Sometimes mixing two things that you like together isn’t always the best idea. Mixing peanut butter and chocolate: Yummy! Mixing rock and roll with rap: That worked well for Aerosmith and Run-DMC. Running is an amazing activity with many benefits. And who doesn’t like donuts? But mixing the two together? Well, that’s what me and thousands of other runners did last month as we took part in the Krispy Kreme Challenge.
You can tell by the history of the Krispy Kreme Challenge that it began with a few bored cross country runners at North Carolina State University. One blurts out, “Hey, let’s run to Krispy Kreme, eat a dozen donuts, and run back.” Somewhere along the line, more people thought this was a good idea. But now this poor judgment has turned into a significant fundraiser for the North Carolina Children’s Hospital, raising over $100,000 annually and a total of $1.8 million for the hospital. Since it’s for a good cause, I might as well do it, right?
This race “epitomizes the test of physical fitness and gastrointestinal strength.” In this race, runners have the option of being a challenger and eating the donuts or a casual runner who picks up their donuts and carries the box back to the finish line in order to leisurely enjoy them at a more socially acceptable time and eating pace. You also have the option to be a no-donut runner, but what fun would that be to not test your gastrointestinal fortitude?
My wife and I flew down to stay with a friend in North Carolina. She was the smart one. She watched the poor judgement happen. Within the first 20 runners to finish, she saw three “reversals of fortunes,” which I’m sure is how she wanted to spend her Saturday morning. Overall, she enjoyed the vibe and energy of the race.
The morning was a little chilly but the crowd was full of energy near the start line. This was different than a typical race as there were many runners decked out in costumes. Some were dressed as donuts, some dressed as Dr. Seuss characters, and there was a group of about 15 runners who were dressed up as pink elephants. Because when else would you and 14 of your friends be able to dress up in an elephant costume to mess with people’s minds?
The race began. I was feeling pretty good and running faster than I thought I would. I had to laugh as I saw five or six runners wearing the $250 Nike Vaporfly Next% shoes — the same ones elite marathoners wear to break records. The thing about these “super shoes” is that they are only good for 50-100 miles before they lose their efficiency. Wasting five of those miles on a donut race? Hey, whatever floats your boat.
Shortly after the 2-mile mark is when the real challenge started. I was given a box of a dozen Krispy Kreme donuts and then jogged to the “eating area.” Unfortunately because it was cold, the glaze on the donuts was crusted over. These were a little more difficult to eat than the melt-in-your-mouth warm glazed donuts. The challenge was on!
After the 2-mile mark, Doug Schunk got his box of Krispy Kreme donuts.
I witnessed various techniques for eating donuts. The guy beside me took six of the donuts, smushed them together, and started eating. Another guy broke his donuts up into smaller pieces and placed them into small cups of water. I didn’t want to see how his strategy of drinking water-logged donut glaze soup played out. My strategy was to take three donuts at a time, smush them together, dunk the donuts into a cup of water and then eat it. I came up with this strategy from my years of watching competitive eaters in the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest. I knew dunking bread in water makes it easier to throw it down the gullet. I don’t think I’ll ever crave the taste of watery glazed donuts, but it certainly made it easier to chew. Here’s a look at my technique:
Surprisingly, I felt pretty good at the halfway point. The sugar overdose didn’t really hit me until after nine donuts. It was at that point that I realized that this was a very bad idea. I powered through the last three-donut sandwich, jogged to the exit of the eating area, showed the judge my empty box of donuts and I was off to finish the run. Total time to eat the donuts: six minutes!
On the way back I was ready to be slow and in lots of discomfort. Somehow I was running at a fairly good clip. I was even passing runners who were carrying their box of donuts with them.
I finished with a respectable 38:22, good enough for 38th out of 1,711 runners who completed the challenge. Afterwards I didn’t feel too bad. I can’t say that for all of the challenger runners as there were a few “reversals of fortunes” near the finish line. For me, just seeing someone eating a donut made me feel half sick.
Running and eating was certainly a unique combination. I’m a little surprised that something like this race hasn’t happened around State College. I recall there being a donut race out in Bellefonte a few years ago but that only happened once. Maybe someone could organize a food race around here. The Grilled Stickies 5k? The Creamery or Meyer Dairy Ice Cream Dash? Hmmm….
Race Calendar
There is a lack of races in the greater State College area in March. If you are interested in group runs, join the Nittany Valley Running Club Google Group. Information on joining the group can be found here nvrun.com/index.php/community/discussion.
3/14 8:30 a.m. – Joshua House St. Patrick’s Day 5k and 10k – Tyrone, PA
Wear all of your green and enjoy running around the streets of Tyrone. This race starts and finishes at the Tyrone Armory. https://www.joshuahouse.com/races
