Georgia
Georgia Tech student becomes youngest to complete Ultraman Florida
ATLANTA – A Georgia Tech sophomore has made history after competing in one of the toughest challenges in the country.
Second-year biomedical engineering student Jacob Beldick is now the youngest person to complete Ultraman Florida – a three-day, 320-mile challenge that tested him to his limits.
Local perspective:
The triathlon almost forced Beldick to give up. Instead, he doubled down, and now he’s sharing his message of perseverance and resilience.
“When I crossed the finish line, it was actually a really different experience than what I thought it was gonna be,” Beldick told Good Day Atlanta.
He called the race one of the most intense experiences of his life.
On the first day of the triathlon, participants hit the lake for a six-mile swim.
Beldick trained for this in the pool at Georgia Tech’s recreation center, but he wasn’t expecting how strong the winds would be on competition day.
“I’m getting thrown around by the waves,” he said. “It was crazy.”
He ended up swimming eight miles, then he still had 90 more to go on his bike.
Jacob Beldick on his bike. (Courtesy of Jacob Beldick)
On day two, Beldick got back on the bike for 261 miles. That’s when fate threw a curveball.
“Around mile 85 of the bike, I ended up getting a flat tire and noticed that the saddle for my bike had broken,” he said.
And that’s not all.
“I was having just extreme lower back pain,” he said. “The best way I found to describe it would be imagining if someone took a power drill and dug it into your lower spine.”
Dig deeper:
As a beginner, Beldick didn’t have an official team behind him – just the love and support from his mom and dad, who also had no experience with such an intense race.
But Beldick said he found help along the way.
“They were fully prepared to do the entire three days just helping me out, but we got lucky, and a couple down there that’s been very involved in Ultraman ended up helping us on Day 2 and 3. They realized my parents were getting me to the finish line, but they were struggling a bit just with the logistics.”
After all the adversity, Beldick survived and moved on to the double marathon on the third day.
It took him a little over 11 hours to run the 52.4-mile course.
It may seem impossible to some, but Beldick had months and months of training to pull from.
“Around this track, I did a lot of running. Two to four hours was generally my sweet spot,” he told Good Day at Georgia Tech. “My shorter training days were around the 10-12 mile mark, and then my longer days would go over a marathon distance.”
The sophomore challenged his mind, too.
“A lot of that had to do with mastering my thought process. While I was actually in the training sessions, I would stimulate exercises where I wouldn’t have access to water for a bit, or I might not have access to my nutrition all the time. Maybe I’d run out of electrolytes and have to go a few miles before I catch up with my crew.”
What’s next:
After all of the ups and downs, the moment came. Beldick raised his arms in victory as he crossed the finish line. His total time was 35 hours, 17 minutes, and 20 seconds.
Beldick’s total time was 35 hours, 17 minutes, and 20 seconds. (Courtesy of Jacob Beldick)
But for him, that wasn’t the ultimate reward.
“When someone is trying to achieve something great, the actual reward for getting there isn’t the actual reward,” he said. “The real reward lies in the type of person they become by putting themselves through that challenge.”
It was a double celebration for Beldick after finishing the race. He turned 20 years old the day after the competition.
He’s now qualified for Ultraman Hawaii but he doesn’t have plans to compete. Instead, he is thinking about doing a 100-mile race to raise money and awareness for Save a Child’s Heart, a charity that helps underprivileged children get access to treatments for various heart conditions.
The Source: Good Day’s Michael Addison reported this story out of Atlanta.
Top 10 overlooked cruise packing items before you sail
Packing for a cruise made easy with 10 overlooked essentials and smart boarding day tips to help you stay organized and stress-free.
It can be hard to find a truly unique experience for your next vacation. That’s where Travel + Leisure comes in.
Back in May, members of the publication’s team created a list in celebration of America’s 250th Fourth of July, highlighting a unique experience in each state “from hidden gems to iconic highlights and editor-approved favorites.”
