Georgia Magazine - June 2021 - 16

GEORGIA
COURTESY AR

Left: A team takes a quick photo
during a checkpoint at the 2019
Blairsville Extreme Adventure Race.
Above: Jeff and Hunter Leininger,
shown here about 10 years ago,
are part of the AR Georgia team.

Adventure racing, Peach State-style
By Lynn and Cele Seldon

dventure racing is growing in popularity around the world.
Loosely defined, it's an outdoor contest in which teams
compete in multi-hour or -day competitions in two or more
sports (such as running, mountain biking, paddling and
climbing). Participants are asked to check in at various points
along the course. Navigation, orienteering and lack of sleep are
also part of the adventure.
Thanks to AR Georgia, a Canton-based race organizer and
prominent adventure-racing team, the sport is thriving in the
Peach State.
Adventure racer Jeff Leininger founded AR Georgia in 2017
to organize and run Georgia's Blue Ridge Adventure Race and
the Blairsville Extreme Adventure Race (BEAR). In 2018,
Leininger moved from St. Augustine, Fla., to Canton so that he
and his son, Hunter, could train and race in the Blue Ridge
Mountains.
" I was a marathon runner, and I was looking for something
different. Adventure racing was just what I needed, and I jumped
right in, " Jeff Leininger says.
Hunter Leininger was 7 when he was bitten by the adventure-racing bug in 2009. He has gone on to set more records than
any other endurance athlete in the world.
" [Hunter] was so short that he ended up in mud up to his
chest and he got stuck. When I pulled him out, he thought it
was the coolest thing to get muddy out in the woods, " Jeff
Leininger says.
Hunter Leininger broke a world record at the age of 12 by

Georgia Magazine

becoming the youngest athlete to complete a 72-hour nonstop
expedition race. Today, at 20, he loves adventure racing more
than ever.
" The idea of a comfy couch might sound
appealing [to some], but for me, there is
nothing to learn about myself or improve as an
individual while staying in the comfort zone, "
he says. " Every race is designed to put you far
outside your comfort zone. "
The Leiningers' company now organizes
11 events, with about half of them traditional
adventure races (if there is such a thing) and the
other half varied-trail ultramarathons (footraces
longer than 30 miles). Both Leiningers design
the races, which are held in Georgia, Florida and
Tennessee.

Adventure racing in the spotlight

The AR Georgia team helped bring worldwide
attention to adventure racing when it participated in the 2019
" World's Toughest Race: Eco-Challenge Fiji, " which aired last
year on Amazon Prime Video.
One of 66 teams in the 11-day event, the AR Georgia team
comprised the Leininger duo and veteran adventure racers
Katie Ferrington, who is based in Colorado, and Tom Ambrose
from Florida. AR Georgia finished 30th and gained exposure in
Georgia and beyond for the team and the sport.

June 2021

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Georgia Magazine - June 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Georgia Magazine - June 2021