Susan G. Komen 2017 Atlanta 3-Day Wrap-Up

The 3-Day headed south for our October event, taking Atlanta by storm this weekend. The dawn was slowly coming up over Stone Mountain as our 475 walkers and 225 crew started their journey with a poignant and emotional Opening Ceremony led by local participants. The rising sun was the perfect welcome to a wonderful 60 miles ahead.

After walking through Stone Mountain Park, our walkers were greeted by quite the cheering section at Mile 1. All of Stone Mountain Elementary came out to cheer on our 3-Dayers with signs, flags and even their school drum line!

From there, walkers headed through Clarkston, GA to Pit Stop 2 and 6.2 miles checked off their first day. They danced The Wobble with Youth Corps and stocked up on snacks like the infamous Grahamwiches. They also received support from other local cheering stations before arriving at lunch.

“Boob University” was the perfect break spot at Mile 12.6 at the Decatur Family YMCA, complete with pink resting mats from Mohawk Flooring, who also had several staff members walk with us this weekend. There were plenty of dancing and photos as well!

The second half of Day One saw the walkers being welcomed into Emory Village, by the Winship-Glenn Family Breast Center team, who showed the walkers their fundraising dollars at work.

They spent the rest of the day walking through Downtown Atlanta, including crossing the Jackson Street Bridge and walking through Centennial Olympic Park. They ended Day One at camp at the Georgia World Congress Center after 21.7 miles walked. Walkers were able to relax at the 3-Day Lounge, including getting some much-needed pampering from the Bank of America massage chairs. We had an emotional and celebratory camp show before everyone turned in for the night.

Day Two started a little cooler, making it perfect walking weather for our walkers to take on their second set of 20 miles. Straight from camp, the walkers passed the CNN Center and Ivy Hall before stopping at Pit One after a quick 2.2 miles on Saturday morning.

There was plenty of local support before lunch as well, including multiple local Girl Scout troops and Red Hot Yoga Studio, all of which kept our walkers smiling and inspired. At Pit Stop 3, the local Atlanta Komen Affiliate also came out to add to our cheering Crew to propel the walkers those final few miles to lunch.

Lunch was at Mile 11.6, and we had time to meet our amazing Atlanta Youth Corps via Facebook Live as well as re-hydrate before the second half of the day.

High Points on the rest of the day included walking by the Tanyard Creek Park Train Trestle and the World of Coca-Cola before arriving back at camp for the night. Walkers tucked into everyone’s dinnertime favorite: 3-Day mac n’ cheese! Then there was a fun dance party before lights out on Day Two.

Day Three dawned bright and warm, with our walkers making great time on their final 20 miles of the weekend. Pit Stop 1 was at 3 miles, right outside the Atlanta IKEA, but our walkers couldn’t stop to shop. They had a mission!

They breezed through lunch at Morris Brandon Elementary, and in no time at all they entered Pit 3, right along the Chattahoochee River at Mile 13.3. There was a fun community cheering station at Akers Mill Square before our walkers climbed the hill to see the new SunTrust Park up ahead.

We had some liquid sunshine as our walkers crossed the finish line and entered SunTrust Park, but that didn’t stop everyone from dancing across the finish line with smiles on their faces, and even tears of joy in some eyes. The clouds opened up and the sun shone down for our Closing Ceremony, and final celebration in Atlanta.

Our journey is never truly done, though, as was evidenced throughout our closing ceremony. We are all still working, and walking, towards Susan G. Komen’s Bold Goal to reduce the nation’s 40,000 breast cancer deaths by 50 percent by 2026.

As we hugged and celebrated and danced under the bright October sunshine, one message rang loud and clear; that though our feet may ache, our spirit and dedication will live forever; through aches, and pain, and blisters. We are shouting loudly and proudly that in this fight, where we seek to live in a world free of breast cancer, WE WILL NEVER GIVE UP. Thank you, Atlanta. We are so very proud of each and every one of you.

If you’re ready to be a part of this incredible journey again in 2018, sign up now at The3Day.org/Register.

Atlanta Coaches’ 3-Day Highlights

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You already know coaches Karen, Libby and Susan from your Atlanta 3-Day team. They are the group who have been (im)patiently waiting for our walkers and crew to begin their 60-mile journey this weekend. And they will be welcoming everyone with open arms!

