(photos by Enrique Tomas)
This year's version of the Carrollton Orthopedic Invitational will have 76 high schools attending coming from far away as Bleckley County, Columbus and Columbia County. One factor is certain, as usual its going to be ran in blazing hot conditions, so everyone needs to be properly hydrated to withstand the conditions. The course will more than likely be quite firm as NW GA has gotten very little rain lately. MileSplit Georgia will be braving the heat as we are planning to shoot video and photos to be posted Sunday and a meet recap.
There has been talk about bringing back the 'Last Chance Invitational'. Many coaches are in favor of this, as it opens the door on getting a preview of the State Meet course in much cooler temps for newbees on the Varsity squads and motivated JV runners as well. Another factor to consider is Day 1 would be Friday on 10/31. The GHSA should push the meet back to 11/6 & 11/7 making the Last Chance meet much more of an option if its ran on 10/18 to not intefere with Region meet preparations.
Its always difficult to gauge which schools are running full strength and whether they will run 'up' in Class at the meet. Running 'down' in class is not allowed. With the 'Coach Benson Double Dip' at Marist not happening this season, the competition at Carrollton could be more intense than recent seasons in the 'Championship' races. From the 'Discussion Board' and per entries on MileSplit, we assume that ranked teams Parkview, West Forsyth, Carrollton, Lambert, Pace, Lovett, McIntosh, Alexander, Bleckley County, Brookwood, Cambridge, Creekview, Decatur, Lambert, Oconee County, Westminster's gals, Riverwood, Starr's Mill and Union Grove could be in the Championship races. Landmark Christian is running their varsity squads but without Zack Truitt and Nicole Fegans.
Race Schedule