Lake George has quickly become a destination for endurance athletes. Choose your discipline–upcoming events in the area range from a marathon to a 200-mile relay, duathlon or triathlon, century ride or competitive road bike tour. These events are aptly suited for the geographic challenges of this mountain and lake region.

Autumn kicks off with the Lake George Triathlon Festival on September 1-2, located in beautiful Battlefield Park overlooking the lake. This triathlon festival includes an Olympic distance event on Saturday and the “Big George” half-iron distance event on Sunday.

Looking for a sanctioned road cycling stage race? The Tour of the Adirondacks cycling event takes place September 15-16. This 100-mile event is for those looking for a real challenge.

Guided bicycle rides are the order of the day at Tour de Daggett on September 9 at Daggett Lake Campground. Choose from 20 or 60 mile rides, with shorter events available for children as well.

With obstacle course events sweeping the country, Lake George will host the first Urban Warrior Run on September 15. Be prepared to crawl through drainage ditches, climb over wrecked cars, and other urban-themed obstacles.

The Adirondack Marathon Distance Festival takes place September 22-23. This festival in Chestertown has a distance for everyone with 5k & 10 k races on Saturday, as well as marathon and half-marathon distances, including relay teams, on Sunday. Pace teams and unique carved bear awards make this a genuine Adirondack event.

Want to participate in a 200-mile race? How about 200 miles split between 6-12 team members? In the inaugural Ragnar Relay Adirondacks on September 28-29, runners will divide the race up into legs of varying distance and difficulty and run all day and night until they reach the finish line. Organizers call it a slumber party without sleep.

The ultimate autumn century ride around Lake George takes place on October 6. Peak Season Century is a challenging ride, offering a metric century as well. This is a ride not soon to be forgotten.

If you can’t decide whether to run or bike, on October 7 you can run and bike your way to the finish line at the Glens Falls Lions Club Duathlon.

Information on these and other competitive sports and endurance events can be found at http://www.visitlakegeorge.com/events/sports/race-for-fun.