Krispy Kreme Challenge

This past weekend I attended the Krispy Kreme Challenge, an event in Raleigh which has become an extremely popular tradition in a very short time. Founded by NCSU students in 2004, the race had 12 runners the first year. This year there were 5,519!

Crowds near starting line

The Challenge can be summed up as this: “Run. Eat doughnuts. Run more.” More specifically, runners start at the NCSU Belltower, run 2 miles to the Krispy Kreme on Person and Peace Streets, eat a dozen glazed donuts, and then run the 2 miles back to the Belltower…all in under an hour. The annual event benefits the North Carolina Children’s Hospital and, while not officially affiliated with Krispy Kreme, the store supports the event by producing 1/3 ton of sweet and airy glazed breakfast goodies for challengers to consume on the day of the race.

Runners eating donuts

Many of the racers came in costume; I saw superheroes, a gorilla, Elvis, swimmers, fairytale characters, doughnut- and coffee-people, Dr. Seuss characters, and Santa, as well as people running with kids, pets, strollers, and shopping carts. Some of the materials from the event (including a Krispy Kreme hat!) will be added to the NCC’s Local Ephemera Collection.

Dressed as Superheroes