“I often say Midtown goes as Piedmont Park goes, and Piedmont Park goes as Midtown goes,” said Piedmont Park Conservancy President and CEO Mark Banta, who is also a Midtown Alliance board member. The move also “coincided perfectly with the revitalization of Piedmont Park and Midtown,” said Emmons.īefore Midtown Alliance and the Piedmont Park Conservancy were established (in 19, respectively), both went through periods where they were considered areas to be avoided by some Atlantans. Piedmont Park happened to be 10 kilometers away from the race’s starting point in Buckhead, and it seemed like a natural solution. “The AJC was a sponsor by then, and the number of runners continued increasing.” Hand in Hand Success

“Famously, we got within a quarter-mile of the finish line and had to walk in - something had to be done,” Emmons said of the Peachtree’s original location. Craig Virgin wins the Peachtree Road Race in 1981.Ī Midtown-based non-profit organization, the Atlanta Track Club, hosts the Peachtree Road Race every year, and we spoke with past director and Midtown Alliance board member Julia Emmons about why the finish line was moved from its original location at what is now Woodruff Park to Piedmont Park. The race, which is also the largest 10K in the world with more than 60,000 participants annually, moved its finish line to Midtown in 1978, where thousands more cheer on loved ones from the sidelines and celebrate with them afterward. Published: 06/06/19 AJC Peachtree Road Race finishers in Piedmont Park in 1992.Ītlanta’s beloved 10K, the AJC Peachtree Road Race, will celebrate its 50th anniversary this year, and the event’s roots in Midtown run deep.

Peachtree road race