With over 7,700 runners from across the state, the eighth annual Krispy Kreme Challenge raised over $120,000 for the North Carolina Children’s Hospital.
NCSU volunteers arrived at the downtown Raleigh Krispy Kreme at 6:30 a.m . Saturday morning to begin setting up for the race. Members of Student Government, the Alpha Phi Omega fraternity and the Omega Phi Alpha sorority loaded thousands of donut boxes onto tables, filled water cups and lined up to greet runners.
Among early volunteers were a myriad of police officers, including Lieutenant Donna Bean of the Raleigh Police Department.
“The biggest challenge on race day is making sure the traffic is set up for the race route, and we do a great job of that,” Bean said.
Bean, who headed the police officers’ tasks on Saturday’s race and others prior, said that there aren’t too many issues that come up during the event.
“We use police officer volunteers for the race route and we ensure the safety of the runners during the event,” Bean said. “Everything has been fine in terms of medical emergencies. Nothing major has happened.”
During this year’s race, the police department kept their tradition of safety, aside from a few expected incidents, like runners vomiting after consuming a dozen donuts. For N.C . State graduate Wade Paro , that was an aspect he was almost looking forward to.
“I’m here to support one of my friends who’s been running the Krispy Kreme Challenge for several years now,” Paro said. “I’m excited to see my friend run and sweat his butt off, then eat a dozen donuts like an animal, and hopefully run away without losing it.”
Chris Miller, Paro’s friend in the race, is also an N.C . State graduate who has been running for several years.
“He’s very good and to date, he has not lost his stuff,” Paro said.
When the race began at 8:30 a.m . “losing it” didn’t seem to be on anyone’s mind. Runners stormed through the streets, grabbed their box of one dozen original glazed donuts, and headed to the water stands to stuff themselves and run the rest of the race.
Among the runners were mainly N.C . State students, but also a noticeably diverse crowd. From mothers running with strollers, to older couples strolling hand in hand, and even a group of students from other UNC system schools, the Krispy Kreme Challenge seemed to break all traditional loyalties and unite the community in giving back.
Emma Barber, a sophomore in chemical engineering, stopped at 9:00 a.m . to begin eating her donuts. Emma, who ran her third Krispy Kreme Challenge Saturday, says she’s giving herself a “three donut curve.”
“My first year I ate three, last year I ate six, and I’m hoping I can finish nine this time,” Barber said.
Resting for a few minutes to meet up with some friends, Barber was able to finish nine donuts. Though she handed the rest of her box to a volunteer, she claimed that next year, she plans to eat an entire dozen.
When the race ended, volunteers stayed to clean the donut-filled streets so police could reopen them to the public. Among the trash were a surprising number of very full donut boxes, but also the remnants of some brave, but failed, attempts to digest 2,400 calories worth of hot doughnuts.
