2400 calories, 12 doughnuts, 5 miles, 1 hour. The Krispy Kreme Challenge puts runners to the ultimate test; can you finish an entire box of Krispy Kreme doughnuts under an hour while running?! Founded in 2004, the Krispy Kreme Challenge is an annual charity event that benefits the North Carolina Children's Hospital. In 2018, the fundraiser race through downtown Raleigh raised over $1.5 million.
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It Started at the Belltower
It was December 2004. About a dozen friends gathered at the North Carolina State University Memorial Belltower to run and eat a dozen donuts as a part of a college dare. Ben Gaddy, a NCSU Park Scholar sophomore, completed the race in 34 minutes, 27 seconds.
After receiving positive coverage from the campus newspaper, the event organizers decided to publicize the Krispy Kreme Challenge and turn it into a charity fundraising event for the UNC Children's Hospital. The event is still student-run today.
Not only is it a test of physical fitness; the charity race is also a test of gastrointestinal fortitude. Racers start at the Memorial Belltower and run 2.5 miles to the Krispy Kreme located at the intersection of Peace and Person Streets. There, runners attempt to eat a dozen original glazed doughnuts before heading back for a 2.5 mile run through the streets of historic downtown Raleigh.
Runners may sign up for three categories, the challenger, casual and no doughnut category. The challenger category is for runners who would like to take on the challenge and consume all dozen doughnuts and do the run in under an hour. Casual runners can consume as few or as many doughnuts as they would like, and the no doughnut category is pretty self-explanatory.
Can't make it to Raleigh? Take part in the virtual race and run your own Krispy Kreme Challenge with family and friends. According to the website, all Virtual Race participants will be shipped a medal and an official race t-shirt after the race date.
For more information please visit the Krispy Kreme Challenge website.
This article was originally published on January 30, 2020.
