BY Mark Schmerling

 

Competitors from eleven states, including as far away as Washington, kayaked, mountain biked and ran in last weekend’s third annual Green River Games in the Green River Gorge outside Saluda.

 

Wilderness Cove Tubing hosted the event, which is organized and held by Amongst It of Skyland.

 

Toby MacDermott (kayak), Greg Junge (bicycle) and Damian Hill (running) from Columbus, placed second in the team division of the Silverback event. Kayaking included the famed Green River Narrows, a series of Class IV and V rapids. Cycling and running took place on Green River Game Lands.

 

Events included the Oskar Blues Brewery Enduro, a mountain bike race with three timed downhill stages; the Silverback, a sort of triathlon; the Big Hungry Half Marathon; and the Big Hungry 10K (6.2-mile) running race.

 

Partners of Amongstit are Oskar Blues Brewery, Sierra Nevada Brewing, the Gorge (Saluda), Cane Creek, Threshold Provisions, Industry Nine Componentry, Smith, Werner Paddles, Astral, DeFeet, Pisgah area Sorba, Sycamore Cycles (Hendersonville), Recover (100 percent recycled apparel), Skratch Labs, Suspension Express, Kee Mapping and Surveying, Asheville Adventure Rentals, Wilderness Cove Tubing and Henco Reprographics.

 

The 10,000-acre Green River Gamelands in Polk and Henderson counties provided the background.

 

Seth Kemp of Campobello placed first in the enduro bike race.

 

Asheville’s Jack Ditty placed first in the Silverback individual competition, finishing all three varied parts. David Herman of Spartanburg placed third.

 

Aaron Saft finished first in the Big Hungry Half Marathon, with Rick Jordan of Zirconia placing fifth. Chris Georgiades of St. Petersburg, Fla., took first in the 10K, with Kenneth Galloway of Arden placing second.

 

Amongstit will also hold the Green River Race (kayaking) in the Green River Narrows, on Saturday, Nov. 7.

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