Find vacation discounts with Groupon
Most unique experience in Georgia
The Georgia spot highlighted was the World of Quercus. Here’s what writer Lydia Mansel said about it:
“The 3,800-acre property, dotted with pecan groves and cabins, isn’t your run-of-the-mill retreat. Guests are encouraged to roam the land by golf cart or on foot, visit the biodynamic vegetable garden, fish the Flint River, and connect with the ranch’s horses. Owned by Chiara Visconti di Modrone and her husband Angelos Pervanas, Quercus is a place where relaxation comes in many forms—and you can design your experience to fit your pace and preferences.”
Where is Quercus?
Quercus is in Gay at 208 Caldwell St. It’s about 30 miles east of LaGrange and over 50 miles south of Atlanta.
How much is Quercus per night?
The Sylva, Ember, and Cypress cabins are $2,700 per night. The Naya cabin is $4,500 per night.
Unique experiences in the South
- Alabama: Freedom Monument Sculpture Park
- Florida: Greater Florida Everglades
- Georgia: Quercus
- Kentucky: Kentucky African American Heritage Trail
- Louisiana: New Orleans Museum of Art
- Missouri: Anheuser-Busch Brewery
- Mississippi: Vikin’s Mississippi Delta Explorer
- North Carolina: Good Hot Fish
- South Carolina: Casual Crabbing with Tia
- Tennessee: Blackberry Farm
- Virginia: Chincoteague Island
- West Virginia: New River Gorge National Park
Miguel Legoas is a Deep South Connect Team Reporter for USA Today. Find him on Instagram @miguelegoas and email at mlegoas@gannett.com.
APPLING COUNTY, Ga. (WCYB) — The co-owner of Yurezz Home Center in Greeneville has been arrested in Georgia, according to a report obtained by News 5.
Earlier this week, News 5 told you about the dealership in Greeneville that abruptly shut down last month.
This has left homeowners with partially built homes and employees without jobs.
It is not yet clear why Richard Altman was taken into custody.
This is a developing story.
Georgia
Georgia Supreme Court upholds convictions of men in deadly shooting during gas station carjacking
Two men found guilty of murdering a man while he was pumping air into his tires at a Georgia gas station will remain in prison, the Georgia Supreme Court has ruled.
Miles Chatezal Collins and Josiah Hughley, Jr. had appealed to the state’s highest court after they were found guilty of felony murder, aggravated assault, violating Georgia’s Street Gang, Terrorism and Prevention Act, and hijacking a motor vehicle, among other charges in 2025.
The men’s charges stem from a shooting on July 10, 2022, at a QuickTrip gas station in Peachtree Corners. According to the Gwinnett County District Attorney’s Office, 30-year-old Bradley Lamar Coleman had stopped at the gas station to fill up his tires when Collins, Hughley, and a third man pulled up beside him and tried to steal his Dodge Charger.
When Coleman tried to stop the men, officials say they shot him and fled the scene.
Authorities say the three men were members of the Blood gang and had tried to steal the car to increase their status.
While their first trial ended in a mistrial due to a comment by the prosecution, a jury found Collins, Hughley, and their co-defendant, David Jarrad Booker, guilty of more than a dozen charges in 2025. They were each sentenced to life plus 145 years in prison.
In Collins and Hughley’s appeal to the state Supreme Court, they argued that there was insufficient evidence to support some of the charges and that the judge in the case improperly admitted certain evidence and committed errors in instructing the jurors.
The justices’ rulings disagreed, finding that their attorneys failed to object to the supposed errors and that the two men’s claims were insufficient.
The judges also found that a claim by Hughley that his counsel failed him by not asserting that a statement made to law enforcement should have been suppressed. With those findings, the Supreme Court chose not to overrule the case, letting the convictions and sentences stand.
“We are grateful for this affirmation from the Georgia Supreme Court,” Gwinnett County District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson said. “Thanks to the incredible work of our team of trial and appellate prosecutors, and all of the staff that assisted with defending these convictions, two dangerous criminals will remain in prison.”
Booker’s appeal remains pending.
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