Panting, pushing and pain were all part of the pursuit of doughnuts in the 14th annual Krispy Kreme Challenge. On a brisk, chilly Saturday morning, instead of watching cartoons families were out donned as them instead. Spider-Man, Pokemon and Batman costumes made an appearance, ready to rise to the race-bound occasion, dressed as the heroes we all know and love. Members of the greater Triangle area and beyond, in an effort to raise money for UNC Children’s Hospital, arrived to the event ready to run, give back and push their bodies further than ever before.
Thousands of people hit the streets gunning at 8 a.m. this morning, with the sun barely shining the sky and low temperatures in the air. Before the highly anticipated race began, Liam Canard, a 16-year-old sophomore at Raleigh’s Sanderson High School, spoke under the Belltower about his intensive treatment for Hodgkin lymphoma.
“When I was 12 years old I was diagnosed with stage 3B lymphoma, which is a cancer of the lymphatic system,” Canard said. “My diagnosis meant I wouldn’t be able to go to school or play baseball, because my immune system was weakened from the treatment, but I loved playing baseball since I was 3 years old. When I was first diagnosed I asked my doctors if I could still play baseball through treatment. They said no. But, after a little bit of negotiation, I ended up playing that fall anyways.”
Canard, like many other young people, was treated at the UNC Children’s Hospital. Last year’s Krispy Kreme Challenge raised about $190,000 for the hospital, and the student-run organization has raised around $1.35 million since its start.
After the initial introductions and race warm-ups, runners spread out between Aloft hotel and the Belltower awaiting their start of this year’s 5-mile race. At the start time, the official announcement rang aloud and runners were off. The path they embarked upon was crowded with many looking to check the “Krispy Kreme Challenge” mark off their bucket lists. Faster runners weaved between the slower, jogging crowd as the mass of people headed down Hillsborough Street and into the heart of Downtown Raleigh.
In the end of the first half of the race, runners arrived at the Krispy Kreme building located at the intersection of Peace Street and Person Street, where they descended upon a field of baked glazed doughnuts. Runners quickly moved in, ready to eat the cold pastries — varying in desired doughnut consumption rates.
“I’m just trying to see how many doughnuts I can eat without throwing up,” said Elise Kacan, a second-year studying nutrition. “I think [the run] will definitely cancel out what you ate. Technically I know it won’t cancel out, but it’s [all] about as long as you can finish.”
With one goal in mind, competitors consumed their doughnuts in a true rivals style. Race participants had a wide variety of doughnut-eating techniques to make the challenge more manageable. One system in particular involved dunking doughnuts into cups of water to better fit them into one’s mouth, and then repeating this pattern with every bite. Another strategy was shoving as much dough as one possibly could into one whole-hearted chomp.
Each year the race unites different communities as one, as they partake in two very important human habits: eating and exercise, all in an effort to better the lives of children in need. Clowning costumes and doughnut-induced stomach cramps remain the highlight of this event, available to all race participants. For those looking to reap all of the benefits the Krispy Kreme Challenge has to offer, sign up for next year’s race. It’s a risk worth taking.
Jacob Miles, Kathryn Dudash and Bailey Rudd cross the finish line at the Memorial Belltower dressed as Waldo at the 14th Annual Krispy Kreme Challenge on Saturday, Feb. 3rd. Costumed or not, 2,861 runners finished this year's challenge and 74,234 runners total have completed the 5 mile run in its 14 years.
