Runs and bike events to impact Oconee highways

Running and bicycle events this weekend in Oconee County will affect the normal flow of motorized traffic, and officials are asking the public to be especially careful in the vicinity of these visiting athletes. The USA Triathlon NCAA national championships and the 2015 Color Run are coming to the Clemson/Seneca area. The inside lanes of US 76/123 and SC 93 will be closed to allow the Triathlon to proceed, according to Mike Smith, resident maintenance engineer for the DOT. The events begin early Friday morning and last through late Saturday evening. SC DOT message boards along the route are there to remind everyone of this event. Parking areas on the Clemson campus are being designated for the Color Run Saturday morning. Parking for the Triathlon is being staged at the campus beach property off Seneca Creek Road. Smith said, “I ask that all travelers to use caution as they travel through the area this Friday and Saturday.” Another run will start Saturday in downtown Walhalla and traverse some of Oconee’s hilliest sections during the 17th Annual Issaqueena’s Last Ride. Ken Sloan, president/CEO of the Mountain Lakes Convention and Visitors Bureau, says more than 200 bicyclists are expected for what, to them, will be a tune-up for a tougher ride in the coming weeks at North Carolina’s Mount Mitchell.