For many Atlantans, the Fourth of July means it’s time to run — or walk — another Peachtree Road Race. Below are a few race memories from members of the Georgia Tech community.

James Childers, Grants and Contracts

Last year, a broken ankle almost forced James Childers to break his soon-to-be 28-race streak of running in the Peachtree.

“After the ice from the big winter storm was gone, I still managed to slip and fall on some leftover rock salt and sand while walking the dogs,” he said. “In the process, I broke my ankle, which required surgery, two screws to put it back together again and 10 weeks of wearing a cast and hard boot.”

But with a little help from his orthopedist and physical therapist, Childers was able to nurse his ankle back to health in time to run the race.

“My finish time actually ended up being better than the year before, and my string of consecutive finishes in the classic 10K remains unbroken,” he said.

Laura Price, Student Center

For Laura Price, the Peachtree has become a family tradition. During her first race, she injured her knee and wouldn’t have made it to the finish line without her sister’s help.

“About a mile from the finish line, my left knee locked up,” said Price, who will run her fourth Peachtree in July. “My sweet sister was with me and slowed down and told me to walk — but I didn’t want to mess up our time, so I kept running. We made it, and it was such a special moment.”

In addition to the well-known race T-shirts, runners are also given peaches at the end of the race, which has become one of Price’s favorite race day moments.

Kristen Shaw, Communications and Marketing

Three days prior to her first race in 2009, Kristen Shaw was the person “many Peachtree veterans hate.”

“I managed to purchase a number from a friend and decided that I would tackle the race in Atlanta’s heat and humidity,” said Shaw, who will be running in her fourth race this year. “I participated with a friend and say ‘participated’ because we walked about half the race. But in the end, despite feeling like my knees might explode, I loved the experience.”

Kyle French, Mechanical Engineering

In 2004, Kyle French ran his first Peachtree and was “blown away.”

“It was a typical race day, but during the race I was given a slushy, offered a beer from some friendly bystanders on the side and was also offered a foot-long sub sandwich from a vendor,” said French, who has run the race annually — with the exception of one year when he had to take family to the airport. “Considering it was pretty hot for that race, a beer during the race seemed out of the question, carrying a sub sandwich for 6.2 miles seemed counterproductive, but that slushy sure looked good.”

In hindsight, he wishes he’d taken the sub and hopes that he will finally see the vendor again this year while running the race.