Strict COVID-19 restrictions and crowd limitations can’t diminish the thrill of having a live Atlanta Peachtree Road Race Expo presented by Publix in 2021.
It’s “appointment only” and limited to registered race participants and guests they accompany, but it will still offer plenty of chances to people watch and engage with vendors.
Like the rest of the AJC Peachtree Road Race, the accompanying Expo has an expanded schedule, aimed at providing social distancing and reducing crowds. In an unprecedented move, the race has been divided into a two-day event on July 3 and 4.
The Expo has expanded its timeline even further, taking place over four days, June 26-27 and July 1-2. It will also feature fewer vendors than pre-2020 events and all who attend must be associated with a registered participant in the road race and follow certain COVID-19 screenings and precautions.
The event site, the Georgia World Congress Center, has also stepped up with more expansive and frequent cleaning efforts for the duration.
The most significant difference that all potential attendees should be aware of is that only registered participants can choose a time slot to attend the Expo. And, anyone else who attends must be accompanied by that person.
Familiarize yourself with the key differences between this Expo and those held in the years before 2020. Here is a handy topline of need-to-know info for race participants who plan to sign up for a slot and attend:
Location
Hall C2 of the Georgia World Congress Center, 285 Andrew Young International Blvd NW, Atlanta
Who can attend
As part of a focused effort to limit crowds, all attendees must make an appointment by 11:59 p.m. on June 18 to visit the Expo during operating hours on one of the four days.
Only people who have successfully registered for the race, either through Atlanta Track Club membership or the lottery that was concluded last month, are eligible to make appointments. They may bring family members or friends with them to the Expo, but the guests must be accompanied by a registered participant.
Registered participants and the guests they escort to the Expo must all adhere to the safety measures put in place to address COVID-19 safety. Wearing masks at all times is mandatory, for example, except during the time a participant is taking part in the race. Before admission to the exhibit hall, all attendees must pass COVID-19 screening procedures or present vaccine verification.
Hours and dates
9 a.m.-7 p.m., Saturday-Sunday, June 26-27
9 a.m.-3 p.m., Thursday-Friday, July 1-2
How to sign up for an appointment to attend
These are the steps for registered race participants, who are allowed to bring family and friends who also meet all the safety and admission criteria.
- Log into your race registration account here.
- Navigate to the “Your Registrations” and click “View Registration for the 2021 Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race,” where you should see an option at the top that will allow you to pick an appointment.
- Make your selection, click “Save” and wait for a notice at the top of the page that you’ve successfully completed the selection.
- You may get a notification that your selected time already has met the limit for participants. In that case, repeat the process with a new selection until you hit on one that succeeds.
Items race participants must bring to pick up a race number at the Expo:
- A photocopy or original of one of the following IDs: Drivers license, passport, government/school-issued ID, employee badge
- The race confirmation that was emailed to registered participants by June 24. You can display the confirmation as a printout or digitally on a handheld device
- If you wish to skip the COVID-19 screening procedure and have been fully vaccinated, a photocopy or the original of your vaccine verification. This is optional, but anyone without such verification will be required to undergo screening procedures.
Be cautious in thinking you could simply opt to pick up your number on race day. To exercise that option, you must have purchased “race day pickup” when you paid the registration fees.
If you would like to retroactively opt for that convenience, you are able to log back into your participant account and choose to purchase that option in the “Your Products” section.
Note, though, that all the same proofs, verifications and screenings will be in place at the entry point to the race and the spot where you go to pick up your number.
COVID-19 precautions in place
Along with the strict cleaning, self-serve water and “wear a mask unless you’re in the race” mandates, COVID-19 screening will be in place at the race and Expo alike.
Participants and their escorted attendees can present a negative test or vaccination verification for admission to the hall. Anyone without such proof will go through a COVID-19 screening process that may involve specially-trained dogs from Alabama-based 360K9, a bio-detection agency.
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