As you get your final preparations, training and packing done this week, they’re giving you more to get excited about. From favorite spots on the route, to their most prized memories, to their “must-visit” Atlanta spots, the coaches are sharing their personal 3-Day highlights.

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Coach Susan

Favorite memories of 3-Days past

Coach Susan: Walking in the pouring, freezing rain in Atlanta in 2008! Plus, working with Youth Corps for 2 years! And of course, all the laughing…so much laughing. More than the moments, it’s the community that I look at with gratitude and fondness. I’m grateful that I can be a part of something that brings out the best that humans have to offer.

Coach Libby: I have lots of favorites over the years but seeing friends and family connect with participants at the Closing Ceremony gets me every time.

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Coach Libby

Favorite parts of the 3-Day this year

Coach Karen: I am looking forward to reconnecting with walkers who I haven’t seen in a few years. It will be great to get a big hug and catch up! Then, on the route, I love Virginia Highland. I lived there when my kids were little and it is such a fun, diverse and creative place to live.

Coach Susan: I love the areas around Decatur and Emory on Day One, the beautiful Buckhead homes on Day Two, and I love the Vinings area on Day Three. I’m also looking forward to a new Closing Ceremony site along with a new Day Three route! Everyone, including 20-mile walkers will get to enjoy our all new Day 3 route this year! We’ll be walking through parts of Atlanta that we haven’t been through on the 3-Day before.

Coach Libby: This year we are walking through Vinings and I am excited to see what walkers think out such a cute area of Atlanta! I also love the new route and closing at SunTrust Park – Go Braves!

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Not-to-miss Atlanta spots

Coach Susan: I love the Atlanta Beltline! We are big baseball fans in our family, and the new stadium is great (Go Braves!). I love eating at some of the unique Atlanta places. Table & Main in Downtown Roswell is one of our favorites!

Coach Karen: I love to eat, and my favorites right now are Miller Union, The Optimist and Bacchanalia. For local favorites, I love Mac Magee in Roswell and Murphy’s in Virginia Highland.

What are looking forward to most on the Atlanta 3-Day? Tell us in the comments!

Meet Your Atlanta 3-Day Coaches

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The 3-Day is heading south to Atlanta this weekend, and we are ready for another sunny 60 miles with all our amazing 3-Day walkers and crew. Part of your Georgia welcoming committee will be your amazing Atlanta 3-Day Coaches: Karen Odell, Susan Wynne and Libby Riordan. These ladies have been preparing all year long to host another fantastic weekend for our 3-Dayers, so before you put on your tutus and lace up your walking shoes, we wanted to help you get to know them better.

The first thing you need to know about Libby, for example, is that she is “is rock solid, she knows her stuff and conveys a sense of confidence while being completely approachable and helpful.” That’s according to Coach Karen!

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Coach Libby (right)

If you ask Libby about herself, she will also let you know that she would choose Mexican food all day long, and that she listens to FloRida when she needs extra motivation on her training walks and other work outs. She has been involved with the 3-Day since 2005, when she applied for a job on our team one month after walking her first 3-Day.

“It’s been a long journey with a community that I am lucky to call family!”

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Coach Susan

Coach Susan joined the 3-Day family not long after Libby, walking her first 3-Day in 2007 in honor of one of her closest friends, whom she had lost to breast cancer. She still walks in other 3-Day cities to this day!

When she’s not 3-Daying, she is craving Mexican food and sushi, and listening to The Lumineers and The Avett Brothers. They might not seem like the traditional “pump up jams” to some, but she says they’re still her favorite to train to.

Coach Karen says Susan “makes our participants feel as if they’ve known her forever and she is a great resource for any question.”

Susan echoes that same love when talking about Coach Karen, saying, “Karen is so thoughtful and dedicated to making our participants have the best experience possible.”

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Coach Karen (center)

Karen says that is she could have one superpower it would be to have “the ability to always know the right path in life,” and if you want to make her dinner, make sure to bring the seafood! She loves halibut, scallops, lobster, mussels and more!

Through and through, these ladies are a fun and enthusiastic group who are anxiously waiting to welcome everyone to Atlanta next week!

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Coach Karen (left)

Karen describes their coaching team as “supportive, cohesive, and thoughtful,” and Susan says they all work their hardest to “connect with our participants and crew on such a personal level and truly care about our 3-Day family.”

Who wouldn’t want to spend a weekend with these women?!