Over the past three years, October has annually attracted thousands of adventure athletes from across the nation to the Tennessee Valley to Swim the Suck, conquer the Stump Jump or scale boulders of Stone Fort all in the name of RiverRocks.
This October 2-13, the fourth installment of the unique event is featuring some big changes that go beyond a new logo, and they’re going to be of Olympic proportions-literally.
“Everybody loved RiverRocks and that time of year, but no one could really tell you what it was,” says vice president of marketing with the Chattanooga Visitors Bureau Dave Santucci, who is coordinating the marketing of RiverRocks. “Now it will be easy to see. It’s adventure sports games. The idea is that this will become the place for the best athletes in their field to compete. It’s still going to be the greatest time in Chattanooga and it’s only going to get better.”
Adventure Sports LineUp
Rock/Creek Stump Jump 50k and 11-mile Trail Race ‘ October 5; 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.Sequatchie Valley Century ‘ October 5; 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.Canoe/Kayak Race ‘ October 5; 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.Chattanooga Head Race ‘ October 12; 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.Triple Crown of Bouldering at Stone Fort ‘ October 12; 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.Five Points Fifty ‘ October 12; 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.Swim the Suck: 10-mile Swim ‘ October 12; 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.Urban Nature 10k ‘ October 12; 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.Duathlon ‘ October 13; 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.ChattaJack 31 ‘ October 26; 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.For more information visit riverrockschattanooga.com
After three years of running RiverRocks, founders Mike and Stormy McGauley decided to step back from the festival. The RiverRocks board-made up of various leaders throughout the Scenic City-stepped up to fill the void and propel the festival forward. “It takes someone like Mike and Stormy to create the festival and nurture it; we wouldn’t even be having this conversation without them,” says board chairman Paul Brock. “They got to the point where they said, ‘We think we’ve built a very solid foundation; if we want to move forward with it more people need to get involved.’ I think Mike’s pleased that the festival’s future looks bright.”