe to adventure racing magazines!  Make it better for those after you as those before you have made it for you.

Breathe Mag: Well said. Thanks Josh.

For more information on the Atomic AR visit the website at: www.atomicar.com