Georgia Magazine - May 2017 - 18

Swimmers ages 50 to 64 get ready for the first day of competition at the 2015 National Senior
Games at the Freeman Aquatic Center in Minneapolis, Minn.

13 silver and 18 bronze medals for
(Continued from page 17)
throw, shuffleboard, table tennis and the 28th spot in total honors.
Wii bowling.
The 2017 National Senior Games
"There really is something for
will be hosted by Birmingham, Ala.,
everybody," says Pilgrim.
June 2-15. Last year, 648 athletes
And though the minimum age
performed well enough at the Georto enter is 50, most athletes fall
gia Golden Olympics to enter the
between 65 and 80. "We even have
national contest. (In even-numbered
some people in their 90s and some
years, Georgia's games serve as a
50-year-olds who are still working.
qualifier for the national competiMost of our events are held during
tion.) Not all qualifiers will go, but
the week, and we've had people
given Birmingham's proximity to
take off from work to participate."
Georgia, organizers expect to see a
The Georgia Golden Olympics
significant number of participants
have become a model for similar
from the Peach State.
events around the country. The
Regardless of how many GeorNational Senior Games Association,
gians take part at the national level,
based in Louisiana, was organized
having them in the state's games is a
in 1985 as a way to get every state
positive step, Pilgrim says.
on board with the program and to
"It's good to see that older folks
encourage senior citizens to work on aren't just sitting around in rocking
physical fitness.
chairs," she says. "They're out there
The first country-wide compekeeping healthy."
tition was held in 1987 and drew
H.M. Cauley is an Atlanta-based
2,500 competitors in 15 sports, and
author of three guidebooks to Georgames have been staged in odd
gia and a feature writer whose work
years ever since. In 2015, the events
regularly appears in local newspain Minneapolis, Minn., attracted
pers and magazines.
almost 10,000
participants who
vied for titles in
Want to compete?
19 competitions.
Registration for the 2017 Georgia Golden Olympics begins
In those games,
May 1 at georgiagoldenolympics.org; deadline: Aug. 1. Fees:
Georgia athletes
$40 for up to three events; $7 each for additional events. Some
earned 26 gold,
contests (golf, bowling) may have additional venue fees.
18

More online at www.georgiamagazine.org

runner" started doing road races, and since
he retired three years ago, he's logged more
than 12,000 miles a year on his many bikes.
"I put more miles on my bikes than my
car," he says.
Eight years ago, Hall heard about the
Georgia Golden Olympics from a friend. His
winning times at the games qualified him to
ride in the national games in Houston in 2011
and Cleveland in 2013, and he's pumped to
take on Birmingham this June.
"The games have four [bike] races, and
I've participated in all of them. I really like
the 40K-just shy of 25 miles-that takes me
about an hour and 10 to 15 minutes."
But Hall's wife, Katie, hasn't caught his
enthusiasm. "She rides for pleasure around
the neighborhood," he says. "She thinks I'm a
riding nut."

Ed Brown, 68,
Colbert
Ed Brown
grew up in Albany
watching "The Lone
Ranger" and any
cowboys-and-Indians show. His heroes
inspired him to take
up archery, and he
Ed Brown
earned Boy Scout
merit badges for his accuracy.
"I was never serious; it was just a fun
thing to do, but then life got in the way,"
he says.
Brown retired in 2001 and went back
to competitive archery. A friend and fellow
archer invited him to the Georgia Golden
Olympics six years ago, and he's been a
participant every year since. This year, he's
headed to the national competition for the
first time.
"I expect in my age group there will
be about 15 or 20 people, which is great,
because some groups might have only one
or two," he says. "Every time I've shot [at the
Georgia Golden Olympics], I've placed; I've
gotten gold twice, silver once and bronze a
couple times."
Archers shoot from 40, 50 and 60 yards
to a bull's-eye target. To practice, Brown
shoots about an hour every day.
"I'm fortunate to live in a wide-open
space, and I have several targets. I love doing it. And at 68, I'm blessed that I'm competitive at anything."
GEORGIA MAGAZINE

COURTESY ED BROWN

ANACLETO RAPPING

All events
at the National
Senior Games and
the Georgia Golden
Olympics are free
and open to the
public.

http://www.georgiagoldenolympics.org http://www.georgiamagazine.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Georgia Magazine - May 2017